10 Good TV Shows With Boring Lead Characters

It's a good thing their far more interesting supporting cast members could, you know, support them.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

With tonight's season finale of the hit Fox sitcom New Girl, we've finally realized just how much we’re going to miss Nick (Jake Johnson), Schmidt (Max Greenfield), Winston (Lamorne Morris), and Cece (Hannah Simone). And wait, what did you just say? What about Jess? Who is… Oh, yeah. Jess. The main character. Played by Zooey Deschanel. Yeah, we’re not going to miss her at all. She’s the least interesting person on the whole show.

Why do we say that? Well, it’s simple. With Nick’s chronic poverty and neurosis, Winston’s strange viewpoint of the world, Cece’s transformation from stuck-up model to lovable girlfriend, and Schmidt’s out-of-nowhere, show-stealing likability, Jess seems to stick out as the annoying, hipster girl you wouldn’t want to invite to the party. You’d be afraid that her “adorkablility” would turn everything all weird and annoying. In short, she’s the least likeable person to watch on New Girl. If she was gone, the show wouldn’t suffer for it. They could go on quite well without her.

But here’s the thing: This isn’t a phenomenon that’s only related to New Girl. There are actually quite a few great shows with boring lead characters. Here are ten examples. 

RELATED: Green Label - 20 Most Stylish TV Characters of All Time

Written by Rich Knight

Follow @ComplexPopCult

10. Hank Hill on King of the Hill

Not Available Interstitial

9. Meredith Grey on Grey’s Anatomy

Not Available Interstitial

8. Cleveland Brown on The Cleveland Show

Not Available Interstitial

7. Angela Chase on My So-Called Life

Not Available Interstitial

6. Michael Bluth on Arrested Development

Not Available Interstitial

5. Malcolm on Malcolm in the Middle

Not Available Interstitial

4. Sookie Stackhouse on True Blood

Not Available Interstitial

3. Captain Planet on Captain Planet and the Planeteers

Not Available Interstitial

2. Miss Carrie Bliss on Good Morning, Miss Bliss

Not Available Interstitial

1. Vincent Chase on Entourage

Not Available Interstitial

Latest in Pop Culture