The 25 Most Underrated Sitcom Characters of All Time
All they need is one scene to steal an entire episode.
Image via Complex Original
The only thing more frustrating than having a favorite series that the rest of your friends aren't up on is having a favorite television character that doesn't get his or her props. Whether the character is the pinch hitter on a sitcom that needs and deserves a bigger fanbase, or the character is a constant source of complaint from a current hit's audience, these are the characters who we appreciate for keeping us in stitches even when it seems like everyone else, audience or Emmy Committee, is laming out on them. These are the 25 Most Underrated Sitcom Characters of All Time.
Written by Frazier Tharpe (@The_SummerMan)
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25. Jonathan Turner on Boy Meets World
Played by: Anthony Tyler Quinn
Mr. Feeny had the lasting impact on the gang in terms of life lessons and such, but don't for a second discoutn Mr. Turner's contributions, especially for Shawn (Rider Strong). The Harley-riding teacher was cool, the anti-Feeny that Shawn needed to help him get his head on straight lest he live up to the world's low expectations of him.
Turner never got a proper send-off after surviving a motorcycle accident—fingers crossed for a Girl Meets World cameo?
24. Antonio on Wings
Played by: Tony Shalhoub
Before he was Monk, Tony Shalhoub was Antonio, Tom Nevers Field's resident Italian immigrant, and stranger in a strange land. Antonio spends most of the series in an endearing state of confusion toward sitcom-wacky American customs and characters, but Shalhoub steers the performance away from caricature. Antonio is just so damn nice and innocent (a rarity in today's cynical sitcoms), it's impossible not to love him.
23. Jonah Ryan on Veep
Played by: Timothy Simons
Self-important White House liaison Jonah is the guy Selina Meyer and her staff love to hate, and watching him fail at earning the respect nobody thinks he deserves has been a treat of the equally underrated HBO series these past two seasons. Keep Veep in your hearts.
22. Estelle "Mother" Winslow on Family Matters
Played by: Rosetta LeNoire
It's no wonder Carl Winslow came to be the stand-up patriarch of Family Matters—with a mother as awesome as Estelle, what choice did he have? True to the comedic grandmother trope, she's wise and street-smart to a point where she still resonated as the coolest old lady out to the Winslow kids and the viewers at home.
Her character's contributions are largely out of sight and out of mind these days but catch a re-run and you'd be surprised just how essential her presence was to the Winslow household.
21. Irwin "Skippy" Handelman on Family Ties
Played by: Marc Price
Every big man on campus needs a nerdy sidekick, and every family sitcom needs that neighbor that seems to like their house better than his or her own (except Kimmy Gibbler—no one needed her). Enter Skippy, the Screech to Alex's Zack Morris. Geeky, hapless, endearing, endowed with an unfortunate government name, Skip meets everything on the sidekick checklist, and thus deserves a place in the pantheon of great sitcom best friends. Rate this kid correctly.
20. Venus Flytrap on WKRP in Cincinatti
Played by: Tim Reid
Ubiquitous character actor Tim Reid proved why he was always so in demand on WKRP in Cincinatti, the beloved radio comedy and precursor to NewsRadio, where he had one of his longest roles (besides Sister, Sister, of course). As the resident silk-voiced soul man, Venus Flytrap is a man of funky mystery, and one of the best aspects of an entirely underrated series.
19. Agent 99 on Get Smart
Played by: Barbara Feldon
Get Smart creator Buck Henry eventually mentioned on a DVD commentary that the audience only looked for Agent 99 to be "glamorous." But playing the straight woman to the bumbling Agent 86, Barbara Feldon found room to be just as funny and essential as her leading man. She was more than just a pretty blank slate for 86 to bounce off of, and interesting in her own right, often hilariously exasperated with her boss. The character also had an air of mystery that made her more captivating—at the time, audiences were clamoring for answers to her secret identity. That's more than glamour.
18. Michael Harris on Newhart
Played by: Peter Scolari
Michael may have been one of many figments of Bob Newhart's imagination, but what a fully realized figment he was. The jittery, alliteration-loving yuppie never quite got Dick Loudon's approval but his shallow spasticness won viewers over in no time. Bonus points for having "Take Down CBS" written as his driving goal on his dry erase board, which, in today's context, is even funnier.
17. Stanley Roper on Three's Company
Played by: Norman Fell
Fell, a brilliant Jewish comic and facial-expression maker, never got an Emmy for his celebrated work on Three's Company, where he played the tough landlord of the most sexually confused living situation in '70s sitcoms. There's a clip of Fell breaking the fourth wall during a bit on the show that summarizes everything that made him great:
The way he shifts his face during the pestering from his wife is a master class in comic performance. And then he caps it all off with some warm cheesing at the camera. It lights up the screen.
16. Braxton P. Hartnabrig on The Jamie Foxx Show
Played by: Christopher B. Duncan
If The Jamie Foxx Show was the comedian's attempt to pick up where Will Smith and Fresh Prince left off, then Braxton is Jamie's de facto Carlton Banks. He's stuffy, bougie, and despite the culture clash, he and Jamie are more often partners in crime than enemies. Did we mention he's bougie? We're surprised Christopher Duncan's eyebrow didn't get stuck in that ever-judging arch. You gotta appreciate the arch.
15. Cody Lambert on Step by Step
Played by: Sasha Mitchell
The TGIF line-up's answer to The Brady Bunch also featured one of the most reliable dimwits of our generation. Every sitcom needs one and every family has one. Enter Cody Lambert, who, despite Step by Step's Wisconsin setting, talks like an idiot surfer from SoCal. His so-stupid-he's-lovable shtick proved to be such an essential part of the show's formula that he was quickly upgraded to main cast member in the second season.
14. Veronica Palmer on Better Off Ted
Played by: Portia de Rossi
If you've never seen the prematurely cancelled Better Off Ted, thank us later for giving you your Netflix Binge Watch of the Week. Ellen DeGeneres' better half is aces as the ice queen CEO of the workplace carnival that is conglomerate company Veridian Dynamics. In what could've been a fan-favorite performance (had the show continued), de Rossi's Veronica is both intimidatingly robotic and intimidatingly sexy; her on-again off-again fling with Ted is barely his idea. Thanks for the memories.
13. Ted Baxter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Played by: Ted Knight
The Mary Tyler Moore Show is one of America's most beloved sitcoms, and while its memory lives on in the form of series driven by strong women, like 30 Rock and Girls, the efforts of the grade-A supporting cast should as well. Most notably: Ted Baxter, the oblivous, self-important, self-involved anchorman on "Six O'Clock News." Picture Ron Burgundy in his fifties.
12. Buddy Lembeck on Charles in Charge
Played by: Willie Aames
All eyes were on Scott Baio for Charles in Charge, but seeing as he was never actually that funny, it was always a relief to have his best friend Buddy around to add some comedy to the situation. While not as idiotic as sitcom sidekicks tend to be, Buddy's wacky schemes and reactions were always an incentive to keep watching, and ignore your sister fawning over Baio.
11. Geoffrey on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Played by: Joseph Marcell
Smarmy butler makes snide comments about the rich family he serves behind their backs, but most of the time, to their faces. OK, so Geoffrey is far from an original character—in theory. But that performance? C'mon, he was an invaluable member of the ensemble, popping in to react to whatever fuckery Masters William and Carlton were up to at the time with killer, amazingly wry one-liners—and of course, since he's an English butler, sage advice.
After the first season the writers/Marcell loosened the British stick up Geoffrey's ass a bit, allowing him to be less composed and cut loose every now and then, leading to moments like the classic rampage he goes on when he quits. (How does a Mercedes sound?)
10. Artemis Dubois on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Played by: Artemis Pebdani
Dee once described Artemis as the sassy one in the group who "plays by her own rules." This is a gross understatement. Shameless, disgusting, and a hilarious over-sharer, the fantastically named Artemis Dubois has been one of Sunny's most clownish recurring characters for a long time now. On a series full of repugnant clowns, that's the highest compliment.
9. Thurston Howell III on Gilligan's Island
Played by: Jim Backus
At some point, sentiments like entitlement and elitism would typically wash away after posting up on a deserted island for an extended period of time, but not for a O.G. like Thurston Howell III. It's impossible not to love this guy, not when he routinely throws money around as if it still means something and possesses the swag foresight to pack an extensive wardrobe even though the boat tour only should've been three hours. Countless racks and a trunk full of fits? Thurston is clearly the flyest guy for miles.
8. Carla on Cheers
Played by: Rhea Perlman
On a show full of hilarious but profoundly lonely people, Carla was perhaps the saddest, especially after the dementia-addled Coach passed on. Of course, the spiteful waitress's defense mechanism was to use rapid-fire wisecracks and comebacks, making her the funniest sad character.
Cheers is an ensemble show, sure, but if there's one person that provided the most singular laughs, it's Carla, for her merciless burns and rage black-outs. The better to distract us from the fact that she can't keep a husband.
7. John "Pops" Williams on The Wayans Bros.
Played by: John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon is always welcome. If Marlon and Shawn never make a funny movie again, at least they gave the world a series that gave Witherspoon a home to flex all his wonderful tics, in a role that made him a hot commodity to play every black father/grandfather/uncle in movies for the next decade. He deserved it.
6. Lionel Jefferson on All in the Family
Played by: Mike Evans
Let's have a round of applause for one of the tube's first portrayals of a black man who was more educated than caricature. Lionel often played the straight man to the combined buffoonery of Archie Bunker and his dad George Jefferson. But the best part about him was the way he subverted Archie's racist comments (while generally not even being fazed much by them) by riffing on the stereotypes Archie usually associated with African-Americans.
5. Lily Tucker-Pritchett on Modern Family
Played by: Aubrey Anderson-Emmons
We really don't understand the hate here. What, did you guys expect Mitchell and Cam to carry around a silent infant for the rest of the series? It's about time for people to get used to older Lily already (and start mentally preparing yourself for older Fulgencio Joe, if you need to). She's hilariously mean, a little self-involved, and quick to son both of her older cousins when they step out of line and her dads when they get too flamboyant.
No matter what you think of Modern Family currently (it hasn't fallen off, but it's certainly yet to top its first season), one thing is undebatable: Aubrey Anderson-Emmons has solid comedic timing for a six yearold,. She's the only thing about the show that gets better by the season. This debate should've ended after she ethered Elizabeth Banks.
4. Waldo Geraldo Faldo on Family Matters
Played by: Shawn Harrison
As far as sitcom half-wits go, Waldo takes the cake, right down to his village idiot-esque name. But while other Family Matters characters could be grating, and the show itself often resorted to to nonsensical storylines, Eddie's best friend was always there to keep it grounded with his beautiful simplicity. He was consistently, and quietly, the MVP of the series, only needing to say his trademark "Wassup?" to steal scenes away from even the overpowering Steve Urkel.
3. Mr. Pitt on Seinfeld
Played by: Ian Abercrombie
When it comes to Elaine's many bosses, J. Peterman gets all the love (and rightfully so), but that praise overshadows Mr. Pitt, the resident wacko-millionaire in Elaine's life pre-Peterman. He only lasted one season but his idiosyncrasies will live on forever, and the borderline insane tasks he made Elaine do—like removing all the salt from his pretzel sticks—were among season six's greatest highlights. The almost father-daughter rapport the two shared was kind of beautiful, in it's own weird way. It's just too bad it ended with Pitt thinking Elaine and Jerry were plotting to kill him.
2. Hustle Man on Martin
Played by: Tracy Morgan
What's happening, chief?
Martin's best recurring character not played by Martin Lawrence is without a doubt Tracey Morgan's Hustle Man, with his damn near heroic hood deals for any and all services. If you want it, he got it, and if he don't got it, he's gonna get it. Of course, when the "it" is something like roasted chicken on a kebab (read: pigeons on a tree branch), most don't care to get it while the gettin's good.
1. Creed Bratton on The Office
Played by: Creed Bratton
Creed Bratton or William Charles Schneider, whatever you want to call him, was Dunder Mifflin's resident man of mystery. Not to mention, the reliable constant even when the show misstepped, as it often did. Creepy Creed usually played the background, but when he did speak up, be it to the cameras or his bemused co-workers, the results were comedy gold, in always welcome, well-paced dosages of loony-bin levity.
He always made allusions to a variety of really out-there shit (drugs, crime, murder) that still begs the question: Just what the hell was Creed up to? The fun, of course, is in not knowing.