8 Underrated TV Characters (And Why You Should Love Them)

Somewhere hidden in the deep, dark abysses of fandoms, beyond the foreground where well loved characters stand tall and proud, loved and appreciated by the masses, touted by bloggers and journalists alike, there are the hidden gems of television shows — the characters who dwell in the overwhelming shadows of excellent main characters who live in the spotlight.

They are the underrated characters that we must protect and adore at all costs — and, my friends, today is the day when we give them their moment in the sun.

This is your time, sidekicks-who-don’t-get-enough-credit, main characters from lesser known series who just aren’t talked about enough — or, hey, maybe even the odd main character who just doesn’t get the recognition they deserve.

This is for you. Just a little reminder that we see you — and we love you.

Anya (Dichen Lachman) – The 100

People severely under-acknowledge just how badass Anya was. The woman ripped a tracker out of her own arm with her teeth. She was ruthless and intense without ever really seeming cold and indifferent – she still had this emotional edge to her that made her so much more real. Anya was often irritated by Clarke, frustrated by her people, infuriated by Lincoln.

And to have her killed off in the most unsatisfactory way possible was just devastating. Anya should have gone out in a blaze of glory (if killing her was necessary to further the plot) but, instead, she was taken out by some sucker-shot that was taken while she was attempting to go to Camp Jaha with Clarke to discuss an alliance with the Sky People.

What the hell, writers?

Karen Jackson (Laura Wiggins) – Shameless

We all hated Karen, alright? I was right there with all of you, getting angry, watching this girl manipulate, use, and hurt Lip – but let’s get one thing straight: Karen’s life was hell.

Her Father was a pig, her Mother was more of a child than a parent, and Karen had issues coming out of every pore. Then, to top it off, Mandy Milkovich — everyone’s sweetheart (…really?) — runs her down with a car and leaves her to die, all because she’s really, really possessive of Lip Gallagher.

Karen miraculously survives, but is left severely brain damaged. But it’s when she was in this state that we got this diamond of a scene in which she and Lip discuss their relationship and Karen tells Lip that she felt nothing for him, she couldn’t feel anything.

That line still gives me chills.

Say what you want about her, hate her (because, yeah, she was pretty easy to hate), but you can not deny that Karen Jackson was freakin’ interesting.

Poussey Washington (Samira Wiley) — Orange is the New Black

Everyone is so caught up in the Ruby Rose craze that they are failing to appreciate that we have had a perfectly good Samira Wiley right in front of us for three whole seasons now!

Where has the fandom fixation been all this time? Why is she not a media sensation? Why am I not getting article upon article reminding me how flawless this woman is?

Worship her, damn it!

Poussey for President!

Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs) — Community

When Community first started, Britta was portrayed as being the smart activist slash feminist who was far too good for skeevy Jeff Winger (Joel McHale).

However, as the seasons progressed, Britta’s activism seemed to become less genuine and more of a joke (“Haha look, she has no idea what she’s doing!”) and she got severely dumbed down. She became a caricature of a feminist, really.

So, I guess what I’m trying to say is that none of us appreciated Season 1 Britta they way we should have. Now look what happened.

Look what you did, fandom!

Sun Bak (Bae Doona) — Sense8

My Queen, my everything.

You guys, I am fully aware that I am technically a fully grown adult woman, but I totally want to be Sun Bak when I grow up.

Sun is the very definition of cool. Prison? Summer camp. One woman versus a dangerous gang of murderous men with machetes and machine guns? That’s cute. Four trained guards? That’s child’s play for Queen Sun. At least give the woman a challenge, people.

Her physical badassery aside, Sun is intelligent and selfless. In addition to being a high skilled fighter, she is an astute businesswoman and despite the atrocious way her Father and Brother have treated her, Sun still agrees to take the fall for her weasel of a brother so that her Father’s company might survive the blow of a financial scandal — and, really, part of her does this to prove a point: that her Father’s faith in his son based solely on his gender was horribly misplaced.

And, man, was she ever right.

Always bet on Sun.

 

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