When I say "On TV", I don't necessarily mean from a current show, although you're free to go there. Goodness knows there are plenty to choose from right now. But to contextualize, I'm not talking someone who's pretty much bad through and through, like Walter White on Breaking Bad. Though he has a redeemable quality or two, he's the a-hole who's evil, but somehow, hard to hate because of Bryan Cranston's brilliant portrayal of him. Nonetheless, he's still a bad guy that you're not supposed to like. The character I'm looking for can walk the shades of grey, or be a good guy through and through, but an a-hole at heart and in action.
While plenty come to mind for me that could fit here, there are two that stand out more than any other, and I couldn't decide between the two, so I'm going with both. It's my thread, deal with it.
I didn't discover Scrubs(pretty much because I was never looking) until its twilight years, and it was seeping onto Comedy Central and other stations with re-runs. I hated most of the characters, to be honest, but the one I liked the most is one of the biggest a-holes in TV history, for me. John C. McGinley's portrayal of Dr. Perry Cox, the Resident Director in charge of training new residents, was self-centered, egotistical, and, at times, a narcissist. He didn't want to be a friend or mentor to his proteges, as he seemingly told J.D.(Zack Braff) nearly every episode. He showed this by berating the residents, an in J.D.'s case, calling him by a different female's name every episode. But he blended being an a-hole with compassion. Most of the time, his actions and humiliation of the residents served a purpose, not personal satisfaction. He wanted his students to become better doctors, and knew that only the thick-skinned would survive in such a profession. Unlike most other a-holes, he commanded and received respect, as the main characters on the show whom he treated terribly still attempted to be his friend. It's one thing to be an a-hole, but to be one that makes you laugh and earns admiration is something of a rarity in television.
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On the other hand, my second selection comes from a show I've followed from the beginning, and pretty much could write a synopsis for every episode of all four seasons off the top of my head. So, it might seem an odd choice, but my other selection is Timothy Olyphant's Raylan Givens from Justified. Yes, Raylan is the good guy. Raylan draws lines of black and white, and for the most part, refuses to cross them. He's not the type who's "breaking bad", but he's an a-hole nonetheless. Let's take a look at some of his "finer" moments as an a-hole, shall we?
---In the series premiere, he forced a bad guy to draw on him first, so he could kill him in a "justified" manner. He did so by telling the man he'ld shoot him on site, then counting him down as if he planned to draw, essentially forcing the other man to draw first.
---Also in the series premiere, he broke in to his ex-wife's house in the middle of the night, just to talk to her. He didn't care that she had a husband, what time it was, or thought to call first. He didn't even....gasp!....realize he could wait until morning. He had to talk to her now, simply to announce his return to Kentucky, and vent to her over just shooting another man.
---He winds up sleeping with the witness to his second shooting of the series premiere, Ava Crowder, sister-in-law of Boyd, Raylan's friend/arch-nemesis, depending on the day. This, despite being ordered not to by his chief, which ultimately compromised the justification of the shooting, and allowed Boyd to be released from prison.
---After being suspended for a week( a recurring theme on the show for him), he drunkenly starts a bar fight with two men, deservingly getting his butt kicked.
---After his ex-wife left her husband, he began sleeping with her, despite the fact that he was still dating Ava.
---He constantly treats his fellow Marshall's like underlings, using them for information and often getting them into trouble to benefit his personal investigations, ones that have nothing to do with him being a Marshall.
---After knocking up his ex-wife, and they separate, he misses appointment after appointment with her doctor regarding their baby. The one he shows up for, he leaves after being there five minutes, deeming a work call more important then his soon-to-be child and the mother of his baby.
---He convinces one of his fellow Marshalls to allow him to do a prison transport himself for the man who killed his father while both were in prison. The man, a former Sheriff who tried to kill Raylan as well, was transported(and beaten) by Raylan in hopes of extracting information out of him as to who hired him to kill his father. This draws Raylan another suspension, and the Marshall who fell for his "It's a birthday present for him" line one as well.
---He argues the suspension for four straight weeks, successfully, in order to work "one last case."
---He gets almost angry when his ex-wife tells him they're having a girl, telling her, "But I don't know sh*t about girls." As though she had some say in the matter.
---In the season four finale, he successfully orchestrates an all-out mob war, while suspended, which results in one Mob killing the man challenging to lead that mob, as he hoped/knew they would. He got around the declaration from his boss that "If you go after him, don't bother coming back after your suspension is complete." So, instead, he orchestrates a Mob hit on the man.
These are just some of Raylan's finer moments, and the best part is, Raylan has zero self-awareness. He doesn't care who gets hurt or caught in the crossfire as long as he gets the bad guy. But he truly is one of the good guys, a laid-back man of action, but with enough flaws for ten men. But in the end, Raylan is doing a job he believes in, and has a moral code he doesn't deviate from. That, and he's just so much fun to watch, for me.(If you can't tell by my sig or recent name change.)
How about you, Wrestlezone guys and gals? Who's your favorite a-hole on TV, past or present? What makes them a true a-hole, but likeable nonetheless?
While plenty come to mind for me that could fit here, there are two that stand out more than any other, and I couldn't decide between the two, so I'm going with both. It's my thread, deal with it.
I didn't discover Scrubs(pretty much because I was never looking) until its twilight years, and it was seeping onto Comedy Central and other stations with re-runs. I hated most of the characters, to be honest, but the one I liked the most is one of the biggest a-holes in TV history, for me. John C. McGinley's portrayal of Dr. Perry Cox, the Resident Director in charge of training new residents, was self-centered, egotistical, and, at times, a narcissist. He didn't want to be a friend or mentor to his proteges, as he seemingly told J.D.(Zack Braff) nearly every episode. He showed this by berating the residents, an in J.D.'s case, calling him by a different female's name every episode. But he blended being an a-hole with compassion. Most of the time, his actions and humiliation of the residents served a purpose, not personal satisfaction. He wanted his students to become better doctors, and knew that only the thick-skinned would survive in such a profession. Unlike most other a-holes, he commanded and received respect, as the main characters on the show whom he treated terribly still attempted to be his friend. It's one thing to be an a-hole, but to be one that makes you laugh and earns admiration is something of a rarity in television.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the other hand, my second selection comes from a show I've followed from the beginning, and pretty much could write a synopsis for every episode of all four seasons off the top of my head. So, it might seem an odd choice, but my other selection is Timothy Olyphant's Raylan Givens from Justified. Yes, Raylan is the good guy. Raylan draws lines of black and white, and for the most part, refuses to cross them. He's not the type who's "breaking bad", but he's an a-hole nonetheless. Let's take a look at some of his "finer" moments as an a-hole, shall we?
---In the series premiere, he forced a bad guy to draw on him first, so he could kill him in a "justified" manner. He did so by telling the man he'ld shoot him on site, then counting him down as if he planned to draw, essentially forcing the other man to draw first.
---Also in the series premiere, he broke in to his ex-wife's house in the middle of the night, just to talk to her. He didn't care that she had a husband, what time it was, or thought to call first. He didn't even....gasp!....realize he could wait until morning. He had to talk to her now, simply to announce his return to Kentucky, and vent to her over just shooting another man.
---He winds up sleeping with the witness to his second shooting of the series premiere, Ava Crowder, sister-in-law of Boyd, Raylan's friend/arch-nemesis, depending on the day. This, despite being ordered not to by his chief, which ultimately compromised the justification of the shooting, and allowed Boyd to be released from prison.
---After being suspended for a week( a recurring theme on the show for him), he drunkenly starts a bar fight with two men, deservingly getting his butt kicked.
---After his ex-wife left her husband, he began sleeping with her, despite the fact that he was still dating Ava.
---He constantly treats his fellow Marshall's like underlings, using them for information and often getting them into trouble to benefit his personal investigations, ones that have nothing to do with him being a Marshall.
---After knocking up his ex-wife, and they separate, he misses appointment after appointment with her doctor regarding their baby. The one he shows up for, he leaves after being there five minutes, deeming a work call more important then his soon-to-be child and the mother of his baby.
---He convinces one of his fellow Marshalls to allow him to do a prison transport himself for the man who killed his father while both were in prison. The man, a former Sheriff who tried to kill Raylan as well, was transported(and beaten) by Raylan in hopes of extracting information out of him as to who hired him to kill his father. This draws Raylan another suspension, and the Marshall who fell for his "It's a birthday present for him" line one as well.
---He argues the suspension for four straight weeks, successfully, in order to work "one last case."
---He gets almost angry when his ex-wife tells him they're having a girl, telling her, "But I don't know sh*t about girls." As though she had some say in the matter.
---In the season four finale, he successfully orchestrates an all-out mob war, while suspended, which results in one Mob killing the man challenging to lead that mob, as he hoped/knew they would. He got around the declaration from his boss that "If you go after him, don't bother coming back after your suspension is complete." So, instead, he orchestrates a Mob hit on the man.
These are just some of Raylan's finer moments, and the best part is, Raylan has zero self-awareness. He doesn't care who gets hurt or caught in the crossfire as long as he gets the bad guy. But he truly is one of the good guys, a laid-back man of action, but with enough flaws for ten men. But in the end, Raylan is doing a job he believes in, and has a moral code he doesn't deviate from. That, and he's just so much fun to watch, for me.(If you can't tell by my sig or recent name change.)
How about you, Wrestlezone guys and gals? Who's your favorite a-hole on TV, past or present? What makes them a true a-hole, but likeable nonetheless?
