Favorite TV characters: part 1

At first, I wrote top 5 and then I thought I’m definitely NOT able to name just 5 – so I made it into 10 and categorized it as main male characters (supporting characters will have their own list as well as two female top 10 lists – long feature thing for September) which also means more reading for you – isn’t this just the best news you have heard this week?

PS: Making this list  has been one of the most difficult things I have ever done – seriously, it was like trying to pick between dozens and dozens of kittens!

Following my last list that I posted on Wild Wednesday (way way back in July) I gave this one much more thought because it was really difficult to come up with my favorite male characters (there are so many of them) and then put them into an order of some sorts. Therefore I’m gonna say right up front, the order is not necessarily set in stone – my moods change and love for shows/characters changes but this will be the top 10 of my current mind set. Also, to clarify this a bit, I didn’t want to pick no more than one character from one specific show – other wise it would have been impossible to form a list of some sorts – I’m telling you, I love my shows and my characters!

Those who almost made it to the list:

Jim Harper from The Newsroom, Walter Bishop from Fringe, Phil Dunphy from Modern Family, Dean Winchester from Supernatural and Dexter Morgan from Dexter.

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I took some inspiration from Film Flare making these quotes cause she has an awesome blog. Which I’ve mentioned many times already.

Ian Gallagher in Shameless

Portrayed by Cameron Monaghan

The reason he looks like a kid in these images is because he technically was a kid when Monaghan took this role to be a part of a non-functioning family as a gay boy. I should stress this in the beginning, great characters are partly made by great actors so it is obvious I’m praising this young ginger as well. As for Ian Gallagher, he is just a delightful kid who seems to be the most focused in his life but at the same time, he seems to get into a lot of grown-up trouble (starting an affair with a married man, liking a closeted guy, starting an affair with a married man vol 2). Sure, I like him slightly because of his gay plot line but I also like how grounded he is as a young teenager – in Shameless that is kind of a rare thing. Out of the whole Shameless gang, he is by far my favorite because he hasn’t f*cked up so many things and I wanted to praise Ian and Cameron by adding him to the list – he does posses a lot of raw talent.

Eric Northman in True Blood

Portrayed by Alexander Skarsgard

I had almost given up on this character during the last season of True Blood but the finale changed my mind completely. Finally, the true Eric Northman was back to save the day and prove that he is far better than that Bill guy who is now even worse than before. Though, I still considered long and hard if this “bad boy vampire turned into a good vampire” should be Damon or Eric but finally, the viking won (symbolically correct cause I’m in Sweden and all). Eric Northman has values and principles, at first he tries hard to show how tough and hardcore he is but then he softens and gets all sarcastic and fun and lets be honest, naked. Since vampire movies and shows have a tendency to have the whole pick-a-team thing going on, it is certain that I’ve been team Eric since the show began. He as a character has probably the most depth and I like that about him a lot. Not to mention the fact that he’s tall and you know… tall.

Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory

Portrayed by Jim Parsons

Continuing with one of the most funniest man on TV, more specifically in the cool-nerd-category which for me it is best represented by the award winning Jim Parsons with his eccentric character Sheldon Cooper. There is no apparent reason why anyone in the world would love Sheldon. He is annoying, he has too many weird habits and rules, he says what’s on his mind which usually is insulting and rude, has no people skills, not to mention his contracts. Yet, Sheldon is one of the funniest and most likable characters on TV comedies with whom you never get bored. While other TBBT characters tend to give you the same note each week, Sheldon has surprises up in his sleeve and seeing him out of his element (high on coffee or drunk) is refreshing enough for him to be on this list probably forever.

Dr. Spencer Reid in Criminal Minds

Portrayed by Matthew Gray Gubler

I absolutely love Criminal Minds and when it comes to my favorite character, well, it should be obvious by now that I like the weird and quirky ones, so Dr. Spencer Reid is the clear winner. He is basically a genius and the youngest member of the team but since the show focuses on so many characters, seeing him in the spot light is rather rare. Still, his parts are always the best and when an entire episode focuses on him, it is even more amazing. It is quite difficult to talk a lot about him as a character because Criminal Mind has this interesting balance between personal life and the crimes they solve (unusual and refreshing I might add) and therefore we don’t know much about him except that his mother is sick and he has no love life what so ever. Still, he is the one that everybody in the team looks after and he especially cute with JJ.

Chandler Bing in Friends

Portrayed by Matthew Perry

Another Matthew but this time from the timeless Friends playing the sarcastic Chandler Bing. It isn’t hard to pick my favorite from Friends because it has always been Chandler who I feel the closest to, always trying to ease the moments with humor, using sarcasm and basically being unlucky in love like always (except Monica of course) but it was hard to put him in into this order. I guess he is just close to my heart but I’m starting to forget him as a character which is never a good sign. Years before he would have been in my top 3 but as times go on, Chandler and his humor is fading and there is some fresh sarcasm on TV (who actually in the top 3) but Mr. Bing is still is remembered but not enjoyed as much as during he 10 year run of Friends.

Neal Caffrey in White Collar

Portrayed by Matt Bomer

Who wouldn’t love an intelligent good-bad guy who looks extremely handsome in a suit? Well I have no idea, so it is probably not as surprising that Neal Caffrey made it into the list and let me tell you, he didn’t steal his place from anyone! I discovered him this summer, being slow as I am, it was about time to meet this series and not to mention Neal. What I actually like about him is the fact that he isn’t completely innocent and still does something naughty/illegal time after time. Makes his character unpredictable and even more interesting than he comes across on the screen in the first place. There is no way I can summarize Neal in one short paragraph so I will end up saying that Matt Bomer is a handsome man and I can’t think of anybody more suited for this charismatic character.

Harvey Specter in Suits

Portrayed by Gabriel Macht

I mean, are there any other reasons other than that smile to describe this character who is smart, witty and incredibly nerdy when it comes to movies and collecting things. This summer and the previous one wouldn’t have been nothing without this man, Harvey Specter, the best closer in down who also happens to have best people around him. I like how his character has two very different sides, one all serious and focused on work, the other the more relaxed and fun – that side we sadly don’t see as often if you count out that last episode of season 2 which was just too awesome! Mysterious thing about Harvey is the fact that I have no idea where he is going, I get that he is successful at work but everything else is kind of unknown – so I have no idea where Harvey might end up. Plus, since he is so secretive, there is so much room to wonder about him – which is something I do time after time.

Stiles Stilinski in Teen Wolf

Portrayed by Dylan O’Brien

It was a special moment when Stiles Stilinski entered my life with his sarcastic and comedic flare during the summer season in a very surprising MTV series Teen Wolf. I have become obsessed with this show and mostly because it features this amazing character which is like the teenage version of Chandler Bing. I have to give a lot of that credit for the writers of course but I feel like it is all Dylan O’Brien because I’ve seen his interviews which have Stiles’ vibe written all over them. Some characters are written great but some are a perfect combination of an actor and his role – in this case I feel like it is the last of those two. Stiles is sweet, caring, sarcastic, funny and very opened when it comes to showing his emotions. Plus, as it turns out, he is opened to not only one but two genders but that is something that is for the future as the creator of Teen Wolf Jeff Davis said. Though, the fact kind of proves how refreshing this character is to TV-series and the era of the opened mind – as I’m enthusiastic about seeing this kind of sexual preference unfold on screen.

Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock

Portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch

There is no doubt about it that Sherlock Holmes in general is one of the most popular detectives out there. He has been in literary works and movies, TV-series and it was just about time that he made it to the 21st century. This Sherlock is probably one of my favorites, although I love Robert Downey Jr, his portrayal of Sherlock falls short next to Cumberbatch who makes the famous detective even more awesome. Sadly, I have to admit that a lot of the credit for this character should go to the creator and writers, because the fact that he is put into the modern time, makes him a lot more interesting and intriguing than the character of Holmes previously. Since I listed him and Watson number one in my crime solving duo Top 5, I felt bad that I had to leave him to second place. Mostly because while he does look like Sherlock and act like Sherlock, he doesn’t raise as many emotions as does the number one in this category. He is the weird genius who I like and sometimes even love to bits and pieces but as I will explain soon, the fear of Sherlock is not present. He is still amazing though, and will stay like that for a long time.

Walter White in Breaking Bad

Portrayed by Bryan Cranston

At first, when we are introduced to this character, he seems very out of his element but as time goes on, it seems as if he is the element himself. Walter White starts off as a family man suffering from a terrible illness and ends up causing the most unthinkable things around himself, mostly not on purpose but sometimes making things happen being completely aware of the consequences. The moment he shaves his head, he becomes the dark man I was scared of (the conflict in him and in me made him stand out and become number one) but I still found myself rooting for him. Complex, deep, multidimensional, scary and humble, smart and in some ways naive, brave and then again afraid – Bryan Cranston takes on the character of this century and does it in a way that Walter becomes partly real. Though I didn’t watch Breaking Bad at first, I did find my way back to it and now, as I’ve seen the character grow and develop, I appreciate Walter White very much. Honestly, he still scares me sometimes but in a bad/good way – it is hard to explain but I think he just has that quality to himself, to be scary but not scary enough to not watch the show.