Top Tens, Television
A while ago, 12_12_12 (and several others) made top ten television character and pairings lists, and I promised that I would do the same. And so, here it is. (Another of these is coming, this time with characters from books, yay! That's why there are no Game of Thrones characters on this list.) I admit that this probably isn't an entirely accurate representation of my favorite characters ever - but these are my favorites at this exact moment, so take that as you will. These are listed in alphabetical order, and I've included honorable mentions because I can.
Ladies
1. Princess Aurora (Once Upon a Time)
It's possible that the Sarah Bolger of Aurora clouded my judgment, but I was immediately absorbed in Once's version of her story. I loved that she was allowed to be brave and maintain her agency while she was partnered up with Mulan (who is such a fierce character on her own) and tagging along with Snow and Emma, but she was still very much a Pretty Princess in line with the Disney original. She's had really great moments with Phillip, Mulan, Hook, Snow, and Henry, and my biggest disappointment with season two's back half was the distinct lack of the Mulan/Aurora adventure.
2. Rachel Berry (Glee)
They can say that Glee is about the glee club all they want: This show is about Rachel Berry. Talented and socially awkward and so driven it makes your teeth hurt, yes, but Rachel is not selfish. Self-absorbed and often self-serving, but Rachel is also deeply kind and willing to make sacrifices for those that she cares about. And remembering that this is a musical, I have to say that no other character on this show hits me where it hurts with the musical numbers the way that Rachel does; I still get goosebumps whenever I hear her version of "Don't Rain on My Parade", and more recently, her "Don't Stop Believin'" audition brought tears to my eyes. (Her "Make You Feel My Love" broke my heart, though to be fair, I'm not sure how much of that was Lea Michele and how much was Rachel. I don't think that it matters.)
3. Brooke Davis (One Tree Hill)
I know she's kind of a classic mean-girl-with-a-heart, but Brooke's insecurities and her deep down kindness are the things that always sold me on her, and more than the other girls, I felt like we really got to watch Brooke grow up. (Admittedly, I stopped watching after season six; maybe it was season six? I'm not actually sure how many seasons OTH aired, to be honest.) The best frenemies story is hardly new, but I like her relationship with Peyton, particularly when their conflicts were about them rather than about Lucas. I always found myself rooting for Brooke.
4. Caroline Forbes (The Vampire Diaries)
Neurotic and insecure and controlling and endlessly charming - I just love Caroline. I love how her control issues are actually a strength for her as a vampire (Ripper!Caroline is definitely not a thing), and how despite being an immortal being, she is still concerned with things like grades and prom and her duties as Miss Mystic Falls. I love how she's learning the sort of social politics that Elena is so good at, and I love that even though she sees through Klaus, she still finds his attentions flattering. And I love that she's still able to trust and love people - like Tyler - when she would have every reason not to.
5. Lorelai Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)
Lorelai has the sort of pride that I identify with so strongly; everything she has, she has worked hard to earn, despite the fact that she might have taken the "easy" way out. And her reasoning for not taking that easy way wasn't just that she had something to prove, but that she knew it wouldn't make her happy. That sort of risk requires such bravery, and I can't help but admire that. Still, Lorelai is far from perfect. She is sometimes selfish and self-destructive and judgmental, things that make her deeply real to me.
One of my favorite Lorelai scenes is when she's sitting with Luke, asking him for a loan for the Dragonfly, crying about how everything is right on the edge of falling apart, and admitting that sometimes she wishes that she wasn't doing it alone. It's so lovely and honest and it gets me every time. It's that Lorelai that I love so much.
6. Piper Halliwell (Charmed)
Piper wanted very simple things and was given very serious, big responsibilities instead. Seeing her balance all of those supernatural responsibilities with finding love (which of course had to be as complicated as possible) and building her career was deeply compelling. She got the most "traditional" story, but it never felt boring, and even though I didn't necessarily identify with that struggle, I never stopped rooting for her. And, okay, going from freezing stuff to blowing it up was particularly cool.
7. Topanga Lawrence (Boy Meets World)
For me, Topanga was the original "smart girl," and I think that her character was part of what made me feel okay with being the smart girl myself. She was never shamed for being the smart girl, and it never felt like she deferred her dreams for Cory (though she did consider him when she made decisions, which I also think is valid). Even though she was there as a supporting character, she always had her own story and her own personality, and I loved it.
8. Veronica Mars (Veronica Mars)
There isn't anything I can say about this character or this show that hasn't been said a million times, but I love Veronica. I am so here for grief-driven stories and characters (I may have a bit of a preoccupation with death and grief narratives), and for two seasons she is very much ruled by grief and survivor's guilt in a way that I find deeply interesting. She's prickly and mean and defensive with issues on top of issues and I love her.
9 . Katherine Pierce (The Vampire Diaries)
The consummate survivor and our first introduction to the concept of the doppelganger and the show that is no all about the doppelgangers. Ruthless and cunning and really just smarter than everyone else, tbh. I love how she manipulated her way to vampirism and managed to stay ahead of Klaus forever, and I love how she's relearning all of her "soft" skills now that she's human again. (Awards for Nina Dobrev and her face go here as well, because good job.)
10. Ruby (Once Upon a Time)
Red Riding Hood as her own big bad wolf? Yes, please. Ugh, it's just so good, and I'm sad that Meghan Ory has left the show because Ruby episodes were always so great. Red's friendship with Snow in the Enchanted Forest was great, and how they became family after she met her mother. And really, there wasn't a single person Ruby interacted with that I wasn't all about: David, Belle, Emma, Henry - I wanted it all, plus Graham returned from the grave, please. One of my favorite details was the way that the show made Ruby so overtly sexual in the beginning given the origin of the Red Riding Hood story.
Honorable Mentions: Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls) for being complex and wonderful; Anne Boleyn (The Tudors) for having depth that historical accounts don't always give her, for making me fall in love with her, and for Natalie Dormer; Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl, S1-2) for unapologetically going after what she wanted; Santana Lopez (Glee) for being a tertiary character I grew to love, and then hated a little bit, and am now beginning to love again; Parker (Leverage) for being wonderfully atypical; Annie Walker (Covert Affairs) for kicking ass and being smarter than everyone else - but not all the time; Mulan (Once Upon a Time) for being fierce and loyal and loving.
Gentlemen
1. Sheriff Graham (Once Upon a Time)
He's such an atypical male character, given two very masculine roles (as a hunter and a law enforcement officer) that are juxtaposed by a really pronounced sensitivity and softness, even more than you would have expected from the Huntsman, already a character you're inclined to sympathize with. I suppose I understand why they chose to kill the character when they did, but I'll always think that he died too soon because I wanted so much more from him. And let's be honest: It doesn't suck to look at Jamie Dornan.
2. Finn Hudson (Glee)
There aren't a lot of things about Finn as a character that we haven't seen countless times before, but that doesn't diminish my enjoyment of him. While I think that the show failed the character from time to time (more than once making his/the narrative's intentions unclear in a way that changed the story drastically), I still believe that Finn was essentially a good kid who was still growing up. His mistakes were believable and therefore sympathetic, and even though his character is the sort that always comes out on top, I was still rooting for him.
As a disclaimer, I feel like I should mention that Finn wasn't in my original top ten, a list that was made outside of the immediate influence of Cory Monteith's death. I have no doubt that I'm being influenced by that now, and by all of the potential character growth that was lost along with that person who seems like he was such a genuinely lovely human being. And really, that makes Finn's story that much more realistic; not everyone gets the chance to fix all of their mistakes and become the person they were always meant to be, because not everyone gets to grow up. That his character remains unfinished and imperfect is so true to life that it hurts my heart.
3. Steven Hyde (That '70s Show)
This is where the theme of my male characters begins: He's the delinquent with the heart of gold, the guy who is smarter than he appears, the good guy pretending to be a dick. It's a type that I like. I suppose I'm easy. *shrug* This is a sitcom, and he makes me laugh more than any of the other boys while not just being a joke (like Kelso).
4. Jefferson (Once Upon a Time)
My favorite bit with him is when he says that people want easy solutions to their problems, but refuse to believe in magic. He's presented to us as this deranged guy when he's really the only person in Storybrooke who has known the truth the entire time - and yeah, that's enough to drive anybody a little mad. I'm also a huge fan of a morally ambiguous character, which he definitely becomes (helping Regina and Rumple on one hand, and being desperate to be with his daughter on the other), and this show is good at casting boys I like lookin' at.
5. Tyler Lockwood (The Vampire Diaries)
When I came to the show in mid-season three, I was spoiled all to hell. I knew Tyler was a werewolf and wound up dating Caroline, and I thought they were cute, but I was never really invested in Tyler in his own right until season four, when his arc really started to make itself apparent in its awesomeness. In hindsight, I can see his claiming of his agency while resisting leadership positions, his refusal to take part in the politics of Mystic Falls (like his father) unless he absolutely has to, and his growth from an unhealthy reliance on Caroline to something that is much more of an equal partnership, despite the messiness of werewolves and vampires and hybrids and their loyalties being divided between their friends. Tyler and Ruby came along at about the same time for me, and now I'm sold on the beauty of the werewolf narrative, yay!
6. Jess Mariano (Gilmore Girls)
Bless this show for allowing Jess to be his own character with his own story even though he was really there to further Rory's story. (And Luke's, yes, but really, Rory's.) One of my favorite things is how his guest appearances in later seasons never felt like stunts, but like they were moments that really belonged not just in Rory's life, to drive her story forward, but as part of his. I loved seeing Jess go from a reader to a writer, and I really liked the way that his relationships with both Liz and Luke were explored.
7. Noah Puckerman (Glee)
I'm probably projecting some of my own fabrications about Puck onto the canon character; I have written thousands and thousands of words of fic about him. But I've always felt that there's just so much unexplored potential with Puck as a character, even with the obvious questions of how a guy who really does care about his best friend (because I believe that he did) sleeps with said best friend's girlfriend (consequences of that notwithstanding). I like Puck's quieter moments the best: baking with Quinn, talking in Rachel's room, with Beiste in the locker room, etc.
8. Schmidt (New Girl)
How is this obnoxious asshole my favorite? I don't know, but he is. The ridiculous shit that comes out of his mouth makes me laugh, but then he goes ahead and says something sincere about how he loves his friends or is legitimately falling for this girl, and I just want to squeeze his face.
9. Jesse St. James (Glee)
I really was going to try not to choose multiple characters from the same show, but fuck it. I love Jesse St. James. I love his over-inflated ego and how he got knocked down so far by his own hubris (at least that's how I think it went). I love his dramatics and his bravado, and how obviously false that bravado is when he returns in season two. I like how you can't always tell when he's being sincere, but that there are moments when you're so sure that he is that it melts your heart. Also, "Bohemian Rhapsody."
10. Cole Turner (Charmed)
He's evil! He's half-human! He's in love with a Charmed One! Ugh, Cole's struggles with his humanity and his desire for power - and how that power was always going to come from and lead to evil - never failed to entertain me. And in a weird way, even though I knew he was evil, I was always rooting for Cole? And even though I shipped Cole/Phoebe like crazy, some of my favorite stuff of his was actually with Piper (that episode where she's mostly dead or whatever and he's the only one she can talk to is one of my favorites) and Paige, and the times that he any Leo were forced to sort of team up were great. He just has charisma for days, and I was just as interested in him as a human as I was when he was Balthazar and then again when he was the literal Source of All Evil.
Honorable Mentions: Nick Miller (New Girl) for being an enormously charming fuck up; Jim Halpert (The Office) mostly for playing excellent practical jokes on Dwight; Mike Chang (Glee) for having arguable the most cohesive arc of anyone on the show who isn't Rachel, and for being Mike Chang; Auggie Anderson (Covert Affairs) for being a male sidekick with a real disadvantage when he steps outside of his office; Logan Huntzberger (Gilmore Girls) just because I liked him and I'm allowed to do that.
Pairings
A quick note: I limited myself to canon ships only, because you know how I am, which is why this list doesn't include pairings like Graham/Ruby and Mike/Quinn.
1. Cole and Phoebe (Charmed)
I mean, talk about star-crossed lovers, the half-demon and the Charmed One. I'm not sure if I loved them because they were so obviously doomed or if it was the struggle that appealed, but god did I love them. Maybe it was their chemistry that did it for me. (Because as much as I can appreciate that Phoebe wound up with a cupid and think that it's kind of perfect, I still ship her with Cole more than with anyone else.) Their struggle was just so delicious, and how each of them suffered individually to be together (with Cole trying so hard to be good and Phoebe going evil there for a while). And I think that they way that it took so long for them to disentangle from one another, even when they were so obviously finished, is beautifully true to life; emotions (and legal business) do not always follow intellect.
2. Cory and Topanga (Boy Meets World)
Was there ever any question that these two would end up together? No, but that doesn't make their journey any less fun to watch. It's so squeaky clean that I probably couldn't come to it as a new viewer now, but watching it when I was young, they seemed perfect.
3. Graham and Emma (Once Upon a Time)
He finally figures out, and then he dies. Seriously, show? Okay, I can recognize that Graham's own realization and death was part of Emma accepting and understanding the truth of Storybrooke, but that doesn't mean that I can't be bitter about it. I liked the banter and the vulnerability, and I'm a complete sucker for all that potential.
4. Hyde and Jackie (That '70s Show)
Forever bitter that they weren't together at the end, to be completely honest. They softened each other, and their shared parental issues are a goldmine of stuff to work with, but they were different enough to still be really interesting, even without the sort of social politics of their relationship (her money and status against his lack of those things).
5. Jesse and Rachel (Glee)
Even though I knowit wasn't meant to be in the end for the show, I've always felt like Jesse is Rachel's real match, because no one will ever understand Rachel's drive the way that Jesse does - and that goes both ways. And that understanding means that their relationship contains both challenge and support, because neither is going to let the other settle for less than what they are capable of - and what they deserve. I do think that Finn was Rachel's person, but I believe that Jesse is the other side of her coin.
6. Jim and Pam (The Office)
Oh, they had such angst to get it together, but real life angst rather than the manufactured sort that you usually see in "complicated" television relationships. They play it so beautifully, the falling in love and the obstacles, and you can't help rooting for them. I'm a sucker for angst, so one of my favorite scenes ever is from the Casino Night episode, when he finds her crying on the phone alone in the office and kisses her, even though she's still engaged. And that's what she tells him. And it's so. fucking. painful.
7. Luke and Lorelai (Gilmore Girls)
I never wanted either of them to be with anyone else, but I liked their arc (particularly in early seasons; it felt like off-screen things affected on-screen things in a really obnoxious way as the show was ending, which is a shame). Some of my favorite stuff with them is actually when they've broken up in season five, like when she calls him crying and then freaks and goes to get the answering machine tape, but he comes to her house anyhow. I like that they learned how to be mad at one another without running away by having a fight where one of them was so mad that he ran away. And I really enjoyed that the show didn't go with a happily ever after type ending, but made it clear that they were still working on things.
8. Puck and Rachel (Glee)
This one is mostly about potential, honestly, but again, thousands and thousands of words of fic because they give me feelings. And because I've written all that fic, I'm just going to let that stand as my explanation rather than going into it here.
9. Schmidt and Cece (New Girl)
They both present as hyper-confident, but they have insecurities for days. It's delightful. Her face when he walked into that room at her wedding killed me, but I'm actually really enjoying this thing that's going on now where Schmidt has totally fucked up and is suffering for it.
10. Tyler and Caroline (The Vampire Diaries)
In a way, they each use their relationship as a way to regain their own agency, and that's just really, truly beautiful. For both of them, in different ways, the other is their safe place in this really fucked up world that they're a part of, even when they're natural enemies - and that says a lot about each of them as individuals and about them together. Their relationship isn't perfect - and what relationship is? - but it's certainly the healthiest that we've seen in Mystic Falls.
Honorable Mentions: Annie and Auggie (Covert Affairs) for falling apart as quickly as they got it together; Parker and Hardison (Leverage) for being misfits together; Simon and Alisha (Misfits) for having a truly unique love story, flaws and all; Leo and Piper (Charmed) for overcoming all of the odds that were stacked against them; Ryan and Kelly (The Office) because, to paraphrase Mindy Kaling, everyone wants to be Jim and Pam, but are probably Ryan and Kelly; Phillip and Aurora and Mulan (Once Upon a Time) because I am still desperate for a real fictional triad relationship and I love them together.
Ladies
1. Princess Aurora (Once Upon a Time)
It's possible that the Sarah Bolger of Aurora clouded my judgment, but I was immediately absorbed in Once's version of her story. I loved that she was allowed to be brave and maintain her agency while she was partnered up with Mulan (who is such a fierce character on her own) and tagging along with Snow and Emma, but she was still very much a Pretty Princess in line with the Disney original. She's had really great moments with Phillip, Mulan, Hook, Snow, and Henry, and my biggest disappointment with season two's back half was the distinct lack of the Mulan/Aurora adventure.
2. Rachel Berry (Glee)
They can say that Glee is about the glee club all they want: This show is about Rachel Berry. Talented and socially awkward and so driven it makes your teeth hurt, yes, but Rachel is not selfish. Self-absorbed and often self-serving, but Rachel is also deeply kind and willing to make sacrifices for those that she cares about. And remembering that this is a musical, I have to say that no other character on this show hits me where it hurts with the musical numbers the way that Rachel does; I still get goosebumps whenever I hear her version of "Don't Rain on My Parade", and more recently, her "Don't Stop Believin'" audition brought tears to my eyes. (Her "Make You Feel My Love" broke my heart, though to be fair, I'm not sure how much of that was Lea Michele and how much was Rachel. I don't think that it matters.)
3. Brooke Davis (One Tree Hill)
I know she's kind of a classic mean-girl-with-a-heart, but Brooke's insecurities and her deep down kindness are the things that always sold me on her, and more than the other girls, I felt like we really got to watch Brooke grow up. (Admittedly, I stopped watching after season six; maybe it was season six? I'm not actually sure how many seasons OTH aired, to be honest.) The best frenemies story is hardly new, but I like her relationship with Peyton, particularly when their conflicts were about them rather than about Lucas. I always found myself rooting for Brooke.
4. Caroline Forbes (The Vampire Diaries)
Neurotic and insecure and controlling and endlessly charming - I just love Caroline. I love how her control issues are actually a strength for her as a vampire (Ripper!Caroline is definitely not a thing), and how despite being an immortal being, she is still concerned with things like grades and prom and her duties as Miss Mystic Falls. I love how she's learning the sort of social politics that Elena is so good at, and I love that even though she sees through Klaus, she still finds his attentions flattering. And I love that she's still able to trust and love people - like Tyler - when she would have every reason not to.
5. Lorelai Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)
Lorelai has the sort of pride that I identify with so strongly; everything she has, she has worked hard to earn, despite the fact that she might have taken the "easy" way out. And her reasoning for not taking that easy way wasn't just that she had something to prove, but that she knew it wouldn't make her happy. That sort of risk requires such bravery, and I can't help but admire that. Still, Lorelai is far from perfect. She is sometimes selfish and self-destructive and judgmental, things that make her deeply real to me.
One of my favorite Lorelai scenes is when she's sitting with Luke, asking him for a loan for the Dragonfly, crying about how everything is right on the edge of falling apart, and admitting that sometimes she wishes that she wasn't doing it alone. It's so lovely and honest and it gets me every time. It's that Lorelai that I love so much.
6. Piper Halliwell (Charmed)
Piper wanted very simple things and was given very serious, big responsibilities instead. Seeing her balance all of those supernatural responsibilities with finding love (which of course had to be as complicated as possible) and building her career was deeply compelling. She got the most "traditional" story, but it never felt boring, and even though I didn't necessarily identify with that struggle, I never stopped rooting for her. And, okay, going from freezing stuff to blowing it up was particularly cool.
7. Topanga Lawrence (Boy Meets World)
For me, Topanga was the original "smart girl," and I think that her character was part of what made me feel okay with being the smart girl myself. She was never shamed for being the smart girl, and it never felt like she deferred her dreams for Cory (though she did consider him when she made decisions, which I also think is valid). Even though she was there as a supporting character, she always had her own story and her own personality, and I loved it.
8. Veronica Mars (Veronica Mars)
There isn't anything I can say about this character or this show that hasn't been said a million times, but I love Veronica. I am so here for grief-driven stories and characters (I may have a bit of a preoccupation with death and grief narratives), and for two seasons she is very much ruled by grief and survivor's guilt in a way that I find deeply interesting. She's prickly and mean and defensive with issues on top of issues and I love her.
9 . Katherine Pierce (The Vampire Diaries)
The consummate survivor and our first introduction to the concept of the doppelganger and the show that is no all about the doppelgangers. Ruthless and cunning and really just smarter than everyone else, tbh. I love how she manipulated her way to vampirism and managed to stay ahead of Klaus forever, and I love how she's relearning all of her "soft" skills now that she's human again. (Awards for Nina Dobrev and her face go here as well, because good job.)
10. Ruby (Once Upon a Time)
Red Riding Hood as her own big bad wolf? Yes, please. Ugh, it's just so good, and I'm sad that Meghan Ory has left the show because Ruby episodes were always so great. Red's friendship with Snow in the Enchanted Forest was great, and how they became family after she met her mother. And really, there wasn't a single person Ruby interacted with that I wasn't all about: David, Belle, Emma, Henry - I wanted it all, plus Graham returned from the grave, please. One of my favorite details was the way that the show made Ruby so overtly sexual in the beginning given the origin of the Red Riding Hood story.
Honorable Mentions: Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls) for being complex and wonderful; Anne Boleyn (The Tudors) for having depth that historical accounts don't always give her, for making me fall in love with her, and for Natalie Dormer; Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl, S1-2) for unapologetically going after what she wanted; Santana Lopez (Glee) for being a tertiary character I grew to love, and then hated a little bit, and am now beginning to love again; Parker (Leverage) for being wonderfully atypical; Annie Walker (Covert Affairs) for kicking ass and being smarter than everyone else - but not all the time; Mulan (Once Upon a Time) for being fierce and loyal and loving.
Gentlemen
1. Sheriff Graham (Once Upon a Time)
He's such an atypical male character, given two very masculine roles (as a hunter and a law enforcement officer) that are juxtaposed by a really pronounced sensitivity and softness, even more than you would have expected from the Huntsman, already a character you're inclined to sympathize with. I suppose I understand why they chose to kill the character when they did, but I'll always think that he died too soon because I wanted so much more from him. And let's be honest: It doesn't suck to look at Jamie Dornan.
2. Finn Hudson (Glee)
There aren't a lot of things about Finn as a character that we haven't seen countless times before, but that doesn't diminish my enjoyment of him. While I think that the show failed the character from time to time (more than once making his/the narrative's intentions unclear in a way that changed the story drastically), I still believe that Finn was essentially a good kid who was still growing up. His mistakes were believable and therefore sympathetic, and even though his character is the sort that always comes out on top, I was still rooting for him.
As a disclaimer, I feel like I should mention that Finn wasn't in my original top ten, a list that was made outside of the immediate influence of Cory Monteith's death. I have no doubt that I'm being influenced by that now, and by all of the potential character growth that was lost along with that person who seems like he was such a genuinely lovely human being. And really, that makes Finn's story that much more realistic; not everyone gets the chance to fix all of their mistakes and become the person they were always meant to be, because not everyone gets to grow up. That his character remains unfinished and imperfect is so true to life that it hurts my heart.
3. Steven Hyde (That '70s Show)
This is where the theme of my male characters begins: He's the delinquent with the heart of gold, the guy who is smarter than he appears, the good guy pretending to be a dick. It's a type that I like. I suppose I'm easy. *shrug* This is a sitcom, and he makes me laugh more than any of the other boys while not just being a joke (like Kelso).
4. Jefferson (Once Upon a Time)
My favorite bit with him is when he says that people want easy solutions to their problems, but refuse to believe in magic. He's presented to us as this deranged guy when he's really the only person in Storybrooke who has known the truth the entire time - and yeah, that's enough to drive anybody a little mad. I'm also a huge fan of a morally ambiguous character, which he definitely becomes (helping Regina and Rumple on one hand, and being desperate to be with his daughter on the other), and this show is good at casting boys I like lookin' at.
5. Tyler Lockwood (The Vampire Diaries)
When I came to the show in mid-season three, I was spoiled all to hell. I knew Tyler was a werewolf and wound up dating Caroline, and I thought they were cute, but I was never really invested in Tyler in his own right until season four, when his arc really started to make itself apparent in its awesomeness. In hindsight, I can see his claiming of his agency while resisting leadership positions, his refusal to take part in the politics of Mystic Falls (like his father) unless he absolutely has to, and his growth from an unhealthy reliance on Caroline to something that is much more of an equal partnership, despite the messiness of werewolves and vampires and hybrids and their loyalties being divided between their friends. Tyler and Ruby came along at about the same time for me, and now I'm sold on the beauty of the werewolf narrative, yay!
6. Jess Mariano (Gilmore Girls)
Bless this show for allowing Jess to be his own character with his own story even though he was really there to further Rory's story. (And Luke's, yes, but really, Rory's.) One of my favorite things is how his guest appearances in later seasons never felt like stunts, but like they were moments that really belonged not just in Rory's life, to drive her story forward, but as part of his. I loved seeing Jess go from a reader to a writer, and I really liked the way that his relationships with both Liz and Luke were explored.
7. Noah Puckerman (Glee)
I'm probably projecting some of my own fabrications about Puck onto the canon character; I have written thousands and thousands of words of fic about him. But I've always felt that there's just so much unexplored potential with Puck as a character, even with the obvious questions of how a guy who really does care about his best friend (because I believe that he did) sleeps with said best friend's girlfriend (consequences of that notwithstanding). I like Puck's quieter moments the best: baking with Quinn, talking in Rachel's room, with Beiste in the locker room, etc.
8. Schmidt (New Girl)
How is this obnoxious asshole my favorite? I don't know, but he is. The ridiculous shit that comes out of his mouth makes me laugh, but then he goes ahead and says something sincere about how he loves his friends or is legitimately falling for this girl, and I just want to squeeze his face.
9. Jesse St. James (Glee)
I really was going to try not to choose multiple characters from the same show, but fuck it. I love Jesse St. James. I love his over-inflated ego and how he got knocked down so far by his own hubris (at least that's how I think it went). I love his dramatics and his bravado, and how obviously false that bravado is when he returns in season two. I like how you can't always tell when he's being sincere, but that there are moments when you're so sure that he is that it melts your heart. Also, "Bohemian Rhapsody."
10. Cole Turner (Charmed)
He's evil! He's half-human! He's in love with a Charmed One! Ugh, Cole's struggles with his humanity and his desire for power - and how that power was always going to come from and lead to evil - never failed to entertain me. And in a weird way, even though I knew he was evil, I was always rooting for Cole? And even though I shipped Cole/Phoebe like crazy, some of my favorite stuff of his was actually with Piper (that episode where she's mostly dead or whatever and he's the only one she can talk to is one of my favorites) and Paige, and the times that he any Leo were forced to sort of team up were great. He just has charisma for days, and I was just as interested in him as a human as I was when he was Balthazar and then again when he was the literal Source of All Evil.
Honorable Mentions: Nick Miller (New Girl) for being an enormously charming fuck up; Jim Halpert (The Office) mostly for playing excellent practical jokes on Dwight; Mike Chang (Glee) for having arguable the most cohesive arc of anyone on the show who isn't Rachel, and for being Mike Chang; Auggie Anderson (Covert Affairs) for being a male sidekick with a real disadvantage when he steps outside of his office; Logan Huntzberger (Gilmore Girls) just because I liked him and I'm allowed to do that.
Pairings
A quick note: I limited myself to canon ships only, because you know how I am, which is why this list doesn't include pairings like Graham/Ruby and Mike/Quinn.
1. Cole and Phoebe (Charmed)
I mean, talk about star-crossed lovers, the half-demon and the Charmed One. I'm not sure if I loved them because they were so obviously doomed or if it was the struggle that appealed, but god did I love them. Maybe it was their chemistry that did it for me. (Because as much as I can appreciate that Phoebe wound up with a cupid and think that it's kind of perfect, I still ship her with Cole more than with anyone else.) Their struggle was just so delicious, and how each of them suffered individually to be together (with Cole trying so hard to be good and Phoebe going evil there for a while). And I think that they way that it took so long for them to disentangle from one another, even when they were so obviously finished, is beautifully true to life; emotions (and legal business) do not always follow intellect.
2. Cory and Topanga (Boy Meets World)
Was there ever any question that these two would end up together? No, but that doesn't make their journey any less fun to watch. It's so squeaky clean that I probably couldn't come to it as a new viewer now, but watching it when I was young, they seemed perfect.
3. Graham and Emma (Once Upon a Time)
He finally figures out, and then he dies. Seriously, show? Okay, I can recognize that Graham's own realization and death was part of Emma accepting and understanding the truth of Storybrooke, but that doesn't mean that I can't be bitter about it. I liked the banter and the vulnerability, and I'm a complete sucker for all that potential.
4. Hyde and Jackie (That '70s Show)
Forever bitter that they weren't together at the end, to be completely honest. They softened each other, and their shared parental issues are a goldmine of stuff to work with, but they were different enough to still be really interesting, even without the sort of social politics of their relationship (her money and status against his lack of those things).
5. Jesse and Rachel (Glee)
Even though I knowit wasn't meant to be in the end for the show, I've always felt like Jesse is Rachel's real match, because no one will ever understand Rachel's drive the way that Jesse does - and that goes both ways. And that understanding means that their relationship contains both challenge and support, because neither is going to let the other settle for less than what they are capable of - and what they deserve. I do think that Finn was Rachel's person, but I believe that Jesse is the other side of her coin.
6. Jim and Pam (The Office)
Oh, they had such angst to get it together, but real life angst rather than the manufactured sort that you usually see in "complicated" television relationships. They play it so beautifully, the falling in love and the obstacles, and you can't help rooting for them. I'm a sucker for angst, so one of my favorite scenes ever is from the Casino Night episode, when he finds her crying on the phone alone in the office and kisses her, even though she's still engaged. And that's what she tells him. And it's so. fucking. painful.
7. Luke and Lorelai (Gilmore Girls)
I never wanted either of them to be with anyone else, but I liked their arc (particularly in early seasons; it felt like off-screen things affected on-screen things in a really obnoxious way as the show was ending, which is a shame). Some of my favorite stuff with them is actually when they've broken up in season five, like when she calls him crying and then freaks and goes to get the answering machine tape, but he comes to her house anyhow. I like that they learned how to be mad at one another without running away by having a fight where one of them was so mad that he ran away. And I really enjoyed that the show didn't go with a happily ever after type ending, but made it clear that they were still working on things.
8. Puck and Rachel (Glee)
This one is mostly about potential, honestly, but again, thousands and thousands of words of fic because they give me feelings. And because I've written all that fic, I'm just going to let that stand as my explanation rather than going into it here.
9. Schmidt and Cece (New Girl)
They both present as hyper-confident, but they have insecurities for days. It's delightful. Her face when he walked into that room at her wedding killed me, but I'm actually really enjoying this thing that's going on now where Schmidt has totally fucked up and is suffering for it.
10. Tyler and Caroline (The Vampire Diaries)
In a way, they each use their relationship as a way to regain their own agency, and that's just really, truly beautiful. For both of them, in different ways, the other is their safe place in this really fucked up world that they're a part of, even when they're natural enemies - and that says a lot about each of them as individuals and about them together. Their relationship isn't perfect - and what relationship is? - but it's certainly the healthiest that we've seen in Mystic Falls.
Honorable Mentions: Annie and Auggie (Covert Affairs) for falling apart as quickly as they got it together; Parker and Hardison (Leverage) for being misfits together; Simon and Alisha (Misfits) for having a truly unique love story, flaws and all; Leo and Piper (Charmed) for overcoming all of the odds that were stacked against them; Ryan and Kelly (The Office) because, to paraphrase Mindy Kaling, everyone wants to be Jim and Pam, but are probably Ryan and Kelly; Phillip and Aurora and Mulan (Once Upon a Time) because I am still desperate for a real fictional triad relationship and I love them together.