Characters that ruin a work for you

[Anaamika]

Could be books, TV, movies, anything.

Torchwood wasn't that good to start with, but I could not get past Gwen at all. I've talked about her before, how the audience surrogate in this case just makes you want to brick her.

But even worse is a case like the series of Eddings books The Elenium , in which I love Sparhawk unto death but I cannot stand that sanctimonious little twat Flute/Aphrael. Every time she opens her damn mouth I want to shut it. Come to think of it, there's not many female characters in the Eddings books I admire. Just Polenn and Velvet.

How about you guys? No need to justify your dislike if you don't want to, but it'd be nice if you could!

[Chimera]

Well, Jar Jar Binks is the obvious candidate, so we'll get him out of the way right now.

[Seanette]

My biggest problem with "Revolution" is Charlie. Snotty, immature, princess brat type who's annoying enough in our actual society and would be a major liability in the world she actually lives in.

When I re-read the "Incarnations of Immortality" series, I skip over the fourth book because I hate the lead character so much. Same personality issues: arrogant snob (OK, so he actually is a prince, but apparently never bothered to learn that non-royalty are human beings with feelings too), and a bit on the immature side (in fairness, he grows up a bit, but never really loses the royal arrogance).

[Inner Stickler]

Originally Posted by Anaamika

Come to think of it, there's not many female characters in the Eddings books I admire. Just Polenn and Velvet.

I'm torn. I'm desperately curious what it is about Polgara that you detest but I may cry if my illusions are shattered.

[Mean Mr. Mustard]

I watched exactly one and one half episodes of Dexter. I have enough annoying people in my life that I have to listen to; I saw no point in adding Dexter's sister to the mix.


mmm

[tdn]

There was one character in The Hobbit that I found annoying. Gollum. I went on to read Lord of the Rings confident that that annoying Gollum character would not be in it.

[Gatopescado]

Sam Posey ruins Formula One coverage for me.

[Chimera]

Lol. tdn, I almost cracked a joke in my earlier post about how LotR would have been so much better without that annoying Gollum character in it.

[lieu]

Ross in Friends. Okay, the spineless, whiney, droopyfaced schmuck gets *cue angel music* Rachel? I'm outta here.

[Soylent Juicy]

Since Jar-Jar Binks and Dexter's Sister are already taken, I'll have to go with:

Lori on The Walking Dead - stupid twit.

[gallows fodder]

Rosamund in George Eliot's Middlemarch. I hated her so much I ended up skipping her chapters, even though the rest of the book was so enthralling and wonderfully written that I was sure I was missing a lot of excellent material. But I just wanted someone to stab her in the face, and when I flipped to the end and saw that she doesn't get any kind of satisfying comeuppance, well...fuck that.

[Misnomer]

I second Gwen on Torchwood. Shrill, selfish harpy. Not only did she ruin that show for me, she ruined Welsh accents in general (because now they all make me think of her). I still haven't watched the newest series yet, largely because of her.

Likewise:

Abby on NCIS: She's cute as a button, but sanctimonious, helpless, and judgmental...and the goth thing has gone on for waaaaay too long.

Sookie on True Blood: There are so many ways in which that character annoys me! Funnily enough, though, she was the least annoying this past season -- which was also one of the worst seasons.

And possibly Annie on Copper: I get that forcing a little girl into prostitution is going to damage her, but there's no reason for her to be such a conniving, ungrateful bitch. Sunday's episode left me wondering if she's going to wind up ruining that show for me.

Can't think of any other characters -- literary or otherwise -- who have annoyed me as much as the above.

[Anaamika]

Originally Posted by Misnomer

I second Gwen on Torchwood. Shrill, selfish harpy. Not only did she ruin that show for me, she ruined Welsh accents in general (because now they all make me think of her). I still haven't watched the newest series yet, largely because of her.

Likewise:

YES! And the Welsh accent really isn't that bad, but every time I hear one I flinch.

[FordTaurusSHO94]

Originally Posted by Gatopescado

Sam Posey ruins Formula One coverage for me.

On that note any Waltrip ruins NASCAR coverage for everyone. Bill Webber used to, but luckily he went on a drunken rampage in a hotel and was fired.

[Unauthorized Cinnamon]

I don't care how fabulous A Confederacy of Dunces is supposed to be or how intriguing the foreword is, I cannot subject myself to any more than one chapter of Ignatius J. Reilly.

[kushiel]

Azhure in Sara Douglass' Wayfarer Redemption books. Took me...what, 6+ years? to finally go past the first book. I hated her from the moment she showed up and I still do. Mary Sue who broke up my ship!

Tara, True Blood. She's bearable when she's being badass, but when she's sad or cranky I just want to punch her in the face.

Sheldon, from The Big Bang Theory and Sherlock from the BBC Sherlock. They are both clueless, socially stunted brats.

The cute, innocent little sister the main male character is always trying to save and keep pure. It's a trope, not a specific character. Mostly an anime thing, but you get it a couple of times in fantasy stuff too.

[Anaamika]

Originally Posted by kushiel

Sherlock from the BBC Sherlock. They are both clueless, socially stunted brats.

Pistols at dawn. IF YOU MAKE IT THAT FAR. I know people, you know.

[KneadToKnow]

The kid in Shane. Specifically, his voice. Oh Jebus, how I want to silence him forever.

Seriously, I will never own this marvelous movie because I refuse to have that voice in my house.

[Anaamika]

Originally Posted by KneadToKnow

The kid in Shane. Specifically, his voice. Oh Jebus, how I want to silence him forever.

Not a character so much as the actor, but I was appalled and disgusted that Shia leBouf got to play the part in the Fourth Indiana Jones. You know which part. He wasn't worthy!

[Typo Negative]

All the female characters on NewsRoom.

Except Olivia Munn

**swoon**

[Misnomer]

Originally Posted by Typo Negative

All the female characters on NewsRoom.

Holy cow, how could I have forgotten about Maggie?!?

[awldune]

Originally Posted by Mean Mr. Mustard

I watched exactly one and one half episodes of Dexter. I have enough annoying people in my life that I have to listen to; I saw no point in adding Dexter's sister to the mix.

I'm not sure whether the character is horribly written or whether Jennifer Carpenter is a horrible actress but wow is she awful.

[Marley23]

One of the reasons I stopped watching Six Feet Under was the fact that I found Billy whiny and crazy and annoying and totally unbearable.

[GargoyleWB]

For anime, I can't stand the trope of having a comic relief character whose sole shtick is bursting in, screaming loud, waving arms, screaming loud, and, ha ha isn't this funny...screaming loud!

Planetes was unwatchable for me, and I hated the Ranma 1/2 episodes with the surfer dude.

[Loach]

Originally Posted by Misnomer

Abby on NCIS: She's cute as a button, but sanctimonious, helpless, and judgmental...and the goth thing has gone on for waaaaay too long.

The cutesy thing is wearing thin. She is 43 years old. Just a couple seasons ago they mentioned the character was in her late 20s. I would have done a spit take if I was drinking something.

[Infovore]

I wouldn't say ruined, exactly, but I am always tempted to skip over anything having to do with Grawp in the Harry Potter novels.

[etv78]

Originally Posted by lieu

Ross in Friends. Okay, the spineless, whiney, droopyfaced schmuck gets *cue angel music* Rachel? I'm outta here.

I'm the reverse: Rachel annoys the shit out of me! It's combination of Ross dumping a compatible woman for Rachel, and Jennifer Anniston bitching about Brad "trading up".

[Docta G]

Yahweh, The Holy Bible.

[Marley23]

Originally Posted by Docta G

Yahweh, The Holy Bible.

If you want to discuss the Bible, start a thread in Great Debates.

[JohnT]

Originally Posted by Marley23

One of the reasons I stopped watching Six Feet Under was the fact that I found Billy whiny and crazy and annoying and totally unbearable.

Same here. I think I even started a thread about how much this character drove me crazy. (Found it. Similarly themed thread to this one.)

Then my wife bought me the DVD set for Christmas. I plowed my way through the Billy scenes to learn that Crazy Billy largely disappears for the rest of the show, except for a 3-4 episode arc where he gets it on with Claire and, yes, stops taking his meds.

[DZedNConfused]

Ramses Emerson in Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody Series.

He is annoying, pedantic, smug a know it all and he's EIGHT years old! I bogged down forever after book 4 because of him. Thankfully he wasn't as bad in Book five.

[lieu]

Originally Posted by KneadToKnow

The kid in Shane. Specifically, his voice. Oh Jebus, how I want to silence him forever.

Seriously, I will never own this marvelous movie because I refuse to have that voice in my house.

Bwhaaaa... Brandon deWilde. I found him almost as annoying in Hud but, admittedly, it was for traits that actually made him a perfect fit for the character. Had you mellowed on him by then? Just curious, would you own Hud? I'm not real crazy about him but in his short life he was right in the middle of two absolutely awesome flicks.

[Der Trihs]

Ruby Rhod in The Fifth Element. Yeah, he was supposed to be an annoying guy - he succeeded too well.

[Ferret Herder]

Originally Posted by Der Trihs

Ruby Rhod in The Fifth Element. Yeah, he was supposed to be an annoying guy - he succeeded too well.

I love the movie now, but oh man, that character just ruined it for me the first time around.

I'll nominate damned near every character in Lost. When I realized after the first season that I didn't care if any of them lived or died - or frankly, was leaning toward a preference for "died" - I stopped watching.

[Sigmagirl]

Dora in David Copperfield. The book keeps referring to her as being "impractical." I'm sorry, but Dora is mentally challenged and has the intellect of a 6-year-old. That's not a character flaw, but she should not have been allowed to marry David. It becomes clear in the book (at least today it does; maybe it didn't in 1850), but it angers me so much I really can't read the book, and I'm a Dickens lover.

[HazelNutCoffee]

I second Lori from The Walking Dead and Maggie from Newsroom.

[Mauvaise]

Originally Posted by Anaamika

Pistols at dawn. IF YOU MAKE IT THAT FAR. I know people, you know.

I'll be your second.

[Nava]

Can't stand Gambit in the X-Men; any Gambit, any X-Men.

Then again, last time I saw him he'd just discovered he was cooked from Summers stock, which I guess explains it: the whole family makes my hands itch, and not in a nice way.

[salinqmind]

It's off the air now, and I wouldn't say they 'ruined' it, but Lynette and Tom's grown sons on Desperate Housewives irritated me. They sucked up valuable air time with their dumb sub-plots and they were just really plug-ugly doofuses, to boot.

[Anaamika]

Originally Posted by Mauvaise

I'll be your second.

No worries, I'll recruit Skald, he's always promised if I need it he'd send killer bees or some such.

[Ponch8]

That stupid Seven brat on Married with Children. Fortunately they fired his ass after just one season of terror.

[hogarth]

Daenarys in A Song of Fire and Ice. After a while, I just started skipping chapters with her in them.

[Soylent Juicy]

Originally Posted by Marley23

One of the reasons I stopped watching Six Feet Under was the fact that I found Billy whiny and crazy and annoying and totally unbearable.

It was Brenda that I hated. Freakin' whackjob.

[Sitnam]

Originally Posted by Unauthorized Cinnamon

I don't care how fabulous A Confederacy of Dunces is supposed to be or how intriguing the foreword is, I cannot subject myself to any more than one chapter of Ignatius J. Reilly.

Thaaaank you, I could not stand that smug self entitled mamma's boy prick.

[Johnny Bravo]

Originally Posted by hogarth

Daenarys in A Song of Fire and Ice. After a while, I just started skipping chapters with her in them.

For me it was Sansa. I didn't skip her chapters, but I sure didn't enjoy them.

I think what it really comes down to is that GRRM writes terrible female characters. His most engaging female characters are those who buck female convention (Arya and Cersei, who are respectively a tomboy and a politically cunning sexual deviant).

[Sitnam]

Downton Abbey - Cora, I don't know if it's her lack of acting ability or the vapid character she is supposed to play but I'm expecting in season 3 they will reveal her to really be a robot and there is nothing but a steampunk mechanical clock churning behind those doll eyes.

[sachertorte]

Tom Colicchio. Top Chef is exactly the type of show I should love. I can't watch it because of him.

[stpauler]

Originally Posted by sachertorte

Tom Colicchio. Top Chef is exactly the type of show I should love. I can't watch it because of him.

I feel that way about Joe Bastianich on MasterChef. His smug face makes me want to scream at the TV "dude, it's only food, you don't have to be so goddamn rude about your opinion".

[kushiel]

Originally Posted by Anaamika

Pistols at dawn. IF YOU MAKE IT THAT FAR. I know people, you know.

I tried, I tried! I think part of it is that he's like a smart, overgrown child and I never like child characters.

[Misnomer]

Originally Posted by Loach

The cutesy thing is wearing thin. She is 43 years old. Just a couple seasons ago they mentioned the character was in her late 20s. I would have done a spit take if I was drinking something.

I have no problem with the actress's age vs the character's age -- after all, I'm 41 and a lot of people assume that I'm in my late 20s. I have a problem with the fact that the character hasn't grown/changed one bit since the series started: she and Gibbs are the two most static characters on the show, but Gibbs doesn't annoy me. It's totally the "cutesy" thing, as you say.