# Hot characters who don't know they're hot **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 6, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253 "2008-05-06T03:44:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/1 "2008-05-06T03:44:43Z")
I think the thread title’s pretty clear, but I’d like to add a couple of qualifications. One is that characters from any genre, not just TV and movies, are eligible. Two, when we’re talking about characters who are hot in the context of the show, not necessarily in the opinion of the poster. For example, you may think that David Boreanez is a hideous troll, but other persons in the Buffyverse clearly think Angel is extremely good-looking; and, as Angel (at least in the early seasons of his show) did not realize this, he’s exactly the short of character I mean. Speaking of the Buffyverse, I’ll nominate Willow Rosenberg, who clearly had some (mild) body dysmorphia issues going on. Though she clearly thought she was a troll, she went over the course of the series from being cute as a button to “What do you mean she’s a lesbian?!? That’s not fair!!!” Bonus points for lines of dialog indicating how mistaken the character in question is about her or his good looks. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/2 "2008-05-06T03:48:13Z")
Angela Chase, played by Claire Danes, on “My So-Called Life.” ETA: There’s a whole episode where Angela’s mom wants her to be in this mother/daughter fashion show, and Angela finally bursts out explaining why she doesn’t want to do it because she thinks she’s ugly. Danes plays it so well…she’s so gorgeous but you totally believe her as this awkward young girl who has no idea how beautiful she really is. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/3 "2008-05-06T03:54:21Z")
One more character from the Buffyverse – Fred (a girl; real name Winifred, played by the gorgeous Amy Acker) was a big ol’ nerd with some PTSD issues due to living in a cave in an alternate dimension for five years, before being rescued by Angel and company. Despite being nerdy and awkward (not unlike Willow), she was a stunner, especially in her librarian-style glasses. And for the longest time, at least before she started dating Gunn (and later Wesley), she had no idea. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/4 "2008-05-06T04:01:22Z")
[QUOTE=Big Bad Voodoo Lou] One more character from the Buffyverse – Fred (a girl; real name Winifred, played by the gorgeous Amy Acker) was a big ol’ nerd with some PTSD issues due to living in a cave in an alternate dimension for five years, before being rescued by Angel and company. Despite being nerdy and awkward (not unlike Willow), she was a stunner, especially in her librarian-style glasses. And for the longest time, at least before she started dating Gunn (and later Wesley), she had no idea. [/QUOTE] I thought about mentioning Fred, but I decided not to because her case was a bit different than Willow’s. Partly because it was less that she didn’t think she was pretty; it was that she had a crush on Angel and was intimidated by the breasts of Cordelia. (As heart-thumpingly beautiful as Amy Acker is, she was not blessed by the Mammary Goddess.) Once she got over her Angel-crush, she seemed to have a pretty accurate gauge of her cuteness. The other thing about Fred is that she was, well, nuts. For quite some time. Her craziness was understandable, so Angel & Co. tolerated it more than they might have otherwise. But I don’t think she ever got completely sane. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/5 "2008-05-06T06:06:27Z")
Seven-of-Nine. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/6 "2008-05-06T08:19:57Z")
[QUOTE=Skald the Rhymer] Speaking of the Buffyverse, I’ll nominate Willow Rosenberg, who clearly had some (mild) body dysmorphia issues going on. Though she clearly thought she was a troll, she went over the course of the series from being cute as a button to “What do you mean she’s a lesbian?!? That’s not fair!!!” [/QUOTE] I don’t know if this is really a function of good writing or a function of what constitutes pretty on a television series. Rarely is the plain looking woman on a television series really all that plain looking. I happen to think Bailey on _WKRP_ wasn’t as hot as Jennifer and even though she’s supposed to be the plain Jane I think she’s pretty darn attractive. Allison Hannigan is a cutey-patootie but within the context of the show Willow wasn’t considered hot. Exceptions can be made for the evil-Willow vampire episodes. Marc ---
**Author:** ![ianzin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ed655f/32.png) [@ianzin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianzin)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/7 "2008-05-06T09:03:27Z")
I’m not positive that this fits the requirements of the OP (apologies if not), but I’ll mention it anyway if only because I find it both laughable and annoying. The movie ‘The Truth About Cats and Dogs’ is entirely predicated on the notion that Uma Thurman is an irresistible goddess that every man would crawl over hot coals for, while Janeane Garofalo is a plain, dumpy also-ran who wouldn’t even merit a second look. I have trouble with this premise, because for me JG is the hot one and UT is just a sullen, elongated freak. I know I’m not the only man who holds this opinion. Anyway, in the movie, the Garofalo character seems to go along with this premise, and could therefore qualify as a hot character who doesn’t know she’s hot. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/8 "2008-05-06T09:23:44Z")
Bailey Quarters from WKRP in Cincinnati. She was INCREDIBLY hot, but everyone just had eyes for plastic blonde Loni Anderson. And to match 7 of 9, T’Pol. “Yes, understand that I rate 9.5 on your human scale of hotness, but it is hardly an objective measurement. You are perhaps overly impressed by my skin-tight uniform, which clings to my provocative curves so well. It is a Vulcan fabric which induces comfort and relaxation in the wearer.” (I made that line up, but it pretty much expresses how T’Pol would have approached it.) ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/9 "2008-05-06T09:31:40Z")
Jan Smithers, hmm…total babe! Not a character but on “While You Were Out” (home improvement), when Paige Davis was hosting, Leslie Segrete got overshadowed a lot. She’s just yummy! And Hildi Santo-Tomas is flaming hot, but she knows it, so that doesn’t count. ---
**Author:** ![JpnDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/838e76/32.png) [@JpnDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JpnDude)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/10 "2008-05-06T11:20:27Z")
Liz Lemon from _ **30Rock** _ ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/11 "2008-05-06T11:30:44Z")
Dawn Wells/Mary Anne from “Gilligan’s Island” is the poster child, I’d think. ---
**Author:** ![Lunar\_Saltlick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/977dab/32.png) [@Lunar\_Saltlick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lunar_Saltlick)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/12 "2008-05-06T12:14:22Z")
Gwen from _Late Nights on Air_. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/13 "2008-05-06T13:48:05Z")
Abby on NCIS ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/14 "2008-05-06T14:12:03Z")
**Rhoda.** (Mary Tyler Moore & self-titled spinoff). ---
**Author:** ![Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Sunshine\_and\_Smiles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunshine_and_Smiles)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/15 "2008-05-06T14:20:17Z")
Carlton Banks, from the Fresh Prince of Belair. How ridiculous was it to see him shirtless at a pool party standing next to will? He was cut like rock, whereas Will, the attractive one, just looked like a big lanky goof. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/16 "2008-05-06T14:22:54Z")
_Ugly Betty:_ She’s easily pretty enough to draw a second glance on the street, but working with all those models makes her look plain by comparison; she seems to understand both elements but still has a self-esteem problem. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/17 "2008-05-06T15:02:48Z")
[QUOTE=lobotomyboy63] Not a character but on “While You Were Out” (home improvement), when Paige Davis was hosting, Leslie Segrete got overshadowed a lot. She’s just yummy! [/QUOTE] You get the ankles, I’ll get the wrists. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/18 "2008-05-06T15:20:54Z")
Back in the early nineties, there was a movie called _Only You_. The basic story was that this guy goes on vacation and meets two women. One is the gorgeous one that he starts chasing after. The other is the plain girl who is attracted to him. This being a typical movie, the plain girl was of course a much better person overall and the guy finally managed to look past the gorgeous girl’s outer beauty and see all the great qualities of the plain girl. They fall in love and happy ending. And the actress they cast as the plain girl? Helen Hunt. Only in Hollywood would a woman who looks like Helen Hunt be seen as less than great looking. ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/19 "2008-05-06T23:00:23Z")
In a similar vein, Rachael Leigh Cook is cast as the ugly duckling in [She’s All That](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0160862/). They uglified her by putting her in baggy clothing and glasses. It’s still kind of hard to hide perfect bone structure and complexion. I wasn’t particularly surprised when she cleaned up pretty well. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253/20 "2008-05-07T00:00:54Z")
[QUOTE=ianzin] I’m not positive that this fits the requirements of the OP (apologies if not), but I’ll mention it anyway if only because I find it both laughable and annoying. The movie ‘The Truth About Cats and Dogs’ is entirely predicated on the notion that Uma Thurman is an irresistible goddess that every man would crawl over hot coals for, while Janeane Garofalo is a plain, dumpy also-ran who wouldn’t even merit a second look. I have trouble with this premise, because for me JG is the hot one and UT is just a sullen, elongated freak. I know I’m not the only man who holds this opinion. Anyway, in the movie, the Garofalo character seems to go along with this premise, and could therefore qualify as a hot character who doesn’t know she’s hot. [/QUOTE] Seconded. I’ve always though Janeane Garofalo was very sexy (or at least she was until she got those dopey tattoos.) Only in Hollywood Bizzarro World would a woman like Janeane Garofalo be considered “plain”. She was especially cute in [“The Matchmaker”](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119632/). I don’t share your disdain for Uma Thurman, who is also beautiful but in a different way. I’m an equal-opportunity horndog. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-characters-who-dont-know-theyre-hot/448253.md?page=2)