# TV characters who are incompetent at their jobs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 3, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112 "2009-08-03T01:07:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@Abby\_Emma\_Sasha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abby_Emma_Sasha)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/41 "2009-08-03T11:04:09Z")
How about Jack Malone? I love _Without A Trace_(rip) but Jack has always been a loose cannon and a detriment to the department. There was a story arc where he was going to move to Chicago and reunite with his ex wife and kids, but that fell through because…why? I frankly would have loved it had he left and Vivian was now in charge. The supporting cast was always more interesting to me. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/42 "2009-08-03T11:33:46Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I believe George O’Malley and Izzie Stevens are portrayed the same on _Grey’s Anatomy_. Not as bad doctors but it’s clear they’re not as good as their peers. Izzie is too soft I think, she lets her emotions influence her work. George was initially portrayed as someone who struggles, indeed he failed his exams and had to repeat his internship, but in a recent (for me) episode he discovered that he excelled in time critical emergency situations. He performed very well while the other bloke (can’t remember his name) didn’t. So perhaps both of these doctors are not bad per se but rather are searching for an area of medicine they are suited to. ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/43 "2009-08-03T11:53:10Z")
[quote=“1920s Style “Death Ray”, post:42, topic:505112”] Izzie is too soft I think, she lets her emotions influence her work. George was initially portrayed as someone who struggles, indeed he failed his exams and had to repeat his internship, but in a recent (for me) episode he discovered that he excelled in time critical emergency situations. He performed very well while the other bloke (can’t remember his name) didn’t. So perhaps both of these doctors are not bad per se but rather are searching for an area of medicine they are suited to. [/QUOTE] I’m not sure that Meredith and Alex really shine in comparison to them, either. Cristina is usually referred to as a technical genius in surgery, so it’s probably unfair to use her as the standard of measurement. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/44 "2009-08-03T11:55:27Z")
> [@Frostillicus](#): > > Chief Wiggum is pretty incompetent as far as police chiefs go. And Mayor Quimby is pretty corrupt as far as politicians go. Everyone in a position of power in Springfield is either incompetent, corrupt, or both- and that goes for those who aren’t in power as well. Goofy held a number of jobs and did just as poorly at all of them. Grover frequently fails both as a waiter and a superhero. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/45 "2009-08-03T12:03:31Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > (And in the '70s, Clark would actually interview Superman on television in issue after issue.) Didn’t anybody notice the study was a bit drafty? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/46 "2009-08-03T12:41:27Z")
Nah, he didn’t zip around…he used his Superman robots. Or got Batman to play him. One or the other. Those were his solutions to being in two places at once 99.9% of the time. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/47 "2009-08-03T12:45:05Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > Nah, he didn’t zip around…he used his Superman robots. > > Or got Batman to play him. > > One or the other. Those were his solutions to being in two places at once 99.9% of the time. That said, in a team-up with the Atom (who worked the television camera, and was in on it), Clark did his zip-back-and-forth bit to sell it for the audience at home. And I’ve seen him ask questions that get answered by prerecorded Superman footage, likewise. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/48 "2009-08-03T12:46:48Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > Dr. Greg House ( **House MD** ) makes 4 or 5 incorrect diagnoses for every good one. I’ve lost count of the ribcages needlessly cracked open on his watch. And Cuddy for enabling him…! James Wilson is a terrible oncologist, and one of his ex-wives is referred to as “the worst realtor in New Jersey.” ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/49 "2009-08-03T13:05:38Z")
> [@chrisk](#): > > I’m not sure that Meredith and Alex really shine in comparison to them, either. Cristina is usually referred to as a technical genius in surgery, so it’s probably unfair to use her as the standard of measurement. They are all flawed in various ways, like real people but exaggerated I suppose, so the viewing audience don’t miss it. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/50 "2009-08-03T13:47:23Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > James Wilson is a terrible oncologist, I don’t recall this. At least, I don’t remember him making a misdiagnosis, like House does 3 times a week, or having any cancer related issue sent to someone else because he’s no good. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/51 "2009-08-03T14:33:01Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I don’t know about currently, but in the Byrne revamp it was explicit that Kent’s first big story was the firfst Superman interview. That’s one of my pet peeves, anyway; Supes should be too ethical to do that. Superman is too ethical to do something like that. Clark, on the other hand, is a lying scumbag. ---
**Author:** ![infinitii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e8c25b/32.png) [@infinitii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/infinitii)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/52 "2009-08-03T14:38:43Z")
One of the many things I loved about the first season of “Prison Break” was Robin Tunney’s lawyer character Veronica being, at the very least, completely unsuited to what she was doing in the show. There are always shows where fans complain that someone makes stupid decisions, but in this case there was actually in-show evidence to support it. I remember distinctly someone saying something about how she “graduated in the middle of her Baylor law class” and “her background in real estate law” not being helpful to the criminal case she was investigating, but her habit of losing witnesses and evidence and only making progress by having people try to kill her makes her perhaps the most incompetent lawyer in the TVerse. On the other hand, Robin Tunney is quite lovely. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/53 "2009-08-03T14:39:28Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > James Wilson is a terrible oncologist > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > I don’t recall this. At least, I don’t remember him making a misdiagnosis, like House does 3 times a week, or having any cancer related issue sent to someone else because he’s no good. His tendency to date his patients is unfortunate. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/54 "2009-08-03T14:40:27Z")
> [@](#): > > Superman is too ethical to do something like that. Clark, on the other hand, is a lying scumbag. I hear he’s an asshole when he’s drunk ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/55 "2009-08-03T14:43:25Z")
Al Bundy–shoe salesman who always insulted his customers Beavis and Butt-head–Burger World cashiers & cooks ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/56 "2009-08-03T15:05:51Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Howard Wolowitz isn’t exactly the best engineer in the world. Nor is he the ladies man he fancies himself to be. [Wolowitz] I have a master’s degree in Engineering for God’s sake! [/Wolowitz] It wasn’t that he wasn’t a good engineer. He had bragged at one point about designing Mars rover equipment. His problem was that he was often compared to his cohorts who were all accomplished scientists with the kinds of egos that invited comparison. ---
**Author:** ![Gail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Gail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gail)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/57 "2009-08-03T17:34:49Z")
The series of maids that Emily Gilmore hires in _Gilmore Girls_. (According to Emily anyway.) The intern “Cabbage” in _Scrubs_ The intern Doug in _Scrubs_ (until they discovered he worked best in the morgue) Squidward ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/58 "2009-08-03T17:45:46Z")
Before Sipowitcz took over the squad, they had an LT who couldn’t be bothered with what was going on. I can’t remember the whole story, it’s been a few years and wikipedia’s list of NYPD Blue’s episodes just give short blurbs about each episode. ---
**Author:** ![Rod1199](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a587f6/32.png) [@Rod1199](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rod1199)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/59 "2009-08-03T18:24:27Z")
> [@Ponch8](#): > > Al Bundy–shoe salesman who always insulted his customers The first name that came to mind when I saw this thread was Al Bundy. It takes a true lack of effort to be an incompetent shoe salesman. 🙂 Also, Mayor Adam West from “Family Guy” is pretty high on the list of incompetency. And speaking of Adam West, what about Commissioner Gordon and Chief O’Hara from the old Batman TV show? The police never apprehended anyone on that show. All the criminals in Gotham City were always captured by Batman. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112/60 "2009-08-03T18:43:40Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > His tendency to date his patients is unfortunate. Ethically challenged? Yes. Medically challenged? I still think the jury’s out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-characters-who-are-incompetent-at-their-jobs/505112.md?page=4)