# TV Shows Where the Characters Aren't Tools **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [October 8, 2020, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462 "2020-10-08T03:10:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2020, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/21 "2020-10-08T15:45:31Z")
Psych was from the light, “blue-sky” era of USA Network when it had a bunch of dramas that were all fun and not particularly dark, like Monk, Royal Pains, Burn Notice and White Collar, in addition to Psych. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2020, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/22 "2020-10-08T17:34:39Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > The original Addams Family. > Take away the spooky aspects, & the Addams Family are really nice folks, who would certainly be fine neighbors for anybody In her review of the Addams Family movie, Lindsay Ellis looked back at the TV show and pointed out that Gomez and Morticia probably had the most healthy marriage on TV at the time; they supported each other, were equal co-parents (she showed a clip of Gomez comforting Wednesday when someone told her a story with an unhappy ending - the knight killed the dragon), and, most unusually, were unabashedly and unashamedly passionate - no dead bedrooms at the Addams house. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2020, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/23 "2020-10-08T17:39:08Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > _Derry Girls_ – Teenagers growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Also very funny. I would second this one. One of the funniest shows I’ve seen recently, while still having important things to say. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/24 "2020-10-09T01:32:05Z")
I’m with you - people are bad enough in real life, I don’t need to watch tv shows where everyone is an asshole. My recommendations: IT Crowd Downton Abbey The Durrells Santa Clarita Diet Misfits The Expanse Happy Endings The B\*\*\*\* In Apt 23 The last two here have some comedically jerky people in them, but they’re so goddamned funny. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/25 "2020-10-09T11:58:34Z")
A few I liked that I don’t think have been mentioned yet: _Galavant_: The heroes are comically flawed, but ultimately genuinely decent people. The titular character starts as a jerk, but he’s inconsiderate and thoughtless rather than actively mean, and his character arc is realizing that he’s a jerk and becoming a better person. Even the villains are often flawed but redeemable, and a couple of them do become flawed but more-or-less good guys by the end. _Once Upon a Time_: The heroes are actually heroic, and mostly fundamentally nice, decent people. Again, even the villains are often flawed but redeemable, and several of them have redemption arc - one becomes one of the core heroes by the end of the series. _Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D._: Mentioned upthread, but I think worth a bit more commentary. The show started out trying to stay tightly tied into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and its basic premise literally gets blown up halfway through the first season by events in _Captain America: The Winter Soldier_. After that first season, I thought it both the quality of the characters and the overall quality of the show dropped sharply. But that first season, especially the first half…It really showcases being merciful, humane, and _nice_ as being not just possible while still being a badass action hero, it made them _features_ of being a badass action hero. _The West Wing_: The heroes can be arrogant and self-righteous, but that’s undercut to some extent by lampshading it, and they are all fundamentally idealistic, ethical, and moral, with a real emphasis on “punching up” and not “punching down”. At least the first four seasons or so when Aaron Sorkin was the show runner. Also, Sorkin’s tragically short-lived dramedy “Sports Night”. _The Orville_: Frankly, I personally think it’s mediocre, but a number of Dopers really enjoyed it. For the purposes of this thread, though, it _is_ genuinely optimistic sci-fi, with comically flawed but generally decent heroes. CW’s Arrowverse: I didn’t watch _Arrow_ much, but from what I’ve seen, it can get grim-dark, but _The Flash_ and _Supergirl_ have genuinely heroic heroes. _DC’s Legends of Tomorrow_ has some grim-dark elements early on, and has a couple of anti-hero characters, but as the show goes on, it leans more and more heavily into the goofy elements of its premise, and after a couple of seasons, it becomes just a fun romp. Even early on, the “anti-heroes” are selfish and inconsiderate, but not actually mean or cruel. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/26 "2020-10-09T13:06:33Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Misfits _Misfits_? Really? Everyone on the show is absolutely an asshole. Funny, strangely likable assholes, to be sure, but assholes nonetheless, who end up killing a lot of people along the way. (And I say that as someone who loves the show and would heartily recommend it nonetheless.) ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/27 "2020-10-09T13:56:24Z")
I’ll second _Brooklyn Nine-Nine_. It’s primarily just sarcasm and goofy absurdity most of the time. Even most of the criminals they catch are fairly good-natured. _The Profit_: It’s a business-rescue reality show, but it’s not _Kitchen Nightmares_ or _Bar Rescue_; the host Mark Lemonis is a legitimately nice man. There’s no yelling or anger, it’s just “What’s wrong, and here’s how I can help.” He buys in with his own money and he never gets angry, even when he gets angry (he’ll literally say, “I’m pissed” but his demeanor never actually changes). Some of the business owners are occasionally jerks, but most of them are just kind of “business clueless” and Lemonis _will_ just walk away from a business if it becomes apparent the owners are not pulling their weight (watching this show it’s amazing to me how far people can get without even knowing how to calculate their own costs). He doesn’t just show the successes, he fails in a decent number of the episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/28 "2020-10-09T16:20:22Z")
If we’re including reality shows, I’ll add _Making It_. It’s a crafting competition, which at first sounded about as appealing as a root canal. But it’s really fun. Hosts Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman are hilarious, but never in a snarky or insulting way. As for the contestants, they seem to go out of their way to find genuinely nice people to participate. There’s absolutely no backstabbing; they all support and encourage each other. In one episode, one contestant was having trouble finishing her project on time. Everybody else was done a few minutes early, and they all went over to help her finish as time wound down. It’s a heartwarming show, even for an old curmudgeon like me. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/29 "2020-10-09T16:27:50Z")
And if we’re doing reality shows, then definitely add The Great British Bake-Off, where the contestants are competitive but aren’t assholes to each other. And the judges and hosts (Sue and Mel) are nice to everyone. (And I remember watching [Scrapheap Challenge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrapheap_Challenge) from the UK (later remade as Junkyard Wars in the US). Once there was a competition on the UK show against a team from the US. And while the Americans kept building through the whole of the allotted time, the UK team sat down for a tea break.) ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/30 "2020-10-09T17:21:39Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > > > Misfits > > _Misfits_? Really? Everyone on the show is absolutely an asshole. Funny, strangely likable assholes, to be sure, but assholes nonetheless, who end up killing a lot of people along the way. (And I say that as someone who loves the show and would heartily recommend it nonetheless.) Not going to argue with you about that. 😃 Well, maybe a little - they’re basically kids, being as selfish and dumb as kids usually are. And they do _try_ not to kill people. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/31 "2020-10-09T19:14:46Z")
“Could we please stop killing our probation workers!” [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5U3LeynAyoU/hqdefault.jpg "Misfits: 2x01 - The Misfits Kill yet another Social Worker") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5U3LeynAyoU) ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2020, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/32 "2020-10-09T19:39:05Z")
That’s the show I was thinking of when I read the OP. ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2020, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/33 "2020-10-10T01:49:10Z")
_Ted Lasso_, for sure. The OP is essentially asking for Ted Lasso directly 🙂. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2020, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/34 "2020-10-10T01:59:13Z")
Unfortunately Ted Lasso is Apple TV, right? We have Amazon, Netflix and Hulu. All great suggestions. We started with _Parenthood._ They all seem like good people, nice ensemble cast. It’s delightful to see Peter Krause doing something different because Nate in _Six Feet Under_ really got on my nerves after a while. ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2020, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/35 "2020-10-10T02:06:47Z")
Yes, Ted Lasso is on Apple TV+, which is too bad, since it deserves to find a big audience. Apple TV+ does offer a free 7 day trial, as I recall. That could be enough to go through the whole Lasso season - it’s only 10 half-hour episodes. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2020, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/36 "2020-10-10T02:24:44Z")
Everybody stop right now and watch **Joe Pera Talks With You.** ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/37 "2020-10-17T01:17:25Z")
_Law and Order: Criminal Intent_. Bobby Goren and Alex Eames had their shortcomings and moments of tool-ishness (I strongly suspect Eames was the one who put the rat in Goren’s desk that one time), but for the most part these were decent people with decent impulses. Logan kind of irked me, but I don’t consider his episodes canon. Also, _Monk_ and _Columbo_. Columbo is remembered as this appalling boor who smokes his cigar in people’s living rooms, but re-watching this, it’s amazing how tactful and restrained he is. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/38 "2020-10-17T01:20:07Z")
_X-Files_! They were all sterling citizens, even the replacement agents from the last season or two. I know of no one who doesn’t crush on either Mulder or Scully. ---
**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:** [October 17, 2020, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/39 "2020-10-17T02:13:39Z")
I’m going to throw _My Name is Earl_ into the ring. Earl, was most assuredly a tool for the majority of his life, but getting hit by a car shortly after winning the lottery helped him turn his life around. While recovering in the hospital, Carson Daly explains the concept of karma to Earl which convinces him to turn his life around. Earl make a list of everyone he’s wronged over the years and each episode revolves around him trying to make amends to that person. One of my favorite episodes was when Earl tries to make amends to his father for losing his Mustang in a street race when he was a teenager. Earl gets the Mustang back, and with his father, who saved all the spare parts he had intended to restore the car with, they get to work fixing it. At some point, Earl realizes his father hadn’t been upset by the loss of the Mustang, he was upset because losing the car meant that the opportunity to bond with his son over the restoration was missed. And Earl also realized that by being a tool he didn’t just hurt his father he had hurt himself as well. Anyway, I enjoyed the show quite a bit. The last season things started to slip a bit but it was a good show overall. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462/40 "2020-10-17T02:15:18Z")
Good suggestion. I watched it years ago and really enjoyed it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-where-the-characters-arent-tools/922462.md?page=3)