The choice was clear: vote or die. Thanks to your efforts, life emerged victorious! Here are your picks for the best characters of 2011.
Best Supporting Female Character
Colette Valois – Pan Am
Emerging from the wreckage that is ABC’s critically panned, Pan Am, a Parisian stewardess named Colette Valois captured a nation’s heart by battling Nazis, rescuing Haitian refugees and poisoning unfaithful husbands… all while speaking in an irresistible french accent. Unlike Christina Ricci and her Nightmare Face, Colette brought the sexy back to stewardesses. Le magnifique!
Best Supporting Male Character
Ron Swanson – Parks and Recreation
No one deserves to win best supporting male than American folk hero and cultural icon, Ron Ulysses Swanson. Serving as the Pawnee Parks Department Director, this gun-toting God amongst men loves three things: meats, mustaches, and a man’s right to be left the hell alone by his government. While Ron is a staunch libertarian, he still believes in Leslie Knope and stands by her every government and personal endeavor. He’s more supportive than a sports bra, more man than Chuck Norris, simply put, Ron Swanson is simply the best.
“Fish meat is practically a vegetable.” – Ron Swanson
Best Villain
Jaime Lannister – Game of Thrones
Handsome, ruthless, deadly with a sword and even deadlier with the one-liners, Jaime Lannister is blond badass with a vulnerable side. All Jaime wants is to please his father, and his sister…’s vagina. He’s a FAMILY man! Plus, he pushed a kid out of a window… do you know how many times a day I wish I could shove a dumb kid out of a window? SO MANY TIMES! Love him or love to have him, Jaime Lannister puts the GAME in Game Of Thrones.
“There’s no one like me. There’s only me.”
Most Hilarious
Santana Lopez – Glee
A bright shining beacon of candid comedic genius, Santana consistently provides the other characters a humorous (and usually cruel) reality check. Schuester is being a creepster, she’ll call him out. Rachel is crossing the line between spirited and obscenely obnoxious, Santana is there. Finn is on a dopey hero crusade, she compares him to a whale. In her own words: “I keep it real, and I’m hilarious.” We agree.
Best Female Lead Character
Leslie Knope – Parks and Recreation
In a television landscape full of a lot girls and too few women, Leslie Knope stands alone. She’s brilliant and funny, caring and flawed, sexy and awkward. She’s the most well-rounded woman on television. When given the choice between career and love, she picked her career. Instead of being punished, she got the opportunity to do it again and do it right. She has a best friend in Ann who she loves more than any guy, even when she’s calling Leslie out on her bullshit. She has a strong mentor in Ron Swanson who, even as a staunch conservative, has nothing but respect for strong women. She fills her days trying to change the world one small town at a time. She’s a rare bird as a kick-ass lady on a show that respects her awesomeness. Leslie Knope for President!
Best Male Lead Character
Jesse Pinkman – Breaking Bad
Just give Aaron Paul an(other) Emmy already. No character is as nuanced in their fear and vulnerability as Jesse. His layers of guilt shroud his motivations and underscore his desperation. He emotes vividly in every situation, whether he’s beating the shit out of his partner or just playing a video game solo. In a show polluted with ulterior motives and greed — Jesse’s motives are not necessarily pure, but they are always honest to who he is, making him the standout star of a star ensemble.
Best Show – It’s a TIE! Parks and Recreation and Breaking Bad
Over the summer, I rewatched all of my favorite X-Files episodes for nostalgia’s sake (for the record, they really hold up). Whether a monster-of-the-week or a Cigarette smoking man portrait, each hour had one thing in common — Vince Gilligan’s name in the credits. In Breaking Bad, Gilligan continues to prove that he can tell a story that is at once heart-breaking, horrifying and honest. For four seasons, he’s been slowly piling on the suspense with precision that would leave an actual chemist in awe. This season, the scales tipped and the story arc that has enthralled viewers for years took a turn that was at once bold and unpredictable while still making perfect sense within the larger narrative. Walt and Jesse’s story is tragic and enthralling. If you watch you already know – You Cannot. Turn. Away.
Like a fine wine (or perhaps a fine glass of Snake Juice in honor of Pawnee), this show has gotten better with age. At first, we were on the fence (the park fence, that is) about this show. But as we have seen, this show’s got chomps, and what a bite it gives us each week. From the show that put Amy Poehler center stage, gave Aziz Ansari the spotlight he needed, and saved Rob Lowe’s career (darling, what were you thinking on Brothers and Sisters?) you have to admit, this show is the best thing since The Office and 30 Rock — and with the rumored cancelling of those two shows at the end of the season, we are glad that Pawnee may be the only town left standing to save NBC Comedy (Whitney sure ain’t it). With an election year upon us, we are ready to see what political satire Ms. Knope and her troupe can conjure up.
