Can you feel the hate tonight?: 5 characters currently on TV that I despise

Like many people, I was sad when Lost aired its final episode. It may not have been a perfect show, but I grew really attached to it and miss it now that it's gone. There's one aspect of Lost, however, that I don't miss at all: Kate Austen. I didn't love every character on Lost, but there was no one I came even close to despising as much as I did her. Now that Lost is over, there are still plenty of characters currently on TV who plague me. These characters bring down their shows, and I'd like to see them gone. My desires to see certain characters disappear almost never seem to be fulfilled (e.g. Kate seeming to have 9 lives), but that won't stop me from hoping.

1. Derek Shepherd (Grey's Anatomy) 

I'm not a fun person with which to watch Grey's Anatomy. Every time that Derek's on the screen I can't help but feel a strong hatred towards him, and that hatred often represents itself in comment form. I actually liked Derek a lot during the first season. He was cute, charming, and basically, there was good reason to call him McDreamy. Then came the first season finale and the revelation that he was married, and suddenly, his relationship with Meredith lost its luster for me. It's not just the fact that he was married that bothered me, but also the way he treats women in general on the show. He didn't just end things with either Meredith or Addison; he juggled both of them for a long time. Somewhere in there he also dated nurse Rose while he clearly still had feelings for Meredith. Now he patronizes Meredith on a regular basis. Factor in his self-righteousness, and I just can't stand him.

How to Get Rid of Him: Derek gets into a spat with Meredith and goes to cry in his "house of candles." Then it catches on fire while he's in it, and fortunately, the burns are too severe for him to be saved.

2. Declan Porter (Revenge) 

I'm not sure how much I've talked about it on here, but I absolutely love Revenge. It's my favorite new show this season, and for the most part, I love the cast. Jack's (Kyle Valenti to my fellow Roswell watchers) little brother Declan, however, is horribly out of place. Declan just provides the show with annoying teen drama and distracts from the more interesting storylines. Plus, I've yet to figure out why his accent is different from literally everyone around him, including his brother.

How to Get Rid of Him: Declan does something to land on Emily's hit list, and she does us the favor of removing this blemish on an otherwise great show

3. Alex Dunphy (Modern Family)

I don't have a lot of reasons to include Alex on this list other than she annoys me greatly. There are actually several Modern Family characters that annoy me from time to time, but Alex is by far my least favorite. I don't know what's worse: when she's written as a know-it-all or when she's written as a "regular girl" (e.g. the episode where she crushes on the guy at the dude ranch). It's a close call, but I'll go with the latter. I feel like these moments are only going to increase as the character gets older. It's hard to believe that someone so annoying could be related to Luke, the superior sibling.

How to Get Rid of Her: However annoying Alex may be, she's still pretty young, so I'll go easy on her. Alex goes off to college early, and we never see her again. Or a car that doesn’t stop at the stop sign Claire insisted on hits her. What? I couldn't resist.

4. Leo Houston (Smash) 

Like Alex, Leo is another annoying teen character, but honestly, he's much worse. First of all, the role of Leo was cast terribly. I haven't seen Emory Cohen in anything else; maybe Smash doesn't showcase his abilities well. Still, he's terrible as Leo, and I cringe every time he's on screen (particularly during a crying scene he was inexplicably given a few weeks ago). Secondly (any maybe this ties into the poor acting), it's as if the person writing for him has never met a real teenager. In the second episode he wines about not getting an adopted sister, and questions "what's going to happen to her?" Viewers have also had to suffer through an atrocious storyline about Leo smoking weed. Now, watching him handle his parents' divorce is almost too painful to bear.

How to Get Rid of Him: In coping with his parents' divorce, Leo turns to harder drugs and quickly ODs. Now that I think about it, that would probably just mean more annoying drama for Julia. I'd gladly just accept Leo moving in with his dad and never being heard from again.

5. Ellis Tancharoen (Smash)

As much as I dislike Leo, there's one character that is much, much worse than him on Smash. Smash has a lot of problems, but Ellis is by far the worst. The hate I feel towards him is definitely an unhealthy amount to feel towards a fictional character. I can feel it seeping through me whenever he's on screen. I have a hard time putting my reasoning for despising Ellis into words because I'm not even sure why my hatred is so strong. Ellis is a villain and isn't necessarily supposed to be loved by the audience. Possibly he's supposed to be a character the audience loves to hate, but I just flat out hate him being on screen. He's annoyingly opportunistic, presumptuous, and somehow believes he deserves credit for the Marilyn musical. I wish I could more eloquently explain my hatred for him, but as he seems to be almost universally hated among Smash viewers, you probably know what I'm talking about if you've seen the show.

How to Get Rid of Him: Do it by any means necessary. I'd prefer a violent, painful death (Smashed by a bus?), but I'm not picky. Seriously, just get Ellis off this show.


As you can see, I have a lot of feelings when it comes to fictional characters. How do you feel about my picks? What current characters bother you? Let me know in the comments.