What's So Great About Them?

In this day and age, television is readily available for the watching, whether it's On Demand or on your computer. It seems, though, that TV stations are constantly premiering new shows, as if they're unable to find a show that works. I've been watching a few shows for several years now, and personally think they're pretty good. After all, what would NCIS be without Tony DiNozzo? Or Bones without Booth and Brennan? How would Sgt. Colbert survive without Ray Person? The list of questions goes on and on. So, here's a few of my favorite TV show characters, past and present.

Name: Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo
Show: NCIS
Quote: I'm the wild card. You know, the guy who looks at the reality in front of him and refuses to accept it.
What's So Great About Him? Every TV show needs comedic relief, and indeed, DiNozzo fills this role for NCIS. His constant jabs at Special Agent Tim "Probie" McGee and amusing flirtations with former Mossad Liaison Officer (now Special Agent) Ziva David provide a light air to a normally serious show. However, his role goes farther than that. Tony is the Senior Field Agent. He's the guy to turn to when Gibbs isn't available. He sees things in a different light (perhaps from his time spent as a homicide cop and all of Season 4 which was spent with him doing and under cover op), and slowly, but surely, we're seeing his character evolve from the chauvinistic playboy he was in Season 1 to the now complex, slightly more mature, and sometimes dark field agent that he is today. His constant references to old movies may drive you insane to begin with, but scratch a little deeper than the surface, and you'll see that he always comes through in the end.

Names: Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan and Special Agent Seeley Booth
Show: Bones
Quote: You see two people and you think they belong together, but nothing happens. The thought of losing so much control over personal happiness is unbearable. You love someone, you open yourself up to suffering, and that's the sad truth. Maybe they'll break your heart, maybe you'll break their heart and never be able to look at yourself in the same way. Those are the risks. That's the burden. Like wings, they have weight, we feel that weight on our backs, but they are a burden that lifts us. Burdens that allow us to fly.
What's So Great About Them? These two are complete opposites, but they show us how other people can fill in our gaps. Bones is a forensic anthropologist who works in conjunction with the FBI via Booth, and in the beginning, all the two do is bicker. However, as the show has progressed, we're being shown more and more about these two. And, indeed, like many shows, this is one of supposedly unrequited love. The ironic thing is, Booth loves Bones, and vice-versa, they're just too dense, or too afraid, to admit or see it. Perfect in their imperfections, though, at the end of the day, they bring out the best in each other.

Names: Sergeant Brad "Iceman" Colbert and Corporal Josh Ray Person
Show: Generation Kill
Quote: Oh, no. Now not only do we have to worry about all the Charms you've eaten, but now Brad's just pissed off God.
What's So Great About Them? Once again, we're greeted with a tail of two opposites thrown in the middle of the same situation. This time, though, it's in the middle of Iraq, during the 2003 invasion. See, Generation Kill was originally a three-part set of articles that was turned int a book published by Evan Wright, a Rolling Stones reporter embedded with this platoon of Marines. HBO turned it into a miniseries, and a pretty good one at that. It focuses on the Humvee that Wright rode in, and these two happened to be in it. Brad Colbert is cool, level-headed and collected, even in the heaviest of battles, thus attributing him his nickname. Josh Ray Person, however, is loud, occasionally obnoxious and rather foul at times. He's self-described as trailer-trash, and more often than not, he gets on the nerves of his fellow Marines instead of helping them. Despite their differences, these two are two of the best people you could ask to have on your platoon. Person is described as being the best RTO in their company, and Brad is looked upon as a heroic figure. These two figures are both self-sacrificing and funny at the same time, as seen when the convoy get's stuck in an ambush one night. Instead of panicking (as I would've done), Colbert begins engaging the enemy while Person gets out of his Humvee and starts yelling at the drivers to "Please! Back the f*** up!" In general, these two men are a wonderful example of a partnership you wouldn't think would work out.

Name: Gabriel Gray/Sylar
Show: Heroes
Quote: Help find a way. Give me salvation. Give me that damn list so I can sink my teeth in! I'm a natural progression of the species. Evolution is a part of nature, and nature kills. Simple, right?
What's So Great About Him? Ahhh... yes. Now we get to the serial killer on my list. Sylar is just... well, he's Sylar. Part tortured soul, part homicidal maniac, all completely amazing. His view of the world is just so incredibly different from anyone else's, it's hard to think that someone like you or I came up with his character. Whether he's telekinetically slicing heads open (and possibly satisfying that cannibalistic urge) or torturing our favorite heroes, he's guaranteed to deliver. After all, he's that villain you love to hate and hate to love.

So, that's my list so far. Perhaps I'll update it and include a few more characters. I'm sure there are plenty out there that deserve recognition. We'll see. In short, I seriously urge you to go and check these shows out. They may very well be worth your time. :)