A TV show might have a fantastic premise, but no one will watch it if the characters aren't great. TV is all about its characters, which is why many shows feature an eccentric group with different backgrounds and personalities. This has led to the rise of character tropes, including the unfortunate character who is constantly mistreated or made fun of by the rest of the gang in a series.
While sometimes these characters warrant the actions of their friends, coworkers, and peers, most of the time, they do not. Whether it be getting made fun of for looping a belt around a chair instead of one's pants or dancing weird, these characters deserve a hug, not the harsh judgments of those around them.
Britta - Community
Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs) is an interesting character who deserved better because she didn't start as a mistreated character. Instead, she was the "put together" love interest for Community's main character, Jeff (Joel McHale).
However, throughout the six-season run, Britta ditched the love interest character trope to become the character everyone mistreated, which is the saddest thing about her character. Ultimately, Britta's selfish and somewhat entitled nature made her study group friends begin to dislike her. Still, Britta had a lot to offer the group and should not have been as mistreated as she was.
Carlton - The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air
Carlton Banks (Alfonso Ribeiro) might not be thought of like a mistreated character by today's audiences because of the cult appeal of his character, but when The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was airing, that's precisely what he was. A comic relief character turned punching bag for Will (Will Smith), Carlton was constantly looked down upon by his cousin and sometimes his own family.
While some fans might argue that Carlton's constant need to be correct and the smartest in the room is what led to characters making fun of him, he still mostly meant well. Still, Will constantly picked on him for his short stature and intelligence, making people question their friendship.
Charles Boyle - Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is one of Michael Schur's best shows, and as such, it's no surprise that the show features a character that deserved better from his coworkers. Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) loves his job as a detective, and he's good at it, but he never gets the credit he deserves.
Instead, Charles is the comedic relief character in a comedy full of comedic characters. Instead of understanding and befriending Charles, they'd rather make fun of him for his dramatic antics and weird costumes in the show's annual Halloween-themed episodes.
Colin - Ted Lasso
While Ted Lasso is all about positivity and being kind to one another, the series falls prey to creating characters mistreated by the rest of the cast. In season one, that character appeared to be Nate (Nick Mohammed). In season two, the mistreated character is Richmond soccer player, Colin (Billy Harris).
No longer under Jamie's (Phil Dunster) leash, Colin has had difficulty figuring out who he is on the team. This has led him to seek help from Dr. Sharon (Sarah Niles), who has encouraged him to believe in himself. Still, his mantras are often looked down upon by Nate and Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt).
Garry/Jerry - Parks & Recreation
When it comes to characters that deserved better, Garry/Jerry (Jim O'Heir) from Parks and Recreation is the most well-known. Despite being amazing and passionate about his job in the parks department, Garry is regularly the scapegoat and butt end of everyone's jokes.
It starts with his coworkers not knowing Garry's real name and escalates to the gang playing mean-spirited pranks and jokes on him. Even when his coworkers try to do something nice for him, like throw him a birthday party or honor his retirement, things go wrong, and he gets blamed.
Gunther - Friends
Gunther (James Michael Tyler) might not be the main character on NBC's hit sitcom Friends, but he is one of the most impactful secondary characters on the show. As an employee at Central Perk, Gunther often finds himself interacting with the six main characters, but rarely in a positive light.
Despite giving both Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Joey (Matt LeBlanc) jobs when they fall on to hard times, the gang still regularly makes fun of him. They also spend most of the time refusing to acknowledge his presence, despite constantly loitering in his cafe.
Josh - Drake & Josh
When it comes to Nickelodeon original sitcoms, Drake & Josh is one of the most iconic. The series regularly aired wacky and memorable episodes, yet the hilarious show still played into the hurtful character trope of mistreating a lead character. In this case, that character was Josh Nichols (Josh Peck).
Though Josh was by far the smarter one of the two step-brothers, his uncoolness factor often made him the butt of the joke. Josh constantly took a beating despite being a kind and caring character, from regularly getting pranked by his younger step-sister and losing the science fair to his arch-enemy to having his obsession with Oprah mocked -- all of which become running gags on the show.
Meg - Family Guy
Characters on animated adult cartoons are regularly treated poorly, but most of the time, they deserve it and bounce back. That's not the case for Meg on Family Guy. As the only daughter of the Griffins, one would think she'd be treated like a princess, but instead, they chose to mistreat her.
Meg tries to put her best foot forward, but it never works out in her favor. Instead, she is bullied at school and largely ignored at home. Maybe if Meg were a terrible character, this would be warranted, but most of the time, she's just trying to live her life and be happy.
Sandra - Superstore
Superstore was home to many fun, eccentric, and memorable characters, but none were as mistreated as Sandra (Kaliko Kauahi). Though Sandra started a minor character, she became a fan favorite and took on more important story arcs in later seasons.
However, this didn't mean her coworkers started treating her any better. A popular running gag on the show involved her coworkers regularly telling her to shut up anytime she tried to speak. Despite being mistreated, Sandra continued putting her all into her work and even fell in love. But not even the wedding of her dreams could happen because one of her coworkers just had to ruin it.
Toby - The Office
While Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) might be the one character in The Office universe that deserves to be mistreated for his wild personality, Toby (Paul Lieberstein) fills that role. As Dunder-Mifflin's head of HR, Toby's job is to keep the peace in the office, yet war is regularly being waged on him.
Though Michael is usually the one making fun and hating on Toby, the rest of the office all joins in on the fun from time to time. Michael even goes as far as to call corporate in an attempt to get him fired, despite Toby doing nothing wrong.