10 Genius TV Characters Who Outshined Their Fellow Cast Members

We all have our favorite shows… but usually, there’s really just one character that we tune in to watch every week. We have no idea what they’ll do next, but whatever he or she does, we know it’ll always be worth watching. Sometimes these characters are so good they just leave their poor fellow cast-mates in their dust. Here’s the list of the 10 Best Genius TV Characters Who Outshone Their Cast.

10. Niles Crane (David Hyde Pierce) on Frasier

Originally, dilettante Frasier Krane’s even more effeminate brother, Niles, was only supposed to be a small part of the show… But once the producers got a load of David Hyde Pierce’s “Niles”in the pilot, they knew he was to be a lead fixture. The result? Only a whole bunch of Emmys for Pierce, and a few for the show too.

Niles has his own psychiatric practice,  thinks his older brothers’ radio show is the psychological equivalent of fast-food, and crushes hard on his father’s British nanny Daphne. With these still hoity-toity waters running deep, Niles is a simmering pot of comedy gold.

9. Urkel (Jaleel White) from Family Matters

TGIF…. You watched it, I watched, everybody watched it. What else were 10-year-olds supposed to do with ourselves after a long, arduous school-week? And the centerpiece of TGIF’s lineup?  Family Matters. Now let me ask you this… can you name another character from that show BESIDES Urkel?…. I thought so. Yes, Urkel epitomized geek-hood and stole every scene he was in, whether it was with his crush Laura or her father, Carl…  I can still hear that snort in my nightmares.

8. Latka Gravas (Andy Kaufman) from Taxi

In this late 70s-early 80s sitcom, the late Andy Kaufman took all the other fairly “normal” cast members (if you can count Danny Devito as that) to task, with the exception maybe of Christopher Lloyd’s Jim (who came on the show the second season, and who almost made this list.) There was the aging wiseguy (Judd Hirsch), the dumb Italian (Tony Danza), the hot redhead (Marilu Henner), the rude boss (Danny Devito), and the handsome guy (Jeff Conaway)… all of whom were cab drivers. Curiously, no Arabs on this show, which, if you go to New York City now, is pretty unrealistic. But there was one foreigner…. Latka Gravas, the garage mechanic, who hailed from some sort of non-descript Mediterranean Island. Besides fixing cars, this naive quirky mechanic also unwittingly got himself into all sorts of trouble as he tried to adapt to American life. RIP Andy Kaufman!

7. Eric Cartman (Trey Parker) on South Park

Cartman is the driving force behind South Park. Psychologically scarred by the lack of a father figure, and a nymphomaniac mother who smothers him, Cartman projects his psychological trauma by being the most bigoted, racist, greedy, gluttonous, right-wing blowhard of an 8-year old you’ll ever meet. From the first-season alien anal probe to the “Kyle’s Mom is a Bitch” song in the movie, Cartman is the main reason we all watch this show.

6. Dwight Shrute (Rainn Wilson) on The Office

In an office full of “everymen” and “everywomen,” Dwight is anything but normal. Actually he’s relatively normal, except for the fact that he takes his job about 800 times more seriously than everybody else. He also grew up on a Pennsylvania beet farm and…may be Amish? We never really know. What we do know is that he’s the wackiest character on this show by a mile, even making Steve Carrell’s brilliant Michael Scott look almost like the “straight” man.

5. Samantha (Kim Cattrall) on Sex and the City

Samantha made it cool for middle-aged women to be unmarried children-hating potty-mouthed nymphomaniacs on TV.  She also happened to be the funniest broad on this show, that even us guys watch ( even though we’ll never admit it), and Samantha’s the big reason why. I mean, sure, we liked to hear  Carrie’s neurotic obsessions over whether she’ll ever find true love, but c’mon… Sam’s like a frat dude in a hot, well-dressed, blonde chick’s body…

4. Stewie (Seth Macfarlane) from Family Guy

Stewie: Seth Macfarlane’s greatest creation. That’s not hyperbole, and I think you would agree. A demonic, possibly gay child with a football-shaped head and British accent, Stewie seeks to 1: Dominate the world and 2: Kill his mother…. kind of like a strange combo of both sides of the Oedipus complex. And though his vocabulary is excellent, only Brian the dog can understand him.

3. GOB (Will Arnett) from “Arrested Development”

Okay, so Arrested Development, perhaps the best sitcom of the last decade, was full of quirky characters and all the actors were awesome…. but I just still had to put GOB Bluth on the list. A thirty-something spoiled rich kid, GOB is a proud member of the Magician’s Association that vows to black-ball anyone who gives away a magician’s secrets. His antics, hilariously played by Will Arnett, must be seen to be believed… And his tricks… the chicken dance, the segway, the — oh wait, they’re illusions… A trick is something a whore does for money… or candy!

2. Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven)

To say that Jeremy Piven has more acting ability than his four  co-stars combined might seem like a stretch… unless they’ve actually seen “Entourage.” Yep, I think that the four relatively “normal” (= boring) best friends in movie-star Vinny Chase’s entourage would get old real quick if it weren’t for the force of nature that is Piven’s Ari Gold. Foul-mouthed, power-hungry, aggressive and brash, yet a family man all at once, Vince’s super-agent Ari must be seen to be truly appreciated. And Piven’s won the Emmys to prove it.

1. Kramer (Michael Richards)

Sure, Michael Richards’ rep might have taken a beating in recent years due to a single improved slip-up at a comedy club, but don’t forget…. he was Kramer. And Kramer….. was…. AWESOME. Though Jason Alexander was also incredibly good as George, Larry David’s alter-ego on Seinfeld, no one stole the scenes on this “show about nothing” more than Kramer. Cosmo Kramer.