As a child of the 80's I also commented on this as it applies to G.I. Joe.  And you're right, the BAD GUYS also tended to feature boring 'leaders' surrounded by awesome henchmen.  Scheming, unhinged Starscream; awesome, synth-voiced Soundwave….  And Cobra Commander was practically comedy relief while Destro was a…

Jerry was the least flashy of the characters, but I wouldn't call him a 'hole'.  As others have pointed out, there's a very, very big difference between a Straight Man and a Boring Placeholder.  Jerry was an essential straight man and he was masterful at it.  I used to criticize him for being a bad actor, but in…

This argument is sound and I endorse the deployment of all-caps.  Well PLAYED, sir.

I remember the very first time I recognized this phenomenon, watching cartoons in 1983:

Andy Travis wins this HANDS DOWN, because before I read this article, I:
   a.  Never realized that Andy was originally the 'protagonist' of WKRP
   b.  Forgot that Andy Travis was even a character on WKRP.  Literally every other     actor/character comes to mind before him.

You're very funny.  But it doesn't really apply to me, since I didn't retroactively disown the show.  I quit watching it SIX YEARS AGO.  And I'm sort of teasing y'all.  I only empathize with people who have stuck with a stupid show long after its sell-by date(See: LOST).

C'mon, there was maybe only a half-season of 'bad' Twin Peaks, and that was still a lot of fun.  And BSG was still very, very watchable through the last season.  Walking Dead lost me after the second half of Season 3.  That show insists on taking 7 hours of Good Show and using character stupidity to stretch it into 14…

Yes!  It was fucking dogshit!  #stuffthatcantbesaidenough

God, I love reading unfiltered vitriol.  But seriously, the rest of you should be ashamed of yourselves.  After I watched the 2nd season of 'Dexter', I thought:  'My, that was pretty entertaining, but it's clear that this show will only get much, much, much stupider from here.'  And then I stopped.  Keep in mind, the…

80's Pop (when it was still influenced by post-punk and synth, before hair metal came around)  was GREAT POP MUSIC.  If you can't love Cyndi Lauper, I don't know how to even talk to you.

It's just too bad The Simpsons didn't end its run much earlier.  There are probably as many weak/mediocre episodes as brilliant ones by now, and that's just not the Simpsons.  Until 1998 or so, there WERE NO WEAK EPISODES.  I'm in my mid-thirties, and there was a time when everyone at my college would have to gather…

Also the best season of that show, before Vick Mackey went full-douchebag and therefore became much less interesting.

Agreed…  Although I should say that, hyperbole aside, I do think Breaking Bad is an excellent show.  Not on the level of Sopranos or The Wire, in my opinion, but excellent.  I think it represents the last gasp of truly seminal TV that can be squeezed from the Dark Cable Anti-Hero formula.  Shows like 'Boardwalk…

Agreed.  I just finished re-watching all 6 seasons in memory of THE MAN, James Gandolfini.  That show has not only not shown its age (with the possible exception of some heavy-handed editing in the first season)— It actually struck me as even stronger as a whole work of fiction now that I've had the opportunity to…

Wholeheartedly agree with your take on Orange is the New Black.  Breaking Bad marks the end of the 'Dark Cable Anti-Hero' phase first popularized by Sopranos, and I'm glad about that.  It's become a cliche, and popularized to the point that there are actually some morons on the BB discussion board still arguing that…

Jesus Christ, you are pathetic.  I would love to set you 'straight' on some of your theories on people posting here, but there isn't enough hot water in the world for all the showering I'd have to do afterward.  If it really makes you feel better to think that everyone who disagrees with you is queer, then you lose,…

I know how you feel.  I'm glad this season of VEEP has ended so I'm no longer tempted to visit the AVClub after each episode and comment on how great she looks in those tight dresses.  I was starting to creep myself out.

Yes, Walt was totally within his rights.  I wholeheartedly concur.

Now I've got to go to the bathroom.

Absolutely! Me and everyone else that finds your douchebag opinions  disagreeable and lame are just 19th century fops!  When we aren't persecuting you for being such a virile, free-thinking iconoclast, we indulge in our favorite hobbies like fainting dead away and giggling at stereoscopes of animal genitalia.