The ten best new sidekicks on TV this season
Although very few of this fall's new programs are remotely outstanding, most of them have at least one redeeming character. Yes, even "Beauty & the Beast." Here are the standout sidekicks who don't get enough recognition:
10. Tyra ("Emily Owens, Meryl's Daughter")
This bubbly lesbian character seems to be the only one with any actual common sense on this program, and she understands the inner workings of the hospital, given her father's position. And she's fun, which is more than we can say about everyone else on the show.
9. Peter ("Chicago Fire")
To be honest, we mostly watch this show for the eye-candy and the cool fires and explosions, but while we ignore most of the relationship storylines, we still pay some attention to the young newbie torn between the two attractive heads of the different factions in the firehouse.
8. Glitzy ("Here Comes Honey Boo Boo")
This pig is seriously adorable. And his squeals make as much sense as most of the dialogue on the show. Put him in a pageant dress and we'd 100 percent vote for the poor thing who was evicted from his life in a baby crib.
7. Danny ("The Mindy Project")
He's got a roguish charm and owns his womanizing in a Barney Stinson sort of way. Naturally, this will wear thin soon, but we'll likely have stopped watching the show before we get to that point.
[Photos: 'New Girl' vs. 'The Mindy Project': Who's More Adorkable?]
6. Anne ("Go On")
The single member of the support group we can stand (well, we tolerate Owen because he doesn't say much), and she's actually not only funny (a rarity on this show), but also seems to hate most of the group as much as we do and speaks her mind so directly. Plus, her emotional recovery is far more interesting than whatever Ryan is going through.
5. Watson ("Elementary")
It was a controversial casting, and while this show isn't on the level of the U.K. "Sherlock," Lucy Liu certainly infuses her modern-day Watson with attitude to spare. Keeping track of Holmes and trying to get him to acknowledge her existence is a full-time job that we don't envy. And she's not half bad at helping him crack cases, either.
4. Wyatt ("Partners")
We watched more than one episode of this show, and we kind of hate ourselves for it, but it's the new "Whitney." Meaning that it's so horrifically bad that we can't believe it could get worse and then it somehow does, so we tune in some more and are amazed that it can hit another new low, and so on and so on. And all with a really talented cast. But still, if we have to watch to discover the exact location of the bottom of the barrel is, we're at least glad that Brandon Routh is around. He actually made us laugh that one time.
3. John Diggle ("Arrow")
When it comes to having frustratingly elusive employers, being Arrow's bodyguard is almost as thankless a job as being Sherlock's sober companion, but John's pretty good at what he does. And we like his gruff demeanor and stare. Now let him get some cool weapons and let's see what he can really do.
[Photos: "Arrow" Made Our List of Fall TV Winners & Losers]
2. J.T. ("Beauty & the Beast")
He's a nerdy guy who lives in a warehouse and protects his best friend with computers and science while combating a nervous stomach. Yeah, he's a keeper. The rest of the show is laughably bad (and it's not supposed to be a comedy), but J.T. reminds us a bit of Marshall from "Alias" and we can't help but wish that he could be transplanted to a better series. Doesn't Arrow need someone to help him develop new chemical weapons?
1. Shania ("The New Normal")
Did you see impression of Little Edie from "Grey Gardens"? It was stellar. This self-possessed preteen warmed our hearts and has quickly become one of our favorite Ryan Murphy creations ever. She's wise beyond her years (see also: the hamster funeral, or her speech at her fake wedding) and she has the added benefit of making Bryan more of a human being than we'd thought possible. The scenes with the two of them, with a little bit of Rocky thrown in, are the reason this show is growing on us.
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