Top 10 TV Characters Who Had Small Roles But Big Impacts
#10: Charlie Bradbury
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“Supernatural” (2005-20) While she only made appearances in four short seasons of “Supernatural’s” 15-year run, Charlie Bradbury had a pretty large bearing on the plot of the show. The hacker (and part-time monster hunter) periodically joins up with Sam and Dean to fight evil beings. However, her biggest influence on the story was also her last. In Season 10, she tried to translate parts of the Book of the Damned to save Dean from an evil force. While she ended up helping to save Dean, and of course the rest of the show, she is murdered in the process.
#9: Jane Margolis
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“Breaking Bad” (2008-13) Sometimes, you just need a couple of episodes in a season to make your mark. Jane Margolis, played by Krysten Ritter, comes in during the sophomore season of “Breaking Bad” as a love interest for Jesse Pinkman. While Jane was clean when she met Jesse, the two quickly fell back into addiction together, causing Jesse to ignore his meth-selling obligations to Walt. When Walt walks in on the two passed out and Jane starts to choke on her own vomit, Walt has a choice to make. Will he save Jane? The answer is no. This decision affects Jesse greatly and puts him under Walt’s thumb for nearly the rest of the series.
#8: Luisa Alver
“Jane the Virgin” (2014-19) Has any one character ever had this much control over the central premise of a show? We’re going to say no. Dr. Luisa Alver shows up throughout “Jane the Virgin,” but never does she have as much bearing on the plot as she does in episode one. Luisa is the character who, in a moment of anxious absentmindedness, accidentally artificially inseminated the main character Jane. This literally sets the show’s entire plot in motion, and every single plot point links back to this moment. Seriously, we don’t think anyone will have this sort of impact ever again.
#7: Garrett Jacob Hobbs
“Hannibal” (2013-15) Sometimes you don’t even have to be alive to have an impact. Garrett Jacob Hobbs, or the Minnesota Shrike, as he’s better known, is killed by Will Graham in the very first episode of “Hannibal.” But despite his untimely death, Hobbs has an unimaginable effect on Will’s actions throughout the rest of the series. After killing Hobbs, Will began to worry that he had enjoyed the act of murder too much. He began to see Hobbs in his dreams, the seemingly innocuous killer having a terrifying effect on Will’s psyche.
#6: Marco Pasternak
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“Better Call Saul” (2015-22) For so much of Marco Pasternak’s short run on “Better Call Saul,” Marco Pasternak represents everything Jimmy doesn’t want to be. During a break from his firm, Jimmy meets back up with his old friend Marco in his hometown, and the two decide to run scams on whoever they can. After about a week, Jimmy starts to think that he should get back to his clients and start living life the right way. But Marco convinces him to stay for one last job. During that job, Marco dies from a heart attack. Marco’s death, and his final words to Jimmy, convince Jimmy to make the final step to the dark side, no longer worried about doing good.
#5: The Saperstein Twins
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“Parks and Recreation” (2009-15) When you have a cast as robust as “Parks and Recreation,” there’s bound to be more than a few characters who make a huge impact. Li’l Sebastian, for one, had a whole episode planned around his memorial! But our pick is a little more chaotic than a miniature horse. Today, we’re here to talk about the Saperstein Twins. We first meet Jean-Ralphio before we meet his sister, Mona-Lisa, but both of them wreak havoc on the town of Pawnee. In particular, they affect Tom Haverford’s life, helping him through bad investments and pregnancy scares galore.
#4: Gunther
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“Friends” (1994-2004) We were on a break!! It’s perhaps the most iconic sitcom line of all time, and we have one person to thank for it. No, not Ross. Gunther. That’s right. The barista at Central Perk is always in the background of every “Friends” episode, but his time to shine came in Season 3. Due to his long-standing crush on Rachel, he decided to cause a little chaos in Rachel’s relationship with Ross. After Ross slept with someone else mere moments after deciding to “take a break” with Rachel, he desperately tries to stop her from finding out. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get to Gunther in time. A chaos agent indeed!
#3: Oberyn Martell
“Game of Thrones” (2011-19) There are plenty of characters in “Game of Thrones” who don’t make it very long in the cruel, cruel world around them. We wept for the sassy, strong Lady Lyanna Mormont when she met an untimely end in Season 8, but one death rocked us to our core. Oberyn Martell shows up in Season 4 and shakes up everything in King’s Landing. His most impactful decision is to take up the role of Tyrion’s champion during Tyrion’s trial for King Joffrey’s death. He literally takes one of our favorite character’s lives into his hands. He almost wins, but his showboating ways lead to a surprise, explosive ending for this amazing character. We hardly knew ye.
#2: Barb Holland
“Stranger Things” (2016-) “Stranger Things” hit Netflix in 2016, and audiences immediately fell in love with the kids of Hawkins, Indiana. Most people fell in love with one character in particular, even though that character barely made it through two episodes. Barb Holland was killed by the Demogorgon quite early in the run of “Stranger Things,” but her disappearance and subsequent death affected the first season greatly. Even heading into the second season, Barb’s death hung like a specter over characters like Nancy. Plus, in the real world, actress Shannon Purser got a lot of love and new roles to play. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
Doug Judy, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (2013-21)
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Judge Gen, “The Good Place” (2016-20)
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Abby Morgan, “Dawson’s Creek” (1998-2003)
Gone Too Soon, But Not Before Causing Chaos
Stella Zinman, “How I Met Your Mother” (2005-14)
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#1: Laura Palmer
“Twin Peaks” (1990-91; 2017) Laura Palmer is perhaps the most famous fictional murder victim of all time. And when an entire show revolves around your murder, your name is going to come up a lot. But Laura Palmer isn’t just alluded to throughout “Twin Peaks,” and she isn’t just talked about a lot. She actually appears in many of the show’s most famous scenes. Palmer is played by actress Sheryl Lee and shows up periodically throughout the series. She also serves as the main character in the prequel to the “Twin Peaks” story, “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me.” When it comes to fictional murder victims, we’d say she got the best deal you could get.
