Random TV Antagonists Who Are Genuinely Relatable (13 items)

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  (#2) Toby Flenderson

  • The Office

  As much as we love Michael Scott’s constant belittlement of Dunder Mifflin's human resources representative, the reality is that poor Toby’s life sucks. He may stifle Michael’s inappropriate fun, but he still always treats Michael like an adult and seems like a genuinely nice person, for the most part. Toby is the kid who is picked last for teams, never gets invited to parties, and has no luck on dating apps. His life is every Office fan's worst nightmare: working at Dunder Mifflin and never contributing anything meaningful to the story. But it is his pathetic nature that makes him relatable.

  For anyone who has ever been on the receiving end of bullying, or had a bad day, or a bad year, Toby is there to make you feel better about your life as you marvel at the unhappiness in his. 
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  (#1) Negan

  • The Walking Dead

  Negan seems to enjoy his fair share of aggression, but let’s be honest, so does Rick. Negan’s methods as leader of the Saviors may have been extreme at times, but he did what he felt he had to in order to lead his people into the future. To be fair, Rick did attack the Savior outposts before Negan took a baseball bat to Glenn’s head.

  As Rick’s antagonist, Negan is formidable, funny, and smart; he is the twisted jester of the zombie apocalypse. As a potential ally, Negan is engaging, funny, and smart. Negan is a perfect example of TWD portraying moral ambiguity at its best.
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  (#12) Pete Campbell

  • Mad Men

  Not everyone can be as cool or as powerful as Don Draper. Pete Campbell is just a schmuck trying to play the game and get ahead; the character’s feeling of dissatisfaction and under-appreciation fuels almost everything that he does. He always appears sunny and optimistic, but inside he is sad, insecure, and desperately seeking approval from his family and peers.

  Really, Campbell is just insecure about his existence and yearning to make a mark on the world. He is a failed version of Draper, embodying the worst parts of him. Mad Men’s creator, Matthew Weiner once said, “we all want to be Don, but actually, we are all Pete.” 
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  (#6) Tywin Lannister

  • Game of Thrones

  Tywin Lannister might have been the most self-aware character in Westeros; cold, calculated, pragmatic, and effective, Tywin is exactly the type of person one has to become in order to survive the Seven Kingdoms. You could even go as far as saying that Tywin is the fictional embodiment of a disillusioned viewer who has been tasked with winning the Game of Thrones.

  One can’t help but respect the man. He does what he has to and, while ruthless, his cruelty is almost always with a purpose.  
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  (#11) Roman Roy

  • Succession

  In all honesty, it is difficult to relate to anyone in Succession, except, perhaps, for cousin Greg. The world the conglomerate Roy family operates within is not one most people know or want to know. Roman is arguably the most relatable Roy of the bunch, fully submerged in his awfulness. He is as funny and dramatic as the show itself; a spoiled “visionary” aware of his and his family’s ghastliness that uses wit to say what everyone is thinking in almost every scene.

  Roman Roy is so far gone, he doesn’t even pretend to be "normal" like his siblings. Roman will offer a child bystander a million dollars to hit a home run in his family’s baseball game and then tear the check right in front of him when he fails. He is heartless for the sake of being heartless, but he is keenly aware of his faults. He is relatable because he uses humor to hide the horror of his situation.  
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  (#8) Newman

  • Seinfeld

  Newman is the main antagonist of Seinfeld; he’s friends with Kramer but does not get along with his other neighbor, Jerry Seinfeld.

  Okay, this guy is “pure evil,” but he’s friends with Kramer. Who doesn’t want to be friends with Kramer?

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