10 Annoying New TV Characters Only Added To Boost Ratings

10. Cousin Oliver - The Brady Bunch

Cousin Oliver is such a glaring example of this phenomenon, the idea of adding a new character in later seasons to boost ratings is commonly known as Cousin Oliver Syndrome. In this case, during The Brady Bunch's fifth season, a new relative suddenly appears named Oliver. Never heard of him? That's because he was never once mentioned prior to this, and he pops up out of absolutely nowhere. Apparently, Carol's brother and his wife went on an archeological dig, and while they were gone, they sent Oliver to live with the Brady family. Sounds like a totally organic plot development, huh? 

So why was he added? As is often the case, it was entirely a ploy to increase ratings and revitalize a show that had lost a lot of its youth. After all, being able to ride on the charm of adorable kids wasn't as easy when the actors were getting older every year. Oliver was meant to bring that back to The Brady Bunch and get everyone to care about the show again, but it had the exact opposite effect. Viewers universally hated this annoying little kid, and the series was cancelled just six episodes later. To this day, many blame Oliver for The Brady Bunch's demise, and in an appearance years later on The Weakest Link, actor Robbie Rist joked, "I hope I don't kill this show too!"