10 TV Sidekicks Who Were Way Better Than Their Stars

By Audrey Fox /

2. Wesley - Angel

The character arc that Wesley went on over the five years that Angel was on the air is enough to make a brave man weep. He started off of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, where he was a prim little Watcher straight out of the Academy who somehow manages to bullocks everything up in the short amount of time he's on the show and is sacked in due course. But then he makes his appearance on Angel, and everything sort of falls into place. No disrespect to Angel, but he's pretty much just brooding all the time. Compare that to Wesley, who undergoes a tremendous transformation on the show, and it's not hard to decide which character is more interesting to watch. From a man crippled by an abusive father, to a confident demon hunter surrounded by friends, and then finally to a dark, stoic loner, Wesley's journey is one of the most consistently compelling aspects of Angel.