2. Francis Urquhart in House of Cards
House of Cards was a classic British political drama that aired in the early 1990s. Its Machiavellian hero was a conniving politician hell-bent on becoming Prime Minister, whose façade of decency concealed his seething contempt for his inept colleagues, and whose quest to lead Great Britain involved numerous acts of deceit and treachery. The first series is the most entertaining; Urquhart bores gaping holes in the Fourth Wall with his gimlet stare, explaining his plans to the audience with smirking asides as he runs rings around various pawns and enemies. Hes mostly up against people who are both malevolent and stupid, making his cultured and precise scheming look preferable by comparison. Of course, the audience starts to feel pretty guilty about rooting for Urquhart, as more sympathetic characters begin to fall prey to his machinations and his crimes become more and more unforgivable. The sequels portrayed Urquhart as a triumphant PM stamping on do-gooders trying to unseat him, and were a lot less enjoyable than his original run as a sly underdog clawing his way up the ranks, especially as it was hinted that Britain seemed to be becoming increasingly harsh and bleak under his control.