5. Vic Mackey - The Shield
Head of a unit of law enforcement agents (The Strike Team) who often acted outside of legality, it's not a stretch to see Vic Mackey as a gangster of sorts. His Machiavellian attitude saw his unit's actions as 'a means to an end' but this lead to him committing frequent violent crimes himself. It's a classic case of a selfish morality similar to that of Walter White, where the best possible outcome is that which is best for himself and those close to him. Aside from his violent tendencies and criminal activity, Vic sees himself as a devoted family man despite sleeping with numerous other women through the course of the show. He is a duplicitous and dangerous character who quite often appears to be borderline sociopathic. It was a terrific performance from Michael Chiklis who truly sold the conflicted character. In the end, while he survives the run of the show, he loses everything dear to him in the process. What may have started out as a 'fighting fire with fire' idea within his unit devolved into a spiral of betrayal, murder and criminality, and it goes to show that acting like a criminal eventually turns you into one.