10 TV Shows That Redeemed Hated Characters In A Single Episode

7. Andy Bernard - The Office (U.S.)

The Episode: Season 3, Episode 20 ("Safety Training")

Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) was introduced in The Office's third season as one of Jim's (John Krasinski) co-workers at the Stamford branch, and when Stamford was merged with Scranton later in the season, he joined the main Office cast.

It's no secret among Office fans that, despite Ed Helms' comedic brilliance, the character was annoying as hell for a major chunk of season three, with Helms' own mother reportedly even finding him too grating to watch.

But everything changed for Andy after he punches a wall and gets sent to anger management in the mid-season episode "The Return."

When he returns six episodes later in "Safety Training," Andy's obnoxiousness and general loudness levels have been scaled way back, and a clear attempt is made to ease him into the ensemble cast rather than make him stand out with wacky shenanigans.

And it totally works - Andy quickly becomes one of the series' fan favourite characters, even if there's a fair argument to be made that The Office's final season walked back a lot of that good work.