10 TV Shows That Redeemed Hated Characters In A Single Episode

3. Roland Pryzbylewski - The Wire

The Episode: Season 4, Episode 1 ("Boys of Summer")

For the majority of The Wire's first three seasons, Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski was a total wet blanket, with numerous characters noting his incompetence as well as him being protected from dismissal due to his marriage to the daughter of a senior officer.

In the show's first season, Prez drunkenly pistol-whipped a teenager and blinded him in one eye, though was largely protected from any major repercussions.

Prez then ended up back in hot water in season three, accidentally shooting a plain clothes police officer dead, and amid accusations of racism, he decided to quit the force. Good riddance.

Except, Prez appeared to finally discover his true calling in the fourth season premiere, where he was revealed to be working as a school teacher, and over the course of the season, it became increasingly clear that Prez was both committed and successful.

For a character who spent so much of his tenure on The Wire being an irritating goof, it was quite the late-stage turnaround.