10 Unsung TV Characters Who Completely Save Their Show

9. Raj Koothrappali - The Big Bang Theory

The Characters Everyone Talks About: Sheldon, Leonard & Penny Some might argue that Sheldon Cooper's the biggest pop culture icon from a US sitcom since Friends: the leader of the show's sci-fi geek clique, he's immensely popular with fans, and the show wouldn't be anything without him. But likewise, it wouldn't be anything without Raj either. Raj is a man of very few words, and this might be, in part, what makes him the most likeable of the gang. Whilst Howard comes off as creepy a lot of the time, Sheldon's often patronising and tactless and Leonard is constantly embroiled in some kind of on-off relationship, Raj is the most naive, unassuming member of the group. He's the one that you'd probably like best from the off, and he doesn't come across as a condescending science geek; the fact that he has quite feminine tastes might come across as a poorly-conceived, gender-stereotyping joke, but he does manage to give a different dynamic to the others. He might not be the nicest character - he's rather spoilt and arrogant, and can turn nasty after a drink - but he's different from the rest of the gang, and he's probably the most in-depth character of the lot; we rarely see past the public face of any of them, but Raj seems to be the most layered, most vulnerable one of the group. That's not to say he's the best character, or even worthy of being your favourite, but without him, the show would be so much more one-dimensional.