2. Mrs Wolowitz (The Big Bang Theory)
The best unseen character on TV today, I'm talking about Howard Wolowitz's screeching, obnoxious mother. For six years of
The Big Bang Theory, we have listened to this very large, very Jewish woman continue to smother Howard, obviously never truly accepting that her little boy has grown up. She refers to (or more specifically shouts at) Howard's friends and colleagues as 'little friends' or his 'playmates' and even refers to his work at the university as an aerospace engineer as 'going to school'. It's her (incredibly loud) banter with Howard that makes her so special. Because she is never seen, they are always shouting at each other from different rooms. It is brilliant seeing Howard's frustration one moment and then loving acceptance of her the next. He desperately wants his independence but the moment it comes to Bernadette and him living together, his first thought is that she'll move in with him and his mum. Needless to say, that doesn't go well. And talking of Bernadette I love that the show is gradually turning her into Howard's mother. She sounds just like Mrs Wolowtiz when she gets angry with her husband and she immediately dominates the relationship, making Howard as subservient to her as he was to his mother all those years before she came on the scene. Mrs Wolowitz also follows the grand tradition of unseen sitcom characters, we can imagine her so clearly by how other characters describe her. If you wanted to know anything about this character, than this bit of dialogue will tell you everything (probably much more than you want to!).
Mrs. Wolowitz: Howard! I found my girdle! It was in the dryer!
Howard Wolowitz: Great, Ma!
Mrs. Wolowitz: I think it shrunk! I'm spilling out like the Pillsbury Doughboy here! And while unseen, over the six years, we've caught two fleeting glimpses of this woman. At an arial shot of Howard and Bernadette's wedding (we hear Mrs Wolowitz shouting off screen...how she got to the roof, I don't know) and in the last season's episode 'The Spoiler Alert Segementation), where a very lonely Mrs Wolowitz (Howard has now moved out) has Raj over for dinner. We finally glimpse a side view of a flowery dress as she rushes behind Raj in the kitchen and her arms as she grabs him back through the window when he tries to make a desperate attempt to escape. We never see her face though. Always heard, never seen, she none the less is a huge presence on the show, easily the best character after the (now) big seven. The mothers of the four geeks are all great, but while Howard's and Sheldon's mum might steal the show with their occasional appearances it is Mrs Wolowitz I enjoy the most!