6 TV Protagonists Constantly Upstaged By Supporting Characters

2. Angel (Angel)

Angel is unique in this list as a titular hero who was nonetheless thoroughly regulated to the background by several supporting characters. Most famously, Wesley Wyndam-Pryce underwent a heartbreaking transformation from uptight meddler on parent show Buffy the Vampire Slayer to the darker and even unbalanced character of Angel's final season. Less pronounced but still considerable was the growth of Cordelia from an airhead on Buffy to an integral part of Angel's team. In comparison, Angel himself seemed bland. On Buffy, his internal conflict as he struggled with his past was always played for maximum drama, but by the time Angel came around, it wasn't exactly revolutionary. Even his relationship with Buffy wasn't treated with the reverence it was afforded in the early years of the character, since you only have to look at Cordelia and Wesley's hilarious impression of Buffy and Angel below to see that the show recognised that the roots of Angel's character were almost alien to his own series. Perhaps his immortality explains why Angel undergoes so little development in seven years; for him, that probably felt like nothing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bzr7JSUIIQE