The Simpsons: 10 Worst Characters Ever

Luigi is just a very bland character, so much so that it’s surprising he’s still kept around and not been shuffled off to obscurity with the Capitol City Goofball or Herman. He’s the fifth best Italian stereotype in town (Fat Tony, Louie, Johnny Tightlips and Legs are all ahead of him), which should be a pretty strong indicator of just how poor a character he is.

The problem with Luigi is that he’s entirely limited to one-liners, but unlike Snake or Nick Riveria, Luigi’s miss as much as they hit. At least when he had Giuseppe the monkey (himself only the second best monkey in Springfield after Mr. Teeny) there was something to build off, but these days he’s mostly alone.

What’s perhaps most frustrating is that in one of Groening’s other shows, Futurama, there’s a pizzeria owner who does much more with what he’s given. Panucci has a completely different personality to Luigi, and is grounded by Fry working there, but he outshines him so completely it can’t be ignored.

All in all, Luigi is just one of those wacky backdrop characters that doesn’t land.