"When you think of television characters, chances are you remember the ones you can actually see. But this is a wildly unfair slight on a small but powerful minority: the characters who remain staunchly offscreen. For decades mostly in comedies, with a handful of dramatic exceptions these invisible workhorses have more than earned their keep, and they deserve their props. Here are the 10 best characters whose faces you have never actually clapped eyes on."
"Ugly Naked Guy (formerly Cute Naked Guy) was a nudist who lived across the street from Monica and Rachel. He never closes his curtains, and sleeps in a hammock beside the window. At one point, the gang thought Ugly Naked Guy had died, and tried to poke him with a long-range device made of chopsticks. Ugly Naked Guy ranks so low here because he was actually seen on camera three times across the duration of Friends, but only from behind."
"Nobody knows what Erica looks like, how she dresses or even what species she is. However, across the six seasons of BoJack Horseman's run, she was referred to endlessly, largely by Mr Peanutbutter. All we know about her can be pieced together by his exclamations, which included: Erica! How are you looking so beautiful? I'm furious!, Erica! Is that you? Who let you out of the burn ward? and Erica! What are you doing here with a child-sized coffin?."
Invisible television characters serve as compact but powerful narrative devices that frequently appear in comedies and occasionally in dramas. These characters influence plots and generate humor through other characters' reactions, anecdotes, and imaginative descriptions. Examples include a nudist neighbor observed only from behind in Friends, an entirely unseen but repeatedly referenced Erica in BoJack Horseman, and unnamed prime ministers who shape events offscreen in The Thick of It. Offscreen characters can prompt fan curiosity and sleuthing, provide running jokes, and allow writers to harness absence as a source of characterization and comedic tension.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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