I admit it: I’m not warming up to the CW version of Ralph Dibny. In fact, I kinda hate him. He’s the worst example of all the New Guy tropes, disbalancing the existing ensemble, making the main character less likable somehow while himself being crude and insufferable. Still, I’m not quite ready to give up on him, if only because of my love of the comic incarnation, easily one of the most original and charismatic heroes in the DC lineup. Indeed, the idea that we might get a proper red-and-gold satellite-era JLA costumed Ralph Dibny, wise-cracking and bravely facing the worst the world has to offer makes me willing to play along, regardless of how little I like him right now, leading to today’s book-cover-judgy query…
The MS-QOTD (pronounced, as always, “misquoted”) has actually had a couple of previous Flash-related examples that turned into much more likable (and in the case of Wally, even among my favorite) characters, asking: Which “new guy” addition to an existing cast annoyed you the most in pop culture?
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Buffy’s sister. Dawn-y. (shudder)
I was never a huge Scooby Doo fan, but it’s hard not to award this “prize” to the always-horrible Scrappy Doo…
As much as I kind of like him now, I couldn’t stand the out-of-nowhere Cable coming into the New Mutants and becoming the de facto leader without seeing him earn the trust or respect of the team.
On the old TV series “Sliders”, Colin Mallory, the secret real brother of main character Quinn that was left on an Amish world by their real parents that we also never knew about before then. It was just this whole string of bad tropes when Sci-Fi Channel picked the series up, but Colin REALLY annoyed me.
Magog in JSA was insufferable. That story also probably brought whole series down, to a point when its not seen since. New 52 Earth-2 doesn’t count. In general “I’m the new guy and better in everything than you” trope annoys me, regardless of end result.
You and me, Malone… You and me against the woooorld!
A lot of folks are going to trot out Cousin Oliver or Scrappy Doo, but I’ll point folks to my generational equivalent: Seven from Married with Children. Same gimmick but even further watered down armed with the “new guy” sitcom tropes of decades past.
Ted McGinley, the deathnell of a few shows. If he is added to the cast, then you know your show is in trouble.
He voiced an okay Aquaman. :)
But he did four or five years on Happy Days about the same on Love Boat and like eight on Married with Children. That’s hardly a deathnell. That alone is an entire career. He actually helped extend those shows for years. Goooooo Ted!