Protagonist syndrome is not a diagnosis – it’s a way of life!
This situation might be described in “Old Days” as a “record scratch” moment when a person enters a room and all eyes turn to them in surprise.
It’s the same center of attention dynamic, just true all the time and in every room.
But if everyone is truly the hero of their own story, then what difference does protagonist syndrome have from simply being alive?
What are the symptoms?
When someone thinks they are the main character in someone else’s story. Traditionally, this is a job that cannot be replaced.
Pulling focus like this doesn’t work well in real life, but it’s common on small screens.
After all, as many TV protagonists have discovered, you don’t have to be the actual protagonist to act like one.
In fact, a character doesn’t even have to be particularly virtuous.
It’s a neat trick for a character to blur the lines between who captures your attention and who deserves it. TV scenes filled with antiheroes are excellent disguises.
So which questionable protagonists act like their show is supposed to be about them?
If Protagonist Syndrome was a person, that person would be Jennifer Coolidge. She remains a primary role model in almost every project she works on, especially the White Lotus series.
Her scene-stealing image often manifests itself as having no idea how she affects those around her.
This absolves her of intentionally causing pain to others (at least a little) and makes her the only person in the room who doesn’t realize how awful her character’s behavior is.
But there are other not-so-good TV protagonists who trick us into thinking they are heroic good guys.
Watch “White Lotus” online
Guillermo de la Cruz, “What We Do in the Shadows”
Our favorite long-suffering former acquaintance has been positioned as the only voice of reason in the house, shall we say, strong personality.
Guillermo (Xavi Guillen) serves as an audience stand-in and assumes the good guy character is simply based on him no is a vampire (and, I assume, related to Van Helsing).
The show depicts him as an adorable, innocent baby at the mercy of a gang of vampires in the woods.
But is he really?
Over the years, Guillermo has caused countless deaths in order to feed Nando and other vampires. Of course, he does this with “Monday, amirite?” Shrugging, but… he did it anyway.
Despite Guillermo’s ability to recuperate vampires from their worst impulses, Guillermo himself nearly murdered Nando at least twice because he broke his promise to turn him into a vampire.
He also disposed of so many bodies in his backyard that a sinkhole appeared.
Guillermo’s soundbites to the documentary crew always sound reasonable and generous.
But his actions are more often selfish and double-dealing, like the way he kept his vampire hunter heritage a secret for a long time (for good reason, though) still).
After a decade of servitude and having to live a double life with little sleep, his reasons are understandable.
But his thoughts and actions can only be considered “good” compared to the vampires around him. He wasn’t honest with himself when he said he wanted to live a normal life.
We saw this recently at Cannon Capital’s office job, where he was appalled by Nadja’s murderous interference until… which kept getting him promoted.
So, Guillermo seems to be a protagonist who proves that he doesn’t have to be an actual vampire to act like one.
Watch What We Do in the Shadows online
Protagonist Patient Zero
Protagonist syndrome is also known to plague actual The protagonist, as seen in the recent re-examination of Carrie Bradshaw, is an iconic symbol of the word.
While this may not be news to many fans of the original Sex and the City, they have always considered Samantha Jones to be the real star.
The idea is that while it’s not ideal to act like this world as the backdrop to your own life, it’s even worse to act like it to the world of your own show.
Carrie’s self-absorption has always been her style, though, and Miranda criticized her on multiple occasions (yes, Miranda Hobbs had some serious sass before “Just So…”).
The turning point, however, seems to be when the other characters are treated as background scenery rather than people with their own lives in this fictional world.
Watch Sex and the City online
Back in the “real” world, there’s a character in Teak’s Titanic fever dream we’ll call Dr. Odyssey, and he’s definitely not going to make room for you on that floating door…
Avery Morgan, “Dr. Odyssey”
On a ship full of mischief, you can try to maintain the calm you wish to see. Or you could be Nurse Avery Morgan and take every opportunity to add as much drama as possible to the proceedings.
Avery (Philippa Sue) is very capable and very irritable. Sadly, this reinforces the dynamic where men can be fun-loving professionals while women can just frown and let them get on with their work.
However, Avery himself was a grumpy man. She was very good at her job and wanted to become a doctor, but she was dissatisfied with the time and effort she had to put in to pay for each step of her education so far.
Avery hated the ship’s over-the-top themed weeks, as well as the passengers and their silly, predictable illnesses.
She really hated Plastic Surgery Week and told her cruise line boss, which got her fired (don’t worry, it didn’t stick).
Avery is clearly talented, but she’s so bored in her current position that it makes her dangerous.
She’ll hold on to a potentially incorrect diagnosis for too long just to antagonize her new boss, Dr. Max, and alternately encourage fellow nurse Tristan to have a crush on her and cut him down.
And her worst crime was probably not attending strip poker night with the rest of the staff!
It’s hard to watch this initially because Avery’s angelic appearance, intelligence, and calm demeanor all read “good.”
But after she rejects Tristan, Ivory becomes jealous when he takes an interest in a new chef and tries to cause trouble for them.
Avery is busy with her upcoming medical school days and her love triangle with Dr. Max and Tristan.
But she still came down with appendicitis this season during a once-in-a-lifetime storm and nearly amputated a woman’s arm in a cave.
Avery is an experienced medical professional who deserves a place on this elite ship. However, she also lashes out in self-destructive ways.
anchor!
Watch Doctor Odyssey online
Liz, shrunk
For a mild party show, “Shrink” has a lot of very frustrating characters. But no one can compare to nosy neighbor Liz (Christa Miller), who has an unstoppable streak of irritation.
In the show’s first season, Liz dedicates herself to helping a widowed husband and a heartbroken teenage girl make ends meet because they’re dealing with their loss in different ways.
Liz is an organized empty nester with lots of free time and the certainty that she’s always right. She plays the character a little too well, suffocating the grieving family next door.
It’s easy to see why her husband, Derek, spends his days happily outside and just gets along when he’s at home. Liz is very funny and smart, which almost Let you like her until the next time she does something out of line.
Liz’s need for control was suppressed in season two. Her better qualities are allowed to shine through in all of her roles, and she even goes into business with Sean and his food truck.
She then sells her half of the food truck to Sean’s semi-estranged father without telling Sean first.
And…we are Back! Lizzie Season 1 Annoyance Level!
Liz has made no secret of her case of protagonist syndrome. She sees other characters as projects she can improve upon, and if they don’t need help, she won’t listen.
Watch “Shrink” online
Take two aspirin
Selfish protagonists have long been a staple of television shows, although there seem to be more of them than usual.
But it’s true that good shows rely on bad characters, so protagonist syndrome is probably the reason for so many great shows on television right now.
What are your thoughts on frustrating TV protagonists: love them or leave them?
Let us know in the comments!
Watch “Shrink” online
