tony soprano the sopranos

He’s both the protagonist and antagonist of the smash-hit series that’s been followed and loved the world over. James Gandolfini, who died this June, caught hold of Tony Soprano by the collar and made him as badass as badass can get. The New Jersey mob boss is a vile man who kills family and friends in cold blood, cheats on his wife and lies through his teeth. The man with supposedly no conscience has been described as a “brutal animal”. Tony Soprano is a bad boy — and yet he isn’t. For every human life he’s taken, the pot-bellied balding man has wept copiously every time an animal has been killed. It’s next to impossible to know Tony Soprano — a sociopath one moment, a doting dad the next. But yes, that’s what makes him such a delicious watch.

Why: The answer is: James Gandolfini. Need we say more?

Walter white Breaking Bad

He cooks crystal meth, he manipulates people, he coolly plots the downfall of many and does not hesitate to kill in cold blood to get his way. This awkward chemistry professor, who is diagnosed with lung cancer, breaks bad — and how! Once he does the turnaround, there is no looking back for Walter White aka Heisenberg. It is fascinating to watch Walt’s (Bryan Cranston) transition from the warm, caring and timid chemistry teacher who wants to provide for his family after his death to the best meth maker around.

Why: Because Cranston is White, White is Cranston. Not only does the actor transition seamlessly from good to evil, even his body language — particularly his eyes — mirrors that change.

NICHOLAS BRODY HOMELAND

Part of you wants to strangle him; part of you wants to reach out and hold him close. What Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) feels towards Nick Brody (Damian Lewis) is exactly what we feel towards him. But the big question? Is Brody a bad body who has sold out his country to extremists or is he a helpless man in love with no control over his actions and fate? The show thrives on this constant seesaw between the Brody he possibly is and the Brody we want him to be.

Why: That piercing stare is enough for a deep chill to run down your spine. And yet you want him to come out of it all unscathed. Only Lewis could have made Brody the hero-cum-villain he is.

Dexter Morgan dexter

This blood spatter expert by profession has a very dark side. Witness to his mother’s massacre with a chainsaw, as a child, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) has an insatiable thirst to kill. He slices people up to satisfy his “dark passenger” but he has a code that his adoptive father gave him: he only kills evil people — those who deserve to die. As a psychopath he doesn’t have normal social skills and has to pretend — whether to his adopted sister or to his girlfriend — but the warmth never reaches his eyes.

Why: Have you seen colder eyes in a more innocent face?

Damon Salvatore The vampire diaries

This badass vampire is well, bad. He is 149-years-old and has a long-standing rift with his brother Stefan. Damon (Ian Somerhalder) has no qualms in hitting on his brother’s girlfriend Elena, takes pleasure in tricking humans, killing them and drinking their blood and no, we can’t forgive him for snapping the neck of a kid just because he was angry, even if he has a sexy snarky attitude!

Why: Ian’s smouldering looks, killer eyebrows and that bad boy sass, makes him perfect vampire material.

Nancy Botwin weeds

The lead character from the series is a soccer mom who starts selling marijuana, after her husband dies, to support her two children and keep up their upper-class lifestyle. But Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker) doesn’t stop at peddling drugs. She also starts growing weed, gets involved with a Mexican drug cartel, smuggles drugs across the border, goes to jail for three years and is very, very promiscuous. She has sold drugs at her son’s soccer game, has orchestrated murders and isn’t above using her feminine wiles to wriggle out of trouble.

Why: Like Nancy, Mary is rough around the edges and surly — but sexy too!

don draper mad men

Consistently voted one of TV’s “most intriguing” characters, Don Draper (Jon Hamm) is smooth, very smooth. Born Dick Whitman to a prostitute who died at childbirth, DD is a man almost impossible to decipher. Despite having a seemingly perfect life, the brilliant adman is prone to extreme mood swings and is always wary of his past life — his antecedents and that he’s taken on another man’s identity — being exposed in public. A serial womaniser, Draper is a man who lives with many skeletons in his cupboard.

Why: Hamm’s perfectly good looks make him the perfect womaniser. And those eyes have the ability to stare down anyone, anywhere.

HANniBal lecter hannibal

“I try as much as I can to make him the good guy in my world,” is what Mads Mikkelsen had told t2 about his Hannibal Lecter. If Anthony Hopkins made this icy-cold serial killer one of the most chilling characters ever on the big screen, Mikkelsen’s Hannibal is someone who loves the arts and fine food, wears a three-piece suit and hates anything banal. The man who kills as casually as he has a conversation, cold and calculating, Hannibal Lecter is more often than not all black. No wonder Mikkelsen described him to t2 as: “I would put him closer to... the devil.”

Why: Mikkelsen’s cold eyes and calculating stare = the second most perfect Hannibal.

HANK MOODY CALIFORNICATION

“I probably won’t go down in history, but I will go down on your sister.” Calling Hank Moody (David Duchovny) a womaniser is not true. He’s more of a woman lover. He enjoys sex (sometimes, the scandal too) and loves women in general. But like every bad boy, he has a woman he loves passionately — Karen. And he tries his best to be a good dad to Becca. Agree, he can do much better but the thing is, deep down you know Hank is a nice guy despite his “faults”. He keeps it together while falling apart. That’s why we love him.

Why: Like his screen avatar, Duchovny has been a sex addict in real life. You still want to know what makes him the perfect choice for horny Hank?]

The entire cast Sons of Anarchy

The Sons of Anarchy is an outlaw motorcycle club with allies and rivals. The members all have day jobs but they mostly earn big bucks by illegally importing guns, modifying and selling them. They also run protection for local businesses, deal in cocaine bribery and aren’t above violent intimidation. You may not like the rough-and-tough bunch of men and women but you sure can’t ignore them.

Why: They are brawny. They are rough. They are tough. Exactly what makes a biker gang.