22 TV Characters Who Had Relentlessly Tragic Storylines

These poor guys deserved better.

We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community what TV character they thought went through way more drama than they deserved. Here are their responses.

🚨 Warning: There's a variety of TV show spoilers ahead — you have been warned. 🚨

1. Buffy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The WB

"In addition to the daily toll of being constantly under threat of death and actually dying twice, every season she seemed to go through something terrible. From having to kill Angel to Faith turning evil — Buffy went through way too much for one person."

—clairec46d1886cb

"Buffy is my fucking hero. Even though she was the slayer, the very human struggles she faced were more destructive than the supernatural ones."

—veronicad4d2298f25

2. Sansa from Game of Thrones.

HBO

"She started out a little naive and annoying, but had to grow up and become strong way too fast. Her father's head was lopped off right in front of her, and then she ended up being married off to a horrendous man. Nearly her whole family has been murdered; she’s been mentally and physically tortured. I hope in the last season she gets some well-deserved justice for all she’s been put through."

—madronaw

3. Will from Stranger Things.

Netflix

"The boy has been through soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much! First he was abducted, then was lost ~forever~ in the Upside Down. When he got rescued he was coughing up slugs, and then he got possessed. ON TOP OF THAT HE STILL GETS BULLIED AT SCHOOL?! The poor kid."

—xkgggx

4. Bonnie from The Vampire Diaries.

The CW

"She pushed herself through overusing her magic, lost friends and family, and even died. All for the sake of the world or her friends. I would say she’s actually low-key the protagonist of the show for all she’s been through!"

—kyronp

"Bonnie constantly made sacrifices for the people she loved. Justice for Bonnie. She’s an angel and she deserved so much better."

—charisb2

5. Penelope from One Day at a Time.

Netflix

"Every time Penelope seems to get a handle on things, something else comes up and makes her feel like she's back to square one — not to mention her mental health issues on top of all that."

—hummingbirdbubble03

6. Jake from Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Fox

"Obviously it’s a comedy, but I do wonder how Jake's only started to show PTSD over the last couple of seasons. He's got a deadbeat dad, went undercover with the mafia, was put in witness protection, shot by his girlfriend, falsely imprisoned...but surprisingly enough, he’s really grown with it all."

—chloek40d5f4087

7. Cristina from Grey's Anatomy.

ABC

"She watched her father die in front of her at a young age, was left at the altar, had a gun held to her head trying to save Derek’s life, and she married an unfaithful dirtbag who mistreated her time and time again."

—angelicahoughton22

8. Regina from Once Upon a Time.

Jack Rowand / ABC

"Where do I even begin? From a difficult mother to an unhappy marriage, amongst many, many more problems. The icing on the cake was Robin's death. She finally got her happy ending, only for it to be taken away from her in a matter of moments. :'("

—pwincessrasia

9. Cheryl from Riverdale.

The CW

"Her brother was murdered by her dad, who then killed himself. Her mother then started to run a brothel out of their home before sending Cheryl to gay conversion therapy. The poor girl needs a break."

—amyi4117d500c

10. Jasper from The 100.

The CW

"He started out as one of the happiest and most intelligent characters, and then through the course of the show he's stabbed, kidnapped, tortured, and watches so many of his loved ones die. He represented mental health issues without romanticising them, and was such an amazing and relatable character."

—gigimchugh

11. Annalise from How to Get Away With Murder.

ABC

"My god, she has had a rough go of things. Not only did she go through a rough childhood, have a miscarriage with an unfaithful husband, but she's also stuck cleaning up everyone else's murderous mess."

—amandac4b969f069

12. Rose from Doctor Who.

BBC One

"She went through way too much unnecessary suffering, especially compared to all of the other companions."

—canunotmywaywardson

13. Dean from Supernatural.

The CW

"He died thousands of times to save loved ones. He carries all the problems of the world on his shoulders and is so protective of his brother. He definitely needs a happy ending."

—chillaxedbyuj

14. Jane from Jane the Virgin.

The CW

"She went through accidental artificial insemination, a kidnapped son, her husband dying, and soooooo much more. Just when her life settles, her husband comes back from the dead WITH AMNESIA! There's way too much for one person, but she's a strong Latinx woman who keeps rolling with the punches."

—marialuisas3

15. Petra from Jane the Virgin.

The CW

"Yeah, I know, she’s problematic, but she really goes through it. Every other main character makes bad choices, but they all still have semi-functional love and career plots. She definitely got the worst end of every deal. She had to go through an abusive ex-husband, being kidnapped, her murderous mum trying to put her in jail, her twin sister paralyzing her, and everyone she loved leaving her hanging. And she’s still a badass — she deserves better."

—abigailb408ca6edb

16. Mercedes from Glee.

Fox

"She was an original member of the club and every time she tried to challenge Rachel or the obvious favouritism from Mr. Schue, she got called a diva. Somehow her weight was always a topic and she was actually forced to lose weight at one point. She was definitely one of the best singers but they treated her like poop."

—chrisuchiha391

17. Spencer from Criminal Minds.

CBS

"He was tortured in series two, had an unrequited crush on JJ from day one, met a woman he loved who then died, was wrongfully imprisoned, and SO MUCH MORE! All he wants is to help people and he constantly gets crapped on from a great height."

—lucyt410579ade

18. Susan from Desperate Housewives.

ABC

"Desperate Housewives had a horrible ending for Susan. All of her friends became rich and successful and Susan was a middle-aged widow with a fatherless 10-year-old son. I can’t believe I watched so many episodes of that show only for Susan to get such a poor ending."

—greyskies

19. Fiona from Shameless.

Showtime

"Her mother left when she was young, her father is an alcoholic mess who constantly gets the family into sticky situations, and she had to raise her five younger siblings. She's selfless and always gets her ungrateful siblings out of trouble. She was emotionally blackmailed, almost lost the house, and went to jail. She couldn't catch a break."

—evanthehouseelf

20. Jesse from Breaking Bad.

AMC

"Jesse went from a regular street junkie to being an anguished murderer cut off from his family. He lost his girlfriend, got his ass kicked multiple times, and was betrayed by Walt. His whole story was the most depressing damn thing I’ve ever seen."

—PHM8

21. Lane from Gilmore Girls.

The CW

“All she wanted was to be a drummer, but her mum never even let her listen to music! She had horrible luck with guys, and when she finally got married she got stuck taking care of her twins while her husband performed with THEIR band. Then, in the revival, we see that she’s working in her mum’s store, which she always said she’d never do. She deserved so much better!”

—coffeecoffeecoffee04

22. Betty from Ugly Betty.

ABC

Betty lived through so much crap it's amazing she didn't end up killing someone. Her boyfriend cheated on her, her man-baby boss relied on her for doing all his work for him, her coworkers made her life miserable, her father got deported, her brother in law got killed, and she had to keep the whole family fed while her father awaited a visa."

—Colleen Deitrich, Facebook comment

Submissions have been edited for length and clarity.

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