13 Popular Characters Who Went into the Pilot a Little Undercooked

They just needed a little time to find themselves.
13 Popular Characters Who Went into the Pilot a Little Undercooked

Nice! These shows didn’t pull a Danny Tanner and replace these actors after the pilot. The characters had something to work with, but they just needed some serious tweaks. After all, great shows with serious longevity are all about the characters. If we love them, we’ll come back week after week to delve deeper into their lives. So, whether it was directly after the pilot, or within the first few episodes, these now-beloved characters got a serious course-correction.

Luckily for the actors, their characters didn’t need to die, and they kept their jobs for years to come. They lived to act another day, and (in some cases) they got to work with the writers and producers to help round out their characters. It was a tad harder to see drastic changes when we had to wait an entire week for the next episode. Now, when we want to give an entire series another once over, seeing the pilot and the second episode back-to-back can sometimes be pretty jarring. Honestly, sometimes the entire first season feels like a world of its own. Today, we’ll just focus on the characters. Specifically, these 13 popular characters who went into the pilot a little undercooked. Thankfully, they got a few more minutes in the oven.

Flanders was indeed Flanderized.

CRACKED THE SIMPSONS NED FLANDERS Not all that devout, and kind of a jerk in pilot, he quickly became religion obsessed, and a kind-at-all-costs pushover. Не was deliberately changed to satirize the growing influence of Christianity in politics.

CBR 

The remake quickly realized how different American and UK audiences were.

CRACKED THE OFFICE MICHAEL SCOTT Beginning as a replica of David Brent, he was a darker, less likable nuisance. Carell and the writers made him kinder and more innocent, so his offensive, cringeworthy behavior was much more forgiving. And that hairline got a solid revamp.

ScreenRant / NBC 

Family Guy recognized that Stewie needed more than one note.

CRACKED FAMILY GUY STEWIE GRIFFIN Не was a super-genius hell-bent on world domination that became a tame, flamboyant Niles Crane-type to help him relate to other characters. Proving the contrast, Season 10's Road to the Pilot has modern-day Stewie meet his pilot-self.

ScreenRant / IMDB 

Thankfully, they liked Chris Pratt enough to develop Andy.

CRACKED PARKS & REC NDIAN ANDY DWYER In the pilot (and most of Season 1), Andy was a lazy, kind of unlikable slob. Because they loved Chris Pratt, Andy got the shoe-shine job in city hall, and became the funnier, more lovable fan favorite.

Cheatsheet / IMDB 

Happy Days didn’t need Fonzie-light.

CRACKED HAPPY DAYS RALPH MALPH Не originally dated cheerleaders and dressed more hip. In only the 4th episode of Season 1, he lost his slight Fonzie-esque traits and became the nerd he'd be for the next 250 episodes.

Me TV / Me TV 

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