I never, ever see anyone talk about this show, and I absolutely love it. I don't know what it is about it. Maybe it's Robin Tunney, who I've been watching since we were both kids and I absolutely adore. Why everything she touches doesn't turn to gold I do not know. She's got to be one of the most underrated actresses out there. You never ever catch her acting and even the simplest scenes that she is in are riveting.The character of Teresa Lisbon is kickass. She will take down every bad guy in the room without breaking a sweat and smile while doing it. She's tough and she's strong and yet she never comes off as masculine or arrogant or know-it-all. On the rare occasions when she allows a glimpse of her vulnerable side it's totally believable that she's allowed a bit of pain to crack through, but it never appears as weakness in her. The balance is better in this character than I've ever seen in other female detectives or cops. She's respected by her team and by her boss and by the bad guys she takes out.
Maybe it's the main character of Patrick Jane. Jane's not a nice man and yet he is. He's smug and he's arrogant and he's condescending and you should not like him one bit, but he does it in such a vulnerable, self-deprecating way and he's always, always right, except for the one time when he was wrong and it cost him the lives of his wife and daughter. So definitely damaged goods and still reeling from his past as he seeks to find the serial killer who stole his life. He would also lay down his life to protect anyone on his team, which definately redeems many of the flaws in his character. He's not perfect and he doesn't pretend to be, but his intelligence is off the scale and he will win in the end. There's never any doubt.
Agent Kimball Cho is absolutely magnificent. He's the straight man and he does deadpan so well that I've yet to see him ever crack a smile and yet he's one of the funniest characters on TV. And I think he knows it and is secretly giggling like a little girl inside the entire time. Plus he's dogged and determined and an incredible detective.
Agents Wayne Rigsby and Grace Van Pelt are just plain eye candy. Okay, yeah, they're good at their jobs, but I tend to forget that when they're on screen. Rigsby is very tall, very broad shouldered, and has the high cheekbones and chiseled features that hit on just about every single one of my GUH factors with a vengeance. Rookie agent Van Pelt on the other hand is beauty queen gorgeous. Six feet tall, dark auburn hair and porcelain skin, she could be a model. She knows she's beautiful but she doesn't want special treatment for it. She's determined not to get by on account of her looks. Rigsby is desperately in love with Van Pelt, who returns his feelings, but loves her job more than him, and gives him up rather than lose her job for dating him. It's a doomed ship, but one I insist on sailing.
Runner Up: Burn Notice.