Article image

Wisdom From the Best Characters in TV Comedy

One of the enduring maxims of comedy is that it has to be true; that’s why the foremost guide to improvisation is called Truth in Comedy. From Mary Tyler Moore to Tina Fey, creators of television comedies have always used their shows to tell stories that were bigger than just jokes. Sitcoms provide us with unintended wisdom all the time — the jokes are just a way to grab the viewer’s attention before a character says something deeply insightful and resonant, and the best jokes have a core of relatability that makes us laugh and makes us think.

When our favorite characters in comedy are going through tough times, they’re able to express themselves in a way that’s both emotional and funny. They process difficult moments with laughter, and some of the best characters cut to a core truth through their jokes. At some point, the antics stop and we take a step back to survey what we’ve learned from all the wackiness. Time and again we find that humor is a great teacher, as shown by these 22 quotes from some of the best characters in TV comedy.

Never half-ass two things. Whole-ass one thing.
Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) in "Parks and Recreation"

Share Quote

We need to remember what's important in life: friends, waffles, work. Or waffles, friends, work. Doesn't matter, but work is third.
Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) in "Parks and Recreation"

Share Quote

Rejection from society is what created the X-Men!
Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) in "30 Rock"

Share Quote

When one of us shines, all of us shine. That is the meaning of ensemble.
Moira Rose (Catherine O’Hara) in "Schitt’s Creek"

Share Quote

Society teaches us that having feelings and crying is bad and wrong. Well, that’s baloney, because grief isn’t wrong. There’s such a thing as good grief. Just ask Charlie Brown.
Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) in "The Office"

Share Quote

I need to show that I’m a lone, fierce she-wolf.
Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) in "Veep"

Share Quote

There are still some people in this world that we care about, so I say we try and help them become good people. Why not try? It’s better than not trying, right?
Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) in "The Good Place"

Share Quote

My mother always used to say: "The older you get, the better you get, unless you're a banana."
Rose Nylund (Betty White) in "Golden Girls"

Share Quote

I like the wine, and not the label.
David Rose (Dan Levy) in "Schitt’s Creek"

Share Quote

I have spent a lot of time, and I have eaten a lot of crap to get to where I am today. And I am not throwing it all away now.
Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) in "Seinfeld"

Share Quote

One person's annoying is another's inspiring and heroic.
Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) in "Parks and Recreation"

Share Quote

There’s a lot of beauty in ordinary things. Isn’t that kind of the point?
Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) in "The Office"

Share Quote

Here I am with all this talent bottled up inside of me and you're always sitting on the cork.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) in "I Love Lucy"

Share Quote

That's how I felt when I came to Bel-Air, like everybody had two skates and I was trying to keep up with one. Thanks for my other skate, Uncle Phil.
Will Smith (Will Smith) in "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air"

Share Quote

I'm sort of like Costco. I'm big, I'm not fancy, and I dare you to not like me.
Cameron Tucker (Eric Stonestreet) in "Modern Family"

Share Quote

I don’t skate through life, David. I walk through life, in really nice shoes.
Alexis Rose (Annie Murphy) in "Schitt’s Creek"

Share Quote

It’s like all of my life everyone has always told me, "You’re a shoe, you’re a shoe, you’re a shoe, you’re a shoe." And then today I just stopped and I said, "What if I don’t want to be a shoe? What if I want to be a purse, you know? Or, a hat?"
Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) in "Friends"

Share Quote

You said that every human is a little bit sad all the time, because you know you’re going to die. But that knowledge is what gives life meaning.
Michael (Ted Danson) in "The Good Place"

Share Quote

The need to find another human being to share one's life with has always puzzled me. Maybe because I'm so interesting all by myself. With that being said, may you find as much happiness with each other as I find on my own.
Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) in "Big Bang Theory"

Share Quote

Here’s an idea. What if we don’t worry about whatever comes next?
Chidi Anagonye (William Jackson Harper) in "The Good Place"

Share Quote


Featured image credit: Lucas George Wendt/ Unsplash

Author image
About the Author
Julia Rittenberg
Julia is a writer, theater and comics lover, and lifelong nerd in Brooklyn, NY.
Play more header background
Play more icon
Daily Question
Who said, "Mistakes are almost always of a sacred nature"?

More Inspiration

happiness theme icon

There’s nothing so kingly as kindness, and nothing so royal as truth.

separator icon
Alice Cary
motivation theme icon

Risk something or forever sit with your dreams.

separator icon
Herb Brooks
hope theme icon

A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.

separator icon
Frank Capra
love theme icon

Many are the wonders of the world, and none so wonderful as man.

separator icon
Sophocles
wisdom theme icon

Love is really... a recognition of another person’s integrity and truth.

separator icon
Robert Graves
happiness theme icon

Take a canvas. Put a mark on it. Put another mark on it.

separator icon
Jasper Johns
motivation theme icon

Travel is the traveler. What we see isn't what we see but what we are.

separator icon
Fernando Pessoa
hope theme icon

The first time you do something only happens once.

separator icon
Chris Burden
love theme icon

The greatest reward of righteousness is peace of mind.

separator icon
Epicurus
wisdom theme icon

Some people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power.

separator icon
bell hooks
happiness theme icon

Vulnerability is like a connector... it connects you to the rest of the world.

separator icon
Phil Stutz