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Top Ten A Series of Unfortunate Characters

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler is one of the best children’s book series of all time. Consisting of thirteen novels, the series is famous for its very dark tone and humor, but also a plethora of widely memorable and colorful characters. There are so many interesting personalities that the kids get to meet during their journey to escape Count Olaf’s clutches and find out about their past, so here are ten of the series’ best creations.

10. Quagmire Triplets

This triplet isn’t all that well developed individually, but they are incredibly important in the Baudelaires’ quest to find out what happened to their parents as the three had met similar faiths. Duncan and Isadora proved to be endearing love interests of sorts to Violet and Klaus, but for the most part they were wonderful and helpful friends. Quigley, the third triplet, appeared later in the series as well in what was a surprising twist.

9. The Hook-Handed Man

Olaf’s troupe is definitely your typical team of children’s entertainment villains, meaning that they are for the most part rather one-note and goofy. There is one exception to this rule, though, and that is Fernald. At first rather creepy, but eventually somewhat redeemed in ‘The Grim Grotto’ with a fantastic revelation, this is one villain character who was refreshingly grey in the area of morality.

8. Uncle Monty

The Baudelaire kids got to have many guardians during their quest to escape Olaf, but nobody was ever as wonderful as Monty was to them. A reptile scientist, amusingly-named Montgomery Montgomery has a kind heart and a bubbly personality that only led to his faith feeling incredibly tragic and disturbing. It’s, in fact, one of only a couple of times where I genuinely felt bad for a character’s death in this series.

7. Arthur Poe

I hate this buffoon of a man, but that is exactly the point. We are supposed to despise his utter incompetence to protect the children and/or recognize the many stupid Olaf’s disguises. This guy is annoying in the worst ways possible, but that’s one of the main themes of the books – sometimes the adults are simply blind to see what’s going on, and it’s up to the children themselves to be reactionary.

6. Carmelita Spats

This is another easy to hate character, but it’s undeniable that this girl was one of the most strikingly memorable additions to the latter part of the series. She was particularly memorable in ‘The Slippery Slope’. She’s a whiny, annoying brat girl who will stop at nothing to fish for compliments and stupid, made-up awards. Her insults directed toward the protagonists were continually quite funny with the highlight being “cake sniffers”.

5. Esme Squalor

An utter delight, Esme Squalor first appeared in ‘The Ersatz Elevator’, and instantly she lit up the entire series with newfound energy and memorability. As a woman obsessed with high fashion and things that are “in”, she is also Olaf’s girlfriend, and the two’s relationship is very goofy and fun. Unlike most of his other henchpeople, Esme was actually competent and all the scarier for it, all the while retaining her goofball charms.

4. Sunny Baudelaire

The youngest of the protagonist triplets, Sunny is at first not as interesting as her siblings due to her being just a baby, but eventually she got to grow from a baby to a toddler, and that led to further characterization and more agency for the little girl. Her first hobby was chewing things with her teeth while her last one was cooking. Both were worked into the books’ storylines quite deftly. The highlight has always been her funny, endearing broken pronunciation.

3. Violet Baudelaire

Violet is well developed and a genuinely inspirational figure for all the little girls out there with the writing from Handler regarding her being feminist, but lightly instead of on-the-face, which was wonderful to witness. Violet is an inventor and some of the most thrilling parts of the novels were her moments with her inventions. She is bright and talented and the oldest part of the trio, the one who is a parental figure for the other two, which was portrayed in a moving fashion.

2. Klaus Baudelaire

Violet and Klaus are both excellent protagonists, quite similar in their portrayals, but I eventually went with Klaus for the better placement as he is relatable in his bookworm personality, but feisty and no bullshit attitude. Through his hobby of reading, the series explored many interesting sciences, which is great for child readers. The best part of both of these characters’ journeys is their shift toward the murky territory where they did some immoral things themselves in order to survive. It’s a terrific coming-of-age tale.

1. Count Olaf

Obviously, the number one spot has to go to the most unforgettable creation of A Series of Unfortunate Events, and that is the one and only Count Olaf. With an eye tattooed on his ankle and a goatee, he is a creepy dude, that’s for sure. But he is also fun and funny due to his childish, almost bratty personality and many hilarious lines of dialogue. The mixing of this humor with the truly dangerous actions that he takes throughout the series made for one compelling, superbly written villain who always stole the show whenever he was present. He may not have gotten that Baudelaire fortune, but he rightfully is the king of this list.

Honorable Mentions:

Justice Strauss – Justice Strauss is one of the most helpful, but also not helpful companions of the Baudelaires. She wanted to help and that counts, making her very likable.

The Man with Beard But No Hair and The Woman with Hair But No Beard – It’s a shame that these two did not get on the list, but their tenure on the series was all too short unfortunately. They deserved more spotlight given that they are more competent and scarier than Olaf himself.

Jerome Squalor – The unlucky boyfriend of Esme, Jerome is another person who could have helped the children, but did not do anything about it. His qualms about it made him redeemable, though.

Josephine – Josephine from the third book is by far the most problematic and greyest of the kids’ guardians. She did mean well, but her gripes with grammar and staying safe made her difficult to like.

Hector – Hector was a wonderful introduction in ‘The Vile Village’ with his balloon eventually soaring to the sky, but failing to take the children with him.