Top 5 TV Bad Asses

Okay, so we know who the best bad guys are, but what about the good guys with a little bad in them? This list isn't based on who's the toughest or who's killed the most people, but on their attitude and how they get things done.

5. HELEN GAMBLE - The Practice

This tough-as-nails, ice-princess Assistant District Attorney isn't just a token girl on the list, she's faced down the worst mobsters, ra<biga>pists, and serial killers Boston has to offer. This girl has some serious backbone, which you can see when she wears a dress. She doesn't always win her cases, but she's still one chick you don't want to mess with especially if you've got a court date coming up. Don't piss her off, because everything she'll do to you will be nice and legal.

4. WESLEY WYNDAM-PRYCE - Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel

Not all bad-asses are born that way. Just ask Wesley, the once nerdy and incompetent Watcher assigned to Buffy and Faith after Giles was fired. His bookworm personality was changed, however, the moment his throat was slashed by Justine after kidnapping Angel's son, Connor. With everyone against him, Wesley hardened himself into a downright scary persona, complete with wrist-mounted sword/stake launcher. With his vast knowledge of all things supernatural, deadly seriousness, and new violent tendancies, Wesley became the most dangerous person on the show. Sadly, Wesley continued his downward spiral after he lost the love of his life, Fred, and ultimately died a miserable, lonely man.

3. CAPTAIN JEAN-LUC PICARD - Star Trek: The Next Generation

You don't have to bend the rules to be a badass, and Captain Picard proves it. A strictly by-the-book Starfleet officer, Captain Picard isn't a badass because he goes around beating people up. He's a badass because he can out-think and out-manuever his enemies, being both a legendary diplomat and tactical mind. Picard's greatest asset is his ability to exude authority and command wherever he goes. Whether he's face-to-face with the most aggressive Klingons to the all-powerful Q, nothing in the universe can intimidate him.

2. VIC MACKEY - The Shield

The most dangerous thing in Farmington isn't the gangs, drug dealers, or ra<biga>pists, it's the cop who chases them. Vic Mackey is the toughest cop in the toughest ghetto of Los Angeles, and also the most corrupt. His murder of a fellow police officer who was working to take him down, ripping off the Armenian money train, and his back-alley deals with the Farmington 1-Niners may have earned him his place in Hell. Yet, for all he's done, Vic is capable of tremendous kindess, and probably one of the few people who actually care about the good people of Farmington. Vic is a man who walks the line between good and evil every day, sometimes taking a step or two on either side.

And the number one, all-time, when you absolutely, positively got to kill every motherfu<biga>cker in the room television badass is...

1. JACK BAUER - 24

No question about it. As the premiere agent of the Los Angeles Counter Terrorist Unit, Jack Bauer is the best there is at what he does. Jack is #1 because his relentless pursuit of terrorists, calculating mind, and too-intense-for-words personality make him the most dangerous man on the planet. His shining moment of bad-assness is when he stormed the headquarters of the Drazens in Day 1, alone, and killed every. Last. One of them. He's been tortured, addicted to Heroin, betrayed by almost everyone he's trusted, lost everyone he's loved, died more times than Jesus, and saved countless lives...often all in the same day. Yet, for all the Hell he's been through, he's never been able to leave CTU. Why? Because instinct never dies. Jack was born for this, and he knows it. This is part of the great tragedy of his life, because while he desperately wants someone to connect to, he'll never let that happen as long as he's with CTU, and the only way for him to leave CTU is in a body bag. That kind of dedication earns him his spot at #1, and if you disagree, I'd like to see you tell him to his face.

[Kashie]

Oh, I couldn't agree with you more on Jack Bauer. He's the best!