Every character had their place in Netflix’s Anne With An E. There were no characters that seemed useless or extraneous, and each of them contributed to the depth and exploration of the show. It wasn't only the main characters like Anne, Marilla, and Matthew that shined, but the side characters also rounded out the warm scenes and expressive episodes.
Characters like Ruby and Jeannie didn’t have developed enough storylines to fully flesh out their personalities, however, characters like Cole and Josie Pye have clearer outlines. Here are five of the best and five of the worst side characters on the show.
10 BEST: Miss Stacy
Miss Stacy was just the type of teacher that the students needed, especially after having a teacher like Mr. Phillips. Not only did she bring light (quite literally) to the classroom, but also to the town of Avonlea.
She ignored a lot of the social expectations that were imposed on women and followed her own ideas. Her character also served as a slight catalyst for Marilla to be able to address her thoughts about her own life choices and confront Rachel Lynde.
9 WORST: Rachel Lynde
She wasn’t the worst of the bunch, but her tendency to be condescending and judgmental certainly tarnished her character. Although she was a good friend to Marilla at times, there were also several times when she made disparaging remarks about Marilla’s life choices and spoke to her in a way that suggested that Marilla didn’t have common sense.
Sometimes her words were wise and warranted, but oftentimes they weren’t so kind. The thing that saved her character was her apparent trust that what she said was right. Rachel Lynde didn’t appear to have any ill will when saying things, but sometimes that didn’t matter.
8 BEST: Sebastian “Bash” Lacroix
Sebastian was a great companion character for Gilbert and a character that showed a different perspective of the small town of Avonlea. He was smart, well-traveled, witty, and served as a necessary reality check for many of the other characters.
Some of the characters had to tackle their own ideas about people who didn’t look like them because of Sebastian’s arrival, and it was an interesting development. He also helped Gilbert to be more diligent and knowledgeable about how the real world works.
7 WORST: Mrs. Barry
Mrs. Barry was a truly stifling parent, even though her parenting seemed to be more involved than her husband’s impulsive discipline. In those times, it was difficult for women to succeed without having an advantageous marriage, and that is the most probable reasoning behind her restrictive parenting. She was only focused on sending her daughters to finishing school and didn’t really show any concern or support for her daughters outside of that.
If anything or anyone, especially someone like Anne, appeared to ruin her daughters’ chances of success, she was quick to nip it in the bud. Mrs. Barry tried to put an end to Anne and Diana’s friendship multiple times and attempted to keep Diana from going to school.
6 BEST: Jerry Baynard
Jerry was an instrumental voice of reason and a representation of siblinghood for Anne. He also was an inspirational character that learned to read and write, despite having insecurities about his age and education level.
Jerry was a multi-dimensional character. In some instances, he was portrayed to be playful and sarcastic with Anne, then he was passionate and direct with Diana and then was depicted as shy and skittish around Matthew. The complexity in his character was enjoyable to witness, and the progression of his relationships with other people was the most realistic.
5 WORST: Josie Pye
The principle of the matter was an important thing to Josie Pye. She probably would have actually been closer to Anne if it weren’t for those principles that she seemed to hold so dear.
The idea that someone like Anne could do something so bold as to come to her town, go to her school, and be friends with the very people that she ate lunch with every day was something she couldn’t really get her head around. She made every effort to remind Anne of where she came from by teasing her about her appearance and her background. Josie realized in the end that Anne wasn’t trying to take anything from her, but it sure took her a while.
4 BEST: Cole Mackenzie
What isn’t there to say about the character who gave Billy Andrews a taste of his own medicine? He was a great friend who stood with Anne during some of the most difficult times, and he was one of the few characters that seemed to choose their own path, even if it wasn’t common at the time.
Cole was a kind character with a backbone, which was immensely refreshing for the audience to watch. A lot of times characters with kind spirits are pushovers, and Cole was the opposite of this often restrictively boring concept.
3 WORST: Mr. Phillips
Mr. Phillips was an exact example of someone who shouldn’t have been or shouldn’t ever be a teacher. His personal opinions outweighed his ability to teach. The idea that he was edgy, sarcastic, but incredibly intelligent was the only thing he taught, and he had a faux ego that inflicted too much damage on his students.
There were countless times when he made fun of students as if he were their peers, and allowed his personal struggles to affect how he treated them. In this case, the audience was given some insight into his character, which made his actions seem the tiniest bit less shocking.
2 BEST: Josephine Barry
Miss Josephine's initial reluctance to like Anne served as a great starting point for the journey that her character took throughout the show. She tried to resist Anne’s precocious nature, but ultimately failed and ended up as one of Anne’s closest friends.
Miss Josephine provided a safe haven for Cole, offered her intellectual insights and outlooks on life to Anne when she really needed it, and she supported many of Anne’s adventurous ideas. It was a departure from the typical adult character on the show.
1 WORST: Billy Andrews
It’s really no surprise that “Bully Andrews” is the worst side character in the show. He started as a bully and ended as a bully with little to no maturation. The most annoying part is that there wasn’t much background given on his character, and any time that it’d look like he was on the slightest cusp of a redemption arc, he’d go and do some other repugnant thing.
He did a lot of shockingly awful things throughout the show, but amongst his worst moments were when he attacked Josie Pye and then started gossip about her, and also when he pushed Cole off of the ladder.
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