Let’s be honest - sitcoms aren’t exactly known for having the smartest characters (unless you’re talking about Frasier or The Big Bang Theory), but one show that certainly never tried to have any Nobel laureates among the main cast was Mike & Molly.
The comedy about an adorable plus-size couple living in Chicago while they interact with their friends and family ran for six seasons on CBS and was created by sitcom legend, Chuck Lorre. However, as funny as the underrated show was, there weren’t many characters that made the audience stretch their thinking caps. Here’s a list of the main characters of Mike & Molly, ranked by intelligence.
Harry
We’re just gonna say it - this show would have done just fine without Harry. It’s nothing against the actor playing him, who did perfectly fine in his role; it’s just that his role was virtually pointless. Harry was brought in as essentially a “fat-joke” sponge since all of the fat-jokes in the series were predominantly directed at Mike Biggs.
After a few seasons, it really started to pile on, so the show brought in Harry, a dimwitted, fatter version of Mike who admired and looked up to the titular character in a way that always felt a little too clingy and creepy.
Samuel
To be fair, Samuel could have landed just about anywhere on this list since the show never really gets into how educated (or not) he is. The audience knows that he immigrated from a poor village in Africa, but it’s never mentioned what type of schooling he may have received while growing up there.
In terms of his intelligence, Samuel certainly isn’t stupid as he often does a fantastic job of being the witty comedic-relief and has enough knowledge to quote Shakespeare to Molly in the series’ third episode, but unfortunately, his character gets such a low ranking simply due to lack of evidence. Sorry, Samuel, you could be as smart as Einstein for all we know.
Vince
Vince could just have easily been in either of the two spots above him, but we decided to give him the benefit of the doubt since he seems like a somewhat successful businessman (despite the fact his business seems to change every few episodes).
Every character in Mike & Molly was prone to dishing out a few quick and witty comments (that’s the nature of a sitcom), but Vince was often made fun of for no other reason than he wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. He definitely wasn’t the smartest, but just like Samuel, we’re willing to bet there was more to Vince than met the eye.
Victoria Flynn
Another low-ranking member on this list who could have jumped up a few spots if she had applied herself (or laid off the weed) is Molly’s sister, Victoria. The known pot-head of the show, Victoria was incredibly smart in some areas (such as finances, attracting married men, and marijuana-related products) but was hilariously scatterbrained in nearly every other aspect.
Victoria knew what she was doing when it came to her money and weed, but her absent-mindedness is ultimately what lands her so low on this list.
Peggy
The mother to one of the titular characters was the closest thing that Mike & Molly had to an enigma, as Peggy Biggs made it clear from her first appearance that she wanted nothing to do with anyone or anything besides her only son. Because of that, audiences were never treated to much of her past until Molly decided to write an erotic novel based on her life, but that obviously didn’t delve very far into her educational history.
Due to that, and the fact that Mudlick, the town she grew up in, had a single tree that was used when giving directions, we’re guessing her education was close to Samuel’s. That being said, Mama Biggs is quick as a whip and can dish it out to anybody, which is what earns her a slightly higher rank than the characters above her.
Mike Biggs
He wasn’t the stupidest character, but he certainly wasn’t the smartest either, with Mike Biggs slipping right into the middle of our list. The facts are that Mike was able to become a cop in one of the largest and most dangerous cities in the United States, and that can’t be forgotten. However, Mike wasn’t book-smart, nor the best at picking up sarcasm or witty jabs that occasionally went right over his head, so he can’t exactly be considered the most intelligent among the main characters.
Regardless, there are plenty of times throughout the series where Harry, Vince, or Victoria’s dim-witticism visibly irritates Mike, so he clearly knows at least a thing or two.
Carl McMillan
Followed by cop number one is cop number two and for essentially the exact same reasons. Despite seeming like polar opposites (another cliche of sitcoms) Carl and Mike are actually quite similar in terms of their intelligence as a large gap between the two would’ve seemed unnatural for police partners.
In order to spend all day, every day with somebody, they naturally have to be compatible, and that includes intellectually. Just like Mike, Carl seems to be properly educated, but often misses it when people make jabs or sarcastic comments at his expense.
Joyce Flynn
Joyce coming in at number three on this list may seem like a wild-card, but it makes a lot of sense when you stop to think about it. Joyce is mentioned several times throughout the show as somebody who could have had an amazing future if it hadn’t been for the birth of her daughters.
Make no mistake, she loves Molly and Victoria and wouldn’t trade them for the world, but the number of times it’s mentioned that Joyce could have had a worthwhile future indicates that she must have some level of intelligence. Not to mention, she raised two daughters on her own and still somehow manages to pay for a house with five people living in it.
Grandma
Carl’s grandmother is another character whose education level is never divulged, but for a woman as witty and as hilarious as she is, she has to be intelligent. Every second that Carl’s grandmother is on-screen, she’s either dishing out words of wisdom to Mike and Molly or delivering a comedic one-liner about Carl that makes the audience keel over laughing.
Again, it’s never mentioned what type of education (if any) that she has, but it’s clear-as-day that her intelligence has nothing to do with it.
Molly Flynn
And the titular character takes the grand prize! Of course, the top spot was always going to go to Ms. Flynn since she made it known throughout the show that she loved asserting her mental dominance over others. She might not have been as smart as she thought she was, but we stated that sitcoms aren’t known for their intelligent characters, and Molly was easily the brightest light in this shows chandelier.
Her work as a schoolteacher and then as a published and successful writer was enough to earn her the top spot on our list but lucky for her, the bar wasn’t set very high in the first place.
