Sitcoms are known to have characters that fall into different archetypes. Whether it is based on how they dress, their personality or their intelligence.
For years audiences have seen at least one character in a sitcom used as comedic relief or something of the sort. This portrayal has even happened in the young adult comedy Grown-ish. As the students of Cal U work to earn their respective degrees, they experience the ups and downs of life and learn a lot more than what they teach in the classroom along the way. Today, we will be ranking our favourite Grown-Ish characters based on their intelligence.
Note: this article will contain spoilers.
Charlie
There should be no surprise that Charlie is at the bottom of our list.
In both Black-ish and it’s a spin-off, he is known for being out of the loop with basically everything. Starting as a professor at Cal U, while somehow still working at Stevenson and Lido, and eventually somehow snagging a job as the Dean of the University, everyone is wondering how Charlie can function in his day to day life, let alone as a leader. Regardless of his crazy antics and overall zany personality, he’s always an entertaining character to watch.
Nomi
Even though Nomi had one of the more privileged upbringings, overall out of the groups she is not the brightest of the bunch. Throughout the series, we see Nomi continuously make bad choices. Like hooking up with a random girl when she was supposed to be registering for classes.
This season, we found out that she got pregnant from a one night stand last semester. Revealing that she knew the repercussions of her actions and genuinely just didn’t care. In this case, we see that her self destructive and careless nature tends to be in the driver’s seat at most times.
Zoey
Being the focal character of the series, we would expect that the protagonist would be higher up on this list, but throughout the series thus far, Zoey has proved time and time again that she still has a lot to learn.
Not only has she made bad choices, but she has consciously made bad choices that negatively impact her future. Like letting her relationships affect her grades, prioritizing partying, messing up internship opportunities, getting caught cheating, and more that could be listed but I digress.
Despite her talent and financial advantages, Zoey continues to set herself back time and time again.
Luca
The group’s local artsy, self-righteous stoner seems to have everything in his life together. He knows what he wants to pursue in his life, he’s gifted and people across Cal U admire him. In reality, Luca is just overly confident and overly pretentious.
He knows he’s talented and uses that fact to his advantage, but in the process of making his dreams come true, he tries to make those close to him seem small. When he and Zoey were together, he consistently made her feel insecure not only about their relationship but also about her job opportunities. His actions speak louder than his vivid vocabulary because, despite his knowledge about the world around him, Luca is just as lost and insecure as everyone else.
Jazz
The older of the two Forster sisters, Jazz is quick and not only on the track. She sticks to what she believes whether it be regarding girl code, dating, and letting her friends know when they need to take a look at their actions.
Despite her contributions to the group Jazz has made her fair share of bad choices, whether it be blaming a friend for not getting involved in her relationship, picking fights with Doug for no reason or having blurred judgement when it comes to getting to where she wants to be. Her missteps make her human, but she still manages to help bring perspective back to the group.
Skye
As if being a track star for Cal U wasn’t enough, Skye is basically the conscience of the whole gang. She is the one that tells it like it is, especially when everyone is thinking the same thing.
She hates the drama all of her friends are constantly in and usually keeps from being apart of it. The biggest “scandals” she’s had have been an injury and hooking up with Zoey’s brother, which in turn is more embarrassing than anything. Whether it be advice on dating, friendship or just life in general, Skye is the girl that one that knows what’s what.
Aaron
Being the eldest of the gang, Aaron was bound to be wiser than his younger classmates.
Seeing that he has been at Cal U longer than the others, it is a given that his knowledge of the world and his field of study is higher than the others. Outside of that Aaron is always aware of what is going on in the black community. Whether it be protests, creating safe atmospheres to talk, or informing others of looked over microaggressions in common conversations, he shows his intellect through his passion for justice and equality.
Doug
Out of all the male leads, Doug by far is the most mature.
Admitting to his faults, being vulnerable and secure in his relationship, while also keeping his goals at the forefront of his mind. Doug likes to enjoy college like every one of his friends, but regardless of the situation, he has his eyes on the prize, which is way more than we can say for the majority. Despite being a later addition, he has definitely proved himself to be a true asset to this group.
Ana
Out of all the characters Ana is probably the most in tune with everything around her. Whether it be her classwork, her friends’ daily lives or the ins and outs of the political climate of the country.
Even though she knows how to have fun and let loose, Ana has her priorities in check. Not letting her friend’s drama, boy problems or anything else of the sort derail her goals. She may temporarily lose her way and have to readjust, but she is one of the overall well-rounded characters who’s always evolving.
Vivek
Despite his pitfalls when it comes to drug dealing and finding his place within his friend group and at Cal U as a whole, Vivek is quite intelligent through his studies, understanding how to run a profitable (yet illegal) business, and overall when it comes to the topic of chemistry.
He may not be everyone’s favorite character consistently, but he’s undeniably the smartest out of the group, even though he most definitely doesn’t act like it all the time.
