Fox’s "New Girl" is a winner for reasons besides its catchy theme song and 20-minute run time, just long enough to waste time without feeling like you are. If you like shiny bangs, crude humor, and plenty of button-up shirts, this show is calling your name like your mom calling you for dinner. Even though Zooey Deschanel created the premise, her character, Jess, is easily surpassed by her more developed, intriguing, and altogether original loftmates. However, all of these characters have a place in our hearts and our Netflix accounts.
13. Tran
Tran doesn’t capture our hearts with words; he does it with his deep, understanding eyes. Although the only interaction we get with Tran is through Nick (except that one time he brought a board game to Bangsgiving), their friendship touches our hearts in the way only cute old men can.
12. Fawn Moscato
He doesn't even pretend to listen when Jess talks to him, he just admires her handbags and lets her spill her guts to him.
10. Cece
Cece isn’t the funniest character, nor is she the most interesting, but this girl is as loyal a friend as her hair is beautiful.
9. Ryan
Although most of us know him as the cute guy from "Pretty Little Liars," Ryan is a welcome, attractive surprise. And he has a British accent, so that’s reason enough. But besides that, Ryan is a ray of sunshine who deviates from Jess’ traditional unappealing male counterparts and really brightens our little days.
8. Russell
If playing True American with a group of 20-somethings isn’t cool enough, he gave Nick his own clothes. To be a genuinely nice guy, not to get to Jess by befriending the guy who's in love with her.
7. Mike the Bartender
Any man who wears fitted flannels and runs a bar is a man for me.
6. Coach
Coach yells a lot and also really likes to wear tracksuits, which is pretty awesome. Even though he doesn’t act like it, he cares about women -- especially the ones in his life, like on his date with Cece or his friendship with Jess -- which makes the tracksuits a little more endearing.
5. Jess
Jess never wears real pants, which is admirable, and also has really, really nice bangs. There’s never a shortage of cringe-worthy comments said with strange intonation, either.
4. Nick
Strongly believing horses aren’t real is not the weirdest thing Nick has ever said, and that's awesome and kind of strange. Nick is a physical representation of every desire we’ve had since 13 that our mom would tell us to grow up for saying out loud.
3. Ferguson
Even though he only appears in like five episodes, we all know Winston’s cat is the star of the show. His squished face and squishable body, plus the fact that he never talks is an absolutely winning combination.
2. Winston
Poor Winston is always left out of important conversations, events, and costume memos, and he’s totally not OK with it, which is why it’s so funny. No one can develop an unsuccessful plan or trying pun like Winston, but he tries, and that’s what matters for our viewing pleasure.
1. Schmidt
Schmidt is undeniably the wittiest, Jewishest, most ridiculous character in the glorious show that is "New Girl." He's hip with the youths and entertains us with his shirt both on and off, while pulling off some of the most detailed revenge plots I’ve ever seen. Plus, he has driving moccasins.
Regardless of your personal favorite (even though it's clearly Schmidt), we can all agree that we wish we had this group of friends in our lives. And if we don't, it's because we are one of them already (likely Schmidt).
