Sliding Scale of Character Appreciation

While having good characters doesn't make a good story, there are some characters who can make or break a series simply by walking onstage. On the one hand, you can have a minor character from an obscure and poorly liked series who nonetheless inspires thousands of fanfics. On the other hand, some characters are so hated by fans that some feel the only way the show will ever be watchable again is to write the character out of existence. If the negative audience reaction is coming from outside the target demographic it is a Periphery Hatedom.

Characters we like to watch:

Characters who impress us once:
 * One-Scene Wonder

Characters we love to see, even if just standing in the background:
 * The Ensemble Darkhorse

Villains we sympathize with:
 * The Anti-Villain
 * The Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain
 * The Magnificent Bastard
 * The Noble Demon
 * The Unintentionally Sympathetic villain
 * The Draco in Leather Pants
 * The Affably Evil villain
 * The Faux Affably Evil villain

Characters we love to see suffer:
 * The Butt Monkey
 * The Chew Toy
 * The Cosmic Plaything
 * The Designated Monkey
 * The Woobie

Characters who allow us to live vicariously:
 * The Badass
 * The Cape (trope)
 * The Escapist Character
 * The Magnificent Bastard

Villains we love to hate:
 * The Big Bad
 * The Magnificent Bastard

Heroes we love to root for:
 * The Action Hero
 * The Cape (trope)
 * Little Old Lady Investigates

We love to watch them get needlessly killed:
 * Mooks
 * The Red Shirt

We love to see them semi-naked
 * Mr. Fanservice
 * Ms. Fanservice

Characters we hate to watch:
 * Anyone who must Die for Our Ship
 * The Complete Monster
 * Though usually, this doesn't ruin the show for people. At least, as long as he doesn't get away with it.
 * The Smug Snake
 * The Mary Sue, and all subtropes thereof; this rule can be broken sometimes, but Don't Try This At Home.
 * The Scrappy, and all subtropes thereof
 * The Alien Scrappy
 * Creator's Pet
 * The Damsel Scrappy
 * The Ethnic Scrappy
 * The Replacement Scrappy
 * Also, the following likely scrappies:
 * The Load
 * The Millstone
 * The Unwitting Instigator of Doom