History AlternativeCharacterInterpretation / LiveActionTV

** Perhaps the most famous TOS AlternativeCharacterInterpretation of all: the [[HoYay nature of]] [[TheNotLoveInterest Kirk and Spock's]] [[HeterosexualLifePartners relation]]{{ship|ping}} By which we mean, they were the love of each others' lives. It's worth noting that Gene Roddenberry all but admitted that was the case. ''WebVideo/TheShipsCloset'' is dedicated entirely to proving that this interpretation is the intended interpretation. Britanny even builds a timeline of the relationship - during the events of the show, Kirk and Spock are merely expressing interest in and flirting with one another. They get together as a couple during the first film. [=McCoy=] [[ShipperOnDeck finds the whole thing amusing]].

* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'': Jonathan Kent's ghostly appearances in Series 10. Did he really return from the grave to impart advice? Or was he merely an avatar of Jor-El, who recognized that his own tense relationship with his son might prevent him from adhering to his advice, so chose AFormYouAreComfortableWith as "Jonathan" is the only person he knows Clark ''will'' listen to?
** The Luthors: are they cultured badasses and misunderstood woobies, or are they utter bastards whose cultured exteriors are just a thin veneer hiding the complete seediness underneath?
*** Lex: Misunderstood woobie or selfish prick who's way too eager to blame others for his problems?
** Is [[ComicBook/GreenArrow Oliver]] the best or second-best character on the show, or is he just a jerk? You decide!
** Is Chloe's [[spoiler: transformation into a Big Brother-like figure to "protect" Metropolis in Season 9]] the result of Post-Traumatic Stress in reaction to [[spoiler: Jimmy's death]]?

* ''AlternativeCharacterInterepretation/ColdCase''

* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/{{Jeremiah}}''

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation is a given when [[DuelingShows two shows tackle the same historical characters simultaneously.]] Case in point Neil Jordan's ''Series/TheBorgias'' (who tends to paint [[ALighterShadeOfGray the titular family]] [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade sympathetically]] as [[AntiHero Anti]][[HeroWithbadPublicity heroes With Bad Publicity]] while [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade giving several shades of villainy]] to everyone else) and Creator/TomFontana's ''Borgia: Faith and Fear'' (who turns up the {{squick}} and just makes [[GreyAndGrayMorality everyone a terrible person]], period), both from 2011:

** Charles VIII of France already went through AlternateCharacterInterpretation between seasons in ''TB''. In the first season he is a [[TheComicallySerious slightly comical]] AffablyEvil NobleDemon that makes a 180º after meeting the Pope, but makes another 180º after taking Naples and thinking that the Pope has tricked him into entering a plague-ridden city, and becomes an outright monster in the second season. In ''B:F&F'', Charles is a sickly-looking FrenchJerk with [[RedRightHand an ever]]-[[EvilCripple shaking right hand]], clearly not right in the head and [[MoodSwinger possibly bipolar]].

** Creator/JossWhedon himself presented an AlternateCharacterInterpretation for the series by saying that the ending of sixth season episode "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E17NormalAgain Normal Again]]" (in which Buffy hallucinates that she's a patient in a mental hospital and has been imagining the entire "vampire slayer" gig) might be the truth. On the other hand, that statement could just be [[{{Jossed}} Joss being Joss.]]

** River is almost nothing ''but'' AlternateCharacterInterpretation. How much of her actions are taken up by her madness, post-traumatic stress, MindRape mental trauma, and her psychic powers? How ''does'' she perceive the world around her? How do her PsychicPowers even work? There are also questions and interpretations relating to her murdering her counselor/interrogator in The R. Tam Sessions. Was she doing it because she had been ordered to do so? Was she doing it because she was insane? Or was she lashing out at her torturers in the only way she could?

** Perhaps the most famous TOS AlternateCharacterInterpretation of all: the [[HoYay nature of]] [[TheNotLoveInterest Kirk and Spock's]] [[HeterosexualLifePartners relation]]{{ship|ping}} By which we mean, they were the love of each others' lives. It's worth noting that Gene Roddenberry all but admitted that was the case. ''WebVideo/TheShipsCloset'' is dedicated entirely to proving that this interpretation is the intended interpretation. Britanny even builds a timeline of the relationship - during the events of the show, Kirk and Spock are merely expressing interest in and flirting with one another. They get together as a couple during the first film. [=McCoy=] [[ShipperOnDeck finds the whole thing amusing]].

** One episode features an in-universe example: Wednesday is read a story at school about a dragon who was killed by a knight. The knight was meant to be the hero and the dragon the villain, but Wednesday took it as [[RootingForTheEmpire the other way around]] and cried.

*** One common interpretation is that he does have some type of emotional foundation from the outset, which is deliberately by-passed by his programming. Moments where he seems human and appears to react emotionally — such as lying about his decision to kill Kivas Fajo to prevent further death and suffering — are examples of his programming being so focused on coping with the humanity of the situation that they fail to completely re-route or suppress that existing emotional core. The emotion chip therefore doesn't give him something he never had, it just reconfigures and/or upgrades the complexity of the existing programming to expand the capability, and prevent the re-routing, of the emotional core that already exists.

** Was the EMH sentient all along (possibly meaning all [=EMHs=] are sentient) or did he ''become'' sentient? If the latter, is it from running a long time? From the experience he had? Or because of ''Voyager'''s "gel packs", which are partly biological?

* ''AlternativeCharacterInterpretation/{{A Series of Unfortunate Events|2017}}''

* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/{{Charmed|1998}}''
* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/CobraKai''

* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/HowIMetYourMother''

* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/StrangerThings''

* ''AlternativeCharacterInterpretation/TheBoys2019''

* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/TheUmbrellaAcademy2019''
* ''AlternateCharacterInterpretation/TrueBlood''

* ''Series/{{Revenge}}'': While many view Emily as a tragic and deeply flawed AntiHero, nobly seeking revenge by questionable means, the sheer amount of DisproportionateRetribution probably makes her more of an AntiVillain than an AntiHero. If taken this way, she is clearly a BigBad VillainProtagonist. This isn't to say that her enemies, the Graysons and the conspiracy that brought down her father are good, only that Emily is ALighterShadeOfBlack.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': In a blink-and-you'll-miss-it scene in "The Lion And The Rose", when [[spoiler: Joffrey starts to choke]], Tywin Lannister moves across the table and embraces his grandson Tommen. Was this a rare PetTheDog moment that shows Tywin truly does care for his family as people and not just a name, or merely him being so pragmatic that [[spoiler: his response to seeing the King die is to immediately move to protect the next heir?]]
** Renly in the series is changed very much from the book Renly, who is basically just a sleazy vain usurper with good publicity. In the TV series him attempting to take the throne is more due to persuasion from his lover Ser Loras Tyrell. He comes across as one of the nicest characters and really seems devoted to being a good and kind King. Also him knowing of the illegitimacy of Cersei's children takes away his EvilUncle aspect. Yet despite this the fact remains that Renly, like in the books, was willing to usurp his brother in an act that blatantly went against the succession laws of the realm and was willing to kill his brother to do so. This, despite being offered very reasonable terms by Stannis that would have allowed Renly to help make the realm better and would have probably made him King anyway eventually.

* ''Series/TheWheelOfTime'': InUniverse, Dana is a Darkfriend who believes the Dark One actually wants the Dragon Reborn to return. Then the Dragon will be used for breaking the Wheel, which she believes will end suffering in the world. So to her, the Dark One is good.

** Is Stringer Bell a soulless, Machiavellian criminal mastermind who only cares about profit, or is he a NobleDemon who tries to bring some much-needed dignity and integrity into the criminal underworld that he was born into? In the end, [[spoiler: did he meet a Karmic Death after telling one lie too many, or did he meet a tragic death after futilely trying to improve his station in life]]?