History JerkWithAHeartOfGold / LiveActionTV

* Alex P. Keaton from ''FamilyTies'' dreams of reaching the top of the corporate ladder and being rich -- and he often acts pompous about his intelligence. His views also sometimes appear sexist and he often appears to hold a certain contempt for people who lack intelligence and/or wealth. However, he has shown many times that he truly is a lovable and compassionate person -- and his good buddy is [[TheUrkel Skippy Handelman]].

* Stefan from ''TopChef'' season 5. A very heavy competitor, he comes off as an overconfident ass (which he is, honestly). However, he does have friendships with the other contestants (outside of competition of course) and he tried to comfort Carla when she started to cry during the final judges session.

* [Series/[{{Firefly}} Jayne Cobb]] is on the borderline, and definitely leaning toward "Jerk" but shows some nicer moments, such as sending a chunk of his pay to his mom to help take care of his ailing brother, and wearing a truly hideous hat because his mother made it for him.

* Dr. {{Frasier}} Crane, likewise, is a pompous, self-righteous and snobby jackass who nevertheless genuinely loves and cares for his family and friends, is devoted to psychiatry and his patients, and is deep down ruled by an inner need to be liked. His brother [[TheNiles Niles]] is similar, in that he's even ''more'' of a pompous, arrogant jerk who nevertheless demonstrates genuinely decent redeeming qualities, especially his determinedly concealed adoration of his older brother, and his love for Daphne, which always brings out his good side (part of the reason people complain that ''Frasier'' was less funny after Niles and Daphne got together was because it made Niles a whole lot nicer, i.e., more boring).

** Even Roz is a bit of this as well. She's a swaggering, loud, snarky, ball-breaking office slut; but shows that deep down she does feel insecure and vulnerable about her life and relationships, is a romantic at heart, and is very, ''very'' protective towards her best friend Frasier. Yeah, this show had a big thing for taking comedy-fodder stereotypes and giving them depth and complexity.

** As much as [[TedBaxter Bulk and Skull]] from MightyMorphinPowerRangers are jerks and bullies, they do have a soft spot, showcasing genuine care for a disgusting pig, trying to save a runaway stroller, and when stuck in a dreamscape, they dream of being heroes. They also ''[[BeyondTheImpossible saved the rangers lives]]'' durring one episode where the MonsterOfTheWeek gave them LaserGuidedAmnesia. Maybe not full gold, but some lower value precious metal, made shinier as the show went on.

** One great example of this is how he gave up a partnership in a very high-profile law-firm despite promises of a private office and an attractive female boss who wanted him after he found out that he was being hired for his reputation as a good lover -- not because of his record as Assistant D.A. Of course Dan slept with the woman offering him the job first THEN quit, excitedly telling a confused janitor as he left her office "You can have your principles and STILL get lucky!"

* [[{{Firefly}} Jayne Cobb]] is on the borderline, and definitely leaning toward "Jerk" but shows some nicer moments, such as sending a chunk of his pay to his mom to help take care of his ailing brother, and wearing a truly hideous hat because his mother made it for him.

* In the later seasons of ''{{Farscape}}'', Dominar Rygel XVI.

* Arthur in ''{{Series/Merlin}}''. Arrogant and self-centered yes, but with a genuine sense of justice. In fact he might not be a jerk at all, or at if it wasn't for his sense of duty towards his father, who is a ''true'' {{Jerkass}}.

* Dr. {{Frasier}} Crane, likewise, is a pompous, self-righteous and snobby jackass who nevertheless genuinely loves and cares for his family and friends, is devoted to psychiatry and his patients, and is deep down ruled by an inner need to be liked. His brother [[TheNiles Niles]] is similar, in that he's even ''more'' of a pompous, arrogant jerk who nevertheless demonstrates genuinely decent redeeming qualities.

* ''{{House}}'': Dr. Gregory House threatens to get into this during his PetTheDog moments, particularly when he was diagnosed with cancer and still insisted on focusing on the patient. As always, it turned out he was just a [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Jerk With The Heart Of An Even Bigger Jerk]] Than We Had Assumed -- [[spoiler:he faked having cancer so he could get his hands on the perscription drugs, although to be fair, his team only "found out" he was sick by snooping around behind his back]].

** Martin is in someways like this as well, at times to the point of being an inversion; although a lot more down-to-Earth, practical and, on the surface at least, likable than his two sons, he's nevertheless in the early seasons a crabby, bitter and emotionally repressed and distant man whom, it's suggested, has rarely actually made much of an effort to connect to his sons in any meaningful way (although he remains proud of them nevertheless). Whilst Niles and Frasier tend to wear their jerkiness on their sleeves, especially towards Martin, it's frequently established that Martin also has his jerkass side and partial responsibility for his difficult relationship with his sons.

** Malcolm Reynolds could be said to be leaning in the other direction of the trope, being less of a jerk, but still fitting
*** Besides we need him to hit Jayne with a wrench.

* Adam Baldwin, the who played the above role, does this trope better as Casey in ''{{Chuck}}''. While Chuck's other handler quickly becomes a viable LoveInterest, Casey continues to emphasise how little he thinks of Chuck, generally insulting him, not caring about him, and always following orders above all else. But by the end of the second seasons, he has quite a large amount of hidden fondness for both of his partners, even if he would never admit it.
** (He does.He tells General Beckman that Sarah is the "Best partner I ever had". Mind you, he is saving her job at the time...)

* Conner from ''PowerRangersDinoThunder'' is one of these, which was a very interesting example considering he was the Red Ranger. This made for some funky team dynamics during the time it took for the group to begin to actually trust each other, since his teammates were a [[HollywoodNerd male geek]] and a [[RebelliousSpirit female loner musician]].

** You can forget that lovable rouge, Autolycus! He's proven time and time again that despite claiming that his main interest is himself... and riches, he's put his own life on the line to save his friends on multiple occasions. Gabrielle even says that he has a heart of gold after he defends her bad plan to Xena even though he himself had been criticizing her for it shortly before the warrior princess' arrival.

* Most of the incarnations of The Doctor from ''DoctorWho'' would touch on this trope at some point, but in many ways the Sixth Doctor matches it most of all; for the most part he's a pompous, arrogant, blustering jackass filled with a monumental sense of his own self-importance... who, every so often, does something that reveals him to be more than capable of acts of astonishing compassion and generosity.

* Anthony Bourdain from ''No Reservations''. On the outside he may seem like a jerkass, but really, he's all right and cares about his crew and the people he visits in his travels.

** Anthony Bourdain from ''No Reservations''. On the outside he may seem like a jerkass, but really, he's all right and cares about his crew and the people he visits in his travels.

** Adric is sort of a lesser version of this, as he doesn't really [[CharacterDerailment develop jerk tendencies until season 19]], but he still shows he cares. For instance, at the beginning of "Kinda" when he and Nyssa are discussing her recent fainting spells and he calls her "hopeless in her present state of mind." But when she starts having another attack, he goes over and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder.

* Sam in ''{{iCarly}}''. A lazy, gluttonous bully she is saved by her [[MoralityChain genuine feelings of friendship for Carly]] and (very rare) moments of decency towards Freddie.

* Jaye Tyler from ''{{Wonderfalls}}''. She's lazy, whiny and frequently mean-spirited, but she loves her family and is, in her own words "very susceptible to guilt".

* Arthur in ''{{Merlin}}''. Arrogant and self-centered yes, but with a genuine sense of justice. In fact he might not be a jerk at all, or at if it wasn't for his sense of duty towards his father, who is a ''true'' {{Jerkass}}.