History FatalFlaw / LiveActionTV

* ''Series/Stargirl2020:'' Brainwave's is [[{{Sadist}} sadism]]. An [[StorybreakerPower extremely powerful]] [[MindReading telepath]] and [[MindOverMatter telekinetic]], he tends to lose the upper hand by using his powers cruelly instead of effectively, giving his opponents a chance to to hit his [[GlassCannon unenhanced and unprotected human body]]. In the first season finale, he decides to have some fun by [[spoiler: pretending to be his [[OffingTheOffspring dead son]] miraculously survived to mess with Yolanda, resulting in his death when she realizes what's happening and immediately cuts his throat.]]

* Wesley from ''Series/{{Angel}}'' has a tendency to commit rash action usually for a good reason. It comes back to haunt him in seasons 3-4. Wesley also has a mistrust of others and compulsively hoards every secret to himself.

* ''Series/BreakingBad'' - [[AntiHero Walter White's]] {{Pride}} causes him to start cooking meth instead of accepting charity in the first place, and continues to get him into escalating trouble from there, eventually turning him into a full-fledged VillainProtagonist.

** Bree has two - has ControlFreak tendencies and her habit of completely overreacting whenever she feels slighted, often resorting to blackmail to make her family fall in line with her wishes.

* In the comedy series ''Series/{{Drifters}}'', Meg is DrivenByEnvy and she always wants what other people have - she makes Mark dump his girlfriend Fay when she gets jealous that he's moving on from her, then when Mark loses his venue and starts sliding back into being a creepy weirdo again, Meg decides she doesn't want him anymore and Fay refuses to take him back as well. Plus she gets offended when her new lesbian friend clarifies that she isn't attracted to Meg - even though Meg is straight, she gets upset when the girl prefers Bunny and calls her uptight and self-righteous. She also repeatedly ignores NiceGuy Andrew [[WantingIsBetterThanHaving who is everything she says she wants]] in favour of Hot and Cold [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys who ignores Meg except when he wants sex.]]

** D'Argo's HairTriggerTemper. Even after CharacterDevelopment kicks in, his violent tendencies consistently get him into trouble - sometimes ruining critical mission objectives in the process.

** Scorpius's many obsessions - with Crichton, with wormholes, with revenge against the Scarrans...

** Stark's [[CloudCuckooLander growing instability]] - [[spoiler: which only get worse following Zhaan's death.]]

*** Idealism. While Daenerys is nowhere near as arrogant and horrible as her brother and is, in fact, a sweet and genuinely kind-hearted young woman who wishes for the end of slavery, she is also ''very'' prone to going off on one about her ideals and why everyone should do what she says for what she believes to be for the Greater Good — even when taking this course of action would make getting it less likely.

** The intense pride that the Vale Lords hold for their homeland has blinded them to any flaws within them, and whenever danger comes knocking at their door they are more than content to simply hole up in their mountains and ride it out relatively unscathed. Notably averted during Robert's Rebellion when Jon Arryn rallied the Houses of The Vale against the Mad King, and then played brutally straight during the War of Five Kings while under the leadership of Lysa Arryn.

*** And for all his smarts and ability see what he assumes to be threats to the kingdom, when it comes to himself, he ends up holding the IdiotBall, he has been betrayed/harmed at one point by almost everyone bar Jon and Jorah, He seems to have a blind spot for people showing him even a slight bit more than a veneer of kindness.

** The Hound's over the top cynicism has gotten him into trouble many times and caused him to pick a fight with Brienne due to thinking she was allied with the Lannisters — to be fair, Jaime Lannister did give her that sword after all.
** Where to begin, really, but Joffrey's [[KickTheDog cruelty]], [[EvilIsPetty pettiness]], [[ATragedyofImpulsiveness impulsiveness]] and [[StupidEvil lack of intelligence]] are definitely up there. He throws his weight around and needlessly antagonises people whom he actually depends on, has a lot of enemies gunning for him as a result of his viciousness and it is explicitly mentioned by those who actually do conspire to murder him that if he had been a bit kinder or at least a bit smarter and capable of suppressing his baser impulses they might actually have allowed him to live.

** Alliser Thorne has high arrogance (bordering stupidity) that causes problems for him and others. He refuses to seal the tunnel simply because Jon advised it and he believes the Night's Watch will win because they have for thousands of years. This makes it easier for a giant to get into the tunnel and six brothers die as a result. And later he murders Jon because he let the wildlings down south. Okay, but he doesn't say how murdering the lord commander will fix the wildling problem. And he doesn't put a defense in case the wildlings come back. It costs him dearly.

* ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' - Frank Pembleton's self-righteousness and moral absolutism drive everyone away from him, and eventually [[spoiler: force him to turn in Tim Bayliss, the closest thing he has to friend.]]

** Simon's is that he completely lets his heart overrule common sense and he frequently makes a complete and utter idiot out of himself trying to win over Carli - including trying to sneak into her window to confess his love to her and accidentally doing so ''to her little brother.''

** Alisha's is vanity - she's fixated on being seen as the most beautiful, fuckable girl in the room so [[ScrewTheRulesImBeautiful she treats other people incredibly callously because they're too focused on her looks to bother much with her personality.]] It takes some BreakTheHaughty over the first season before she TookALevelInKindness and becomes a LovableAlphaBitch - still sassy and vain but kinder and more supportive, especially to Simon.
** Rudy's is that he's terrified of being rejected by other people, so he acts like a rude, loudmouthed twat that has sex with girls and then ditches them so they can't hurt him first - this tendency is even why his power is to split into two Rudy's - [[SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan crass, upbeat Rudy One and depressed, sensitive Rudy Two.]]

** John has two - his recklessness and his jealousy over being just [[MiddleChildSyndrome the third Shelby.]] In Season Three he's the one who kicks off the Shelby/Changretta feud when he attacks Angel Changretta for dating Lizzie Stark, his ex-girlfriend whom he still has lingering feelings for. He defies Tommy's orders to nip the problem in the bud, which ultimately results in [[spoiler: his death when some Italians show up outside his house and he chooses to try shooting them instead of getting the hell out of there.]]
** Chester Campbell's is his [[{{Sadist}} Sadism]], firstly when he has Grace at his mercy in the Season One finale, but he lingers too long savouring her [[OhCrap reaction]] and ends up getting shot in the leg, spending the remainder of the show walking with a cane, and he spends far too much time [[EvilGloating gloating]] about his rape of [[spoiler: Polly]] and assumes she'll be too scared to do anything to him after what he inflicted on her. He's swiftly proven ''very'' wrong.

* ''Series/Stargirl2020:'' Brainwave's is [[{{Sadist}} sadism]]. An [[StorybreakerPower extremely powerful]] [[MindReading telepath]] and [[MindOverMatter telekinetic]], he tends to lose the upper hand by using his powers cruelly instead of effectively, giving his opponents a chance to to hit his [[GlassCannon unenhanced and unprotected human body]]. In the first season finale he decides to have some fun by [[spoiler: pretending to be his [[OffingTheOffspring dead son]] miraculously survived to mess with Yolanda, resulting in his death when she realizes what's happening and immediately cuts his throat.]]

** Sam's insecurity. His [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter gullibility]] and [[TheOnlyOne pride]] seem to be born of his overriding desire to believe that bad people can be good--that ''he'' can be good.

** Alma has plenty. Meeting Tom, her old flame, while in the middle of covering up a crime - in a crowded room of witnesses - paired with her lust for the finer things in life (stealing Mrs. Yost’s possessions as if it isn’t a red flag for investigators) and her desire to have friends moreover her idealization of the rich ladies’ club (which is shown to be nothing more but bored ladies gossiping true to Mrs. Yost’s words and backstabbing snobs) could bite her and Bertram in the ass. While her daughter gave some good advice of being selfish and indulge for once, the way Alma is going about it isn’t going to end well.

** Joxer wanting to prove he can fight.

** Betty’s is {{Anger}}. Betty is HotBlooded with a violent temper and she has serious anger management issues. The intensity of her anger can be so extreme at times that she ends up resorting to SelfHarm by digging her fingernails into her palms until they are bleeding. This seems to be one of the few ways in which Betty is able to get control of her anger and impulse control issues. Betty's inability to control her anger is due to the probability that she's suffering from an undiagnosed mental illness or AmbiguousDisorder.

* Team leader Nate's alcoholism in ''Series/{{Leverage}}'', which has gotten the team into trouble more than once. In the periods where he isn't an alcoholic his desire to control takes its place with often worse problems.

** Hardison has the flaw that he tends to go over the top as a grifter coupled with a heaping of pride in his own intelligence. This gets him into trouble repeatedly.
** Parker has the flaw that she is incapable of dealing with a normal person which is problematic when she is forced into the role of grifter.
** Eliot? Let's just say that he often gets a little carried away as The Hitter.

** Varys holds people, particularly leaders, to standards no human can possibly hope to reach, and his first instinct once they feel to live up to his impossible standards is to betray them. [[spoiler: It finally catches up to him once Daenerys learns that he is attempting to put Jon Snow on the throne instead of her, due to his fears of her growing instability.]]

* Varys holds people, particularly leaders, to standards no human can possibly hope to reach, and his first instinct once they feel to live up to his impossible standards is to betray them. [[spoiler: It finally catches up to him once Daenerys learns that he is attempting to put Jon Snow on the throne instead of her, due to his fears of her growing instability.]]

* Varys holds people, particularly leaders, to standards no human can possibly hope to reach, and his first instinct once they feel to live up to his impossible standards is to betray them. [[spoiler: It finally catches up to him once Daenerys learns that he is attempting to put Jon Snow on the throne instead of her, due to his fears of her growing instability.]]

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': All the previous players are implied to eventually develop a [[DeathSeeker death wish]], and the resulting carelessness is what leads to their demise.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': All the previous are implied to eventually develop a [[DeathSeeker death wish]], and the rsulting carelessness is what leads to their demise.

* ''Series/{{Outnumbered}}'', Pete has a bad habit of putting his foot in his mouth, such as accidentally ruining a funeral eulogy or admitting to his wife he kissed another woman but he was drunk at the time. "That came out wrong" is practically his {{Catchphrase.}}

** Chester Campbell's is his [[Sadist Sadism]] , firstly when he has Grace at his mercy in the Season One finale, but he lingers too long savouring her [[OhCrap reaction]] and ends up getting shot in the leg, spending the remainder of the show walking with a cane, and he spends far too much time [[EvilGloating gloating]] about his rape of [[spoiler: Polly]] and assumes she'll be too scared to do anything to him after what he inflicted on her. He's swiftly proven ''very'' wrong.

** ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'' chessmaster Swartz is driven by an InferioritySuperiorityComplex that brings about his downfall in two separate ways: first, he's so driven by his need to surpass his sister that he instantly believes her when she claims to submit to his rule, allowing her to easily stab him in the back at a critical moment. Second, his pathological need to become more powerful leads him to be gluttonous for stealing the powers of superheroes, which eventually causes him to bite off more than he can chew after he gathers the powers of a hundred heroes into one man ready and willing to kick his ass.

* ''Series/TheSopranos'':
** Tony Soprano's Wrath and [[HairTriggerTemper short fuse]] sometimes got the better of him.
** Despite being one of the most ruthless characters in the series, Phil Leotardo considers himself too agreeable in nature and willing to compromise for his own good. In reality, it is his obsession with preserving his alpha male persona at all costs that proves to be his downfall.
** Christopher Moltisanti's DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster tendencies. He doesn't realize being a made man in TheMafia comes with a lot of responsibility, which means he cannot goof around when he's under tremendous pressure from his bosses to earn more money. [[spoiler:By the time of his death, Tony had realized that Chris was TheLoad to the [=DiMeo=] crime family.]] While being a mafioso has its perks, Chris should have known that some parts of a mobster's life can be boring and dangerous at times.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'':
** Prince Doran Martell is [[TurnTheOtherCheek too forgiving]] and doesn't want a CycleOfRevenge to consume his family. [[spoiler: His own nieces kill him and his son after he had just pardoned them for trying to kidnap Princess Myrcella, who they had also killed]].
** Lord Roose Bolton is such a SmugSnake that he constantly taunts his bastard Ramsay about his status and dangles the possibility of being replaced with his newborn son. [[spoiler: Ramsay kills him and his baby.]]
** Ramsay likes to [[KickTheDog "play"]] with his enemies too much. Because of this Theon Greyjoy and Sansa Stark escape and he wastes a golden opportunity to kill Jon Snow or escape by killing Wun Wun the Giant (who was likely going to die anyway) ForTheEvulz. It also earns him one of the most agonizing deaths in the entire show when Sansa Stark, his latest victim, has him at her mercy.
** Blackfish feels guilty for failing to save his family at the Red Wedding. [[spoiler: He dies defending Riverrun because he didn't want to run again.]]
** Ned chooses pride and HonorBeforeReason, (though the alternatives do mostly involve children suffering) which leads to all kinds of problems, and eventually his death. That said, he is aware of this. And refuses to change anyway.
** Catelyn's need to protect her family drives her to impulsive actions that often work to the detriment of her family (such as kidnapping Tyrion and releasing Jaime). Her release of Jaime, in particular, is one of the major factors that leads to the death of her and Robb.
** Robb Stark chooses to MarryForLove despite the strategic consequences. Furthermore, he's honorable and assumes honor in others. He assumes he can win back Walder Frey's loyalty by making amends. He assumes that Lord Walder will honor Guest Right. He assumes Roose Bolton's unwavering loyalty as his bannerman. All of this culminates in betrayal and murder. Like his father, he also suffers heavily from HonorBeforeReason which causes him to execute Lord Karstark in retaliation for killing two Lannister boys when it would have been far wiser (if somewhat less noble) to simply hold him prisoner until the war was over. Because Karstarcks men leave him after their lords execution, Robb is put in the position of needing Walder Frey's help in the first place.
** Sansa's status as TheIngenue leaves her GenreBlind in a CrapsackWorld. She's learning, though.
** Daenerys Targaryen has three major ones:
*** Her ChronicHeroSyndrome keeps distracting her from returning to Westeros.
*** Idealism. While Daenerys is nowhere near as arrogant and horrible as her brother and is, in fact, a sweet and genuinely kind-hearted young woman who wishes for the end of slavery, she is also ''very'' prone to going off on one about her ideals and why everyone should do what she says for what she believes to be for the Greater Good — even when taking this course of action would make getting it less likely.
*** {{Pride}} is also apparent in Season 2, where she threatens to burn down Qarth (a task for which her Dragons are way too young yet to actually do) if she isn't allowed inside, and rages against the Spice King when he refuses to give her ships to return to Westeros. It earns her an TheReasonYouSuckSpeech from said Spice King. Although she eventually managed to grow into her own hype, her pride (manifesting alternatively as ProtagonistCenteredMorality and MoralMyopia) is still very much there and has earned her, more than once, warnings about turning out like her father.
** Theon Greyjoy has ambition, pride, and a thirst for approval. He gets most of them beaten out of him by hard experience.
** Oberyn Martell's lust for vengeance.
** The intense pride that the Vale Lords hold for their homeland has blinded them to any flaws within them, and whenever danger comes knocking at their door they are more than content to simply hole up in their mountains and ride it out relatively unscathed. Notably averted during Robert's Rebellion when Jon Arryn rallied the Houses of The Vale against the Mad King, and then played brutally straight during the War of Five Kings while under the leadership of Lysa Arryn.
** The Starks' reoccurring flaw is that they often [[GoodCannotComprehendEvil assume that others share their morals and principles.]] This naivety often leads to the Starks being manipulated and contributes to several of their deaths.
** The flaw for the Lannisters is ''they don't know when to shut their mouths'':
*** Cersei makes spiteful remarks to almost everyone she meets, earning her enemies. She immediately sets Ned against her and helps set in motion events which lead to war, and continually sabotages her other political schemes.
*** Jaime attempts to snarkily bribe his way out of Locke's custody after saving Brienne, but it backfires and he loses his hand.
*** Tyrion has on more than one occasion gotten himself into as many bad situations as he has out of them because of his mouth. His repeated calling out of Joffrey and the endless stream of insults he hurls in his direction end up making him the prime suspect when the latter is murdered and his words are used against him at his trial for Joffrey's murder. Him finally snapping at his trial and hurling insults at everyone in the court seals his fate.
*** Tywin continues to dismiss the dead as Shae a whore even though a very angry and crossbow-toting Tyrion has very clearly told him not to and just threatened to kill him. Tywin pays dearly for not shutting his mouth with a thoroughly undignified death.
** The Karstarks' RevengeBeforeReason tendencies are what ultimately do them in, as shown by both Rickard and Harald.
*** Rickard's rage and grief over the death of Torrhen and Harrion drives him to commit a war crime by murdering two Lannister boys in cold blood. When confronted by Robb Stark, he does nothing but further antagonize him through insults. The boys were completely innocent; he just wanted to inflict pain on all and any Lannisters. His actions lead to Robb executing him, though the aftermath of his death plays with this trope, as his men then abandon Robb's army and save themselves from being slaughtered at the Red Wedding.
*** Harald takes it UpToEleven in Season 6 to both intensely stupid and extremely horrifying levels. As soon as he hears about the brewing conflict between Ramsay Bolton and Jon Snow, he immediately allies with the Boltons for revenge on the Starks because Robb executed his father. Never mind that Robb killed Rickard for war crimes, that Robb, his mother, his wife, and pretty much everyone who fought with him are long dead after being betrayed and murdered in the most horrific and cruel manner possible, and that House Stark is pretty much gone and none of its remaining members had anything to do with Rickard's execution. Not to mention that the Boltons are despised by pretty much everyone in the North, Harald is further endangering his house by siding with them, and the White Walkers are on their way. Harald's best bet would have been to simply bury the hatchet and team up with Jon Snow, where his house could have survived. Instead, his insatiable desire for vengeance leads to his possible death and his men getting wiped out in the battle for Winterfell, which thus would mean House Karstark is now more or less extinct.
** Tywin's obsession with the Lannister family glory results in a lack of emotional intelligence and in his utter inability to give a shit about his children as individuals. This turns into a ''literal'' fatal flaw, as his abuse of his son Tyrion earns him a terminal case of crossbow-to-gut.
** Cersei Lannister:
*** Hubris. Cersei thinks she's way better than she really is and better than anybody else, which makes her think nothing about hurting people, and in her arrogance, she is reckless, deaf to council and unable to evaluate herself or make any kind of amends.
*** Additionally, her complete inability to play any sort of long game. Cersei only ever seems to plan for the moment, and this almost always blows up in her face later. To get back at Margaery, she empowers the Faith Militant with no consideration as to how this would affect King's Landing, only caring that Margaery would suffer. They turn on her as soon as it's convenient, and King's Landing comes within a hair's breadth of becoming a theocracy.
*** Her "Everyone who is not us is an enemy" policy doesn't help either. Cersei is good at manipulation, but negotiation and compromise is anathema to her. She desires the absolute authority of her father, but fails to understand that House Lannister is no longer as wealthy and powerful as it was before the war, and therefore the Tyrell alliance is a necessity. And the "us" quickly becomes "me" where her own family is concerned.
** Whilst Jaime has his own brand of cunning like his father and brother, his impulsive behaviour makes him say 'fuck you' to patience and gets him captured by Robb Stark.
** Even Petyr Baelish has one. [[spoiler:It turns out to be his infatuation for Sansa Stark and his belief that she would never turn on him and always be dependent on the resources and knowledge he happily provides. He also fails to consider that he has no actual allies in the North (and the Vale Knights are all loyal to Sansa rather than to him), as well as the supernatural element of Bran's new-found powers letting him know his dirty secrets. He tries to drive a wedge between her and Arya at Winterfell and is ''completely'' blindsided when the two sisters lead him along and expose his crimes before the Northern and Vale lords. He has no backup plan or convenient lie and he dies tearfully pleading to Sansa for his life.]]
** The Hound's over the top cynicism has gotten him into trouble many times and caused him to pick a fight with Brienne due to thinking she was allied with the Lannisters — to be fair, Jaime Lannister did give her that sword after all.
** Where to begin, really, but Joffrey's [[KickTheDog cruelty]], [[EvilIsPetty pettiness]], [[ATragedyofImpulsiveness impulsiveness]] and [[StupidEvil lack of intelligence]] are definitely up there. He throws his weight around and needlessly antagonises people whom he actually depends on, has a lot of enemies gunning for him as a result of his viciousness and it is explicitly mentioned by those who actually do conspire to murder him that if he had been a bit kinder or at least a bit smarter and capable of suppressing his baser impulses they might actually have allowed him to live.
** Rhaegar was known as an elegant, able man who played harp for commoners in disguise, but everything goes out the window when he goes full fantasist mode: His love for Lyanna (and her love for him) led to diplomatic disaster and really callous handling of his wife and kids. Charging in single combat against the hammer wielding betrothed in an epic duel didn't end well for him, either.
** Robert's alcoholism and need to prove he can still fight despite his sub-standard physical condition.
* ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'': The main character himself has the fatal flaw of Pride. He's savagely arrogant (being Sherlock Holmes, his ego is mostly justified), has lots of trouble seeing things from other people's point of view which makes him come off as a callous {{Jerkass}}, and expects the world to bend over backwards to entertain him. [[spoiler: Moriarty tells Sherlock in the "[[Recap/SherlockS02E03TheReichenbachFall The Reichenbach Fall]]" episode that his flaw is always wanting everything to be clever which is how Moriarty manages to deceive him. Sherlock still wins by exploiting Moriarty's own death wish.]]
* Series/{{Community}}, as a show about broken people trying to find their place in the world is filled with this.
** Jeff has too much {{Pride}}. His body issues pushed him to make himself into a perfect physical specimen, but he almost kills himself when he takes anti-aging pills with alcohol.
** Abed's LackOfEmpathy and overindulgence in fiction.
** Pierce's BrutalHonesty. His [[GreenEyedMonster envy]] of the rest of the group in general and of Jeff in particular is also a major problem.
** Troy's naivety and occasional laziness.
** Britta's self-loathing leads her to casual hookups and drug use.
** Shirley's anger (which manifests through her passive-aggression).
** Annie's need to [[AmbitionIsEvil 'win']].
** Oddly enough the seven of them collectively cover all SevenDeadlySins.
** In the episode ''[[Recap/CommunityS3E10RegionalHolidayMusic Regional Holiday Music]]'', all of the characters [[AssimilationPlot fall victim to the thralls]] of the [[TakeThat Glee Club]] because of major character flaws that plauge them throughout the season.
*** Abed is first due to his curiosity.
*** Troy is second after Abed tells him what to do.
*** Pierce is third out of a desire to feel relevant.
*** Annie is fourth out of a desire to fit in with Troy and Abed.
*** Jeff is fifth out of a desire to be close to Annie.
*** Shirley is sixth due to being drug into singing about her religion
*** Britta is seventh because she does what Jeff does.
** Chang's two conflicting desires: wanting friends and wanting power.
* Lord Grantham from ''Series/DowntonAbbey'' is a BenevolentBoss to his servants but this doesn't stop him from thinking them inferior and preferring the company and advice of his "peers". This haunts him when bad advice from an aristocrat doctor over that of their regular physician Dr. Clarkson [[spoiler:causes the death of his daughter Sybil]].
* ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' - Frank Pembleton's self-righteousness and moral absolutism drive everyone away from him, and eventually [[spoiler: force him to turn in Tim Bayliss, the closest thing he has to friend.]]

* In ''Series/{{CSI}}'':
** Warrick's gambling problem.
** Ray's struggle to avoid giving into the violent tendencies he feared he'd got from his father.

* In ''Series/{{Smallville}}'':
** Clark's is his lack of self-worth. Or alternatively his [[{{Hypocrite}} hypocrisy]] about keeping secrets to his friends, which [[CloningBlues Major Zod]] would call him out on.
** [[ComicBook/LexLuthor Lex's]] is his [[GreenEyedMonster envy]] of Clark's life: which gave him a loving family, was well-liked and was special; whereas Lex was a LonelyRichKid whose father was [[AbusiveParents cold]] [[ManipulativeBastard and manipulative]] with a MissingMom [[BrokenPedestal who's worse than]] [[AbusiveParents he'd like to imagine]]. Which set him [[FaceHeelTurn on the path to villainy]].
** Chloe's was [[GreenEyedMonster jealousy]] which worked to [[MagnificentBastard Lionel Luthor's]] advantage; but later became {{Pride}}, apparently.
** [[ComicBook/GreenArrow Oliver's]] is his lack of self-worth, which later led to [[DrivenToSuicide a suicide attempt]], and [[GodOfEvil Darkseid]] [[DemonicPossession influencing him]].
* Series/{{House}}'s vicodin addiction, irritability, and inability to have a healthy relationship.
* In ''Series/TheJohnLarroquetteShow'', John Hemingway's (recovering) alcoholism.
* ''Series/BabylonFive'' had Dr. Franklin addicted to "stims" for most of one season, and battling his addiction for a second; and Security Chief Garibaldi's alcoholism (which he had successfully battled for most of the show's run) formed a major part of the fifth season's arc.
* ''Series/LawAndOrder'': Most characters from the franchise have one of these that occasionally clouds their ability to do their job ethically and fairly or discredits their testimony once in court. Briscoe had drinking problems, Logan was a hothead who'd occasionally [[RabidCop rough up suspects]], Curtis couldn't curb his infidelity, and so on.
** The same with ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit''. Olivia and her belief all women are victims when it comes to dealing with men, [[spoiler: given that she was a product of rape.]] Fin and the revelation that he was a deadbeat father. Elliot and his marital problems at home.
* Most of the cast of ''What Its Like Being Alone'', including Armie, who only has one limb left, Aldous the EmoTeen, Princess Lucy, who would be the AlphaBitch if she weren't fiendishly ugly, Sammie the alcoholic FishPerson, Charlie, who is always on fire, Seymour, who doesn't have a mouth, and other unfortunates. They're also all orphans.
* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'': Pretty much every character on the show has a fatal flaw (drug addiction, insecurity, tendency to explode, [[GoodThingYouCanHeal carelessness]].
* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': Dean for Sam, Sam for Dean and both of them for John while he was still alive. Ah, the joys of being a [[ThickerThanWater clingy]], [[DysfunctionalFamily screwed-up family]] filled with [[MartyrWithoutACause martyrs]].
** Both brothers have no sense of self-worth thanks to [[ParentalNeglect Dad]], who refuses to show any affection or let anyone help him, preferring to keep his sons completely in the dark. Not the greatest planner with [[CrusadingWidower vengeance on his mind]], this works out badly.
** Dean's self-loathing. His struggle to hold his broken family together, along with his sluttiness, death-wish, general bone-headedness, and feeling that he's only valuable as a "blunt instrument", all seem to stem from efforts to ''do'' enough that he feels worthwhile.
** Sam's insecurity. His [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter gullibility]] and [[TheOnlyOne pride]] seem to be born of his overriding desire to believe that bad people can be good--that ''he'' can be good.

* On ''Series/AmericanGothic1995'', Dr. Crower's fatal flaw would quite obviously have to be his struggle with alcoholism (and [[{{Backstory}} the tragic event which resulted from it]]). Gail's, apparently, is [[EvilIsSexy sex]].
* In ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'', the character Dr. Kevin Casey is an example of TheAce with a hidden Fatal Flaw. JD, Cox and Turk all despise him for being such an insufferable genius at everything he does. Until they see him suffering because of his obsessive-compulsive disorder, unable to stop washing his hands.
** JD himself has the inability to commit to a relationship, sabotaging them over selfish actions or reasons. "Her Story II" even revolves around JD's friends getting him to realize it.
* Team leader Nate's alcoholism in ''Series/{{Leverage}}'', which has gotten the team into trouble more than once. In the periods where he isn't an alcoholic his desire to control takes its place with often worse problems.
** Sophie, the team grifter, has the flaw that she is extremely good at what she does and has the habit of manipulating everyone around her, even her own team at times.
** Hardison has the flaw that he tends to go over the top as a grifter coupled with a heaping of pride in his own intelligence. This gets him into trouble repeatedly.
** Parker has the flaw that she is incapable of dealing with a normal person which is problematic when she is forced into the role of grifter.
** Eliot? Let's just say that he often gets a little carried away as The Hitter.
* In ''Literature/TheChosen'', Rebbe Saunders' near-fatal flaw was fear that his son would be unworthy. It is overcome because Danny loves his father enough to endure the harsh training that his father thinks he needs.
* In the ''Series/{{Merlin 1998}}'' series, the titular character's fatal flaw is that he sees only the good in people, rather than their flaws, and thus expects too much of men. The villains also have their own fatal flaws, with Vortigern's being his {{Pride}}, and Uther's being {{Lust}}.
* In ''Series/TheVampireDiaries'', Damon's impulsiveness, and Stefan's inability to control his addiction to human blood whenever he has even a little.
* Wesley from ''Series/{{Angel}}'' has a tendency to commit rash action usually for a good reason. It comes back to haunt him in seasons 3-4. Wesley also has a mistrust of others and compulsively hoards every secret to himself.
* Shinya Arino of ''Series/RetroGameMaster''/''Gamecenter CX'' has major problems when it comes to certain gameplay twists, most notably when dealing with a SequentialBoss. Whenever he makes a major accomplishment, he starts cheering and lets go of the controller. The problem is that he plays games ''blind.'' Thus, he doesn't realize it's not over, yet he never seems to learn. It's been called "Heaven to Hell" on a few occassions. By the time he realizes what's going on, he's to shocked to rationally continue and dies. Sometimes he recovers and retries, sometimes he doesn't, most notably with [[spoiler: ''Act Raiser'']].
* ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'' is all too willing to give up her life to save others.
** Gabrielle's strict adherence to ThouShaltNotKill.
** Joxer wanting to prove he can fight.
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': All the previous are implied to eventually develop a [[DeathSeeker death wish]], and the rsulting carelessness is what leads to their demise.
* A few in ''Series/OnceUponATime'':
** Emma is too much of a doubter.
** Rumpelstiltskin is a coward. This leads him to become the most powerful magical entity in his world to make up for it [[spoiler:and find his son]].
** August is ''really'' bad at resisting temptation. At the start of the series, he was off at some resort island [[spoiler:using money he was supposed to send to Emma]].
** Regina is ''completely'' GenreBlind and very emotional, which results in her being led around by the nose by Rumpelstiltskin.
** Sidney's love for Regina.
** Jefferson's need to please his daughter.
** Henry leaps into danger without thought, a trait he no doubt inherited from Charming.
** Mulan's unrequited love for Prince Philip made her overprotective of Princess Aurora because she promised him.
* ''Series/{{Nikita}}'' is too secretive, stemming from her inability to trust.
** Alex is naive and vengeful and is turned into Oversight's pawn.
** Michael puts himself in danger for the women he loves.
** Carla's misplaced belief that Division can be redeemed with Percy still in charge.
* ''Series/BurnNotice''
** Michael's {{Determinator}} quality makes him utterly ruthless and willing to put others in danger.
** Sam would put himself in danger for friends. "I owe him" is his unofficial motto.
** Fiona resorts to violence more times than she should.
** Nate's need to prove that he's reliable and not a screw up.

* On ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment'', almost the entire family can count Greed and Narcissism as fatal flaws, but they've got individual issues too:
** Michael's selflessness (or at least his desire to ''always'' be ''seen'' as selfless)
** George Sr.'s corruption, greed, and controlling nature.
** Lucille is even more controlling and also overly protective to her children.
** G.O.B.'s ego and desire to be ''everybody's'' favorite.
** Buster's dependence on his mother.
** Lindsay being a spoiled brat.
** Tobias's deeply closeted homoeroticism.
** George Michael's crush on his cousin.
** Maeby's lying.
* ''Series/PersonOfInterest''.
** Finch's [[TheFettered inability to take drastic action when necessary]].
** Martine's mistaken belief that Samaritan will always protect her.
** Control's inability to wrap her head around the idea that sentient AI's exist.
** The Machine's [[ThePowerOfFriendship love for its assets]]. Even Finch was surprised by this.
* Nick from ''Series/NewGirl'' always runs away from problems.
* ''Series/TheWire''
** Jimmy stepping on everyone's toes to solve a case.
** Stringer calling shots behind Avon's back. Avon's toxic friendship with String gets him betrayed and arrested.
** Herc's impatience.
** Wallace's inability to adjust to a crime free life.
** Bodie believing that being gangster is cool.
** D'Angelo needing to prove he can handle things on his own.
** Cheese bragging too much.
** Prez's combination of lack of nerves and an itchy trigger finger.
** Omar avenging people he loves.
** Marlo's ChronicVillainy.
** Senator Davis' greed. Even if he got away in the end there's no telling he won't be involved in another financial scandal.
** Frank Sobotka's tendency to ask help from anyone.
** Ziggy not wanting to be the screwup.
** Colvin believing the end justifies the means.
** Michael never relying on anyone except himself.
** Carver focusing on the big picture instead of an individual detail.

* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'':
** D'Argo's HairTriggerTemper. Even after CharacterDevelopment kicks in, his violent tendencies consistently get him into trouble - sometimes ruining critical mission objectives in the process.
** Crichton's obsession with wormholes. [[spoiler: It's led him to take serious risks in pursuit of wormhole knowledge and a possible route home, once almost convincing him to abandon Moya in favour of the Pathfinders.]]
** Scorpius's many obsessions - with Crichton, with wormholes, with revenge against the Scarrans...
** Rygel's pride, greed, gluttony and overall selfishness.
** Chiana's impulsiveness and rebelliousness.
** Stark's [[CloudCuckooLander growing instability]] - [[spoiler: which only get worse following Zhaan's death.]]
** Jool's haughtiness and intellectual vanity.
** Crais's need for revenge, but only in the first season; later, it's revealed that his ''main'' flaw is the need to remain in control of the situation.
** Talyn's violent impulses, rampant paranoia and TriggerHappy tendencies.
** Moya's [[MamaBear devotion to Talyn]].
* In ''Series/TheFlash2014'':
** Barry suffers from ChronicHeroSyndrome. He strongly desires to save people, including villains, even if he knows things can and will backfire on him. He is also a little too easy to emotionally provoke (especially when his loved ones are involved) and he can ignore potential consequences of his actions. [[ThePerfectionist He also has a tendency to want to be faster]] than any villainous speedsters he encounters, believing that's the only way to defeat them.
** Joe is an OverprotectiveDad. He has well meaning intentions to keep Iris and Barry safe but he often treats them like they were like young children instead of adults and his stubbornness has led to communication issues with both children.
** [[spoiler: Earth-2 Harrison Wells]] will do ''anything'' if his daughter is in danger, including treachery and murder, something Zoom deliberately exploits.
** Speedsters in general have a very strong tendency to rush in without thinking, trusting their speed to see them through. This is what prevents them from being a true StoryBreakerPower; they can [[TimeStandsStill speed up their minds so much that they have hours to think in the space of seconds]], but they rarely bother to do so. In particular, Eobard Thawne has a great deal of trouble dealing with the Black Flash because his first instinct is always to run. The Black Flash tracks him by the Speed Force he uses while running.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
** Adric's is pride. When he tries to divert a spaceship from a collision course with Earth, [[spoiler: he ends up trapped on the ship as it crashes onto the Earth, killing him. It should also be noted that this ship was the meteorite that wiped out the dinosaurs.]]
** The Eighth Doctor's was his [[AllLovingHero all-loving nature]], [[spoiler: which caused him to die while trying to save a Time Lord-hating pilot during the Time War, leading to his regeneration into the War Doctor.]]
** The Master's is his fear of death, leading to him trying to survive at all costs. It ends up being subverted with the "Harold Saxon" incarnation, whose fatal flaw instead is pride.
** Clara Oswald's is her love for adventure. As she becomes more like the Doctor, she takes on greater risks and has more close encounters with death, [[spoiler: which eventually leads to her demise on the Trap Street.]]

* ''Series/BlackMirror'':
** ''[[Recap/BlackMirrorPlaytest Playtest]]'': Cooper's is his inability to directly face his problems. He left home to find himself because his father passed away after battling Alzheimer's, he refuses contact with his mother because he wants to avoid the pain of speaking to her about what happened to his dad, and eventually her worried attempts to contact him by phone eventually cause his death when the interference from the phone causes the experimental full-immersion video game he was playtesting to malfunction. Also arguably greed, as the whole reason he defied the warnings about leaving his phone on was to get some sneaky snaps of the device to sell on.
** ''[[Recap/BlackMirrorUSSCallister USS Callister]]'': Robert Daly's is his inability to see the digital crew of ''USS Callister'' as human beings leads to him underestimating their ability to plot against him. They manage to escape the ''Infinity'' mod and [[SpaceIsolationHorror leave his mind trapped in the game forever]].
* One of the main plot drivers on ''Series/FridayThe13thTheSeries'', which is only to be expected with a show that has a GottaCatchThemAll quest for ArtifactsOfDoom as it's central premise. Nearly all the episodes involve the main cast retrieving a cursed object from a Faustian possessor. Each 'owner' of a cursed object has a fatal flaw of some kind, a craving for something (revenge/Wrath, love/Lust, money/Greed, fame/Ambition are the most common) that only the cursed object can give them, and the craving is bad enough to kill others to satisfy it.

** The Starks' reoccurring flaw is that they often assume that others share their morals and principles. This naivety often leads to the Starks being manipulated and contributes to several of their deaths.

** ''[[Recap/BlackMirrorUSSCallister USS Callister]]'': Robert Daly's is his inability to see the digital crew of ''USS Callister'' as human beings leads to him underestimating their ability to plot against him. They manage to escape the ''Infinity'' mod and [[SpaceIsolationHorror leave his mind trapped in the game forever]].