Three cheers for the jerks and the wackos, the heroes and the questers. In a network television landscape that becomes more formulaic by the day (is it us, or are there 47 versions of "C.S.I." on the air?), a few quirky, mean, brave, noble and altogether compelling characters have made it onto TV screens this year.

Several of them - like the indelible Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth on "The Apprentice" - came from unscripted shows. Though unscripted or "reality" television may be the whipping boy of the culture gods, a lot of us are watching it, and there’s good reason for that.

For one thing, reality-show participants are less predictable - and less likable - than the umpteenth bumbling intern on "ER" or yet another driven detective.

"That’s the part about reality TV that’s appealing - it’s not showing someone’s idea of how a person would act," says Sarah D. Bunting, who co-founded the popular Web site televisionwithoutpity.com and who writes about popular culture for MSNBC.com.

Considering that most of us have been hired - or fired - at least once in our lives, "The Apprentice" is just a little more realistic than, say, "Alias."

"Coming from someone who does run a business, this (’Apprentice’) situation is not quite as unreal as ’Survivor,’" Bunting says. "I’ve been wading into (televisionwithoutpity.com) forums where people are saying, ’Oh, Bill (Rancic, the "Apprentice" winner) is so nice and he pays attention to detail,’ but I say, ’I would not hire him, he gets wound up and micromanages and can’t prioritize. He’d be in my office every week whining about how stressed he is.’"

On scripted shows, by contrast, "there’s definitely this reluctance to give lead characters any depth - you have

lead characters who are sort of bland, a little too sweet," Bunting says.

"There is a lot of generic stuff out there," says TV Guide’s critic Matt Roush though he makes a stirring case for the "tragic grandeur" of a well-written character such as the seemingly doomed Michelle Dessler of "24."

"When a show is doing its job right, there’s nothing like getting caught up in a really good (scripted) television show," Roush says.

Though Roush concedes that reality programming has its charms (he cites the Sue Hawk tirade on the first "Survivor" as a classic TV moment), the critic doesn’t have a lot of faith in unscripted shows to rescue network TV from its slide toward predictability.

"It seems to me that the situations (on unscripted programs) are compelling, and the people on those shows are caught up in those situations for our viewing pleasure," he says. "I’m not sure those people have the chops to enter the realm of truly great TV characters. ... I think the pleasures (of reality) are pretty fleeting."

That said, we’re glad to say we found plenty of watchable characters on TV screens of late - on reality shows and on scripted fare, on basic cable, on HBO and, yes, even on network television. Here, in order of the obsessive devotion they inspire, are our nominees for the most compelling characters currently on television:

Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth, "The Apprentice." Sure, before TV made her a star, Omarosa’s career trajectory took her from the projects to the White House, we’re told. But along the way, she never learned to play nice. Omarosa is articulate and glamorous, arrogant and condescending - someone you instantly love to hate. She remained on the show long enough to make her teammates miserable and to keep us wondering how much lower she could go and still stay in the running for the big Trump job.

Capt. David Aceveda (Benito Martinez), "The Shield." The chief of the rogue officers in the ethically challenged precinct known as "The Barn" had been more interested in his career than in cleaning up the urban decay around him. All of that changed after a gunpoint encounter with a criminal. The resulting physical and emotional change in Aceveda elicits pity, regret and sadness; his attempt to cope with his trauma has given one of television’s most challenging dramatic series another fascinating story to tell.

Michelle Dessler (Reiko Aylesworth), "24." Name one of the villains from this season of "24." Yeah, didn’t think you could. The show hasn’t been great at creating memorable bad guys, but somehow Dessler, who until recently was a plucky but fairly undefined staffer in the counterterrorist unit, has become the essential heart and soul of this newly revived show. If she dies of the killer virus that a terrorist has set loose, we’ll be really sad.

Rob Mariano, "Survivor: All-Stars." A veteran of "Survivor: Marquesas," Boston Rob has kicked it into high gear in this go-around, go-round, making him the player to beat. He’s romancing fellow Survivor Amber Brkich, showing dominance in physical challenges and he smoothly (some would say cruelly) engineered the departure of his friend, Lex van den Berghe. He doesn’t walk around in the buff, but Mariano has emerged as the most memorable player since original "Survivor" winner Richard "Naked Guy" Hatch.

Alan Shore (James Spader),"The Practice." Here’s a character who at first was such a jerk, he was almost unwatchable. Over time, he has become a noble, even heroic, jerk. Shore makes fun of poor lawyer Jimmy Berluti (Michael Badalucco) and matter-of-factly propositions paralegal Tara Wilson (Rhona Mitra). It all makes Shore, the center of a spinoff series next season, constantly fun, compelling and, because of his deep-seated flaws, even tragic to watch.

"Rick James," Comedy Central’s "Chappelle’s Show." Comic Dave Chappelle plays the superfreak James as a coked-up lunatic, boldly asking women to flash him and brazenly slapping Eddie Murphy’s brother Charlie as the punch line to a joke. ("What did the five fingers say to the face? Slap!") The characters’ introduction of himself ("I’m Rick James, (expletive)!") has almost become the catchphrase of Chappelle’s cult hit. The topper? The real James, popping up to give a cackling explanation of his past behavior: "Cocaine’s a hell of a drug!"

Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi), "The Sopranos." Other paroled mobsters jumped back into the family business after long prison terms, but Tony Soprano’s cousin, the hapless Tony Blundetto, tried to go straight as a certified massage therapist. We were convinced he’d rather rub bodies than rub out enemies - until he lost his temper in a rather spectacular fashion. We can’t wait to see what happens next with Tony B.

Arvin Sloane (Ron Rifkin), "Alias." That silvery voice. That leathery face. That inscrutable gaze. Arvin Sloane is one of the few (perhaps the only) compelling villains on scripted TV right now. What makes wicked Sloane all the more delicious is that he leaves you wondering if this guy is possibly a teensy bit ... good.

Charles Gunn (J. August Richards), "Angel." This season the former street tough got a magical mental upgrade that gave him an impressive mastery of inter-dimensional law (and, for some reason, knowledge of the complete works of Gilbert and Sullivan). But the sudden boost of self-esteem and intellect came at a price - he unwittingly sacrificed the life of his ex-girlfriend to ensure that his new powers stayed intact. Watching the formerly underwritten Gunn cope with his newfound strengths and weaknesses has been fascinating.

GOB (Will Arnett), "Arrested Development." In this comedy about an eccentric, formerly rich family’s struggle to act wealthy while on a much-reduced budget, it’s the oldest Bluth sibling, George Oscar Bluth II (nicknamed GOB, but pronounced Job, as in the patient Old Testament figure) who takes center stage. This is mainly because GOB is completely cluelessness as to how inappropriate most of his behavior is. Tooling around on a Segway, he’s a magician whose tricks barely go beyond rabbits out of hats and never-ending scarves out of sleeves. In a family of loons, GOB stands out, and that’s saying something.

Entire cast, "Extreme Makeover." When a reality show brings you close to tears, there’s something more to it than pure exploitation. But watching the physical - and mental - transformation of a woman born with a cleft palate was nothing short of gripping. And how about the African-American woman who discussed with her African-American surgeon how to make her nose smaller - while avoiding Michael Jackson syndrome? "Extreme Makeover" will never win an Emmy, but where else will you see race, class and body image discussed so frankly?

Joan Girardi (Amber Tamblyn), "Joan of Arcadia." One of the best new shows of the season has one of the most interesting characters - a teenager who, after multiple visits from strangers claiming to be God, becomes comfortable enough to wisecrack to the Almighty. Beyond that, however, is a sensitive girl who is slowly - very slowly - growing into her own skin, even while attempting to do God’s bidding.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon), "Navy NCIS." Now here’s a macho, manly man for you. Smooth, confident, a touch arrogant, Gibbs (what’s with the "Leroy Jethro"?) is the typical stoic cop. He’s a gruff ex-Marine who isn’t afraid to step on other people’s toes while investigating criminal cases; he’s hard to deal with when he hasn’t had his morning cup of coffee; and he’s got a mystery woman who picks him up from work in a sports car. So what if that sounds bit formulaic - Harmon makes it all fun to watch.