Duquan "Dukie" Weems

Dukie is one of four West Baltimore eighth-graders whose lives the show follows into middle school. Quiet, gentle, and startlingly resourceful, he's the smartest kid in his group but also the poorest — teased for his clothes and smell, largely raising himself while his family falls apart around him.

Jermaine Crawford plays Dukie with an unshowy, watchful patience that never asks for pity, which makes the show's argument about wasted potential land harder than any speech could. He's curious about how things work, kind to people who aren't kind back, and the writing keeps testing exactly how much a good kid can survive.