With the recent release of Hanna‘s final season on Amazon Prime Video, fans have gotten to see most of the familiar faces as well as a few new ones. Even though the show relies too heavily on the “secret program” trope, the characters are well-written, making them easy to root for or wish for their downfall.
All of the show’s characters have ties to the CIA’s Utrax program, based in Darabani, Romania. What separates the protagonists from the antagonists is their beliefs. Those who support the program have plenty of nefarious goals hence they come off as unlikable while those against it are darlings in the eyes of fans.
Gordon Evans (The Chairman)
In the final season, Gordon is introduced as the man behind The Pioneer Group. He happens to be pulling the strings at Utrax too and the biggest shocker of them all is that he is Marissa’s father.
Gordon is the perfect behind-the-curtain villain. A sadistic and remorseless man, he attempts to force Marissa into running his operations with him. This not only paints him as a bully but qualifies him as one of the worst TV dads too. Even sadder is that children aren’t off-limits for Gordon as he orders the deaths of both Abbas and his 6-year-old daughter, Nadiya.
John Carmichael
John is appointed the director of the new Utrax phase at The Meadows after Marissa switches sides. His work gets a bit more complicated because he has to deal with Hanna.
The new Utrax director is barely competent enough as a villain. He makes numerous mistakes such as carelessly displaying a target list to Gelder while drinking at a bar. This creates a major problem for the program. John is rarely ahead of his enemies either. He is easily outfoxed by Hanna who blackmails him into giving up fellow members of Utrax’s top brass.
Sandy Phillips (Trainee 242)
Sandy is social, friendly, and happy to be at The Meadows. She gladly learns the skills she is taught and works towards being a ruthless assassin.
That Sandy is completely distrustful of Hanna makes her an impossible character to cheer for. She is also hypocritical since she claims to adhere to the teachings of the bible yet she is willing to constantly break one of the key commandments: thou shall not kill. The extreme level of her indoctrination is unfortunate too. She has so much blind trust in the Utrax program that she refuses to come out of her cell when offered a chance to escape.
Leo Garner
The Utrax employee is tasked with going the girls towards social integration and making sure their mental health is perfect. He fully believes in the program and takes all orders from his superiors seriously.
While Leo is Charming and not as evil as most of his colleagues, his loyalty to the program makes him one of the unlikable baddies. He comes off as a man only focused on doing his job and getting his paycheck and while doing so, he puts the interests of the program above basic human rights.
Teri Miller
The analyst creates new identities and backstories for the trainees, thus creating fake links for them to the outside world. She can accurately diagnose the emotional state of the young operatives, making her a valuable employee.
Watching Sandy chat with a person she thinks is her mom yet it’s actually Terri is heartbreaking. However, the analyst’s deviousness has helped keep the trainees on a leash. While what she does is smart, it’s still malicious, hence the reason Teri doesn’t come close to being a fan favorite.
Marissa Wiegler
A CIA operative and senior member of the Utrax program, Marissa channels all resources into hunting down Erik and Hanna after they escape. However, she soon discovers that Utrax isn’t what it was so she begins helping Hanna.
Marissa’s switch from secondary antagonist to secondary protagonist puts her right in the middle of the list. Among the things Hanna fans love about Marissa is that she also helps the titular character locate Clara at The Meadows. Nonetheless, it’s impossible to forget that the manhunt she put up is what led to the death of Hanna’s mother Johanna.
Jules Allen
Jules is introduced as one of Sandy’s close friends but is shown to be much wiser. She has a rebellious streak, reads a lot, and identifies as a feminist. She is also aware of Utrax’s lies but chooses to be a full-time assassin because she believes that’s where her strengths lie.
Even though Jules is on the enemy’s team, she is mostly her own person and this endears her to fans. Her views about various life issues are independent compared to most of the other trainers who move with a herd mentality. She is also extremely good at what she does and is thus difficult to kill or injure
Clara Mahan (Trainee 249)
Clara is initially keen on going through with the program with the rest of the girls. All that changes when Hann lets her know about the mother she never knew she heard. She thus becomes hellbent on finding her.
Unlike the other trainees, Clara is appealing to viewers because is quick to realize that she is being fed lies. Her curiosity is a valuable trait since it turns her into a reliable ally to Hanna, with the duo helping each other survive while being hunted down. And like Hanna, she also proves to be a very good fighter.
Erik Heller
Erik tries to escape from the Utrax facility with Hanna and Johanna but the latter dies. He, therefore, decides to raise Hanna as his own in the forest, becoming her adoptive father.
Erik’s compassionate nature sees him dedicate most of his life to taking care of Hanna even though she isn’t his biological daughter. The major sacrifices make him alluring in the eyes of viewers since he had his own life to live but he dropped it. The flawless Hanna also wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for Erik. since it’s he that gave her most of her survival and fighting skills.
Hanna Petrescu
Raised in the woods by her dad, Erik, Hanna gets combat training and learns to survive. Utrax tries to hunt her down but she is way ahead of them since she wants to return to their facility to save girls like her.
The most impressive thing about Hanna is her fighting skills, which are arguably superior to most of the best female action protagonists in movies. She is lucky enough to have been enhanced by Utrax and also trained by Erik. She has a heart of gold too, which explains her reason to risk her life by trying to save girls of her kind at the Utrax facility.
