As a family sitcom, the appeal of Everybody Loves Raymond came from the relatability of the characters. Jokes became funnier when audiences recognized themselves on screen. The Barones are far from the perfect family. What they lack in some aspects is made up for in the love they feel for each other, and that’s something that any viewer can root for.

Patricia Heaton, who played Debra Barone throughout the show’s duration, called Ray Barone an “anti-hero” during an interview with The Birmingham News.

“There’s nothing in him that’s heroic,” said Heaton. “In fact, he’s kind of a sad sack. He’s not a superhero but ‘everyman.’ And the show itself is full of love. It isn’t fantasy but how things really are, and we take comfort from that.”

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Heaton insisted that the series didn’t strive for perfection because that goal was unattainable for the American family. Instead, the show offered a mirror to America, often taking events from their personal lives as material for the series.

“What happens [in real life] to the members of the cast and the writers is the stuff of this show,” said Heaton. “The chat around the water cooler can work its way into the script. During the last hiatus, I was in Canada, away from my kids, making a movie and saying, ‘Yahoo! No kids for six weeks!’ And I caught myself feeling guilty, and I said, ‘Why don’t we do a story about Debra feeling guilty about leaving the children at home?’”

Off-screen, Heaton had a wonderful relationship with Barone, though she’d never admit it to him. “He’s a good guy, but don’t tell him I said that,” said Heaton. “I give him as much grief as possible, but what it comes down to is that he and Phil Rosenthal [series creator] are a couple of geniuses.”