best and worst couples on tv in recent history
My usual VD e-card website hasn't even been updated for 2010, that's how exciting the holiday is this year. Oh well. In honor of everyone's favorite unimaginative, consumerist-oriented and entirely arbitrary, manipulative, and shallow interpretation of romance day, I've decided to try something new, and present you with... the worst and best (romantic) couples ever on my favorite TV shows ever! Yay!
For totally arbitrary reasons, I've chosen not to list a show twice. I can only think of a couple cases where this would matter, so I chose the worst of the worst or the best of the best. It's my list. Whatever.
The Five Worst Couples on TV Shows that I (Otherwise) Love(d)
Honorable mention: Jo and Zane on Eureka (bring back Tag!), Jim and Pam on The Office.
5. Sarah and Shaw, Chuck. Just calling it, here and now. Because two episodes ago they were all "don't date spies" and now they are all... not... that. Also, Shaw is a stupid character. I can only hope they fall apart just as haphazardly as they came together. I wish just once Sarah could find someone who doesn't suck, if they must keep Chuck and Sarah apart.
4. Nate and Lisa, Six Feet Under. So, basically, the writers of the show have even admitted to just wanting to explore a new kind of relationship on the show, so why not just throw this one-night-stand together into an actual marriage a couple years later! Yeah, great plan! Except everything about them ever sucked.
3. Lauren and Vaughn, Alias. Again with the "oh, this is a total game-changer"! Let's put Sydney's love interest for the first two seasons together with some totally random chick! Yeah! Awesome! We'll just make Sydney "disappear" for two years. That's enough time for everything to be TOTALLY DIFFERENT! Which it was! Except it wasn't! And mostly I just missed Francie and Will. You blow, season three (and beyond) of Alias.
2. Buffy and Spike, Buffy. Only because I hate Spike and think he's the most annoying character in the entire show. And if you can redirect my seething rage at how much Buffy/Angel angst brought down that show, then you must be really, really awful. Good job!
1. Veronica and Piz, Veronica Mars. Whatever, Rob Thomas, just write yourself into the show and have Veronica fall for you. Have fun assassinating everyone else's characters along the way. But honestly, this show had everything going wrong for it by the end (only to be marginally redeemed by the series finale) that I still believe season three never happened. In which case I never really "got" Veronica and Duncan, either.
But, I have to admit, there have been some really fun couples on my favorite shows ever, too.
The Five Best Couples on TV Shows that I Love
Honorable mention: Andy and April (which is on the verge of happening) on Parks and Recreation, Jaye and Eric on Wonderfalls (I can't help myself. Jaye is awesome and I could totally kick Eric's ass and have Jaye myself, so, there.).
5. Zoe and Wash, Firefly. It's nice to have "the formula" turned on its head every now and then, and have a no-nonsense ass-kicker like Zoe paired up with a pacifist like Wash. And it's nice to have a couple that doesn't require stupid drama so much. Of course, it's virtually assumed on every Whedon show that every single woman is that way, so, whatever. And of course, virtually no family is allowed to survive to the end of a show, either, so, fuck you, Whedon.
4. Ned and Olive, Pushing Daisies. I don't care that Ned and Chuck are supposed to be meant to be, any pairing that results in Kristin Chenoweth breaking out into song is automatically the best relationship on the show in my book.
3. Ted and Robin, How I Met Your Mother. You know, it could just be because the show was amazingly funny when they were together; it could be that I am most similar to Ted and totally crushing on Robin myself; it could be that they were just a fun couple. As much as I love Marshall and Lily (and Marshall-and-Lily), I still think Ted and Robin were a fun couple to have on the show.
2. Michael and Fiona, Burn Notice. You know, for a little while, Fiona was a bit too clingy, but this show has managed for three seasons to let this on-again, off-again relationship really shine. They have hooked up. They have kicked each others' asses. They both clearly care for one another. And they're hot. I said it.
1. Everyone and everyone else (except Pierce), Community. Just watch "Romantic Expressionism" and especially the part toward the end. I think Abed says it best: "When you guys first came in, we were as wholesome and healthy as the family in the Brady Bunch, and now we're as dysfunctional and incestuous as the cast of the Brady Bunch." But really, just watch every episode ever. This show is so great.
For totally arbitrary reasons, I've chosen not to list a show twice. I can only think of a couple cases where this would matter, so I chose the worst of the worst or the best of the best. It's my list. Whatever.
The Five Worst Couples on TV Shows that I (Otherwise) Love(d)
Honorable mention: Jo and Zane on Eureka (bring back Tag!), Jim and Pam on The Office.
5. Sarah and Shaw, Chuck. Just calling it, here and now. Because two episodes ago they were all "don't date spies" and now they are all... not... that. Also, Shaw is a stupid character. I can only hope they fall apart just as haphazardly as they came together. I wish just once Sarah could find someone who doesn't suck, if they must keep Chuck and Sarah apart.
4. Nate and Lisa, Six Feet Under. So, basically, the writers of the show have even admitted to just wanting to explore a new kind of relationship on the show, so why not just throw this one-night-stand together into an actual marriage a couple years later! Yeah, great plan! Except everything about them ever sucked.
3. Lauren and Vaughn, Alias. Again with the "oh, this is a total game-changer"! Let's put Sydney's love interest for the first two seasons together with some totally random chick! Yeah! Awesome! We'll just make Sydney "disappear" for two years. That's enough time for everything to be TOTALLY DIFFERENT! Which it was! Except it wasn't! And mostly I just missed Francie and Will. You blow, season three (and beyond) of Alias.
2. Buffy and Spike, Buffy. Only because I hate Spike and think he's the most annoying character in the entire show. And if you can redirect my seething rage at how much Buffy/Angel angst brought down that show, then you must be really, really awful. Good job!
1. Veronica and Piz, Veronica Mars. Whatever, Rob Thomas, just write yourself into the show and have Veronica fall for you. Have fun assassinating everyone else's characters along the way. But honestly, this show had everything going wrong for it by the end (only to be marginally redeemed by the series finale) that I still believe season three never happened. In which case I never really "got" Veronica and Duncan, either.
But, I have to admit, there have been some really fun couples on my favorite shows ever, too.
The Five Best Couples on TV Shows that I Love
Honorable mention: Andy and April (which is on the verge of happening) on Parks and Recreation, Jaye and Eric on Wonderfalls (I can't help myself. Jaye is awesome and I could totally kick Eric's ass and have Jaye myself, so, there.).
5. Zoe and Wash, Firefly. It's nice to have "the formula" turned on its head every now and then, and have a no-nonsense ass-kicker like Zoe paired up with a pacifist like Wash. And it's nice to have a couple that doesn't require stupid drama so much. Of course, it's virtually assumed on every Whedon show that every single woman is that way, so, whatever. And of course, virtually no family is allowed to survive to the end of a show, either, so, fuck you, Whedon.
4. Ned and Olive, Pushing Daisies. I don't care that Ned and Chuck are supposed to be meant to be, any pairing that results in Kristin Chenoweth breaking out into song is automatically the best relationship on the show in my book.
3. Ted and Robin, How I Met Your Mother. You know, it could just be because the show was amazingly funny when they were together; it could be that I am most similar to Ted and totally crushing on Robin myself; it could be that they were just a fun couple. As much as I love Marshall and Lily (and Marshall-and-Lily), I still think Ted and Robin were a fun couple to have on the show.
2. Michael and Fiona, Burn Notice. You know, for a little while, Fiona was a bit too clingy, but this show has managed for three seasons to let this on-again, off-again relationship really shine. They have hooked up. They have kicked each others' asses. They both clearly care for one another. And they're hot. I said it.
1. Everyone and everyone else (except Pierce), Community. Just watch "Romantic Expressionism" and especially the part toward the end. I think Abed says it best: "When you guys first came in, we were as wholesome and healthy as the family in the Brady Bunch, and now we're as dysfunctional and incestuous as the cast of the Brady Bunch." But really, just watch every episode ever. This show is so great.