Will they or won't they? And when they do, will they be able to move past the curse? Epic or regrettable, destined or spontaneous. TV is full of romance and the reason many viewers come back is to see their couple(s) end up happily ever after. As the new TV season approaches, I feel many emotions. These characters have become my friends, I am invested in their lives. If they were to be real and ask me for advice I could and would do my very best to do right by them. But do the writers share that feeling? Let's evaluate, shall we?
Observation 1: Breaking up for breaking up's sake.
I can name so many classic couple who have been broken up and for the dumbest reasons. Last year, Glee was the biggest offender. 3 main (and beloved) couples were broken up purely to create drama. But the reasoning behind all the breakups was not believable. Believe me, I get it. Happy couples aren't entertaining. You can make as many arguments as you want but that's not why you watch couples. (An example would be every supercouple from Soap Operas. They are happy 10% of the time and the 90% is spent getting them together, causing misunderstandings, random plot devices, and breaking up for the 99th time. Luke and Laura anyone?) But when you break up a couple at least have a solid reason. I can't stand the stupid breakup.
Observation 2: Spontaneous couples are superior to initial couples.
This theory is very murky because there can be no hard evidence. Let me 'splain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up. (Eh? Eh?!) An initial couple are two characters that are slated to be together at the end of a series and they will get together and break up during the show, but they end up together. A good example of this would be Amy and Ephram of Everwood. Spontaneous couples are something a little more random. Two actors and their counterparts out of the have the best chemistry than could possibly have been foreseen. Our example would be Brittany and Artie of Glee. Now, clearly the initial couple has the advantage because they are who you are supposed to root for and have been programmed to love. But the beauty of the spontaneous couple is that you get to fall in love with them. There is no road map, it's just chemistry and it's a great thing to watch.
Observation 3: Falling for doomed romances.
The reason we watch TV is to forget our lives and troubles and to get so absorbed in somebody else's life. The worst part happens when you fall in love with the secondary romance or coupling that will never end well. Sure you might enjoy a lengthy storyline, a couple meaty episodes, or just lingering looks and touching moments. This is if your lucky. Sometimes all you get are moments where you create emotions and meanings behind every little nuance. I have luckily been on the winning side of the majority of winning couples but I have finally found myself in love with a doomed couple. I don't want to spoil it for you, but I know I have finally lost. And I find I don't like losing.
Observation 4: Moonlighting Curse
The "Moonlighting Curse". This phrase makes me so angry, for so many reasons. In case you don't know what it means I'll explain it. In the 80's there was a show called Moonlighting. Their "will they or won't they" drama ended when they finally "did" and ratings plummeted. This is always brought up when two popular characters have yet to "couple" and are dancing around the issue. I have two examples, Booth and Bones of Bones and Castle and Beckett of Castle. The writers of Bones have chosen their strategy to bypass the curse and I feel cheated. I won't go into much detail because of spoilers but I feel that you can't create a device to overcome the so-called "curse." If you have a talented staff of writers, your stories and plot lines should be realistic and complimentary to the couple. I don't mind waiting (and waiting and waiting and waiting...) for a couple to get together in the end. That's half the fun!!
Realistic or absurd, the couples are the core of a show. And we're stuck with them til the bitter end. Whenever that may be.
