Publications
Partners
Warning: Spoilers ahead
Ross and Rachel – Friends
If I hear the words “We were on a break!” one more time, I swear to Beyoncé that I will lose my shit. Ross has been in love with Rachel since he was in Grade 9, but they only really connect as adults. When they do end up together, they constantly have issues. And let’s not forget about Ross sleeping with another woman when he and Rachel were still dating – yes, they were still dating and he knew what he was doing.
When Rachel tries to explain her feelings about all of it, Ross dismisses them. Rachel is also at fault because she assumes all the blame lies at Ross’s feet. Ross says Rachel’s name at his wedding to Emily instead of his bride’s and the wedding gets called off. Much later, the two get drunk in Las Vegas and end up getting married and Ross says he’ll get it annulled, but doesn’t. They eventually end up having a baby together, but they’re not together. Then by the end of the series they end up together again.
It’s bloody exhausting.
Carrie and Big – Sex and the City
These two are seen as the Big Love of SATC, but they’re seriously not right for each other. From the beginning of the show right up until the second movie, their relationship is one big on-again/ off-again mess.
Big has problems with expressing his emotions towards Carrie and doesn’t seem to want to marry her, but he goes on to marry another woman, Natasha, not long after their first big split. Then he cheats on Natasha with Carrie and Carrie cheats on Aiden with Big.
Big only wants her when she’s happy with someone else. They both hurt each other countless times and brought out the worst in each other. Big even stood her up at the altar, even then people still wanted them to end up together. WTAF?
Rory and Dean – Gilmore Girls
At first they seemed like such a great couple. They were cute and in love and seemed to support each other, but then Dean’s jealousy shines through. He gets a little sensitive about Tristan who has a crush on Rory and then later on about Jess. Eventually they break up and Dean gets married to someone else, but then Dean cheats on his wife by taking Rory’s virginity.
Eventually Dean gets kicked out by his wife and he and Rory try to make a go of it again only for it to end badly once again.
Buffy and Spike – Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Spike falls for Buffy and pines after her for ages even when she expresses her complete disgust in the idea of ever being with him. Eventually she learns to trust him and he earns his place as one of the Scooby Gang. They start sleeping together after Buffy’s death and resurrection, but Buffy is only using Spike to feel alive again.
Things are clearly uneven because Spike is madly in love with Buffy, but she’s only using him for sex. Then, when Buffy tries to break it off, Spike gets angry and tries to rape her. Horrified by his actions, Spike runs away and goes on a mission to get his soul back. Eventually when he comes back, Buffy forgives him and they fight one last battle together before Spike sacrifices himself for her and they both confess their love for each other. Romantic? I suppose. Disastrous? Definitely.
Oliva and Fitz – Scandal
Olivia is the perfect example of a strong, independent woman – except when she’s messing with Fitz. Fitz holds this strange power over her and makes her feel and appear weaker than what she actually is. He even puts her under surveillance so he knows who she’s interacting with and what she’s doing all the time.
Plus, the dude is married and constantly cheats on his wife with Olivia but won’t get a divorce even though he wants to be with her. They both lie to each other all the time and have hurt each other constantly.
Katherine and the Salvatore brothers – Vampire Diaries
This show is filled with bad relationships, but the worst is definitely the ones between Katherine and the Salvatores. She lies to Stefan and cheats on him with his own brother, Damon. She then convinces Damon that she is in love with him and he ends up spending decades looking for her because he thinks she’s locked up in a tomb somewhere – which she isn’t, but do you think she lets him know she’s okay?
Eventually she confesses to Damon that she never loved him, but was always in love with Stefan. She then forces Stefan to switch off his humanity so they can go on murderous rampages together. Sound healthy to you?
Celeste and Perry – Big Little Lies
At first, they seem like they’re the perfect couple and they look very in love and have two adorable twin boys. Then you see the violence. Perry hurts Celeste badly and often leaves her bruised and fearing for her life.
Yes, she fights back, but she’s also caught in a volatile relationship where her husband doesn’t respect her enough not to hit her. They also often have sex after a fight so their intimacy is confused with violence and it’s seemingly made it hard for Celeste to separate when she’s being abused and when she’s being treated with love.
Betty and Don Draper – Mad Men
These two looked like a great couple to people outside their relationship, but they were really flawed, unhappy people who were actually rather cruel to each other. Don is a womanising alcoholic with little patience and Betty is a childish, manipulative poisonous person. Together they make a toxic cocktail of drama and anger.
Cookie and Lucious – Empire
First of all, Cookie goes to prison for 17 years for Lucious and is hella mad when she gets out – I mean, who wouldn’t be? Their origin story already lent itself to a lot of toxicity, but it got even worse as they grew older.
They’re constantly sniping at each other. They fight even when they’re not involved and there’s just so much drama in their relationship. They’ve both been physically violent towards each other and also threatened each other’s lives at least once.
Then there’s all the cheating, lying and backstabbing between them when they’re supposed to be family. It’s tiring and oh so toxic.
Piper and Alex – Orange is The New Black
If your involvement with another person ends up landing you in jail, then it’s not a good relationship. Piper ends up serving jail time when Piper rats her out for being a drug mule back when they were still together (a while before the story actually starts).
Then they end up in the same prison. Imagine having to be around your ex every day without a means of escape. But it’s not long before Alex and Piper are involved again which means Piper is cheating on her fiance whose being loyal to her on the outside.
They later tell on each other and get each other’s jail time extended and then cheat on each other too. It’s a messy cycle.
