I am totally the target market for the ongoing, “Will they or won’t they?” romantic story line of the television series. You know, those ongoing love stories where you wait and wait for the characters to get together and they almost do, then don’t, but you keep watching for when they finally will? Past favorites on this front include: Buffy and Angel, then Buffy and Spike; Josh and Donna on ‘West Wing,’ Starbuck and Lee Odama on ‘Battlestar Galactica,’ and, of course, who doesn’t love Jim and Pam on ‘The Office’ during those first three seasons?
Here are my current faves, in tv series where I am happy to be strung along, to watch those “they almost got together but not quite yet” moments, and feel gratified by the occasional satisfying kiss, even as the couple’s fulfillment of romance is thwarted once again:
‘Bones’: Between Booth and Brennan (aka Bones), I think they are going on six seasons (or is it five?) of clearly being in love but never quite admitting it outright, or ever getting together, even as fans get very satisfyingly indulged with splashes of romance (both playful and sincere) between these two characters each episode. I never tire of these two and their fantastic onscreen chemistry, and this season they’ve gotten closer than ever to actually getting together. I am happy to wait, though.
‘Chuck’: Sara (the CIA spy) and Chuck (the wannabe, lovable geek-spy) are both so adorable, lovable, funny and meant for each other, that part of what makes this spy dramedy so addictive and watchable is the fact that you know, you just know that Chuck and Sara have to be together. This season, the writers are giving us fans a good dose of satisfaction on this front and I am loving it.
‘In Plain Sight’: Mary and Marshall, both US Marshals (yes he is a Marshal named Marshall), are now well into their third season, but it wasn’t until mid-way last season, that chemistry appeared between these two coworkers. For a good long time I did not watch this show with romance in mind, but this new twist to Mary and Marshall’s relationship–that he is clearly in love with her and aware of this, and she with him, though she is far from admitting it–is utterly addictive. And it is making me love this new season all the more.
‘Castle’: The fun-loving writer Castle (played by Nathan Fillian) and the pretty police detective Beckett, also did not share much chemistry in the first season of this show, but this second season they’ve ramped up the romantic tension and Nathan Fillian is just irresistible on this front. He carries most of the weight in this Will they or won’t they part of the show, but he carries it effortlessly. Worth watching weekly simply for his charm.