Relationship status (in television)

I have noticed a pattern with relationships among main characters of television shows. The pattern is this: opposite sex partners and friends who care about each other, but can not actually be a couple for any number of reasons. I noticed this while watching Castle, one of my favorite shows. I enjoy this show mostly because of Nathan Fillion who plays Richard Castle and his relationship with his female counterpart (Kate Beckett, played by Stana Katic).They are in Season 3 now, and seems to be following a similar path of many shows. The main characters both love each other, but they cannot be together. Their reason seems to be they are afraid of being together. But this writing ploy, that is, the characters who work together that are in love but for whatever reason are not together, why is this used so much?

For example, Fox Mulder and Diana Scully, from The X-files. Will they get together? They almost kissed in the first X-files film. Never quite get together. Apollo and Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica; they consummate their love, in the middle of season 3, only to not be together for whatever reason. Dr. Temperance Brennan and Agent Seeley Booth, from Bones (This is an example of one that I lost interest in). I think for these shows to work, you must do something withe the sexual tension that you have built up, otherwise the audience will lose interest. This is the proverbial “shit or get off the pot moment”. But as soon as these characters get together, the show seems to get stale. Fringe started down that path in Season 3.Peter and Olivia getting together, only to be ripped apart by time altering mumbo-jumbo. Can you only build this tension for 3 seasons before you have to do something about it? What about season 3 is the magic number?

If Starbuck and Apollo had stayed together, would Battlestar have been as good as it was? Do these characters have to never be together until the end? It seems they need these tensions as part of the show. They can never quite be together otherwise the shows fire is gone. Ross and Rachel from Friends get together to early. In my opinion, the season that they are together is some of the worst Friends moments. Their relationship ends, and for the remainder of the seasons, they build that tension back up. Why? We finally got what we wanted. The main characters got together, and everything is happy. But with the characters happy, we lose interesting story arcs of secret, unrequited love. It’s sad to say, but these characters will always be apart until the show ends, as with the last episode of Friends.

With this knowledge, you can arm yourself against the show runners who want the characters to get together. But the show will suffer if they ever do. No one wants to see a happy couple in a show. It’s like seeing the end of a movie, and then actually seeing what the characters are like: Living together, paying bills, planning their lives, real-life stuff. Not as interesting as the love that we can never be together, because I don’t go old, and it would make me to sad to watch you die (Doctor Who).

Now I watch Castle and think, I am happy they are not together. Sure I want them to be together, but I know it creates so many more interesting aspects of Television, if they do not. These shows all worked, because of the building of the relationship. It’s just as uncomfortable when you keep waiting and waiting and nothing happens. Will they get together this episode? Will they kiss finally? This keeps you coming back.