I’m a big fan of Grey’s Anatomy and nothing was more painful than watching Katherine Heigl’s Izzie fall in love with T.R. Knight’s George last season. Can anyone say NO CHEMISTRY? Week after week, it became outright hazardous to my mental stability to see these two together, making goo-goo eyes at each other and…gulp…kissing. Despite the disappointment of fans all around, the writers thought the coupling worked and refrained from denying themselves (and only themselves) the pleasure of seeing these two characters merge. It took an entire summer break and thousands of letters, series’ reviews, to finally get them to rethink the match and slowly move towards its very welcome obliteration. Yes, this season will be good.
Perhaps I’m too harsh. I hate the coupling! I feel ill every time the two come on screen. Let’s forget for one moment that one of the characters is MARRIED and the affair ADULTEROUS, the two just don’t work together. They’re friends, BEST friends, almost a brother and sister. It doesn’t make sense for the two to fall in love. It’s important for lovers to be friends if the relationship is to work, don’t get me wrong, but these two were once upon a time so sibling-like in their interactions with one another, that it felt strange, sick, incestuous even, to have them consummate their relationship.
For a “From Friends to Lovers” storyline to work for me, the author cannot have characters with a sibling-like bond fall in love. Any romance between them is akin to abomination, in my book. The writer should make it known (and usually does) that the two would be good together, if only one of them woke up and realized it. One of the characters should be attracted to the other from the start but, due to circumstances beyond his/her control (e.g. one or both are in relationships), decides that friendship is probably best. There is a hint, an indication that there could be more than friendship and this is why the plot works. You’re not surprised by the romance when indeed it does blossom. You expect it; you want it. Most romance writers seem to have this down to a science. There is attraction, then friendship, more attraction, friendship and then consummation…or a variation of that.
In Grey’s, this was never the case. The writers portrayed George and Izzie more like siblings than friends from the very beginning. Having them then “make love” one night came out of nowhere; most viewers, myself included, were appalled.
As of this past week, Izzie and George were still in love (gag me), but there are rumors this will not be for long (HALLELUJAH!). I’m anxiously waiting for the day the writers will give the storyline a rest. It doesn’t work! You gave the characters to us as siblings; you can’t just change the rules and make them lovers…..err…right? What do you think?
Have you run into instances in which the first siblings/friends, then lovers storyline worked? Not only in romance novels, but in tv shows? If so, please share. I’d love to see or read a successful one.
No related posts.
:evil:I don’t watch the show, but the only thing that bothers me about the coupling is the adultery.:evil:
I’m happy for any couple, real or fictional, who can work things out and find true love. Frankly, I find a ‘Friendship-that-caught-on-Fire’ romance much more interesting and believable than a romance based almost entirely on biological functions.:wink:
I don’t watch anymore, though I did the first season. I’m with Kimber An; I am so not into adultery. (And they BLEW UP Kyle Chandler!:evil:)
My favorite ‘friends first’ romance would have to Austen’s Emma.
Friends to lovers is a tough one. Mostly because it’s hard to believe that they could have been friends for so long without ever acting on the attraction or noticing that it existed; there has to be a compelling reason that’s believable and doesn’t make either of them idiots. I ditched a friends to lovers story of my own because I realized the only way it would work for me would be to make it Young Adult. Which would mean changing everything and starting over.
Friend to lover doesn’t work for me
when it doesn’t start with that layer of flirting
that happens when you are attracted.
Those looks or jokes that convey,
“hey, you may be my friend but
I still acknowledge you’re hot, hot, hot.”
When you look in the other person’s eyes
and darn it, simply feel more attractive.
Doesn’t mean you have to or want to act on it
(says this VERY happily married gal)
but its there.
As for Grey’s, I stopped watching when Izzie inherited the millions.
When character driven shows have to resort to cheap plot devices like that, its time to leave.
I hadn’t thought about why the romance between George and Izzie didn’t work, but your sibling theory is a good one. They had such great chemistry as friends. Now, it’s blech. And they were both in such a vulnerable state when they hooked up: Izzie’s real love died (Denny…and talk about chemistry! they were beautiful!) and George’s father died so he rushed into marriage with Callie only to realize that was a mistake. And sadly, the writers have ruined a great friendship with George and Izzie. I don’t see how they can repair it. Which is really disappointing.
I’ve never watched that show, but I have no problem with people who were friends first eventually coming to love each other romantically. People grow and change all the time and often enough those changes cause people to grow apart and fall out of love (or at least out of romance) with one another. Why shouldn’t two friends grow together? I don’t buy that just because two people aren’t romantically attracted from the get-go, they’ll therefore never be.
Maybe the Grey’s writers handled this one particular relationship badly, but that doesn’t mean the scenario can’t or shouldn’t be used.
Angie
Totally threw me off, as usual…:neutral::arrow:
Who is who in this story here???:roll:
Does he Love her or not?:?::???:
It seems 2 Me, that she Love’s him.:wink:
Hmmm… friends to lovers can work for me, but the author really has to show the transition, the growing awareness and ackwardness, the hurt feels, the struggle, etc.
As for George and Izzy, Grey’s is essentially a fairly sophisticated soap, so adultery is a trope of these type shows. I never bought into George and Izzy because Denny was The Love Of Her Live. She was a complete and abject mess when he died. There’s just no way on god’s green earth she’d be in love so soon again.
As for George, he’d been in love with Meredith for some time, her thing with Derek didn’t change that. George loses his dad and marries Callie, but, again, I just can buy that he’d be *in love* with Izzy so desperately now.
I think a big part of the problem is the writers did such an awesome job in convincing us of the depth and strength of emotion these two characters had for their former love interest, that this new pair up seems weak, ill concieved and contrived. George an Izzy could have worked, but maybe in another season or so, we really needed to see a really slow buildup to it, maybe after each character had a transitional relationship with others.
The love affair doesn’t squick me out, I just don’t buy it. It feels wrong ie fake.
:razz::razz:When do the characters actually “make LOVE”…
That’s all I want 2 know.:razz:
That would be so magical.:shock::smile:
Ideally, the 2 charactes are so close in age…that they have so much in common.
:razz:him :arrow::razz:her
I much prefer the friends/siblings/lovers storyline to the more common strangers/suddenly in love storyline.
I confess I’ve never watched “Grey’s Anatomy” (odd, I know–I do watch quite a bit of tv), but I’ve always liked friends-to-lovers romances. There’s so much history to build on, which adds texture to the relationship. When I’ve written them I’ve had the characters have twinges of attration on the past (both characters in one book, just the heroine in the other) which they didn’t act on because of timing issues. But I don’t think it necessarily has to be that way. Scully has a great monologue in Sesaon Six of The X-Files (in the episode about the weather being messed up, I’m blanking on the title), about how you can suddenly look at your best friend and see them in a new light. She’s talking to a character in the episode about that character’s situation, but she’s also of course talking about her own relationship with Mulder.
Yes, I love Charlaine Harris’ An Ice Cold Grave. In it, she has two ’siblings’ (they aren’t related by blood) fall in love. She hinted that their feelings ran deeper than either was admitting in the first two books. Personally, I think it worked. And like a few other people have mentioned, I think it worked in the X-Files too.
Yes! Finally a voice of reason on the whole George and Izzy front, especially with regards to how the writers are violating the sanctity of willing suspension of disbelief! I don’t care if we’re talking scripts, novels, short stories, even poetry–a writer cannot force a relationship that doesn’t work. Doing so is sacrelig.
I’ve never watched Gray’s Anatomy, but I love friends-to-lovers storylines. I find them much more believable and also feel those friends couples will truly have a HEA. I think what Tracy posted above from X-Files about how you can suddenly view someone differently really speaks to how that progression to lovers can happen both in fiction and real life.
The friends to lovers story only works for me if the author provides strong indications that the friends are attracted to each other from the start. Friends to lovers is awkward if the couple act too much like siblings. It can make the blossoming love a little creepy.
My two favorite subgenres of romance are (a) friends-to-lovers and (b) second chances. I always love romances involving characters with a prior relationship. Somehow, that makes it more believable to me… and also creates an interesting set of obstacles.
Maybe it’s stating the obvious, but I always enjoyed Rachel and Ross on “Friends.” (Although I got annoyed towards the end by all the contrived reasons to keep them apart…)
I haven’t watched the show, so I can’t speak as to how well it was done, but in general… I find friends falling in love much more realistic than the usual romance storyline of “Oh! I met you two days ago but I am soooo in love with you and let’s get married ASAP!” I’m sorry, but that just leaves me going WTF.
I am completely with you - they ruined George and Izzie! What was wrong with them just being friends??? Clearly Shonda followed the philosophy in When Harry Met Sally, that men and women can’t just be friends.
And honestly, from Denny to GEORGE???
I’ve never watched the show and am very glad now that I didn’t spend my time watching something where one married character sleeps with someone else. Totally ruins the character for me.
Ugh…the George/Izzy thing is gross on so many levels. Your assessment is right on. I also felt like I never saw it coming. Like, one day they’re all into each other and I, for one, was completely blindsided. I hope it ends, and ends soon.
But normally, friends-to-lovers - right on. I thought it worked great on Friends.
Jordan!! Ahhhhh *covers eye and chants la-la-la-la-la-la*
*LOL* I’m only about a quarter of the way through “Ice Cold Grave” … and I will admit, I see it coming, so I wondered if Charlaine would take that leap in this book. Harper gave us a hint in the last one, and Harris has from the beginning reiterated that they are not related, which to me will keep this from crossing the icky line. The two of them strike me as friends who have escaped from the same disastrous childhood, they are survivors, and they have stuck together because they have no one else but each other. Sorting out just how their relations progresses will be fascinating … but ordinarily something this close to family would have a real ick factor for me. Harris has done a great job in setting this up.
The few times I saw them together on screen, I thought they made a cute couple. However, in real life, they spend so much time together like brother and sister, that somehow I can’t suspend believe and see them as a couple with the fiery passion.
Ick!
I’m not a big GA watcher, but I couldn’t look at it at all once that storyline started. Just too damn weird (adulterous, squicky, whatever). I’m not all that hot on anybody on that show. LOL But I agree that when you are using romance plot devices you’ve got to get them right of they just backfire. I’m glad to hear the folks at GA are rethinking the plotline. About time.
Siblings! Ah yes, that i s the perfect description of what George and Izzie use to be. They never showed an iota of attraction. Even with George’s obsession with Meredith, Izzie always treated George as a brother. She didn’t think twice about walking into the bathroom and brushing her teeth while he was in the shower. Not only did she not think twice, she didn’t apologize, say excuse or anything other than telling him to add tampons to the grocery list. If she had found him remotely attractive, she would have had some attraction.
I could buy this as being a rebound relationship (for her) if they didn’t have George telling her he loved her too. Callie is his rebound. Does he really need two? This storyline simply makes no sense, and now the writers have only made it worse. I do hope it sees the end (with a very logical explanation) soon.
And yes, Grey’s is a soap. The adultery is to be expected. It’s not a show about love, fluffy clouds and all that is “right” in the world. It’s an exaggerated example of real-life with trauma. You can’t have a successful soap without adultery.
Jenn *long-time General Hospital fan*
I love friends-to-lovers story, simply because, for me, those have been the best, and longest lasting, relationships. In fact, I started out as “just friends” with my husband. Those instances where I went from just meeting someone to dating them always ended — either in disaster or just ended. Never much there.
But maybe that’s just me.
That being said, I don’t see George and Izzy as being in a valid friends-to-lovers scenario, and I think your sibling theory is why. Sure, they were friends, but there was never any tension there. None whatsoever. They were simply friends.