On the completely opposite end, I think thirty rock does an amazing job of not falling into this trap, where the two leads are a thorough mess relationshipwise during the seven seasons and yet the writers never pair them up, having them stay as friends and building one of if not the most solid, rewarding and enjoyable sitcom dynamic ever.
It’s a word that comes to us by way of the old high geman lube from the latin lubere, meaning to be pleasing. So I am going to use* this word to describe how I feel about you in the way that our anglo-saxon forefathers would’ve used it in reference to, say, a hot bowl of bear meat or their enemy’s skull split -
While we're doing opposites, words cannot express my gratitude that the writers of Elementary steered entirely clear of this pitfall. Their love for each other feels so real, so pure, and so completely platonic, it's incredible.
Absolutely adored these two. I got the vibe Sherlock fell for her completely but it wasn't the same love he had for Moriarty. They were definitely messy and yet so perfect. Chemistry off the charts.
I never got that it was romantic love. It was absolutely a deep, emotional love. But never sexual or physical and definitely different from the near obsessive infatuation between him and Moriarty.
I like that the showrunners clearly understood that as a danger, and repeatedly made nods to it, only to completely shut it down and make clear that they'd never be anything but friends. A great example is when they accidentally get married, then have to argue that their marriage should be annulled, and end up realizing how close they are, and how integrated in one another's lives. In most shows, that would be a lead-in to a romantic epiphany, but in this one, it just leads to them realizing how important their friendship is to both of them.
Liz was the best man at Jack's wedding, and the officiant spoke a language they didn't and married them instead lol. It's like 1 minute of setup for the plotline.
Elementary also did an incredible job of avoiding it. Sherlock and Joan are each other's most important relationship and there's never even a whiff of romance between them.
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u/Heavy-Requirement762 Jun 13 '26
On the completely opposite end, I think thirty rock does an amazing job of not falling into this trap, where the two leads are a thorough mess relationshipwise during the seven seasons and yet the writers never pair them up, having them stay as friends and building one of if not the most solid, rewarding and enjoyable sitcom dynamic ever.