Remember when television friendships used to mean something?
When characters weren’t just coworkers or trauma buddies, but actual friends — people who chose each other, leaned on each other, and evolved together?
I miss those days. I need those friendships. Surely, I’m not alone.
Now, most TV friendships feel like plot devices at best and emotional manipulation at worst. They’re written to serve plotlines, not characters.
One week they’re close, the next they’re at odds for no reason, and by the finale, we’re supposed to believe in a teary-eyed reunion that somehow fixes everything without ever addressing what went wrong.
Where are the J.D. and Turks? The Shawn and Gus pairings? Denny and Alan? Buffy and Willow? Monica and Rachel?
Even more recent examples, such as Abbi and Ilana (Broad City) or the Brooklyn Nine-Nine squad, had genuine warmth and grounding.
These people didn’t just exist in the same space — they had chemistry, banter, and emotional continuity.
Now it’s all cold distance or conflict as a character.
Every friend pairing is a frenemy situation, a one-sided emotional dump, or a thinly-veiled setup for betrayal.
Writers have forgotten how to show genuine affection without drama or cynicism — and we’re worse off for it.
And when a genuine friendship does manage to thrive onscreen, it often gets crushed under the weight of fan expectations. Take 9-1-1‘s Buck and Eddie.
Their connection is deep, supportive, and beautifully written — but the moment someone says, “I love their friendship,” it’s met with, “Why are you denying this romance?”
It’s the same with Olivia and Stabler in the Law & Order universe.
Fans absolutely deserve representation in storytelling. But it’s frustrating when any pushback about preserving a platonic dynamic is instantly labeled as bias or erasure.
Here’s the thing: friendship isn’t less than romance. It isn’t a placeholder.
And the idea that emotional intimacy only has value if it leads to sex or coupledom isn’t progress — it’s erasure of something just as important.
We need meaningful representation of all kinds of relationships — romantic, platonic, and everything in between. But we also need space for closeness that doesn’t turn into a kiss.
When shows do attempt to explore friendships, they’re often so trauma-laden that there’s no joy left in them.
Take We Were Liars — the foundation is betrayal, grief, and secrets. Tell Me Lies turns nearly every character connection into a battlefield of manipulation and codependency.
Yes, these stories are valid. But when every friendship is soaked in pain, you start to forget what support even looks like.
That’s what made Firefly Lane such a standout. Tully and Kate’s friendship wasn’t perfect, but it was allowed to be messy and loving.
They fought, forgave, grew apart, and always came back to each other. It reminded us that friendship isn’t about being flawless — it’s about being present.
Even the short-lived connection between young Jethro and Ruth on NCIS: Origins shows how transformative an unexpected bond can be.
What started as a tense landlord-tenant dynamic slowly turned into something deeply human.
Ruth didn’t just offer him a roof — she gave him space to be still, to connect, to play cards in silence without needing to perform.
It wasn’t flashy or romantic. It was just real.
And when she died, it left a mark — not just on Jethro, but on the audience. Because sometimes, the quietest friendships are the ones that shape us the most.
Contrast that with something like Yellowstone and the broader Dutton universe, where friendship barely exists.
Everyone’s a sibling, a rival, or a soldier in a family war. There’s no softness or chosen bonds.
There’s just loyalty built on obligation and blood — and the emotional rot that comes with it.
Those stories are compelling in their own way, but they’re bleak. And honestly? They’re missing something vital.
Friendship is a reflection of what sustains us when the world gets hard. And right now, TV could use a little more of that.
TV doesn’t need more backstabbing.
It needs more back-patting, middle-of-the-night calls, and people who show up just because they care. In other words, it needs more friends.
Do you think TV has forgotten how to write real friendship? Or are we just watching the wrong shows?
We’d love to hear which characters you think got it right.
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