True Bromance

Bromance in film got tired a little while back. But on television, it’s still thriving, and it has been for longer than I realized. So I decided to make a list of my very favorites.

Abed Nadir and Troy Barnes, Community

It’s no secret that Community is my favorite show on television right now. In fact, I believe that it should be everyone’s favorite show on television right now. It’s hilarious, it’s heartfelt, and it’s the most original comedy since Arrested Development. And it has something Arrested Development never had: friendship.

Community analyzes friendships on a serious level with some frequency, but one that never gets a somber examination is Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed’s (Danny Pudi), and I wouldn’t have it any other way. They’re almost unnervingly close, and that closeness takes them everywhere, from krumping and freestyle rapping to their unfilmed morning show, Troy and Abed in the Morning! Their tags were one of the first things I really loved about Community, and now, not an episode goes by without at least one great gag involving their adorably clingy relationship.

Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, Flight of the Conchords

When you move from New Zealand to New York with your best friend, your guitar, and very little else, you can’t help being close, especially when you’re this socially awkward. Bret and Jemaine (who play ever-so-slightly exaggerated versions of themselves) can’t catch a break in the music business, and despite their irrepressible cuteness, girls aren’t exactly knocking down the door of their shabby apartment. So who do they turn to when things go wrong? Each other, time and again, and always with amusing results.

Hugo “Hurley” Reyes and Charlie Pace, Lost

If Hurley (Jorge Garcia) and Charlie (Dominic Monaghan) were into dudes, then Lost would’ve been the perfect opportunity to meet cute–survive a crash landing on a magical island and encounter all kinds of wacky, unexpected phenomena while getting closer by the day. But they aren’t, so instead, we get a fantastically organic friendship between two guys who always feel down on their luck. Even when Hurley’s girlfriend dies and Charlie gets dumped over a kidnapping/simple misunderstanding, they’re still there for each other on the hellish island they call home.

Cory Matthews and Shawn Hunter, Boy Meets World

This is the stuff slash fan fiction dreams are made of. Cory (Ben Savage) and Shawn (the still remarkably hot Rider Strong) are diametrically opposed in all the right ways. Cory’s the product of an upper middle class couple whose relationship never wavers; Shawn’s a trailer park miscreant from a broken home. Cory loves one girl and one girl alone throughout his youth and adult life; Shawn has a two week rule and only one long term relationship to his name. Cory’s reasonably bright and ambitious; Shawn’s a tortured artist with no regard for school or the rules therein. And yet, they are friends, the best of, and they remain that way from elementary school through adulthood. It could easily be argued that they love each other more than Cory ever loved his girlfriend-turned-wife, but that’s another story altogether.

Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, the Harry Potter series

Fine. It’s not TV. But I don’t care. They’re the exception, not the rule. Sure, Hermione’s their best friend, too, but who rolls their eyes at each other when she’s smarting off? Ron and Harry. And who can talk about girls and Quidditch freely when her nose is in a book? Ron and Harry. And who’s more impressive when they get some fighting words in? Ron and Harry. Those are my favorite parts of their relationship: when they realize that not everything is perfect between them, and come hell, high water, or the silent treatment, they have to find some way to settle things. And they always do, and that’s what makes them Harry and Ron.