Girl Next Door



The girl next door is used to indicate what is seen as average and wholesome femininity. She is neither butch nor overtly feminine and not promiscuous but might be a Foil to one who is like the down town girl in the Town Girls. Typically pretty in an accessible way. However since it's essentially about her personality there are several that are considered knock-outs.

She's the kind of girl the male main character might have known and been friends with all his life. She's easy to talk to like a Tomboy but she doesn't force her presence on anybody, or she keeps to herself like a Naive Everygirl while not rejecting social interaction. Of course on the other hand the girl next door is every bad boy's fantasy because he is drawn to her "good girl" image since she has the goodness of the light feminine in Light Feminine and Dark Feminine. Not only is she good but she doesn't act like she's all that.

Often when the Girl Next Door is involved you have one of three types of plots: she is the Unlucky Childhood Friend to the male lead (usually a jock); she has a male Unlucky Childhood Friend that is chasing after her; or she is the Betty in a Betty and Veronica Love Triangle. Occasionally, all three combine in a huge mess. This was used more or less in several movies by John Hughes.

Possibly she is with the main character as childhood, college or High School Sweethearts, but despite what The Other Wiki lists as examples this is not necessarily so.

The Spear Counterpart, Boy Next Door, is pretty much the same only, you know, male. Compare with Tomboy and Contrast with Femme Fatale. Also compare with The All American Boy who might of course be her High School Sweetheart.

For the 2004 film, see The Girl Next Door. For Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 5, see Codename Kids Next Door. Also not to be mistaken for Crystal Bernard's album, The Girl Next Door.

Anime and Manga

 * The sisters Wakaba and Aoba in Cross Game
 * In Naruto, Tsunade describes Naruto's mother with several "Girl Next Door" traits.
 * Winry Rockbell in Fullmetal Alchemist.
 * Haru Nishimura from Xamd Lost Memories.
 * Aoi Sakuraba in Ai Yori Aoshi.
 * Naruko "Anaru" Anjou from Ano Hana is a beautifully well-rounded character of this type.
 * Shirley Fenette of Code Geass.

Comic Books

 * Betty Cooper in the Archie comics.
 * Played with in regards to Gwen Stacy of Spider Man. As portrayed in the comics, Gwen was more of an exotic flower whom Peter only met after he left Forest Hill and "went out into the world", i. e. Manhattan and college. She came from an upper-class background, her first boyfriend, Harry, was the son of a millionaire and in her first appearance she was introduced as a high-school beauty queen. However, as she became the Betty to Mary Jane's Veronica, she moved into this.
 * Shellie from Sin City is sassy but meek enough to qualify.

Film

 * Mary Jane Watson from the Spider-Man movies is an example, arguably due to her being a Composite Character with Liz Allan, who in the comics attended Midtown High together with Peter Parker and Flash Thompson.
 * This was played with like many other tropes in Not Another Teen Movie
 * The film The Girl Next Door clearly subverts this trope, as said girl is a porn actress played by Elisha Cuthbert.
 * Layla from Sky High is Will's Granola Girl best friend.
 * Jamie Sullivan in A Walk to Remember is a believer in God who doesn't care what anyone else thinks.
 * Lori Laughlin plays one in Secret Admirer
 * Selena Gomez's character, Mary Santiago, in Another Cinderella Story.
 * Andy from The Devil Wears Prada was meant to be the kind of girl you could run into on the subway.
 * From The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Shy and beautiful Lena and Carmen, the writer.
 * He's Just Not That Into You has three: Gigi Phillips is like a basset hound. They're kinda pathetic - so you want to cheer them up. Beth Murphy wants a good man and a husband. Mary is a romantic who has been hiding behind technology.
 * Boof from Teen Wolf
 * Stéphanie is the girl across the hall in The Science of Sleep. Zoé lives there as well but she isn't one of these.
 * Casey Carlyle from Ice Princess is a Cool Loser and physics geek.
 * Julie from Flipped is such a friendly neighbor that she regularly gives Bryce her chicken's eggs for his family.
 * Maggie (Marla Sokoloff) from the movie Whatever It Takes.
 * Rosie from Bran Nue Dae
 * Nancy Thompson in A Nightmare On Elm Street lives across the street from her boyfriend.

Literature

 * Rebecca "Becky" Thatcher from Tom Sawyer is classic and makes this Older Than Radio.
 * Harry Potter's best friend's little sister Ginny Weasley, his helpful intellectual friend Hermione Granger and his loyal optimistic companion Luna Lovegood.
 * Bella's hometown acquaintance Jacob from Twilight.
 * Sweet, shy, and sensible Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice is this to neighbor Charles Bingley.
 * Kristy and Mary Anne from The Babysitters Club.
 * For Cassie from Animorphs, high fashion is socks that actually match for once. She's also gentle in being the team's moral center and doing what she must but hating the need to fight.
 * Jack Weyland's 1990 book tells the story of teenage best friends Michelle & Debra where Michelle chooses to be the good, obedient, religious girl while Debra strays.
 * In Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult, Delia is this to Eric, the Victorious Childhood Friend, and Fitz, the Unlucky Childhood Friend.
 * Sunshine has the titular character.
 * Julie Sims in Sixteen Thirty Two is a Girl Next Door with a rifle. Because, you know, all small town Americans are really Badass.
 * Ruby, Ralph's girlfriend in Urn Burial is literally the Girl Next Door; she's lived in the house next door to him since they were born, and whilst not drop dead gorgeous is plenty attractive enough for being familiar and not having any pretensions.

Live Action TV

 * The titular character from iCarly, Carly Shay. Cute and feminine but not overtly sexual, Freddie's known her for a long time, and they have the Unlucky Childhood Friend and Just Friends thing going on. Carly is popular at school and with her webshow without being the Alpha Bitch, and will rebel against authority if she perceives unfairness in the treatment of her friends. Carly does have enough aspects of the Genki Girl to qualify her for that as well, but there Aint No Rule that says she can't be The Genki Girl Next Door. See The Chick and Tomboy and Girly Girl.
 * Joey from Dawsons Creek is one of the more attractive examples
 * Winnie Cooper from The Wonder Years is a good tv example. Actress Danica McKellar is also a Hot Scientist.
 * Samantha Thompson in Ace Lightning before she got Put On a Bus.
 * Amanda takes the Betty position with Kyle who also has the wholesome traits to apply.
 * Also Andy and Josh have a very easy time becoming boyfriend and girlfriend because they're each like a typical teenage boy.
 * Unlucky Childhood Friend Chloe Sullivan and Lana Lang, who has an Unlucky Childhood Friend in Clark in Smallville.
 * Sabrina and each of her friends from Sabrina the Teenage Witch
 * Rory Gilmore from Gilmore Girls is straight up while her mother Lorelai knows how to put an outfit together, host a fun party and is a role model to Rory making her a double subversion. Rory's first boyfriend Dean was the male version until he Took a Level In Jerkass.
 * From Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Willow is straight up this, while Buffy's toughness mixed with her femininity make her character average out.
 * Topanga from Boy Meets World
 * Haley James Scott from One Tree Hill.
 * Maggie in How I Met Your Mother is explicitly described as this.
 * Mary Ann from Gilligans Island
 * Donna Pinciotti in That 70s Show is an excellent example of the Tomboy version of the trope.
 * From Degrassi the Next Generation there's Liberty, Emma who foils provocative Manny, and Terri who foils queen bee Paige and top dog Ashley.
 * Maddie in Terra Nova.
 * Sarah in My Babysitters a Vampire. It is the theme song after all.
 * Mary from Seventh Heaven starts going out with a neighbor guy who she used to play basketball with. After she breaks up with him he says that playing a game together will help him feel more like they're friends again.

Music

 * Saving Jane's "Girl Next Door".
 * In Taylor Swift's "Tear Drops On My Guitar", she's the Unlucky Childhood Friend.
 * In Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me", she's the nice casual friend as opposed to his demanding girlfriend. (Or that's how she sees her, since girly girls are evil!)

Theater

 * Patrice in 13. Subverted in that Evan has not known her his whole life, rather he has just moved there and she is the first friend he makes.

Video Games

 * Luna from Lunar the Silver Star.
 * To some extent, Alyx from Half Life as well. Only debatable thing is that when she was living in Black Mesa, she was only a baby. But then came the Combine occupation and she became a rather hot tomboy by the time Gordon returned two decades later. Since then, they've been together for most of the time.
 * If by "to an extent" you mean "purposefully designed by Valve to fit this trope in every way". Alyx is essentially designed to provide the player with the "girl next door" kind of experience, and it works; she's an EXCELLENT companion.
 * Eileen Galvin in Silent Hill 4 is one.
 * Tifa from Final Fantasy VII.
 * Refia from Final Fantasy III. Pretty, but not sexy? Check. Features that make her plain? Check. Endearing adorable somehow? Double Check.
 * In Kingdom Hearts, there's Kairi.
 * Link gets a few of these in the Zelda series. In The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time there's Malon; in The Legend of Zelda Links Awakening there's Marin; in The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess there's Ilia. However, Ilia is the only one who is Link's lifelong friend -- he meets the others in the course of their respective games. And despite being the princess, Zelda herself comes across like this in The Legend of Zelda a Link To T He Past and The Legend of Zelda the Minish Cap, particularly the latter as it's explicitly stated she and Link have been friends since they were very small. The same also applies to The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword's Zelda, who, apart from being Link's closest childhood friend, happens not to be a princess this time around.
 * Fire Emblem gets a few, though they can be HEAVILY disputed. Counting by appearance, there's Caeda/Sheeda, Lilina, and Tana.

Webcomics

 * The titular character of the Sluggy Freelance arc "A Carnivorous Smurf for Kimmy Sue Hasenpfeffer" was one of these. Kimmy Sue, not the Smurf.
 * Jean Poule of The Inexplicable Adventures of Bob

Web Original

 * The protagonist of Take A Lemon is rather upset when a college physics experiment turns her into a classic Girl Next Door overnight. Especially since He used to be a bit of rock guitar playing lech.

Western Animation

 * In The Fairly Odd Parents, Tootie is a geeky girl who lives near Timmy and quite obviously loves him. Although Timmy at first doesn't return her affections, he sympathizes with her since they both have to deal with Tootie's meaner older sister and Timmy's babysitter, Vicky..
 * In American Dragon Jake Long, Rose, at start of the series, has a lot of this trait.
 * Joan to Abe in Clone High.
 * Roxanne to Max in A Goofy Movie.
 * In a male example, Jeremy to Candace in Phineas and Ferb. There's also Isabella for Phineas, who hasn't noticed her feelings yet.
 * Like Buffy, Kim Possible is a double subversion because she's insecure about boys, dating, and the social order, and has very few close friends; however, she's admired by her peers, involved in every school activity, and is an international kung-fu-fighting pro-bono action heroine.
 * In another male example, Gil Nexdor to Susan and Mary Test in Johnny Test.