Childhood Friend Romance: Difference between revisions

'''Nala:''' Ew!

'''Simba:''' I can't marry her, she's my friend!

 

 

In the cases when this love turns out to be one-sided, it is sometimes explained with "[[wikipedia:Westermarck effect|Westermarck effect]]", a theory that describes how people who grow up together are psychologically hardwired to think about each other [[Like Brother and Sister]].

** ... and, in fact, the ''[[Genshiken]]'' members get to watch Chihiro and Ritsuko enact this trope in ''[[Kujibiki Unbalance]]''.

* Takamizawa Natsuki in ''[[Yoake Mae Yori Ruriiro na]]'' and its anime adaptation, ''Yoake Mae Yori Ruriiro Na [[Crescent Love]]''.

* In ''Kami-sama Kazoku'', Tenko is an angel whose job it is to guard Samatarou, the son of god. She has feelings for Samatarou but doesn't feel he values her as much as she values him. Samatarou actually falls for another girl and tries to win her over, making Tenko feel a little jealous. {{spoiler|Samatarou eventually decides that Tenko is more important to him, though, making her not so unlucky after all.}}

* Jun Aoi from ''[[Martian Successor Nadesico]]'' is trapped in Yurika's "friend zone" throughout the series, eventually devolving into a [[Butt Monkey]] for his lack of screen presence. Yurika seems to be in this role for Akito, although that may be because of him being [[Tsundere]] towards her, and she gets him in the end.

* In ''[[Gintama]]'', [[Cool Old Lady|Otose]] and [[Badass Grandpa|Jirochou]] grew up together in Kabukichou. He was a little punk, and she scolded the crap out of him trying to keep him out of trouble. When they grew up, Jirochou became a vigilante to "keep the peace" in Kabukichou, and graciously stepped aside when Otose married [[The Ace|Tatsugoro]], his best friend and rival (and a cop), because he knew the vigilante life couldn't make her happy. But when Tatsugoro died taking the bullet meant for Jirochou, he makes his friend promise to protect Otose and Kabukichou. It...didn't work out very well.

 

* Lana Lang, in some versions of the ''[[Superman]]'' mythos. (''[[Smallville]]'' is definitely not one of them.)

** Especially in ''Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow''.

** Mender, too: he spends his very early years around [[The Chief's Daughter]] Ember, eventually takes her virginity after they reunite, and is promptly forgotten when he goes off to fight in the war and Ember meets a [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]] stranger. It's interesting to note that elves have no concept of cheating - all sex is good sex - but Ember does treat him pretty horribly.

** A milder ''[[Elf Quest]]'' example: Cutter and Skywise, who are just enough years apart for Skywise to hit puberty first and Cutter to be left behind wondering why his friend spends so much time in the bushes with Foxfur. By the time Cutter is 16, he loses both of his parents and Skywise loses Foxfur, and it's implied that they spend some time together as mates after that before Cutter ends up with Leetah. They're still occasionally seen sharing a bed together from that point on, but they're never as close again as they were before Leetah came along.

** Envy is this to Todd; they were friends since they were eleven, and they started dating after they graduated from college and formed a band, but he showed no signs of affection towards her, and cheated on her with two different girls, one of which was the drummer of their band. [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|He also lied about being a vegan.]]

 

 

=== Films -- Live-Action ===

* Essentially the plot of the Bollywood film ''[[Kuch Kuch Hota Hai]]''. It doesn't specify how long the Rahul and Anjali have been friends, but one can assume they were friends since childhood.

* One of the quintessential examples in Western film has to be Ducky from ''[[Pretty in Pink]]''. Come on, you know you were rooting for him.

* [[Adele]]'s very bittersweet "Someone Like You" is all about this, from the point of view of the [[Unlucky Childhood Friend]].

* [[Taylor Swift]] plays the good friend to a guy in ''Tear Drops On My Guitar''.

* [[Flight of the Conchords]]' "Bus Driver's Song." It is unique for being simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking.

* Living Next Door To Alice from [[Smokie]].

* ''[[The Tower of Druaga (anime)|The Tower of Druaga]]'': Gilgamesh and Kai.

* ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'': Yuusuke and Keiko.

 

 

** In ''Confessions of a Vampire Prince'', {{spoiler|Ben and Andy.}}

* Chances are, for any work that averts or subverts this trope, there'll be at least one [[Fix Fic]] that plays it straight.

 

 

=== Films -- Animation ===

* They were betrothed to each other, but they weren't at all keen on the idea until they grew up.

** Simba and Nala in ''[[The Lion King]]''.

* Taran and Eilonwy in the ''[[Prydain Chronicles]]''. When Taran finally asks her to marry him after years of silent pining, Eilonwy replies, "Of course I will, and if you'd ever given any thought to the question you'd have already known the answer."

* Dawn and Jimmy in ''Dawn'' by [[V. C. Andrews]], with a squicky twist: They were raised as brother and sister, but after the truth is revealed, Jimmy admits that he used to wish Dawn wasn't his sister because she's the only girl he's ever wanted. She eventually gets over this revelation and they get married.

* {{spoiler|Seylin and Emily}} in the ''[[Hollow Kingdom Trilogy]]''.

* In the ''[[Dragonlance]]'' novels, Laurana and Tanis are childhood sweethearts, complete with a [[Childhood Marriage Promise]]. Tanis then leaves Laurana after being confronted by her family who do not believe a bastard [[Halfbreed|half-human]] like him is good enough for an elven princess. Many years later Tanis is reunited with Laurana who is still very much in love with him and has [[She's All Grown Up|become an incredibly beautiful woman]]. Tanis soon realizes he still has feelings for her as well, but the situation is complicated because he is now also in love with another woman, [[Dark Action Girl]] Kitiara Uth Matar, setting up a three-book-long [[Betty and Veronica]] triangle. It is only after Tanis sees Laurana's beauty and courage while she is a prisoner of Kitiara that he realizes she is the one he truly loves. Tanis then saves Laurana from a [[Fate Worse Than Death]] and the two are married.

* ''The Search Is Over'' by Survivor. The singer is [[Looking for Love In All the Wrong Places|searching for "the one"]] and finally realizes that it's his lady friend who's been there for him the whole time. A [[Truth in Television]], since writer Jim Peterik based it on a friend of his.

* Implied in the music video for the [[Boyce Avenue]] song "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLPVtIscbco Every Breath]."

 

 

* Kushua and Brooklyn from the ''[[Super Robot Wars]] Alpha'' series. In OG she was Ryusei's [[Unlucky Childhood Friend]], but she moves on to Brooklyn instead.

* Minori is victorious in one of the four routes in ''[[Brass Restoration]]''.

** The recent US release ''almost'' has a canon couple in the protagonist and Bianca, considering that the box art has two blond children (Flora and her children have blue hair).

** The Hero and Medea in the true ending ''[[Dragon Quest VIII]]''. Even more awesome because they destroy an [[Arranged Marriage]] to an utter [[Jerkass]], yet still fulfill the terms of the original promise.

 

=== Web Original ===

** [https://web.archive.org/web/20110112080927/http://love.givesmehope.com/view/Love/21825 When we were 5, I dared my best friend Craige to kiss me.]

 

** In the [[Christmas Episode]] "Holidays of Future Passed," [[Distant Finale|set thirty years in the future]], [[Dogged Nice Guy|Milhouse]] and [[Wise Beyond Their Years|Lisa]] are married with a daughter. (Though apparently Lisa still sometimes talks to [[All Girls Want Bad Boys|Nelson]]...) Interestingly, [[Negative Continuity|the other future episodes all explicitly show Milhouse still pining for her]].

*** [[Fridge Brilliance]]: The first three future episodes involved a look into the future by a fortune teller or Professor Frink. Holidays of Future Passed starts off with the Simpsons taking their Christmas card photos, with a fast forward to the future. This makes this the only future episode one that's canon.

* From ''[[Chowder]]'', {{spoiler|the aforementioned protagonist}} and Panini as revealed in the finale.

* In ''[[Thundercats 2011|ThunderCats (2011)]]'' {{spoiler|The [[Sibling Triangle]] between Tygra, Cheetara and Lion-O resolves this way. Ironically there was never really any love triangle to begin with; Cheetara had fallen for Tygra years before she ''ever'' met Lion-O.}}