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{{trope}}
[[File:
This is when Bob (this character is usually male, although female examples do exist) is madly in love with Alice. Alice doesn't seem too interested, so Bob keeps trying, hoping that she will change her mind.
▲This is when Bob (this character is usually male, although female examples do exist) is madly in love with Alice. Alice doesn't seem too interested, so Bob keeps trying, hoping that she will change her mind.
This can play out in one of two ways:
In traditional straight examples, as long as Bob is an honestly [[Nice Guy]], or at least a decent guy, both of these two attitudes are usually expected to result in success. Due to the [[Rule of Romantic]], Alice will always realize over time, that she really happens to love him back.
▲* '''2:''' If Bob and Alice are either long time friends, or strangers who just got into a [[Just Friends]] relationship, Bob will take a more low-key route. Bob will likely begin by saying that he has his hopes for a more serious relationship, and he hopes Alice will eventually feel the same. He's content to be [[Platonic Life Partners]] until that time comes. From here, he may remind her of his unrequited love every time he sees her, or he may never mention it again. Alice might refuse the [[Relationship Upgrade]] because [[I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship|she doesn't want to ruin this friendship]], or else believe that Bob just has a schoolboy crush he'll get over. If Alice is in a relationship, Bob might [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy|try to accept it for Alice's sake]]. If Bob dates someone else in the interim, this may make Alice have a [[Green-Eyed Epiphany]] and create a [[Unrequited Love Switcheroo]].
▲In traditional straight examples, as long as Bob is an honestly [[Nice Guy]], or at least a decent guy, both of these two attitudes are usually expected to result in success. Due to the [[Rule of Romantic]], Alice will always realize over time, that she really happens to love him back.
In some recent works, a more [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism|cynical]], [[Deconstruction|deconstructed]] take on the trope might be used, to point out some ways this type of thinking could backfire. Type 1 might irritate the object of their affection by treating them like a [[Relationship Values|video game sidequest]], where more gifts and displays of affection will equal more attraction. It can also have implications of a [[Stalker with a Crush]] situation, if Alice truly dislikes or fears Bob. And Type 2 might be portrayed either as a [[Manipulative Bastard]], for whom the whole long-term friendship is just a mean to an end, or tragically mistaken for not recognizing that Alice still only feels like they're [[Like Brother and Sister]] and reacts with extreme [[Squick]] to romantic gestures. Compare [[Entitled to Have You]].
This recent shift to more harsh portrayals is in part due to the usual cycle of tropes and part to media trying to avert the the implications that [[Men Act, Women Are]], and that a romantic resolution depends solely on the man's determination.
A [[Gender Inverted]] variation can also occur. For example in the [[Harem Genre]], girls often recognize each other as "rivals", and treat the whole situation as a race where the most determined girl "wins" the protagonist's heart. Also, more traditional romantic stories, written by either men or women, might give a woman the same behavior, suggesting that these writers (and their audiences) find something inherently romantic about that kind of dogged determination, even without the [[Unfortunate Implications]] of a gender's inherent domination.
See also [[
Compare with the less sympathetic [[Stalker with a Crush]], [[Mad Love]], and [[Abhorrent Admirer]].
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Contrast [[Cannot Spit It Out]], where the person is incapable of expressing their romantic interest even once, let alone over and over again.
Please keep the [[Real Life]] examples limited to those that examine the
{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==▼
▲== Anime and Manga ==
* Keisaku Satou from ''[[Shakugan no Shana]]'' is this for [[Ms. Fanservice|Margery]] [[Broken Bird|Daw]]. She pretty much commandeers his home, drinks his home dry of alcoholic beverages daily, and generally tends to be really high maintenance. However, he keeps his mouth shut and helps her (as a [[Mission Control]]) with her job as a Flame Haze (even after his buddy Eita does an [[Opt Out]]) due to having had a crush on her that turns into full blown romantic attraction. She tries to keeps him at arms length with her [[Dark and Troubled Past]], but this epically backfires, and by the end of Season 2 of the anime, she's rather aware he hasn't given up. In the light novels {{spoiler|she finally breaks down and reciprocates his feelings.}}
* The titular ''[[Naruto]]'' over Sakura, [[Character Development|at first, before he becomes more mature]].
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* Shirai Nagisa in ''[[Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch]]''.
* Winner Sinclair in ''[[Karin]]''. Not only does he fail to notice that Karin isn't interested in him, he also doesn't notice that she's a vampire and that her best friend ''is'' interested in him.
* Toris/Lithuania of ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' is a good example of this... while he is a kind person who wouldn't deliberarely hurt anyone, he refuses to see that his crush Natasha/Belarus ''hates'' him because ''her'' rather [[Brother-Sister Incest|"special"]] crush is [[Yandere]] for Lithuania himself. So she breaks all his fingers in retaliation, but [[Horrible Judge of Character|Lithuania refuses to notice it.]]
** Back when Italy was Chibitalia, the Holy Roman Empire was this to him. Chibitalia was scared of him at first, but eventually returned his feelings.
* Many fans of ''[[Ranma ½
** Two moments question Shampoo's feelings for Mousse in the anime. The 2nd movie she's arguing against her captor that she has no feelings for Mousse then rescues him anyway. And in one OVA she's given the reverse necklace which reverses her feelings; Mousse finally thinks it's his chance since she'll love him now only for her to scream how much she hates him and beat him nearly to death.
** And then there's Ryoga, who is depressed over the fact that Akane sees him only as a friend and nothing more. Or rather, he ''would'' be a
* Morinaga in ''[[The Tyrant Falls in Love]]'' has stuck by Souichi's side for five years in the hope of having his feelings returned someday, despite Souichi being a ''homophobe''. (Granted, he spent most of those five years concealing his feelings because of the homophobia thing, but he's had enough of hiding them by the fifth year.) Souichi even compares Morinaga's behavior towards him to a dog following its owner, though he's showing signs that he actually doesn't mind Morinaga's dogged pursuit of him.
** Morinaga is an unusual example of this trope because he actually ''[[Victim Falls For Rapist|rapes]]'' Souichi ([[First Episode Spoiler|at the beginning of the story, setting off the plot]]). Normally this would disqualify him from DNG-hood, but his behavior afterword still counts as this trope, only new he's become more of The Conquerer as opposed to the Patient Friend.
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* Megumi "Nodame" Noda from ''[[Nodame Cantabile]]'' is another female version, after she falls in love with the ridiculously talented Chiaki. She needs no encouragement though...
* Youta "Dateless" Moteuchi from ''[[Video Girl Ai]]'' fits this troupe except that he leans a lot towards "[[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy]]." He [[Matchmaker Crush|helps the girl get together with her]] [[Chick Magnet|hopeless crush]] who is also ''his'' best friend, despite that he still has a huge crush on her for almost half the series. After they break up, since the friend was originally uninterested anyway, she does fall for Youta but only after he's already moved on.
** [[All Love Is Unrequited|every character in this anime has an unrequited love, in fact.]] Youta's and Ai's in particular are real [[Tear Jerker
* [[Gender Flip|Gender-flipped]] and (possibly) non-romantic example: Sasada Jun from ''[[Natsume Yuujinchou]]'', a [[Muggle]] who repeatedly attempts to make Natsume admit that he has supernatural powers and generally shows a very large amount of interest in him.
* Mikan from ''[[Gakuen Alice]]'' [[Romantic Two-Girl Friendship|behaves like this toward Hotaru]].
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* Furuichi from ''[[Xam'd: Lost Memories]]''. {{spoiler|It does not end well.}}
* Used rather cruelly in most installments of the original UC ''[[Gundam]]'' saga. A recurring theme throughout is that of the Dogged Nice Guy utterly failing in his pursuit because the woman has already pledged herself to a man with a much more open/stronger personality, or one or more participants in the [[Love Triangle]] wind up dead. Worst of all is probably the sad, sad tale of 13-years-old Hathaway Noah of ''[[Chars Counterattack]]'', who can't even let go after the girl (Quess) is dead. In the sequel novel, ''Hathaways Flash'', {{spoiler|he leads a resistance movement against [[The Federation]] to avenge her, fails spectacularly and [[Karmic Death|gets executed]] (under orders from his own father, no less, who doesn't even know he's a terrorist!). When he meets Quess in the afterlife, he finds out it was all for nothing because she never even liked him anyway. Ouch.}}
** ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam 00]]'' gives us lovable loser Lieutenant Patrick Coulosaur and [[Colonel Badass|Colonel Kati Mannequin]], with the former being the
* Gender-flipped example: Ayumu Nishizawa is this in regards to Hayate in ''[[Hayate the Combat Butler]]''.
* From ''[[Eureka Seven]]'', Dominic. He's devoted to [[Dark Action Girl|Anemone]] despite the fact that [[Tsundere|she treats him like crap]] and is, well, [[Cute and Psycho|completely]] [[Tyke Bomb|nuts]]. {{spoiler|Once she gets better, though, she reciprocates his feelings. But he actually has to ''leave'' her before she realizes that he's her [[Living Emotional Crutch]].}}
* This is basically Shi Ryuuki's approach to his relationship with Kou Shuurei in ''[[Saiunkoku Monogatari]]''. To Ryuuki's credit, it's less that Shuurei isn't interested in him personally and more that she has goals which preclude the thought of romance entirely; even more to his credit, he really does genuinely [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy|want her to be happy]], which is why he doesn't, as [[The Emperor]], simply command her to be his consort and remain at the palace. But all things being equal, he'd prefer that she be happy ''with him,'' and he's prepared to wait forever, constantly giving her gifts and trying to think up ways to win her over.
* ''[[Angel Densetsu]]'': Kuroda is a
* Kagura Sohma from ''[[Fruits Basket]]'' is actually a messed up combination of Dogged Nice ''Girl'', [[Tsundere]], and [[Yandere]] (not to mention [[Incest Is Relative|his cousin]]) in her obsessive crush on Kyo.
* Shirley from ''[[Code Geass]]'' is a Dogged Nice Girl towards Lelouch, and although he does like her as a person, as far as romance is concerned she doesn't have a chance. {{spoiler|That is, until they start dating in the second season at the end of the Cupid's Day Festival. Naturally, this was Milly's idea.}}
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* Kitagawa Jun in the 2006 version of ''[[Kanon]]''. Kaori is very aware of his efforts, but uses it to her advantage, making him her personal bagboy when she goes shopping.
* Keima takes a page out of the [[Visual Novel]] book and turns into one of these during ''[[The World God Only Knows]]''. Justified because if he isn't dogged enough to get the girl, he loses his head.
* Joshua Lundgren of ''[[Gun X Sword]]'' is a sweet, smart, polite young man (despite his social awkwardness). Wendy immediately recognizes that he's "nice," but she's already so smitten with Van that she doesn't seem to realize that Joshua has a crush on her.
* The very, very flirty but loyal, kind and patient-when-it-counts Dee towards Ryo from ''[[FAKE]]''.
* Yuusuke from ''[[Tenshi ni Narumon]]'' tries to win [[Tsundere|Natsumi]], his aloof classmate's heart to no avail, and at least throughout the first season, she generally treats him like a crap. Likewise, Noelle is this for Yuusuke.
** Also, Raphael can be considered this (mixed with [[Chivalrous Pervert]]) for Mikael. Although it is a little more complicated in their case, {{spoiler|because they really do love each other, but let's just say that Mikael has some serious problems.}}
* Shinra from ''[[Durarara!!]]'' has been trying to romance Celty for twenty years. [[Precocious Crush|I.E., since he was four.]]
* Genzo of ''[[Cheeky Angel]]'': arguably the king of conquerers. Asking his Megumi to marry him repeatedly, replying to all preference questions with "Megu," dressing in drag, climbing an elevator shaft, tracking down her enemy to ''break into his house'' and patiently wait for the guy to come home... to name a few.
* Firo in ''[[Baccano!]]'' is this to [[Our Homunculi Are Different|Ennis]]...he declares [[Love At First Sight]] and then proceeds to wait patiently for more than ''fifty years'' for her to agree to marry him. {{spoiler|Good thing both of them are immortal. Eventually she does return his feelings.}}
* Nika from the second season of [[Darker
** [[The Scrappy|Norio]] is portrayed like this, and though he does have the traits, him being a [[Lolicon]] and incredibly annoying don't really garner much sympathy. He is at least 18, while Suou (who he obsessively chases after he falls in [[Love At First Sight]]) is 13. Not only does no one find this weird, but his pursuit of Suou becomes rather creepy. The show tries to drum up sympathy for him with his mother being a Contractor, and his dad being depressed after she left him. His presence doesn't really add much to the story, but Suou herself even commented that he was just like Nika. Except he wasn't. At all.
* Tatsuya Tsugawa is a dogged nice guy type 2 to [[Action Girl]] [[Broken Bird|Seine]] in ''[[Hekikai no AiON]]''. He tries to be her [[Living Emotional Crutch]], always remembering her that he'll always be there for her, worries about her dangerous methods of hunting and tries to make her smile at least. She calmly said to him she doesn't correspond his feeling but he said he doesn't care and keeps trying, even after [[Time Skip|4 years.]]
== [[Comic Books]] ==▼
▲== Comic Books ==
* David Qin in ''[[Strangers in Paradise]]'' seeks Katchoo out on a more or less daily basis, even though she explains repeatedly (and violently) that she's not interested in men. {{spoiler|It's revealed later on that his sister Darcy sent him to spy on Katchoo and Francine.}} She relents after he helps her and Francine through some rough times, and he moves in with them.
* Often, [[Archie]] towards Veronica, and similarly Betty towards Archie.
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* [[Shade the Changing Man]] in his first incarnation in Milligan's ''Vertigo'' reboot.
▲== Fan Fiction ==
* According to some fanfics, James Potter and Lily Evans from the ''[[Harry Potter]]'' universe fit this trope well. It seems to be pretty solidly there in canon, though. When we see James asking Lily out in their fifth year, not only does she turn him down, they're both acting like this is hardly the first time she's had to reject him. We're later told that they didn't start going out until seventh year, so that's at ''least'' two years of James dogging persistently after Lily, since we don't know when he first started asking.
** There's a subversion there as well. James was {{spoiler|a [[Jerk Jock]] in their fifth year, and a bully on top of that}}, which is one of the reasons Lily wouldn't have anything to do with him. It was ''only'' when he got over himself that Lily reciprocated. (Not to mention that her other suitor was {{spoiler|Severus Snape, a mix of [[Unlucky Childhood Friend]] and [[Stalker with a Crush]]}}.)
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** Korea is depicted as this in pretty much all China/Korea fanworks. Some of these fanworks actually give a tragic spin to this trope by depicting Korea as being fully aware that China doesn't return his feelings or just finds him annoying and knowing deep down that throwing himself even more at China will not change this, but that he can't bring himself to give up hope that someday, somehow, China will eventually love him back.
== [[Film]] ==▼
▲== Film ==
* The male lead in ''[[Chasing Amy]]'' refuses to give up on his love interest, even though she's a lesbian which ''[[Incompatible Orientation|should]]'' make his efforts ultimately worthless... except for the fact that she's actually a bisexual who [[No Bisexuals|decided she would be more accepted as a lesbian]].
* ''[[Cloverfield]]'', of all places: {{spoiler|It's made clear early on that Hud has feelings for Marlena, even though Marlena isn't particularly interested and brushes him off more than a few times. As the movie progresses, however, they start to get along better, reaching a head when Marlena attacks one of the parasites that was trying to drag Hud away, getting bitten in the process. She starts to warm up to him when he helps treat her wound, but it all ends badly when the bite makes Marlena die in an incredibly disturbing and sudden way. It's driven home and made all the more wrenching that she asked Hud for help first when she starts rapidly worsening, rather than her best friend.}}
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* [[Patrick Swayze]]'s main character in ''[[Ghost (film)|Ghost]]'' sang "King Henry the Eighth I am" to his love interest over and over until she agreed to go out with him. I'm not sure, but in real life that behavior is probably more likely to land you a restraining order...
** Well, it depends on whether she actually felt harrassed and uncomfortable about it...a guy who sings a song to you over and over may very well come across as more hilarious than threatening.
* Subverted in ''Snow Day'';
* Nick from ''Youth in Revolt'' is this in spades; at the beginning of the movie, he has a line of narration where he says that in real life, the nice guy never gets the girl. He actually does get the
* In ''[[Caveman]]'', the protagonist Atouk (played by Ringo Starr), is this to the villain's superficial girl Lana. Subverted in the end, since he {{spoiler|literally dumps her on dinosaur poo and goes for the dogged nice ''girl'' Tala.}}
* Both ''[[Life Is Beautiful]]'' and ''[[The Tiger And The Snow]]'' from Roberto Benigni have this, as an over-energetic male protagonist (played by him) engages in stalkerish behavior to get the woman he is in love with.
* Deconstructed in ''[[Good Luck Chuck]]''. {{spoiler|Terrified of losing Cam due to the curse, Chuck goes into full Type A mode, which creeps Cam out so much that she breaks up with him for stalkerish behavior.}}
* Subverted in ''[[Megamind]]''. Hal seems like a Type 1 in the making at first, his attempts to win Roxanne's attention are sympathetic or creepy even at the very beginning. Either way, it quickly becomes apparent that he is, at best, highly insensitive to her actual feelings, not to mention mildly delusional. In the end, {{spoiler|far from winning her over, his [[Entitled to Have You|childish attitude toward Roxanne]] contributes to his [[Face Heel Turn|proving to be the villain of the piece]] }}.
* Fred Astaire played a lot of characters like this, most notably in Top Hat and The Gay Divorcée, both of which feature him chasing after Ginger Rogers' character in a car the second time they meet.
* Jane in ''27 Dresses'' is the Patient Friend variety for her boss, George. Subverted in the end: {{spoiler|as when they finally kiss, she "felt nothing", and she realises that she's fallen in love with Kevin, the reporter, instead}}
* Donald Morton in ''Mozart and the Whale''.
* ''[[Dil Se]]'' features the male lead Amar chasing a [[Broken Bird]] terrorist named Meghna all over the country, trying to win her affections. It does not end well.
* Tora-san from the famous Japanese movie series ''Otoko wa tsurai yo'' is very much this.
* Michael towards Katie in ''[[Darby O'Gill and the Little People|Darby O Gill and The Little People]]'', despite her snapping at him and letting Pony take her home.
== [[Literature]] ==
* Ben Hanscom to Beverly Marsh from [[Stephen King]]'s ''[[IT]]'', the novel is very explicit on the intense crush Ben has with her, later lampshaded when adult Bill and Beverly have sex together and they both wonder why it's his arms she falls into instead of Ben's. [[The Film of the Book]] ends {{spoiler|with Ben becoming a [[Victorious Childhood Friend]]}}, whereas the novel hints at this but does not show it.
* Jacob Black of ''[[Twilight (novel)|Twilight]]'' is [[Our Werewolves Are Different|a very literal interpretation]] of this principle.
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* Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger from ''[[Harry Potter]]'' are this to each other pretty much throughout the series. Ron becomes jealous of Viktor Krum, Cormac McLaggen, and even Harry himself because of romantic implications he sees between them and Hermione, while she outright ''attacks'' Ron when he starts dating Lavender Brown for the express purpose of making Hermione jealous. At this point in the series, it's beyond obvious that they love (and will end up with) each other.
* Joseph Heller's ''[[Catch-22]]'' brings us Nately, who is madly in love with a prostitute who couldn't care less for him (and would much rather get some much needed sleep), but sticks around him anyway because, well, she's a prostitute and he pays her to, hoping all the while that eventually she'll come to her senses and reciprocate his affection. Eventually {{spoiler|she does, after finally getting some shuteye, and Nately dies almost immediately thereafter.}}
* Nicely played with in [[Terry Pratchett]]'s ''[[
* [[Dorothy L. Sayers]]' [[Lord Peter Wimsey]], though not by any stretch of the imagination a loser and rather more self-aware than most, otherwise fits this trope nicely in his wooing of Harriet Vane.
{{quote|'''Lord Peter''': I shall, with your permission, continue to propose to you at decently regulated intervals -- as a birthday treat, and on Guy Fawkes' Day and on the Anniversary of the King's Ascension. But consider it, if you will, a pure formality. You need not pay the slightest attention to it.
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* William Dobbin, the borderline [[Loser Protagonist]] of ''[[Vanity Fair]]'', by William Makepeace Thackeray. Except that Thackeray never met a trope he didn't [[Zig-Zagging Trope|mess with]].
* Subverted in the second ''[[Dark Swan]]'' novel, ''Thorn Queen'': {{spoiler|Leith}} is obviously attracted to Eugenie, and spends a lot of his time trying to win her affections, eventually confessing his love for her, believing she feels the same. When she makes it clear that she simply isn't interested, he leaves, brokenhearted. Later, however, {{spoiler|she gets captured and drugged for Leith's benefit, and he proceeds to rape her repeatedly - genuinely believing his actions to be out of love and outright denying that what he did was rape}}. Thankfully, he [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|gets his comeuppance eventually]]...
* In the ''[[Kate Daniels]]'' series, Raphael is a
* Homer/Sonny in ''[[October Sky]] / Rocket Boys'' is a
* Peeta of ''[[The Hunger Games]]''.
* The Beast of ''[[Beauty and The Beast]]'' asks Beauty to marry him and keeps on doing so even though she keeps on rejecting him every time. Granted, he ''needed'' someone to fall in love with and marry him [[Curse Escape Clause|for his curse to be broken]], but it's taken for granted that Beauty ''will'' eventually realize that he's actually a [[Nice Guy]] underneath his monstrous exterior and finally agree to marry him. This, coupled with the possible [[Abduction Is Love]] [[Unfortunate Implications]], can make this fairy tale unintentionally creepy if mishandled.
* [[Anne of Green Gables|Gilbert Blythe]] is the epitome of the second variation. He makes a badly-time comment about Anne's red hair and falls for her the instant she smashes her slate over his head in retribution. However, Anne holds this grudge for five years or so, in which time he tries valiantly to convince her he's not the jerk he originally come off as. Once they're friends, he gently implies at times that he wants to be more than just friends, though since Anne is oblivious to both his feelings for her and her growing feelings for him, it goes over her head. He continues to try and be her friend even after she shoots down his marriage proposal and after she dates another man for nearly two years. It takes a near-death experience for Anne to realize she's in love with him, the poor guy.
* In the [[Name of the Wind]] series, Kvothe is very much a type 2 of this trope for Denna.
* Trushpelt in the ''[[Warrior Cats]]'' novel ''Bluestar's Prophecy'' spends most of the book complimenting and helping Bluestar, but to his chagrin, she is not really interested in him like that. [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy|He remains her friend]] to the end.
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* Black, one of the protagonists in ''[[My Name Is Red]]'' probably falls into this category.
== [[Live
* ''[[Family Matters]]''' own [[
* Niles from ''[[Frasier]]'', although he genuinely was too shy to tell Daphne, and she remained [[Oblivious to Love|comically oblivious]] for most of the show's run.
** Niles is also married a good portion of the time, and feels that his love and loyalty is owed to his wife, despite his feelings for Daphne.
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** Come to think of it, most B5 romantic feelings seem to end unhappily.
* ''[[Noah's Arc]]'': Interestingly enough, {{spoiler|Ricky is this to Noah. Ricky shows increasing emotional investment and protectiveness of Noah, particularly after the gay bashing, but it's revealed in the movie that Ricky has actually been in love with him for some time}}.
* Danny Tripp in ''[[Studio 60
** And Danny Concannon on ''[[The West Wing]]''. Sorkin must love these.
* The TV Adaptation of ''[[
* Harper in ''[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]'' is a rare female version vis a vis Justin. They seemed to drop this when Harper moved in with the Russos in the third season, though, probably to prevent some questions about what they do together when no one's around...
* Freddie in ''[[iCarly]]'' towards [[Girl Next Door|Carly]]. He flits between a mild case of a [[Played for Laughs]] [[Stalker with a Crush|puppy dog crush]] in season 1, this in season 2, and [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy]] in season 3. Although he doesn't especially qualify for either major type of this trope: he doesn't sabotage her relationships, but he was also pretty clear about liking her, whilst not being over the top in trying to woo her. As they grew up, Freddie and Carly went from being next door buddies, to true best friends, and are very likely to be playing out a [[Just Friends]] [[Will They or Won't They?]] story arc in Season 4.
* And now Freddie has a [[Spiritual Successor]] in ''[[
* Both incarnations of the reality show ''Average Joe'' featured entire casts of
* Cody of ''[[The Suite Life of Zack and Cody|The Suite Life On Deck]]'' acted this way toward Bailey for most of the first season. This is a mild subversion, as it was pretty clear that she liked him, too. When they got together, the writers shifted this trait onto Marcus Little, toward London Tipton, who is [[Cloudcuckoolander|too much in her own world]] to notice.
* ''[[Ed]]'' played this straight. The titular character's behavior would have gotten him a restraining order within the first episode in real life.
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* Seamus Harper is this toward Rommie in [[Andromeda]]. That's right, he's in love with a warship. Kind of goes with being a [[Gadgeteer Genius]] I guess.
== [[Music]] ==▼
▲== Music ==
* "Just The Girl" by the Click Five.
* Oh sure, keep thinking Cake's "The Distance" is [[Late to the Punchline|just about a CAR race]]:
{{quote|
''Still driving and striving as fast as he can
''The sun has gone down and the moon has come up
''And long ago somebody left with the cup
''But he's driving and striving, and hugging the turns
''And thinking of someone for whom he still burns.
* "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift. Except it's a Dogged Nice Girl this time.
** "Teardrops On My Guitar" as well.
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* Gakupo in "Go Google It" by Luka Megurine and Gakupo Kamui.
* Duncan Sheik's "Little Hands" is a type 2 that ends with the protagonist accepting his fate... for now:
{{quote|
''I'm glad we got to talk for a while
''I feel OK, yeah, I'm feeling better
''I'll let her go, but I'll never say never...
== [[New Media]] ==▼
* Parodied in an ''[[The Onion|Onion]]'' article. [https://web.archive.org/web/20100223092422/http://www.theonion.com/content/node/29546 "Area man arrested for engaging in romantic comedy behavior."]▼
▲== New Media ==
** Also here: [https://web.archive.org/web/20100312015444/http://www.theonion.com/content/opinion/but_if_we_started_dating_it "But If We Started Dating It Would Ruin Our Friendship Where I Ask You To Do Things And You Do Them"]. (Interestingly, it approaches the situation from the other side.)▼
▲* Parodied in an ''[[The Onion|Onion]]'' article. [http://www.theonion.com/content/node/29546 "Area man arrested for engaging in romantic comedy behavior."]
* "Nice Guys" [https://web.archive.org/web/20160115035317/http://www.heartless-bitches.com/rants/niceguys/niceguys.shtml methodically torn to shreds] - [[Film At Eleven]].▼
▲** Also here: [http://www.theonion.com/content/opinion/but_if_we_started_dating_it "But If We Started Dating It Would Ruin Our Friendship Where I Ask You To Do Things And You Do Them"]. (Interestingly, it approaches the situation from the other side.)
▲* "Nice Guys" [http://www.heartless-bitches.com/rants/niceguys/niceguys.shtml methodically torn to shreds] - [[Film At Eleven]].
** Also dissected thoroughly [http://mightygodking.com/index.php/2007/12/16/the-internet-nice-guy-rears-his-ugly-head-once-more/ here.]
== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==▼
▲== Newspaper Comics ==
* ''[[For Better or For Worse]]'' had [[Creator's Pet|Anthony]], who combined the Patient Type with a passive-aggressive [[Entitled to Have You]]. After dating Elizabeth off-and-on and agreeing to be [[Just Friends]], he spent the later years of the strip pining after her and broadcasting the fact he was still interested and willing to wait for her... despite getting married in the meantime. Readers were meant to accept that he was purely a [[Nice Guy]] and Liz's destined love, and that Therese was a horrible woman who had no right to be jealous of their relationship.
== [[Theatre]] ==
* Alfred in ''[[Tanz der Vampire]]'' is like this toward Sarah. Herbert is a less loser-ish version toward Alfred.
* Chuck Baxter in ''[[Promises, Promises]]''.
== [[Video Games]] ==
* ''[[Baldur's Gate|Baldur's Gate II]]'' features the [[Violent Glaswegian]] dwarf fighter Korgan Bloodaxe, who will make advances towards a fellow tiny fighter, halfling Mazzy Fentan, should the player pick both for his party. The main reason Mazzy isn't very interested in him is that he, contrary to the trope name, is ''[[Psycho for Hire|not]]'' a very nice guy at all.
{{quote|"Hey, Mazzy! Just so's you know, I've somethin' long, hard, and low t'the ground you're free to touch and fondle if ye wish. No need to glare, girlie: I was talking aboot me axe!"}}
* Bang Shishigami in ''[[
* Female example: Mai Shiranui from ''[[Fatal Fury]]'' and ''[[The King of Fighters]]'' series, who fell madly in love with Andy Bogard. Though she doesn't exactly act nice.
* ''[[Knights of the Old Republic (video game)|Knights of the Old Republic]]''. The male character's romance with Bastila consists mainly of immature teasing, but once you actually suggest a real relationship to her, she says no. If you want to achieve the romance, you pretty much have to keep pushing her and pushing her, regardless of how many times she turns you down. Though to be fair, she does make it quite obvious that she likes you too, and that it's only the Jedi code stopping her from saying yes.
* Galford D. Weiler in ''[[Samurai Shodown]]''. He's really in love with [[Friend to All Living Things|Nakoruru]], but the girl is too [[Married to the Job]], although she did recognize his feelings to her. Coincidentally, it turns out Galford is also [[Married to the Job]] (being a [[Justice Will Prevail|defender of justice]]).
* ''[[Tekken]]'' had the sumo wrestler Ganryu, who at first fell madly in love with Michelle Chang, and later for her adopted daughter Julia. This one is actually a subversion, because towards Michelle, Ganryu can be seen as a [[Stalker with a Crush]], since he was a corrupt sumo wrestler during the course of the early Tekken series (this disgusted Michelle). After he reappears in ''Tekken 5'', he seems to have converted into a decent man and fits this trope towards Julia better.
** There is also Kuma, Heihachi's pet bear, who is this to Panda, Xiaoyu's companion. He's general nice when the mood suits him, and tries his hardest to get Panda to like him. Sadly, Panda hates him with a passion and clams to be too old for him (which is odd since the age difference is by a year, even in bear standards).
* Marky Dubois of ''[[Backyard Sports]]'' is like this to Billy Jean Blackwood.
* Eruru from ''[[Utawarerumono]]'' is a type 2, but it's not because Hakuoro is trying to avoid anything, but because he can't get a clue. He's a [[Chaste Hero]], but in the oblivious sense, not the nonsexual sense, obviously. He has a vague idea that his relationships with other girls might make Eruru jealous - but doesn't really think about why she would be - at one or two points.
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{{quote|'''Garrus''': Dr. Michel ''did'' get me some dextro-amino chocolate. You're welcome to it, once we're back.
'''Tali''': She got you turian ''chocolate''?
'''Garrus''': She said she saw it and thought of me...[[Comically Missing the Point|why?]]
'''Tali''': ''(innocently)'' Oh, nothing. / ''(if Shepard romanced Garrus)'' Watch yourself, Shepard. }}
** Unfortunately for her, by the third game, Garrus is most likely either [[Battle Couple|in a long-term relationship with Shepard]] or {{spoiler|[[Relationship Upgrade|he hooks up with Tali]]}}.
* Sakura Kasugano from the ''[[Street Fighter]]'' series may be one for main character Ryu. She not only still really wants Ryu to train her personally, despite him telling her he could not train her as he still had much to learn himself, it is heavily implied that her admiration towards Ryu has developed into full on romantic fellings by the time of ''SFIV''. Yet since fighting
{{quote|(When winning against Sagat) ''"I totally understand your obsession with Ryu. Isn't he just dreamy?"''}}
== [[Visual Novels]] ==▼
▲== Visual Novels ==
* In the third game from the [[Girls Love]] series ''[[Sono Hanabira ni Kuchizuke wo]]'', we have a dogged nice girl in Mai. To make things interesting, Mai is chasing a Type A [[Tsundere]].
* Oddly enough for someone so [[Unwanted Harem|normally popular]], Tomoya in ''[[Clannad (visual novel)|Clannad]]'' becomes one of these in regards to Misae. However, it's not so much that she's actually uninterested as that she decided she wouldn't get involved with anyone except her first love, and is currently still waiting for him. {{spoiler|Except that he turned into a cat and never left her. [[It's a Long Story|Long story]].}} She more or less gets worn down into admitting she does like him.
* The whole point of the ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20161003120756/http://theniceguycomic.com/ Nice Guy]'' webcomic.▼
* Dave and Margaret in ''[[
▲* The whole point of the ''[http://theniceguycomic.com Nice Guy]'' webcomic.
* [
▲* Dave and Margaret in ''[[College Roomies from Hell]]'' form a textbook example. (At least, they ''did''. These days, it's complicated.
▲* [http://www.somethingpositive.net/sp02142004.shtml This Something Positive] contains a wonderful deconstruction of self-professed nice guys, and a big part of Mike's overall [[Character Development]] is learning to get rid of "nice guy syndrome".
* [http://xkcd.com/513/ This] ''[[Xkcd]]'' comic is a ruthless [[Deconstruction]] showing exactly how [[Stalker with a Crush|creepy]] this can be. Though it may seem like [[Cannot Spit It Out]], the guy in the strip deliberately doesn't talk to the girl about how he wants to date her, because it would be "forcing the issue". It caused quite the [[Internet Backdraft]] on the xkcd forums. A certain contingent [[Misaimed Fandom|saw nothing wrong with the guy's actions]].
* Yet another variant/interpretation of the idea is mocked [http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=2132#comic here] on ''[[SMBC]]''.
Line 243 ⟶ 231:
* Angus after Faye in ''[[Questionable Content]]''. He follows her to the point of being asked to leave and THROWN across a bar by Faye. Against all odds, they seem to be flirting despite the creepy beginning.
* Mike in ''[[Bittersweet Candy Bowl]]'' spends a lot of time being this to Lucy, although he tries to be subtle about it. {{spoiler|Subverted; he finally gives up, and falls (back) in love with a different childhood sweetheart.}}
* Deconstructed [http://www.shadowgirlscomic.com/comics/book-2/flashing-back-part-three/ in] ''[[Shadowgirls]]'', where Jackson decides to stand up for himself instead of just being Charon's best friend, on the advice of the "jerk" Charon is seeing, named Gage, who keeps trying to manipulate her into sex. Note that when he does tell her, [http://www.shadowgirlscomic.com/comics/flashing-back-part-thirteen/ she reveals that she knew already], and uses the same manipulative techniques [http://www.shadowgirlscomic.com/comics/flashing-back-part-four/ Gage used earlier].<ref>Attempting to put the blame on the target for not wanting to do what the manipulator wants, and using "if you really loved me" ultimatums</ref>
* ''[[Homestuck]]'' has Eridan, who was evidently a Type 2 with Feferi, who confesses his feelings for her shortly after entering the Medium. Feferi turns him down because he's a genuinely unpleasant person, and later on Eridan [[Disproportionate Retribution|takes revenge]] by {{spoiler|killing her and blinding her boyfriend.}} Eridan [[Complete Monster|is not a very nice person]].
== [[Web Original]] ==
* In ''[[Echo Chamber]]'', some fans seem to see [[The Woobie|Zack]] as a
▲== Web Original ==
▲* In ''[[Echo Chamber]]'', some fans seem to see [[The Woobie|Zack]] as a [[Dogged Nice Guy]] with respect to [[Deadpan Snarker|Dana]]. [[Stalker with a Crush|Zack is also shown clearly stalking Dana]], and [[All Love Is Unrequited|given the outlook of the show regarding romance]], [[Failure Is the Only Option|Zack seems doomed to failure]].
* Stalwart from ''[[Whateley Universe|Whateley Academy]]''. He's first seen declaring his true love for protagonist Fey, who then uses her powers to magically throw him across the campus quad. But Stalwart is a nice guy and keeps trying, almost to the point of becoming a [[Stalker with a Crush]]. His persistence is rewarded when he becomes the only thing that stops a superpowered ninja from raping and killing Fey... and he almost dies from doing so. Fey heals him and ends up going on a date with him.
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZI-ol25RFws This] ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'' fan-song portrays Mario himself as one of these, while Bowser is a more open [[Stalker with a Crush]].
* ''[[
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d54TiN3t5_I&NR=1 This video.] 'Nuff said.
* [http://joshishollywood.tumblr.com/post/13000603739/lizathefriendlyghost-sclez This recording]{{Dead link}} is basically someone [[MST|MST-ing]] someone taking this to 11.
* The ''Art Of Manliness'' is a website that critisizes the Dogged Nice Guy in a number of podcasts and articles, not because he's nice, but because he's often not nearly as nice as he thinks. He's often passive agressive and too insecure with himself to be honest with how he feels.
== [[Western Animation]] ==▼
* The most famous and deliberately over-the-top example is probably cartoon character Pepe LePew, whose main problem is not understanding that, as a [[Talking Animal|skunk]], he smells ''bad'' (when he did in 1959's "Really Scent," he corrected the problem, [["Gift of the Magi" Plot|only to have the cat go to a Limburger factory to make herself smell bad]]). Chuck Jones (the director who created Pepe) based Pepe Le Pew on fellow Termite Terrace writer, Ted Pierce, who was notorious for hitting on women and often forgetting to shower after a night of partying (though the fact that Pepe is a skunk from France carries [[Unfortunate Implications]] about how Europeans [particularly the French] aren't as hung up on hygiene as Americans are). Add the fact that Pepe is [[Stalker with a Crush|just so friggin' relentless]] when it comes to wooing female cats (or any animal with a skunk stripe) and you can see why the Pepe cartoons get a lot of sexual harassment/rape accusations from [[Media Watchdog
▲== Western Animation ==
▲* The most famous and deliberately over-the-top example is probably cartoon character Pepe LePew, whose main problem is not understanding that, as a [[Talking Animal|skunk]], he smells ''bad'' (when he did in 1959's "Really Scent," he corrected the problem, [["Gift of the Magi" Plot|only to have the cat go to a Limburger factory to make herself smell bad]]). Chuck Jones (the director who created Pepe) based Pepe Le Pew on fellow Termite Terrace writer, Ted Pierce, who was notorious for hitting on women and often forgetting to shower after a night of partying (though the fact that Pepe is a skunk from France carries [[Unfortunate Implications]] about how Europeans [particularly the French] aren't as hung up on hygiene as Americans are). Add the fact that Pepe is [[Stalker with a Crush|just so friggin' relentless]] when it comes to wooing female cats (or any animal with a skunk stripe) and you can see why the Pepe cartoons get a lot of sexual harassment/rape accusations from [[Media Watchdog|Media Watchdogs]]. This is likely the main reason his ''[[Tiny Toon Adventures]]'' counterpart is [[Double Standard|female]].
* Fry from ''[[Futurama]]'' chased comically after Leela. As time went on Leela returned more and more of his affection.
{{quote|"I've been a fool! A fully-justified, prudent fool!"}}
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* The titular character of ''[[Hey Arnold!]]'' becomes a mild version of this after he realizes that he like ''likes'' Lila.
* Cody on ''[[Total Drama Island]]'' to Gwen, although he eventually decides [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy]] when she hooks up with his friend Trent. In the third season, ''[[Total Drama World Tour]],'' he returns to the game and continues chasing Gwen (who has since broken up with Trent)...but when she hooks up with Duncan, [[Took a Level in Jerkass|he punches him in the face instead, and becomes more creeply obsessed with Gwen.]] Gwen uses him to help vote Courtney off and stays with Duncan.
* ''[[The Fairly
** Tootie to Timmy in a female example, though it can drift into [[Stalker with a Crush]] [[Depending on the Writer]]. [[Word of God]] has it that she will be successful in the live-action adaptation.
* Jarvis Tetch (aka the Mad Hatter) from ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'' starts out as this. [[If I Can't Have You|Things go quickly downhill]] when he learns that his love interest, Alice, is engaged and only sees Jarvis as a friend.
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[[Category:Always Male]]
[[Category:Stock Characters]]
[[Category:Love Interests]]
[[Category:Unrequited Love Tropes]]
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