LGBTQ People Revealed The Best And Worst Queer TV Couples, And I Must Say, They Make Some Pretty Valid Points
We asked LGBTQ members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which queer TV couples were the best, and which ones were the absolute worst. Here's what they had to say:
Warning: Potential TV spoilers ahead! ??
Note: Some submissions include topics of sexual harassment and physical abuse.
1.The worst: Alex and Piper from Orange Is the New Black (2013–19)
"Alex and Piper from Orange Is the New Black were one of the worst couples. Their entire relationship was based on lies, and they were always betraying and hurting each other."
2.The best: Emily and Maya from Pretty Little Liars (2010–17)
"Out of all of Emily's girlfriends, Maya was the best. Paige tried to drown her and Alison was a jerk toward her, but Maya was the only one who treated her right. And though she 'died,' we never saw a body, and on this show, even seeing a body doesn't mean death — so, she can still be alive if they ever do a reunion ??."
3.The worst: Emily and Paige from Pretty Little Liars (2010–17)
"The worst couple is Emily and Paige from Pretty Little Liars — Paige literally tried to drown her in a swimming pool and they still dated?"
4.The best: Captain Holt and Kevin Cozner from Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013–21)
"Holt and Kevin were so similar — two straight-faced, secretly dramatic intellectuals who complemented each other so well. In any episode where either one's life was in danger, their relationship was depicted so beautifully!"
"Their relationship was the purest — PERIOD. The way Brooklyn Nine-Nine didn’t portray them as a queer stereotype was really nice, and a huge relief."
5.The worst: Kurt and Blaine from Glee (2009–15)
"Kurt and Blaine were so toxic."
"Kurt and Blaine constantly cheated on each other, and Blaine dated Kurt’s high school bully! (The same bully who assaulted Kurt and then threatened to kill him.)"
"They were relationship goals in the beginning of the show, but I think that they would've been better off as a 'first love' story. Blaine and Kurt were particularly toxic for each other as the show progressed — they grew so much alone that by bringing them back together kind of reversed their character development."
6.The best: Dani Clayton and Jamie Taylor from The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020)
"The kind and gentle nanny and the gruff gardener ending up together was just too perfect — not to mention the bittersweet, hard-hitting ending for their relationship."
7.The worst: Callie and Arizona from Grey's Anatomy (2005–present)
"I started watching Grey's Anatomy from the middle of the series, and I loved Callie and Arizona together, so naturally I was heartbroken when they broke up. Eventually I went back to the beginning of the series and watched everything, and witnessed the beginning and middle of their relationship. Callie deserved so much better than Arizona!!!"
"Even in the beginning of their relationship when Callie had chicken pox, Arizona lied about never having them so she could stay away because she 'couldn’t bear to see Callie as anything other than perfect' ???"
8.The best: Papi and Angel from Pose (2018–21)
"Papi gave Angel the upmost respect, constantly lifted her up, and pushed her to pursue her modeling dreams. It's v corny, but anytime they expressed their feelings for each other, it was very passionate."
9.The worst: Omar and Ander from Elite (2018–present)
"Ander treated Omar like garbage in Season 2, telling his friends that Omar was ‘embarrassing himself’ for dressing up as Tim Curry from The Rocky Horror Picture Show (when this was the first time we saw Omar feel comfortable in expressing his sexuality as a gay man). Ander also lied to Omar about finding out who killed Marina — whatever the reason, the outcome was a shit-ton of communication issues and deceit. In Season 3, Omar then cheated on Ander with Omar’s sister’s boyfriend while Ander suffered from cancer (yup, you read that right). I honestly think they're a terrible couple, and it annoys me because they were a beautiful pairing in Season 1."
10.The best: Waverly Earp and Nicole Haught from Wynonna Earp (2016–21)
"Waverly and Nicole from Wynonna Earp — they did anything for each other! What’s even better is that both actors came out as LGBTQ after playing the roles because they got so much support from fans, they realized they didn’t have to hide it anymore."
"The whole show was amazing, but Waverly and Nicole's relationship was honestly one of my favorite parts."
11.The worst: Cheryl and Toni from Riverdale (2017–present)
"Cheryl and Toni from Riverdale are way more problematic than people are willing to accept. Cheryl endangered others and Toni regularly let her get away with it — their temporary breakup around the Heathers episode seemed like a step in the right direction, but then they just reverted back to their original, toxic dynamic.
Even looking past Cheryl's horrible behavior, Toni lost all urgency and individuality as a character since they started dating — her plots rarely revolved around anything that didn't involve making Cheryl happy.
The point of no return for the couple to get any sort of redemption was when Toni outright murdered Cheryl's uncle after he learned about her keeping her brother's corpse. The show played it off like it was necessary and not a big deal, even though it was the first time Toni ever killed someone (and it was someone who rightfully saw just how dangerously delusional Cheryl was)."
12.The best: Alec and Magnus from Shadowhunters (2016–19)
"Alec Lightwood and Magnus Bane were one of the best couples on TV, and you cannot change my mind about it. They’re so cute together, they made each other better, and they were able to completely open up to each other."
13.The worst: Casey and Izzie from Atypical (2017–21)
"Casey and Izzie from Atypical were a bad couple — their physical chemistry was great, but the relationship itself was pretty toxic. I didn't blame Izzie for it because she came from a difficult background, but the unpleasantness of their relationship was an important lesson: Maybe young queer people shouldn't try to commit to someone before they've accepted their own sexuality. Otherwise, everyone gets hurt."
14.The best: Rue Bennett and Jules Vaughn from Euphoria (2019–present)
"Jules and Rue from Euphoria — there was no big fanfare or dilemma with them. It was just a trans girl and a cisgender girl loving each other in the most natural way."
15.The worst: Miles and Tristan from Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001–15)
"It was so sweet to see Tristan finally being in a relationship that he deserved, but after he invalidated Miles' bisexuality, it kind of ruined it. The toxicity of their relationship only went downhill from there."
16.The best: Clarke and Lexa from The 100 (2014–20)
"I am hashtag #Bellarke until the end, but from the first scene Clarke and Lexa shared, they played off each other so well. Despite all of the bad blood between their people, they understood each other as leaders and loved each other so much that even after her death, Lexa still protected Clarke."
17.The worst: Rosa and Jocelyn from Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013–21)
"Rosa and Jocelyn's relationship in Brooklyn Nine-Nine was actually kinda toxic — Rosa was scared to talk about her at work in fear of being judged by the woman she was dating (not by her sexuality). Jocelyn then tried to break up with Rosa because Rosa was in the middle of finding a bomb, and she claimed she wasn't spending enough time with her."
"Jocelyn was awful."
18.The best: Matteo and David from Druck (2018–present)
"Matteo and David had such an ease with each other, it honestly felt like you’re watching a real couple on your TV screen. Also, the decision in Druck to take Skam’s original story and change it up to tell a love story between a cis man and a trans man was unmatched."
19.The worst: Alice and Dana from The L Word (2004–9)
"Honestly, every single couple from The L Word, but especially Alice and Dana."
20.The best: Nomi and Amanita from Sense8 (2015–18)
"Amanita and Nomi from Sense8! They were just so in love and deeply connected to each other that I literally sometimes forgot they're actors. Their chemistry was wonderful, and their genuine interactions were just the sweetest and most tear-jerking ever."
21.The worst: Ambrose and Luke from The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018–20)
"When Ambrose was with Luke, he cheated on him whenever he was away with Prudence."
22.The best: Adora and Catra from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018–20)
"They had a relationship that was built on friendship and went through a period of time where they thought they hated one another (which I related to personally, as it took me a while to realize my true feelings). They had amazing banter and truly came to care for one another — at the end of the day, they were each other's families, and that came through so clearly in the show."
23.The worst: Freya and Keelin from The Originals (2013–18)
"The start of Freya and Keelin's relationship was beyond fucked-up — Freya kidnapped Keelin, and basically tortured her for weeks because she needed her werewolf venom or something. They ended up together, but the fact it started the way it did was just awful to me."
24.The best: Fraser and Harper from We Are Who We Are (2020)
"They started out as friends, but you rooted for them to get together from the beginning because of how much chemistry they had. Fraser supported and loved Harper no matter how they identified their gender, and even helped them explore it. To see their friendship slowly turn into something more so organically and realistically was so beautiful. The last scene, where they finally found each other on the balcony and kissed, was just perfection. Their love for each other truly surpassed gender and sexuality, and was really just based on who they were on the inside — it was an incredible thing to watch."
25.The worst: Kevin and anyone he dated from Riverdale (2017–present)
"What about Kevin and whoever he's dated on Riverdale? He deserved better."
26.The best: Elena and Syd from One Day at a Time (2017–20)
"Elena and Syd from One Day at a Time! They were my absolute favorite TV couple — it was so nice to see a lovely, healthy, queer relationship on a TV show. They were amazing!!"
27.The worst: Brian and Justin from Queer as Folk (2000–5)
"Brian and Justin from Queer as Folk — Justin’s parents had every right to be upset that Brian was sleeping with their 17-year-old son."
"Even after Justin turned 18, Brian very clearly did not want to date him in the beginning, but Justin kept pushing himself into the whole group. Even after the age of 18, he still wasn't grown or mature enough to be sleeping with a 29-year-old man — Brian should have been nowhere near him after he found out his age."
28.The best: Eric and Adam from Sex Education (2019–present)
"I've actually really liked Eric and Adam from Sex Education — Adam was a monster in the first season, but when we got to see what was going on behind closed doors, his dad was the actual monster. Eric's such a confident, beautiful, angel baby, and I feel like the show handled the slow transition to them becoming a couple really well."
"I AGREE! Adam absolutely deserved a shot at redemption, and I feel like Eric was the best person for him to be around because he's such a 'confident, beautiful, angel baby,' and seemed to truly bring out the best in Adam. He's inspired him to better himself."
29.The worst: Cam and Mitch from Modern Family (2009–20)
"Mitch and Cam from Modern Family had the most dysfunctional relationship — they clearly didn’t trust each other, and were too scared to talk openly and honestly."
"They're kind of overrated — I loved them as individual characters (especially Mitchell), but they never seemed to gel that well together romantically. The show basically treated them as comical roommates with a kid who kissed once or twice every few seasons."
30.And [simply] the best: David and Patrick from Schitt's Creek (2015–20)
"We all know David was a dramatic person and we loved him for it, and never did we see Patrick roll his eyes or ridicule his husband for his quirks and insecurities. David was Patrick's safe space when he was nervous about coming out to his parents; Patrick was David's home when it came to voicing his inner musings that he stifled otherwise.
Their proposal was just about the perfect depiction of this — Patrick choosing four gold rings because he KNEW David that well; David asking if he was sure because he had difficulty loving himself...MY WHOLE HEART."
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.