A fan letter of sorts written to express my feelings and appreciation before I joined social media when I was fangirling alone. Dedicated to an amazing fictional couple, the actors that brought them to life, and the people that created them.
Sound familiar? This is the mating dance done by our favorite t.v. couples. This formula has created the most beloved and popular couples on t.v. It is a tried and true formula. I’m not disparaging any couples that have been created using these plot devices, after all I am a fan of many of these couples, but it can be rather predictable and is used with just about every couple I can remember.
I can think of one couple that has not been created with the tried and true formula. We are first introduced to this couple during the series premiere. Most couples are created through build up, hence will they or won’t they. If the fans do not respond to the couple they are ditched and new couplings formed. The couple I am telling you about was already together when the series premiered. In fact, they had already been together for some time. It was a very risky move to make on behalf of the creative team. If fans had not responded to the couple the entire course of the show would have been altered. The actors had to pull it off. They had to create a couple out of nothing. There was no build up so that fans could get excited about the possibility of a relationship and see the chemistry radiating between the actors. If the relationship was going to work the chemistry had to be there from the start.
The first line exchanged by our couple perfectly clues us into their unique dynamic. She freaks out due to jealousy and he calms her down. That isn’t usually the stuff great relationships are made of but this couple is the exception. By episode five the couple breaks up. However, by the end of the episode they are reunited. They do not break up again until season three. This break up is different and sticks around to torture fans for several episodes. When the series ends the relationship is still intact and going strong.
What makes this couple an exceptional couple? The answer is found in the way they hold hands, their playful banter, their intertwined limbs, and the way that she will listen to no one but him. She is not the type of girl one teases but only he can get away with it. He will protect her even though most people would never ponder that she, a strong willed girl, would need protecting. He is scared of nothing and no one when most are terrified of her.
Don’t they seem like a complicated couple that would be interesting to watch? Do they seem to have a deep connection? Well, you will be surprised to hear what t.v. show this couple is on. They grace the screens on a kid’s network, Nickelodeon. The name of the show is Victorious and the couple is Beck and Jade. I know a kids show, full of overacting, kooky problems resolved in 30 minutes, and where nobody has real world problems. But just give the show and couple a chance. Most shows with a teenage cast revolve around cheerleaders and quarterbacks. Victorious takes place at a performing arts high school full of individuals with eccentricities and talent. Victorious is different from the average kids show but that is the subject matter of a different essay entirely. Since it is a show on a kid’s network only the surface of the complicated relationship of these characters is scratched. We may not get mature storylines but because the creators of Victorious created such three dimensional characters we can image more realistic and mature storylines. We get to use our minds to dream up our characters in different scenarios and expand on the plotlines.
Beck and Jade are certainly a unique and complicated couple, especially considering the fact that they are found on a kids network. Just the characters alone in personality and outward appearance are unique. Jade has colored streaks in her hair, a piercing, and tattoo with an almost permanent scowl upon her face. Beck is stoic, has a closet full of plaid, and long hair that makes teen girls and their mothers swoon. They both favor dark colors and adorn combat boots. Characters with those descriptions do not often appear on our screens, let alone a network for kids. If they were a couple on a PG 13 rated show they would be edgy, thrilling, and leave us on the edge of our seats, well they do those things already to a certain extent but on a PG 13 rated show they would be making us feel those things times one thousand.
In spite of Jade’s mean and dark demeanor and Beck’s mysterious and calm demeanor their affection for one another is apparent. Jade does not like to be touched yet is always by Beck’s side, and she is not the arm candy kind of girl. In essence Beck is Jade’s heart. She has sarcastic comments and evil glares lined up for everyone, but Beck. For Beck the cold hearted girl will cry and go to her frenemy for help. For Jade the calm boy will show exasperation and tell her he misses her in front of the entire school. Their shared affection is what makes them one of the best couples to ever grace our screen.
My first impression of Beck and Jade left me wondering how these two ended up together. It wasn’t long before I realized that it didn’t really matter. They just made sense and I wanted more. It was the affection that Beck and Jade share that made me fall in love with them. They are constantly holding hands, have their arms around one another, or touching in some way. Why are these nonverbal actions so important? Since the half hour show has a cast of seven and was created around the main lead, there are not numerous storylines devoted to this couple or any of the individuals in the cast. Children’s shows are also created for reruns, not necessarily shown in order. Thus, the affection Beck and Jade display allows the viewer to know that they are a couple. The affection is practical but it is so much more.
Since Victorious is a show geared to kids they are limited when it comes to plotlines concerning couples, which is something that contributes to the beauty of Beck and Jade’s relationship. Often times limited storylines or censoring could hinder the plot but that is not a problem when it comes to Beck and Jade. Usually in a kids show relationships only last one episode after a crush is realized, a problem ensues, and a break up occurs or feelings are not revealed until a series finale. If a relationship sticks around we don’t always get to see much chemistry whether it be because of the actors or the fact that they don’t have much to work with. This speaks volumes of the acting abilities of the actors that play Beck and Jade, Avan Jogia and Liz Gillies. They were able to get the audience to fall in love with a unique couple that had no build up and scarce storylines devoted to them. As actors they don’t even have to speak to convey their on screen chemistry as their nonverbal acting is what made the audience fall in love with the relationship of their characters. How many actors can say that their lines weren’t the most important thing concerning their characters and acting? Not many. When one watches these actors they can see their chemistry and skill. For instance, in a scene where they have to react to something their reactions are similar and completely in sync, which adds to the relationship they are portraying.
To further my point, PG 13 couples get storylines that allow the actors to display their chemistry. They get storylines concerning meeting the parents, pregnancy scares, cheating, and whether or not they should get married and other drama. PG 13 couples share their first kiss and by the next episode they end up in bed together. Beck and Jade give us true romance because of the affection that they display. In fact, I have not noticed another couple on television that is more affectionate. Most couples that are constantly touching come off as fake, immature, or that they are in an annoying honeymoon stage but Beck and Jade do not come off that way. They’re affection is constant and not a product of infatuation. Even those that are not Beck and Jade fans have not disparaged their affection. We fell in love with them because of the affection they share not because of a storyline or heartfelt dialogue, not that they don’t have some verbal exchanges that are gems, they certainly do.
The affection Beck and Jade share caught our eye in the pilot and has kept us around when they didn’t have a storyline or even dialogue centering on them. All it takes is a simple pat on the leg or hand on the shoulder to make fans smile with glee. How often can a simple touch get fans of a fictional couple excited? That is the beauty of Beck and Jade. The simplicity of a touch, a smile, or look is all it takes to excite the fans. It doesn’t take a proposal, a romantic date at the Eiffel Tower, or seeing skin in between the sheets. It is simple yet still manages to convey a meaningful relationship. In the hands of the actors and writers such simplicity is never boring.
So to whomever it may concern and the actors that portray our favorite couple, thank you for deciding to have Beck and Jade be so affectionate with one another. Bless you. You have given us a great gift. You have masterfully shown us that you don’t always need glitz, glamour, or being risqué to create love. Those things can be art in their own right but you stripped that stuff down to the basics, which is also an art when done right. You created something out of nothing. You formed something unique. You reminded us of how love should start and what should always be the foundation of love, affection.
