Everyone has probably had a moment where they watched a couple on their favorite TV show and thought, “man, I wish I had a boyfriend like that!” Television has a way of making every guy seem perfect when in reality, a lot of them are just plain terrible. Here are some hot but seriously flawed boyfriends from our favorite shows:
1. Dean Forester, Gilmore Girls
Dean was supposed to be the “perfect first boyfriend,” but really he was just… kind of awful. He was super possessive of Rory and always wanted to be her first priority, even over school. Um, hell no. Plus, he was kind of boring. He only got worse when he came back in season 5 and cheated on his wife… We’re still bitter that Rory lost her virginity to him. Where’s a time machine when you need it?? #teamJess forever.
2. Ethan Ward, 90210
He cheated on pretty much every girl he dated, AND he broke apart Naomi and Annie’s friendship only to break Annie’s heart a few episodes later. Good thing the show basically replaced him with Liam who proved to be a much better guy for Annie. *Sips tea*.
3. Zig Novak, Degrassi: Next Class
Zig started off as an awkward, yet adorable kid who just wanted to skateboard and play guitar. Then he came back for sophomore year and was suddenly a gang member and certified bad boy. Okay, it WAS kind of hot, but just not what anyone needed tbh. He was extremely jealous in his relationship with Maya to the point where he would flip out if she didn’t answer his texts for like, an hour. Oh, and he cheated on her with her arch-nemesis and proceeded to lie about it for weeks afterwards. No, thank you! Please exit the premises.
4. Tony Stonem, Skins
Tony was gorgeous (hellooo, Nicholas Hoult! Or should we say, Nicholas HAWT), but he was a major jerk. He cheated on Michelle with a long-list of girls (not to mention his gay friend Maxxie) and was pretty emotionally abusive. Ain’t nobody got time for that! He was sort of redeemed in season 2 after he suffered a traumatic brain injury, though.
5. Justin Foley, 13 Reasons Why
Justin came from a rough home life and clearly was dealing with a lot of underlying issues, but that still doesn’t excuse the way he treated both Hannah and Jessica. He started a pretty messed up rumor about Hannah and then later covered up for Bryce rather than telling Jessica the horrible truth about what happened that night at the party. Cute face or not, Justin has got to go.
6. Luke Ward, The OC
Luke eventually became a pretty good friend to Ryan and Seth, but he was a seriously awful boyfriend to Marissa. He cheated on her with multiple girls (sensing a pattern here?), including her friend Holly. Oh, and then he later slept with Marissa’s mom too. TBH, we still haven’t forgiven Julie Cooper for that.
7. Dan Humphrey, Gossip Girl
Let’s be honest, none of the Upper Eastside guys were very good boyfriends. But Dan spent SO much time acting like he was above all the pettiness and backstabbing when he was, in fact, the biggest perpetuator of all the drama. That just really grinds our gears. We still don’t understand why Serena would pick him over Nate freakin’ Archibald.
8. Lucas Scott, One Tree Hill
Lucas was supposed to be “the good brother,” but he was kind of a major jerk. He thought every girl he dated was “the one,” yet he cheated on like, everyone with Peyton. GET IT TOGETHER, LUCAS. TBH, he never deserved Brooke Davis, though. #Nathan>Lucas
9. Michael Kelso, That 70s Show
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are #relationshipgoals IRL, but their relationship in That 70s Show was so problematic. Kelso cheated on Jackie all. the. time. and expected her to forgive him just because he wrote her a dumb song or something. Even though Hyde was less than perfect (seriously, why did everyone on the show have to cheat?), he seemed to love and appreciate Jackie much more than Kelso ever did.
10. Blaine Anderson, Glee
Blaine and Kurt were cute at first, but we got real tired of screaming at them whenever they were onscreen throughout the seasons. They fought constantly, and Blaine eventually cheated on Kurt while they were doing long-distance. Toxic relationship much?
11. Ross Geller, Friends
Okay, everyone is on the same page with us here, right? Ross was adorable, but he was actually kind of the worst boyfriend ever. He didn’t treat Rachel right (were they really on a break?!), yet he didn’t want her to be happy with anyone else. What kind of man doesn’t want the person they love to be happy?? Joey > Ross all day, everyday.
Need help finding a new boyfriend now that we’ve wiped away the movie romance haze? Check out our article Want to Make Someone Like You? Here’s How in Only 5 Steps.