Massacring Valentine's Day, One Heart at a Time

Dark Faerie Tales is having a massive Valentine's Day Giveaway over at their blog and I'm killing two birds with one stone here: both creating a post to promote the giveaway and earn myself some extra points and satisfy a requirement to list my three favorite romantic couples or my favorite love story. So if you want to get in on the fun, just head on over to their blog and enter. But here's my deal -

I'm not a fan of Valentine's Day. I'm not a hater; I just find it an utterly pointless "holiday" that, in reality, commemorates death under the guise of love. Candy companies and Hallmark got all over this business and somehow linked Necco conversation hearts to martyrdom. A bit of a stretch to connect a crucifixion with 'ur cute' but there you go. Check out The History Channel's website for more information on the history of Valentine's Day.

With that being said, I'm also not very much a romantic. I don't read romances and any books I do read with romance in it, it's usually secondary to the overall plot so finding even one top couple, let alone three, is a little difficult for me. I could always default to Romeo and Juliet but much to the chagrin of many a teenage girl (or any human with a vagina, really), Shakespeare wasn't highlighting love in that play but the sheer irrationality of teenagers. Here's Romeo and Juliet in a nutshell -

Day 1:

R: OMG your're hot.
J: OMG you're hot.
R: I love you.
J: I love you.

Day 2:

*sex*
R: Will you marry me?
J: Of course!

Day 3:

R: OMG you're dead! I can't live without you! *stabs*
J: *wakes * I'm alive! OMG you're dying!
R: Shit. *dies*
J: OMG I can't live without you! *stabs* *dies*

Yeah, Shakespeare was so ranking on teenage "love" it's ridiculous. Jack and Rose of Titanic? Same thing. Sorry. Two and a half days and she was ready to run off with some scullery boy? Stoopid. Romeo and Juliet part 2 but half the party lives. How about these teens wait 6 months and see if their loved one is still worth dying over? Three days? Not so much.

So, at the end of the day, my favorite romantic situation would have to be between Buffy and Pike (that's Pike, not Spike) from the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie released in the early 90s. Kristy Swanson and Luke Perry.

At first the relationship is antagonistic as so many teenager relationships are wont to be but the more they fall into their vampire hole together, the closer they get. Buffy has someone to confide her secret in, someone that she can lean on (superficially anyway since she can kick Pike's ass). They're not all googly-eyed the second they see each other. They don't fall madly in love with each other, but there's an undeniable attraction there. They shared experiences that no one else did. They coped in pretty much the same way and it's because of that that they have that connection. Granted, psychologically speaking people who enter romantic relationships spurned from traumatic experiences traditionally don't last but that's besides the point.

Pike helped Buffy have the dance she wanted when everyone else had abandoned her. He helped her through the death of Merrick when no one else was there. He helped her cope stepping down from the platform of superficiality and walking into the real world. He was there more than anyone else around her. How could you not like that?

Basically, it's a realistic relationship, or the beginnings of one anyway (excepting the vampires, of course). It's not over the top OMG I love you the second I see you! type of infatuation/lust that's highlighted so ravenously in YA today. It's just kind of there. Yeah, they like each other but let's see where this goes. They're not sending out wedding invitations yet.

So yeah, I'm not romantic, I don't really like romance and I don't like Valentine's Day but I think I've answered the question to the best of my ability.