Eccentric personalities. Quotable dialogue. Riveting advice. Creatively mismatched outfits, and colorful love lives of their own. These are all the traits of the classic Rom Com Sidekick.
There are many great staples to the classic rom com formula. There are the big fancy apartments in major cities. There’s the high concept plot outlines that usually involve holidays, destination weddings, the apocalypse or even time travel. Then, of course, there is the central couple; the first half, a typical female workaholic working in ad sales with no time to fall in love, and the second half, a male hunk with incurable commitment issues and eyes that sparkle like moonlit constellations. But no proper rom com would not be complete without the perfect sidekick (or sidekicks) that act as the perfect driving force meant to push the main two unbelievably beautiful people together as the filmmakers intended.
Great sidekicks have come in all shapes and sizes over the years, with some of the most memorable right hand men and women including Casey from 27 Dresses, Marie from When Harry Met Sally, Paulette from Legally Blonde, Michelle from How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days, Tom, Jude, and Shazzer from Bridget Jones’ Diary, Megan from Bridesmaids, and Robin from How To Be Single.
In order for one to succeed in their lucrative position as the “Rom Com Sidekick”, the first step is to lead forward in their limited amount of screentime with a “flashy but small” demeanor. They must first enter the protagonist’s space nursing a bad decision from the previous night with a personality broad enough to intrigue the audience, but they can never take up too much space or else they might outshine the characters the viewer is supposed to be rooting for. This character’s dialogue must almost exclusively consist of catchy one– liners meant to point out the hilarity of the protagonist’s lovesick situation such as “Come the Fuck On Bridget!”, “Steal The Bastard Back,” , “I could make dreadlocks out of that bush and form a reggae band” and “Are you kidding? The only reason to wear this monstrous dress is so some drunken groomsman can rip it to shreds with his teeth.”
Then comes the most important task in a Rom Com Sidekick’s list of duties: “The Pep Talk During The Rough Patch;”;, the pivotal scene in which the sidekick must share every facet of their romantic wisdom with the hopeless protagonist in order for the two crazy kids to reunite in the middle of Times Square, the middle of the Sydney Opera House, or even in the middle of the LAX airport for their final reunion kiss right before the credits roll to a classic 2000’s pop track.
The sidekick role could easily be perceived as a thankless part of the story, as they are the cupids and not necessarily the direct love birds, however, they still serve as a valuable element to this genre as more often than not, the sidekicks are the characters who make the viewers feel truly seen. Fabulous dress up montages and public flash mob proposals come far and few, but luckily the best of friends come in many shapes and sizes, and wheter one is single by choice or by circumstance, being the best companion they can be to their closest confidantes, at least before they themselves reach their own “protagonist stage” is essential to maintaining the reationships that have always been there before the final love interest. Love is possible in all of its forms for everybody, and one will always need a trustworthy companion to help them navigate the various hijinks of a search for love until their own “meet cute” comes true. As George from My Best Friend’s Wedding proclaimed in one of the most iconic sidekick quotes of all time, “Maybe there won’t be marriage. Maybe there won’t be sex. But by God, there will be dancing.
