TV Couples First Meetings & Final Scenes | Side-by-Side

Side By Side: TV Couples First Meetings and Final Scenes

Welcome to MsMojo, and today were taking a look at the meet-cutes and last looks we got at some of TVs most iconic couples. Be warned, as this list does contain spoilers.

Rebecca & Jack Pearson

This Is Us (2016-22)

The NBC drama tells multiple stories at once. One follows Jack and Rebecca. The other follows their children in the present day. Late in the first season, we see their first meeting in a rundown bar, after Rebecca ditches a bad date, and Jack is stood up by another woman. Jack spots Rebecca singing, and its love at first sight. Because the show jumps back and forth over time, their last scene together actually takes place in the second season, after a fire destroys the family home. Their last conversation doesnt feel like their last. Hes seemingly going to recover from his smoke inhalation. However, he passed away from a heart attack soon after.

Ryan Atwood & Marissa Cooper

The O.C. (2003-07)

Ryan is suddenly thrown into a new world of wealth and respectability when he moves in with the Cohens. He doesnt let his feeling of being out of place stop him from immediately flirting with the rich girl next door. Sharing a cigarette at the end of their respective driveways, Ryan and Marissa have an instant chemistry. Their love story ends in a fiery car crash. Ryan pulls the love of his life from their overturned car, only for Marissa to die in his arms. Its a scene that still haunts and enrages viewers to this day.

Kurt Hummel & Blaine Anderson

Glee (2009-15)

Kurts mission to dig up intel on rival glee club, The Dalton Academy Warblers, thrusts him into the smiling, musical world of an all-boys private school. The moment he meets the handsome Blaine Anderson, who takes him by the hand and literally leads Kurt into a musical number, hes hopelessly in love. As one of Glees longest-running fairy tale romances, the show follows through on their happiness. Four seasons later, the series finale sees the two of them still in love and performing together professionally. They appear with the rest of the cast in the shows final number after guest speaking at an inclusive elementary school in New York.

Chidi Anagonye & Eleanor Shellstrop

The Good Place (2016-20)

When Eleanor meets her perfect match in the afterlife, shes immediately convinced that this ethics professor is not the right one for her. The feeling is apparently mutual. Chidi is the first person Eleanor tells that theres been a mix-up. She hasnt earned her spot in the Good Place. But Chidis indecision and Eleanors amorality are what actually make them a perfect match. Their last moments together before Chidi chooses to end his time in the afterlife showcase the spiritual growth theyve experienced together. Its a tender goodbye between two people who have made genuine progress as human beings.

Carrie Bradshaw & Mr. Big

Sex and the City (1998-2004) & And Just Like That (2021-)

Carrie is a Manhattan columnist who has a habit of romanticizing her own life. Its fitting that the first time she sees Mr. Big, its almost like a fairy tale. Well, its like an adult fairy tale. Shes dropped her purse, and he chivalrously helps her pick up some of its contents. Of course, she instantly sizes him up. This is the start of a love story that ends in the shows sequel series. Carrie comes home to find that Big has had a heart attack. He holds on long enough to die in her arms.

Sam Malone & Diane Chambers

Cheers (1982-93)

The owner and operator of Bostons friendliest bar, ex-baseball player Sam Malones charms are lost on the snooty intellectual Diane Chambers. When Diane finds herself in Cheers, shes not exactly impressed. Shes also not impressed with Sams flirtatious, overly familiar, and caddish attitude. Their will-they-wont-they relationship continued for years. Actress Shelley Long left the show in its fifth season, and the two broke up. Diane would come back for the series finale, where the two would briefly rekindle their relationship and hop on a plane to Los Angeles to start a new life. They realize what a mistake it would be before the plane even takes off, but it doesnt make it any less emotional.

Cory Matthews & Topanga Lawrence

Boy Meets World (1993-2000) & Girl Meets World (2014-16)

These two already knew each other, but it wasnt until they were paired up for a group project that we first got to meet Topanga Lawrence. At first, Cory Matthews is put off by Topangas hippie energy and her eccentric attention to vibrations. Its a far cry from the character we get to know later on, whom Cory marries. The last time we see these two together is in the shows spin-off, Girl Meets World. Topanga and Cory are still together, and, in a reversal of the original series, offering wisdom to their own children as they grow up.

Fox Mulder & Dana Scully

The X-Files (1993-2002; 2016-18)

Scullys not exactly thrilled to be assigned as Spooky Mulders partner in the first episode, and both of them know it. Meeting him in his office, shes apprehensive of his conspiracism. Hes clearly bitter about his treatment by his FBI colleagues. He tests her knowledge, and she manages to impress him. Their mismatched styles and ideologies are a big driver of the shows drama. At the end of the shows revival series, the two reunite. Scully tearfully tells Mulder theyre going to have a child of their own. Given the events of the series so far, this was something that was looking less and less possible.

Olivia Pope & Fitzgerald Grant III

Scandal (2012-18)

The big reveal of this Shondaland series is that Washington D.C.s preeminent fixer is secretly in love with the married president of the United States. A flashback in a later episode shows us the first time the two met. During his presidential campaign, Olivia Popes straightforward way of speaking offends and then charms Fitzgerald Grant III. After years of scandals, lovers spats, and international incidents, the two end the series together. In the series finale, Olivia and Fitz have a reunion in front of the U.S. Capitol. Fittingly enough, as this is one relationship thats done more than its share of damage to the U.S. government.

Meredith Grey & Derek Shepherd

Greys Anatomy (2005-)

This is the meet-cute that essentially started the entire show. Although we use the term cute loosely. Greys Anatomy starts with Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd waking up after a one-night stand. Meredith, dark and twisty as she is, doesnt want to commit to even seeing him again. Of course, their love story goes on to form the entire crux of the show for over a decade. The couple known lovingly as MerDer by the fans ended tragically, when improper hospital care sees Derek succumb to his injuries from a car accident. With tears in her eyes, Meredith is at Dereks side when he is taken off life support. She relives their entire journey through flashbacks as she spends their last moments together.

Whos your favorite TV couple? Let us know in the comments.