41 Toxic TV Couples That Are A Total Shipwreck

Fans sometimes overlook that Ross was overly jealous and Rachel was overly self-centered, problems that would haunt them in later in their relationship. 

Ted spent years yearning over Robin, even though we knew they wouldn't get along from the get-go. The beautiful Tracy seemed to be the perfect happy ending for him. Still, she eventually passes, forcing Ted to recount his whole life to his children to get their approval to date their aunt. Everything is twisted up. No matter how strongly Ted defends it, they are not meant to be.

The oddest couple on The Office was undoubtedly Kelly and Ryan. Most unhealthy relationships have at least one redeeming quality, but Kelly and Ryan transcend any notion of self-preservation. Ryan only wants Kelly when she’s in other relationships, and Kelly manipulates other guys to make Ryan envious. From Kelly pretending to be pregnant to Ryan proposing to her when she finally moves on while openly stating he’ll probably change his mind later, they both exhibit extreme levels of delusion.

Big and Carrie both engaged in a game throughout their relationships. Carrie frequently makes up tiny “tests” for her partners since she has a habit of expecting them to understand what she wants without actually telling them. Big, on the other hand, is all about playing games. He never calls or follows through, leaves Carrie hanging, and then shows up with a lovely grin and something to make amends. That is in no way a healthy approach to connecting with one another or showing respect.

The split between Miss Piggy and Kermit in 2015 was long overdue. Their toxic back-and-forth relationship was played for laughs when they originally appeared on television as a couple in the 1970s on The Muppet Show, but, boy, it gets ugly! While many Muppet one-liners slyly target adults, the message of Miss Piggy and Kermit’s relationship is not that subtle.

The act of your sweetheart tricking you into consuming demon blood so she may let Satan free is the quintessential expression of love, isn’t it? Demon Ruby shows up in Season 3 of Supernatural and promptly tries to convince Sam that she’s on his side. Also, when has it ever worked out well for the Winchesters (or anybody) to trust a demon?

You know a relationship is toxic when both partners have at least once reported the other to the police. Due to their dependence on one another, Alex and Piper discover a means to condemn the other and send them both to the same prison when one of them is put in jail. They do love one another, but they express it in all the wrong ways.

The concept of them being together is wrong and should not be supported, despite their devotion and readiness to sacrifice anything for one another. They discreetly cause each other’s lives to be lost because one cannot survive without the other, and the other selfishly does not want to be left alone. They emotionally harm each other almost constantly and cling to one another. Their relationship represents codependency at its worst.

People were only okay with Jade and Beck’s toxic relationship because Jade, not Beck, was the aggressor. They didn’t work well together. Beck should not have given Jade further opportunities since she was becoming overly possessive. Even though we were meant to rejoice when they reconciled, it was a poor lesson for the children.

Haley yearned for Andy even as he was seeing Beth at the time, and she was dating Dylan. And she dated him out of pure loneliness. This last relationship destroyed her character by regressing her growth. Although Haley and Dylan always had a love connection, it was never as intense. The eventual goal should have always been Haley and Andy.

Even though Phoebe and Cole’s wedding was fraught with issues, many signs of toxicity and abuse only begin to surface afterward. In “Marry-Go-Round” (S4, E15), Cole sabotages their wedding so that he may secretly wed Phoebe to him in a secret ceremony. Alarmingly, this disdain for Phoebe’s consent doesn’t end there. Cole’s primary goal in the following episodes is to impregnate Phoebe. In the same way that “stealthing” is currently a thing, Cole trying to get Phoebe pregnant in this way is also a violation of consent.

At the start of Dawson’s Creek, Joey realizes she has a massive crush on her closest friend and next-door neighbor, Dawson. If it had only been a crush, everything would have been great! But when Dawson started feeling the same way, everything went horribly wrong. He seems to be quite critical of everything she does, and due to his egocentric personality, Joey finds it tough to express her feelings to him. She’s like a withering flower around him. Yet when they finally part ways, she thrives again.

Even if Mila and Ashton are together in real life, Jackie and Kelso's on-screen romance is an abject failure. Jackie anticipates constant availability from Kelso despite the numerous times he has cheated on her. If you insist on shipping a pair from this show, please do Donna and Eric instead.

Understanding the teacher/student relationship in the series had always been challenging. In addition to being Aria’s English teacher in high school and being aware of the substantial age difference between them, Ezra had also been a manipulative stalker, which raised the stakes even higher.

Rachel saw him more as a status symbol than anything else. After all, he was the “most popular boy,” which piqued her curiosity about him even more. Still, she could have grown to love him for the person he truly was. However, she should never have chosen Finn. He often expressed his irritation or annoyance with her personality, whether it was her talking too much or using big words. He would make her feel awful when she was excited by putting her down for it. He had only ever desired Rachel when he was unable to have her.

Damon himself once told Elena that he and she were toxic to one another. For those unaware, Elena dated Damon in TVD after she turned into a vampire while under the sire bond’s influence. This aspect of Elena and Damon’s relationship is toxic since it limits Elena’s options and casts doubt on the sincerity of their love for one another. Also, why would you want to date someone who went after your brother?

They are toxic and exaggerate each other’s worst traits. While Archie’s persona had so much potential, it seemed he retreated back into his shell once he got emotionally involved with Veronica. Also, they simply never engage in regular, healthy conversations that couples have. It has always felt like as a couple, they are more in lust than in love.

Derek from Teen Wolf arguably has the worst luck in love (and in life) of any TV show character. But then, most people aren't Derek Hale, and most toxic relationships don't end with someone's whole family passing and enough self-blame to last a lifetime. Once Derek's first love, Paige, passes away from the werewolf bite he planned, Kate Argent, his worst girlfriend, enters the scene. Because of Derek's experience with his everlasting remorse and self-pity brought on by Paige's demise, Kate finds it all too simple to seduce him.

In the end, Bellamy and Clarke’s relationship didn’t make much sense. Even though the show highlighted their undying love for one another, they repeatedly deceived one another.

The plot was never intended to be a sad love tale; instead, it was designed to depict a toxic relationship that lasted for years and teach the audience what happens when you repeatedly allow yourself to be used by someone (relationship blinders).

Owen often yelled at Cristina for not wanting to have children and get married, which was what he wanted. Basically, he tried his best to make her feel bad about who she was. It was shocking to see how he treated her when she decided to have an abortion.

Deb may be a savage queen like no other, and Ray can be a jerk who constantly picks fights with himself. But these factors are perhaps why they get along so well.

At first, you can't help but feel sorry for Lex's lack of success with women in Smallville. After all, his first wife takes advantage of his riches. Nothing, however, can justify what he does to Lana. As Lana moves into the Luthor estate, Lex installs cameras in her bedroom, shuts her off from friends and family, and takes other unethical measures to prevent her from learning that Clark still loves her. Even worse, Lex gives her pills that make her believe she is pregnant.

Nate is a dumpster fire of gargantuan proportions. There is no denying it. He may appear to be a Roman deity, but he is not. His awful daddy issues keep him from developing into a respectable person. Still, it is undeniable that Nate is aggressive and deceitful.  Despite knowing full well that Maddy deserves better than him, Nate treats her like complete garbage. It's painful to see Maddy entangled in Nate's cycle of violence and abuse, especially when he tries to pass it off as love.

It seemed that making Blair feel awful gave Chuck a high. He repeatedly told her that he didn’t love her, made her feel unworthy by telling her that she had lost all of her value and attractiveness, and constantly called her names for either giving too much or too little. Chuck and Blair’s relationship is toxic, dishonest, and emotionally abusive. It caters to the notion that love is supposed to make us feel bad all the time, but although strong, emotions as such don’t indicate a healthy relationship.

Blaine exhibits early signs of turning into an untrusting partner by browsing Kurt’s phone when a boy named Chandler texts him. In addition to reading Kurt’s texts, he gaslights him by saying, “I’m not going through your phone, it just keeps buzzing because Chandler won’t stop texting you.”

Tony constantly deprives Michelle and never actually offers her anything in return. At first, Michelle finds it thrilling when he plays games, but it soon gets boring. He is challenging to pursue and maintain. She is tense all the time. Also, he comments about her appearance, which she finds offensive, and he never appears to be aware of the damage his jokes inflict.

Even when they reconcile, Tristan continues to criticize Miles’ sexuality, and the authors never try to frame this as wrong. And although Miles has made more than his fair share of errors during their relationship, for some reason, he is the only one who has ever been held accountable and had to apologize. It doesn’t feel fair to us.

Even if we take the cheating into account, Fitz and Olivia’s relationship still has a lot of issues. Their relationship is toxic not only for them personally but also for others around them, which, in Fitz’s case, might sometimes mean the entire country.

Danny shamed her after wanting her to be someone she was not. He verbally abused her and called her a horrible mother. We wanted to like Danny and were optimistic about his potential for redemption. Nevertheless, show fans shouldn’t romanticize him because he is a toxic, emotionally abusive man.

Fans appear to be overjoyed by the prospect of a possible reunion between Midge and Joel, despite the obvious red flags and an endless list of reasons why the two should remain as far apart as humanly possible. Joel’s infidelity is the apex of his character, and he is envious of Midge’s flourishing comedic career. Midge admits she can’t be herself around him, even going so far as to wear makeup on her face until he falls asleep. When one believes they have moved on, something or someone pulls them back together.

In practically every Married with Children episode, Al and Peg Bundy display signs of hostility against one another. They play on their poisonous dynamic for laughs, which undoubtedly made them appear funnier in the 1980s than they do now. One is left to wonder if they really get along between Peg's vicious jabs at Al's hygiene and Al's ongoing ridicule of Peg not having a job. Was their relationship dysfunctional? Without a doubt. But unhappy? Didn't seem like it.

There is no way Leonard and Penny would have gotten together if they weren't neighbors. Leonard treats Penny like a trophy girlfriend (and subsequently, wife), and Penny constantly feels inferior to Leonard because of her lack of education. They have no business being together since they undermine each other's confidence and make each other feel uneasy.

Both their fling and their marriage had such a charming beginning. Yet it didn’t take long to see how little regard they actually had for one another.

By protecting Beck from undesirable admirers, Joe Goldberg gives the impression that he is romantic and caring. Still, in reality, he is a villain who is hiding behind his so-called “wokeness.”  The rom-coms he grew up watching have indeed warped his views, but he is a sociopath, and a sociopath cannot be, and shouldn’t be seen as, a heartthrob.

When it comes to women, Jon Snow knows nothing. Even though they have okay chemistry, the whole incest thing definitely complicates their relationship. Jon continues to be ambiguous about his emotions rather than announcing a clean break and ultimately, he betrays Daenerys.

This unit was doomed from the beginning. Don Draper is portrayed as a serial womanizer throughout the entire series and a manic alcoholic with many secrets. Also, these two eventually suffer from their age gap. Whatever the case, any woman who manages to escape Don's depressing, emotionally abusive ways can be considered lucky.

In case you didn't know, committing to the only guy your best friend has ever loved is never a bright idea. Also, the fact that both Jessa and Adam had a strong tendency towards self-destruction as addicts didn't really help.

They are this generation's uncanny Romeo and Juliet. When Violet found that Tate, her lover, had passed away, she took a handful of sleeping pills. She intentionally overdosed to spend all their time together. Still, Tate isn't good for her or anyone. In his human life, he shot up a school and assaulted Violet's mother. Tate's sinister tendencies set him apart from the standard "bad boy" stereotype.

Ricky and Lucy appear to have the ideal marriage. Nevertheless, something more sinister develops when we observe specific scenarios and interactions. Lucy periodically worries for her life because of Ricky's repeated scoldings for not wanting to spend time with him. Think about how dysfunctional a marriage must be for you to believe your partner is attempting to murder you. Imagine how much worse it is when he uses drugs on you to treat your “hysteria.”

Initially, they were enemies, with Spike seeking to slay her. However, he eventually becomes a good guy because of his feelings for Buffy. Yet, he is still a vampire with no soul and commits many sins. Also, this doesn’t change the fact that Spike and Buffy also attempt to destroy and repeatedly harm one another throughout the course of the series.