For those who saw this week’s episode of GLEE, aptly entitled “Silly Love Songs,” we were all cheering for Rachel Berry and her beau Finn Hudson to reconcile. Alas, as foreshadowed by fellow single-lady Mercedes, all the great divas only make it big after their hearts have been broken. Despite this apropos declaration, we hoped against hope that Rachel and Finn would have a chance — after all, they were the poster-child of love that the fans were rooting for since day one. That Finn chose his ex-girlfriend Quinn stung; especially after he confessed that there had never been fireworks when he kissed Rachel. In the end, as Rachel defiantly sang “Firework,” it was our hearts that felt crushed.
Another young love that we had been rooting for was Alex and Thom on NIKITA. Alas, their star-crossed love affair ended all too abruptly when Alex was forced to kill Thom in order to protect her cover inside Division. All season long the tenderhearted Thom had watched over and protected Alex, and then once he discovered her betrayal, he forsook his feelings and tried to unmask her treachery. His loyalty to Division was only noble in his ignorance. If he had truly known who he was aligned with, he would not have been so quick to try to kill Alex. So their budding romance was cut-short and we will never know if Alex and Thom could have been destined to enjoy a great love. We would have loved to watch it play out.
Turning to the solitary man on this list, the perpetually lovelorn Damon Salvatore from THE VAMPIRE DIARIES is currently in love with his brother’s girlfriend, and unable to win her affections, Damon is like a walking-wound. Never before has rejection and heartbreak felt so tragically sweet. Damon first fell in love with a vampire who toyed with his affections to the point that he spent over 140 years pining for her and slaying anyone in his path to find a way to free her from her tomb – an imprisonment that never existed as she had faked her death in order to escape another nasty suitor. Damon then gave his heart to another vampire, who he was forced to stake after she was bitten by a werewolf and lay dying a slow, agonizing death. But, in the midst of all these wrong choices, Damon found someone to give his heart to – only to find that she handed it right back. To Damon’s eternal dismay, by the time he had met the fair Elena Gilbert, she had already given her heart to Damon’s brother, Stefan – and since that day she has steadfastly spurned Damon’s advances no matter how tender and heart-felt. Her willpower is admirable, but our hearts break for the lonely vampire.
Then another Thursday night series offering a similarly love-forsaken is BONES, where Dr. Temperance Brennan finally realized that she had feelings for her partner, Seeley Booth. Unfortunately, after the year they spent apart, Booth found a new love and when Brennan offered her heart, it was softly rejected. For a woman who is slow to realize her own heart, we had quietly cheered Brennan’s initiative and held our breath as she declared her feelings. But because it took so long for Brennan to wake up and see who she wanted to share her life with, she let the love Booth had offered her a year before slip right by. Booth may have recently noted that our first loves are perhaps the greatest loves of our lives, but whether that will persuade him that he has chosen the wrong woman to spend his life with remains to be seen. Brennan and Booth seem to be always on the wrong path at the wrong time. However, with a seventh season looming, perhaps there is time yet for them to find the right time to share their love.
Last, but not least, this year’s most tragically lovelorn is Agent Olivia Dunham on FRINGE. Having finally escaped imprisonment in an alternate universe, Olivia found that not only was her life usurped by her doppelganger, her alternate had also stolen her boyfriend. How many girls can make that claim: my boyfriend was stolen by my doppelganger from alternate universe? Even on television it is outrageous and heart-breaking. Olivia epitomizes love lost. She did not throw it away, neglect it, or choose her career over love – it was stolen from her; and worse yet, Peter fell in love with her doppelganger. As if that were not enough, unless Olivia can steal Peter’s heart back, the fate of the entire universe is at stake. Peter can save only one universe, and the woman he chooses tips the scales on which universe will survive. More so than just mere rejection or heart-break, Olivia’s love life determines the fate of the entire world. With stakes that high, we are all rooting for Olivia to win back her lost love.
Star-crossed lovers may make great dramatic television, but our hearts ache for them as they sit alone staring at all the other happy couples on Valentine’s Day. With so much love all around, we are rooting that these lonely hearts get a real chance at a happily-ever-after with their true love.
Our Valentine’s Day wish is that this year’s lovelorn are not so lonely next year! 
Tiffany Vogt is a contributing writer to TheTVAddict. She has a great love for television and firmly believes that entertainment is a world of wondrous adventures that deserves to be shared and explored – she invites you to join her. Please feel free to contact Tiffany at Tiffany_Vogt_2000@yahoo.com or follow her at on Twitter (@TVWatchtower).