So being unemployed for the time being has led me to the conclusion that Netflix is both a blessing and a curse. But nevertheless my love for the WB’s 1990’s hit tv show, “Dawson’s Creek” is all coming back to me now.  I lovedddd Pacey and Joey and I loved Pacey himself even more. And as I watch reruns now that I’m an adult and have a better grasp on life’s dramas, it’s much easier for me to share my appreciation for characters and plot-lines. 

In my opinion Pacey Witter is one of the best male characters in a teen drama series, that I’ve ever seen. And as a writer who hopes to one day pen a few scripts (if not many) for a teen drama series, I am very interested in character development. And the little details that make up a full well rounded character. Pacey Witter is an amazingly well written character with a lot of heart. And thanks to Netflix I can relive him and his love of Joey Potter all over again.

36 Reasons

(in no particular order)

why Pacey Witter made every 90’s girl’s ❤ melt.

(and continues to do so.)

Pacey Witter background.

The thing about Pacey is that he was simply cast as the comic relief of the show; kinda like a young “Chandler Bing.” He was quick witted (Pacey Witter…haha get it?) He was at times pessimistic, and overall rough around the edges. But when the young character struck well with the audience, the writers gave Jackson a little more to handle. Which in turn led to a massive love triangle between 3 close friends in typical teen angst fashion, which turned his friendship with best friend Dawson on it’s head and also led to an on going love story between him and Joey Potter that was on and off for the rest of the series.

The 90’s was a very Pacey vs. Dawson time. And I have to say, looking back on the storylines and watching the evolution of Pacey and Joey’s relationship, I soon realized, that for me it was never really a contest. And after you read this, you’ll soon find that it wasn’t much of a contest for Joey either.

And while I’ve showcased many of Pacey’s shinning moments (I definitely did not showcase them all…because he’s just that amazing and we’d be here forever,) I will admit that Pacey Witter isn’t that far of a stretch for humanity to grasp. Like many young men Pacey had his issues. He had a very unsupportive, borderline abusive/alcoholic father, a massive family who you rarely saw onscreen with the exception of a brother and sister here and there. He was insecure about his abilities, and often believed he would amount to nothing. This in turn was the root of Joey and Pacey’s relationship problems. He continuously fought the inner battle that he just simply wasn’t good enough for Josephine Potter; a girl with a bright future ahead of her. While Pacey settled for thinking he’d never make it out of town. He continuously feared he’d never measure up to Dawson and the history he and Joey shared. However, although those insecurities followed him to the very end of the series and we’ve seen him struggle along and make mistakes, we’ve seen him act like a jerk, we’ve also seen him fall in love and grow up into a man with the biggest and sweetest heart. A man who is much smarter than he ever gave himself credit for, a man who will always be in love with Joey Potter. A man who treated her with more respect and appreciation and genuine love, than Dawson ever could, or knew how.

 

1. “I remember everything.”- Pacey [Watch]

2. He named his boat “True Love.” [Watch]

3. He bought Joey a wall, to paint. [Watch]

4. He picked Joey up in the middle of the night, when her current boyfriend realized he was in love with his best friend and was a friend and consoled her. “If you keep looking you’ll find it.”-Pacey [Watch]

5. He punched a horndog kid hitting on a drunk naive Joey, and back then he claimed to just be her “friend.” [Watch]

6. As the story that is “Dawson’s Creek” goes, Dawson was the heart of a group of friends; He, Pacey and Joey. Joey and Dawson were “soul mates,” and basically grew up together. While Pacey was Dawson’s other best friend. Pacey and Joey never really liked each other and bickered like an old married couple. But one day Pacey realizes he has grown to like Joey more than a friend and actually ASKS Dawson’s permission to pursue Joey. At first Dawson’s reaction is totally cool and casual, then he says he’s not ok with it. So Pacey dials back. Dawson then in that same breath takes it all back and assures him that it is all fine and that he would be thrilled if his two best friends got together. So Pacey pursues Joey. Only to be rejected later. However, 2 years later,… all this is history and Pacey and Joey start what I like to call an epic love story…which is when this show should have been renamed….because let’s face it it was always Pacey’s Creek. Dawson was a little selfish bizznatch. [Watch]

7. Pacey carries Joey out of a fire. [Watch]

8. He calls her “Potter,”  “Joe,” “Ms. Josephine Potter,” “Good lord woman” is often an admirable greeting too haha…which no one else really seemed to do, not even Dawson. [you”ll soon recognize the pattern in all the vids]

9. “You Ms. Josephine Potter have just wrecked me. In the best possible way you have absolutely wrecked me.”- Pacey  [Watch]

10. “Look at that girl Dawson, just take a good look. She’s a freaking goddess man. How long did you think it was gonna be before some guy comes along and is interested in her…I mean really dude. And when that happens what are you gonna do…Because the guy that comes along isn’t gonna be your best friend and he’s not gonna ask for your permission. The guy that comes along is gonna take one look at that woman and just cut right in on ya.”- Pacey  [Watch]

11. He spent the entire night watching Joey sleep…and as grams said “You know you love someone when you can spend the entire night sitting by the fire watching them sleep.” [Watch]

12. “You wanna know something Ms. Josephine Potter….I think the world may just surprise you yet. You fall in love and it doesn’t work out and you think it’ll never happen again. But it does, believe me it does. In the strangest of places.”- Pacey [Watch]

13. He challenges Joey “in a way that no one else would even think of” [see #3: he bought her a wall to paint…not your ordinary canvas!] [Watch]

14. He knows her just as well as Dawson does, (if not more…in my opinion.) “In my entire life there have been two people who have actually known me, Dawson and You.” [Watch]

15. As punishment for something he did at school he was put in the “big brother” program, where he was given a very tough, very opinionated little kid named Buzz, whom everyone has one day with and then asks to switch. Pacey stayed. [Watch]

16. “Why do you think I came here, I came here to be with you…when you like someone, proximity is a good thing.” -Pacey

17. He counted to ten before kissing Joey a second time “Joey I’m going to kiss you, if you don’t want me to you’re just gonna have to stop me.”- Pacey (and she didn’t stop him… go cry about it Dawson!) 😉 [Watch for both 16 & 17]

18. Pacey was a man and owned up to his faults in the whole Pacey/Joey/Dawson love triangle. While Dawson made it clear that he was no longer his best friend, and did everything conniving to win Joey back, Pacey gave her her space…and waited for her to come to him….but not without letting her know how he really felt. [see: Dawson enters a boat race Pacey has already entered and forcibly tries to win…leaving Pacey to veer off track to avoid a collision. Dawson gets disqualified and Pacey comes in 8th.] To put it simpler…Pacey is the better man. end of story. [Watch]

19. Pacey always cups Joey’s face, strokes her arms, kisses her forehead, cheek, or hand. It’s all about the body language people, the little things that aren’t always scripted that make the actor allow the character to become their own. It makes the relationship more realistic.  [Watch a scene where he says an awkward goodbye to her, it’s super cute!]

20. Joey needs him. [Watch]

21. “Okay ya got me.” Pacey would always say this whenever he and Joey would hit a difficult part in their relationship and whenever Joey had to get him to really talk to her about serious issues. In a nutshell…the conversation would get mushy and he would get emotional. [Watch]

22. When Joey gets drunk at a college party, against Pacey’s better objections, he takes her home and carries her up the stairs…even though he said he wouldn’t. [Watch]

23. “Maybe I happen to be head over heels in love with you…”- Joey/Pacey [Watch]

24. When asked if hypothetically speaking he were to find himself sailing away again, and he were to ask the love of his life to sail away with him…what do you think she would say…”You wouldn’t have to ask Pace.”- Joey [Watch]

25. During his brotherly visits with Buzz he asks Pacey if the girl he’s in love with, is a hottie, Pacey describes Joey…”She’s so beautiful that every time you look at her, your knees tremble and your heart just melts. And you know then and there without any reservation that there is order and meaning to the universe.” “She’s a hottie”-Buzz [Watch]

26. “My god that woman’s amazing.”- Pacey  [Watch]

27. “The simple act of being in love with you is enough for me…so you’re off the hook.” -Pacey  [Watch]

28. “I’ll tell you what though, I wouldn’t bet against that Potter girl.”-Pacey [Watch]

29. He stands up for those who can’t stand up for themselves; [see: Jack …when a teacher makes fun of a poem he wrote insinuating that he is gay…Pacey spits in the teacher’s face.]

[see: Andie…when Andie cheats on Pacey while away at a emotional health facility, he still goes to help her when she calls Joey scared of her aggressive date. Pacey goes after the guy.]

[see: Joey…when Joey is honored to paint a mural in the school hallway, someone vandalizes it.]     “I want you to apologize and then I want you to turn yourself in, and I want you to do it before the day is done….because this time you just happen to mess with somebody I care about.”-Pacey  Pacey kicks the guy’s ass, and later gets in trouble. [Watch]

[see: Joey (yet again) He helps Joey rally against the unfair treatment of their principal…and makes mentions of being Joey’s “Duckie”… “Pretty in Pink” reference which I find AMAZINGGG!] [Watch]

30. Pacey and Joey get trapped in a Kmart… and he lets her shave his overly manly beard. [Watch]

31. He never pressured her to do anything she wasn’t ready for.

[Watch Part 1] Plot twist… [Watch Part 2] 

32. “Northern Lights my ass, this guy is obviously just tryna separate you from the Potter pantalones.”-Pacey (p.s. his jealousy is perfection) He randomly throws Spanish words into sentences all the time and it is completely hysterical! [Watch]

33. “You’re mom should get a metal…because she raised the perfect boy.”- Joey [Watch]

*Well Joey, I couldn’t have said it better myself.*

34.”And you did, you did… you let me do it”- Pacey (to Joey on her crazy reaction to him kissing her)

35. Dawson: “Oh wow a picture of me and little Joey Potter…look how beautiful she was even then. I had no idea.” Pacey: “You must have been deaf, dumb, and blind not to notice.” [Watch same video for 34 & 35.]

36. He taught her to drive, when Dawson clearly didn’t have the patience to. [Watch]

 

The age old debate of Pacey vs. Dawson…was entertaining. However, as I’ve proven Pacey was always meant to prevail, at least in my eyes. I am sure the writers were initially plotting Joey and Dawson to be the show’s end game. But I think once they saw the chemistry between Katie Holmes (Joey) and Joshua Jackson (Pacey) and how well received their relationship was. They realized they struck gold. If you ask me Pacey and Joey were just meant to end up together. I mean it’s the old story of bickering friends…that hate each other who soon find out that under all that hate there’s actually love…love is just hate set on fire my friends. They had a lot in common in many ways, and whatever differences they had only helped them to complete each other. They both ultimately believed the best in each other and rallied in eachother’s corners (although i do have to say I think Joey could have afforded to love Pacey a little harder…and support him as much as he supported her…i blame Dawson for a lot of Joey’s short comings because he was always crying like a little baby and making her feel bad for “betraying” him.) So it was a natural progression of things and in turn we soon saw Joey and Pacey become genuine friends. We saw him continuously support her, and defend her. While Pacey’s intentions were usually always pure, Dawson was more selfish with Joey. Neglecting almost every chance Joey ever gave him to be with her, or making their small romantic encounters overly complicated, (to be honest i think I’ve completely forgotten she and Dawson were ever even a couple…for it was just a few blips in time, her love for Pacey went the distance)  Anyway I digress. When Joey finally found a reason to stray, Dawson continuously held their innocent and pure childhood history/once merely romantic relationship above her head like a noose tightening around her throat….plaguing her with the fact that they were “soul mates.” Well Dawson I have news for you…you may have been her soulmate and possible”first love,” but a soulmate can be a number of things…namely a friend….however, Pacey was and will forever be the love of her life…and someone who has always supported her every dream, even if that meant possibly losing her… to distance, to circumstance, to time. He loved her that much.

SO there you have it… all the many reasons why girls hang on to tv male personalities. Because basically Pacey Witter was written to perfection. He was a romantic at heart but sarcastically realistic enough to make you believe he may actually exist. But let’s face it ladies, Pacey Witter standards make living in the real world kinda suckish. So thank you Kevin Williamson for creating Pacey, and thank you Joshua Jackson for bringing him to life. And to all my fellow tv couple analysts (I know you’re out there and that you ship those couples just as much as I do)…may you find your Pacey Witter…godspeed beautiful ladies.

P.S. What with all these television reunions and remakes (Shout out to “Girl Meets World”)…i say someone oughta make a Joey & Pacey; True Love the movie. Where we see what happens after the big reveal that Joey finally picked Pacey in the series finale.

So…how’s about it? Josh? Katie? Any takers?

Just have your people call my people. 😉

*******

So I came across this on someone’s tumblr and no joke it’s hilarious and amazing and I think  Pacey Con needs to happen, cuz I would be all up in that!

[http://FunnyOrDie.com/m/45sa]

-<3-