The Knight In Shining Armor: Pacey Witter, Dawson’s Creek

When Dawson’s Creek found its way into syndication on TBS in the mornings, I was a junior in college. I’d watched most of the show faithfully when it aired in real time (taping it on VHS when I had swim practice in the evenings), but I skipped quite a few classes, and become newly obsessed with the drama, in that two-hour block, on weekday mornings.

And when Pacey fell for his friend Joey, I fell hard, for him. Everything about his story (plus the surface level kinship I felt to Joey Potter) felt so dramatic and difficult at the time.

Sure, I was old enough to see that Pacey had a hero complex (subtlety was hardly the show’s forte), but was it so bad that he cared so much? I didn’t think so. And while that particular brand of underachieving charm doesn’t really work on me anymore, I can’t pretend I’m not attracted to the guys who are willing to openly admit to their feelings early on, and persist through any indifference on my part. Pacey, unfortunately, may have given me the impression that it was okay to waffle and be unsure and wait for a guy to fight for my attention and affection. And even today, that’s a lesson I have to work on unlearning.

Being wooed is great, but you’ve gotta give something back, and Joey Potter so rarely did. And the guys always hung around and waited. But in reality, the guy who pines for you for years and hangs around forever, waiting for you, is never the guy who wins your respect.


Photo: Courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment