The A.V. Club Blog Discussion-Starter: Pop Culture Deal Breakers

by Nathan Rabin October 9, 2008

Hey you guys,

Things have been a little slow here on the A.V Club blog as of late so I figured I'd throw a question out to the group and see what you beautiful people have to say. When I was in college I once rented American Graffiti for my girlfriend. She was underwhelmed. To her it was neither good nor bad, just kinda average and forgettable. I remember thinking very vividly, "Christ, I don't know if I can have any kind of a future with somebody who thinks American Graffiti is at best affably mediocre." To cite another example, I have another ex-girlfriend who realized a guy she was seeing probably wasn't the one for her when he took her to see Armageddon on their first date.

For some reason, not liking American Graffiti was something of a deal-breaker relationship-wise. I don't exactly know why. There are some things we love so strongly that they become a huge part of who we are and how we see the world. I can never see myself marrying, for example, anyone who doesn't like The Simpsons or The Beatles or The Godfather. Is this fair? Should something as seemingly silly and trivial as our favorite movies, books or music play such a big role in determining how we live our lives and who we choose to be with? Here's my main question for you: have you ever been with someone whose pop-culture preferences proved a deal-breaker in your relationship? If so, what was the the book, film or CD in question?

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