Important work is being done toward a unified theory of famous, likable bros
Now that self-proclaimed “nerds” and “fanboys” have emerged as villains in our great culture wars, it’s come time to reevaluate the “bro” and just why the word has become such a dirty one. Sure, you know you’re in bad company when some lughead can’t address you or anyone else without it, but what of the good and decent bros, the kind who can embody a breezy magnetism while also remaining kind and welcoming? There’s a reason we all prefer Stranger Things’ Steve Harrington over the show’s token outcast, Jonathan Byers.
Inspired by the hunky and lovable Peter Kavinsky of Netflix’s To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, Esquire conducted an investigation into this very topic and came away with some interesting findings. For one, bros don’t have to be, well, bros. “Bro” has evolved, now indicating an essence rather than serving as a mere signifier of gender. Also, bro is not synonymous with “jock” or “asshole,” though, as the article points out, the intersection is not rare. Writer Justin Kirkland breaks the bro down to three different categories—the Soft Bro, the Frat Bro, and the Stoner Bro—positing that the best bros blur these distinctions while also never leaning too far into the stereotypes associated with these types. “[T]he more extreme you are in your given category,” he writes, “the less likely you are to be a good bro.”