History Main / RomanticFalseLead

* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Gale is introduced as Katniss's good friend before Peeta enters the picture, but any notion that [[FirstGirlWins First Guy Wins]] may be at work here is sunk when it becomes clear in the second and third books that Katniss has fallen for Peeta and vice versa.

* In ''Lucky 7'', the heroine bases her life choices on a plan her mother made for her before she died and one of the predictions her mother made was that she would marry her [[LuckySeven seventh]] boyfriend. When she meets a man she believes is The One after dating five other men, she tries to [[InvokedTrope invoke]] this trope by picking a random man to be her sixth boyfriend so that the man she actually wants to marry can become the destined seventh boyfriend after she breaks up with her handpicked Romantic False Lead. However, she ends up genuinely falling for the man who was supposed to be just a temporary sixth boyfriend and the man she originally wanted to be her seventh boyfriend and true love turns out to be the Romantic False Lead instead.
* Jonathan, the false lead in ''The Movie Hero'' is of the boring, uptight variety. Since the movie's protagonist is a GenreSavvy FourthWallObserver, he refers to Jonathan as "The Doomed Fiance" and doesn't consider him a real threat.

** Season 3 had Dr. Josh Davidson--who rides a motorcycle--become Beckett's new boyfriend and ''fans disliked him even more''. He was too perfect and too safe and there was instant annoyance at introducing someone that was so perfect for any woman who was not meant to stick around. His final episode in the Season 4 premiere when he gives Castle a WhatTheHellHero was the last straw for many and when Beckett finally ended things with him, they all hoped he'd never come back again (and with Caskett having their RelationshipUpgrade at the end of the season, he didn't).

** For Sue Heck specifically with her romantic arc with Sean Donahue, Aidan is introduced in Season 9 when he's delivering a sandwich to Lexie Brooks and Sue mistakes him for a "blind date" Sean was gonna set her up on--really it was gonna be himself—and while she discovers it wasn't supposed to be him, she and Aidan still get along too well. While Sue and Sean end up kissing around Christmas, Aidan [[MomentKiller wrecks it by showing up at New Year's and kissing Sue]] and because both he and Sue are so accident-prone, Sue while initially thinking they should break up begins to think he might actually be perfect for her. By Aidan's fourth appearance though—ten episodes after his first, Sue ends thing with him though and severs ties for good.

** Season 3 had Dr. Josh Davidson--who rides a motorcycle--become Beckett's new boyfriend and ''fans disliked him even more''. He was too perfect and too safe and there was instant annoyance at introducing someone that was so perfect for any women who was not meant to stick around. His final episode in the Season 4 premiere when he gives Castle a WhatTheHellHero was the last straw for many and when Beckett finally ended things with him, they all hoped he'd never come back again.

** Harry also has this happen to him a lot. First Cedric asks Cho to the Yule Ball before him; afterwards, [[spoiler:Cedric's death makes Harry's dates with Cho increasingly awkward]]. In later books, Harry becomes increasingly jealous of Ginny's boyfriends. He also takes Parvati to the Yule Ball and thinks that she "looks nice". It goes no further than that, but then again, he only asked her because he was so desperate for a date that he literally asked the first two cute girls (Ron needed a date too!) who were still available that he could find.

** For Sue Heck specifically with her romantic arc with Sean Donahue, Aidan is introduced in Season 9 when he's delivering a sandwich to Lexie and Sue mistakes him for a "blind date" Sean was gonna set her up on--really it was gonna be himself. While Sue and Sean end up kissing around Christmas, Aidan wrecks it by showing up at New Year's and because both he and Sue are so accident-prone, Sue while initially thinking they should break up begins to think hemgiht actually be perfect for her.

* In ''Series/{{Castle|2009}}'', Detective Tom Demming became this for Richard Castle in regards to their mutual interest in Detective Kate Beckett in the second season. Unlike a lot of false leads, however, Demming is a genuinely good guy who really does like Kate for exactly who she is. Castle and Beckett are the OfficialCouple, however, so it was pretty clear he wouldn't last too long...

* ''Series/TheMiddle'': Most notably, between Seasons 7 and 8, Axl started seeing a blonde airheaded girl named April and believes himself to be in love with her. Her lack of smarts and bad habits that branch from it drive the family crazy until Axl's mother Frankie finally confronts Axl about April being the utterly wrong choice and he refuses to accept it and shuts Frankie out of his life. He marries April in a desperate attempt to solidify the relationship and realizes how wrong the decision was. He continues to date her even after they get an annulment, but eventually realizes the fire has died out and that he has no choice but to end the relationship because he's not truly happy with her after all. It’s heavily suggested that Axl projected his feelings for his real love interest [[spoiler:Lexie]] onto April because he was afraid of being rejected by her (while he wasn't happy with what Frankie said, he didn't protest it because he knew she was right). Axl finds out that [[spoiler:Lexie]] actually ''does'' have feelings for him too though and they end up getting together not long after his breakup with April.

Supertrope to DisposableFiance.

Compare HopelessSuitor, RomanticRunnerUp, NewOldFlame, FalseSoulmate, and WrongGuyFirst. Also compare TemporaryLoveInterest where the relationship is unsuccessful because there is no OfficialCouple and [[StatusQuoIsGod that won't change]]. Often the focus of DieForOurShip. See also PreviouslyOverlookedParamour, the LoveInterest to whom the Romantic False Lead often gives way eventually.

* ''Webcomic/ALittleHintOfBlue'': While Fled is by all accounts a good boyfriend to Skara, he has the misfortune of being in a story where the audience already knows before he even shows up that [[MarriedInTheFuture she'll eventually end up married to Viney instead]]. Fled is even perfectly aware that a long term relationship isn't in the cards for him, which plays a role in their eventual breakup.

* ''Webcomic/ALittleHintOfBlue'' While Fled is by all accounts a good boyfriend to Skara, he has the misfortune of being in a story where the audience already knows that [[MarriedInTheFuture she'll eventually end up married to Viney instead]]. Fled is even perfectly aware that a long term relationship isn't in the cards for him, which plays a role in their eventual breakup.

* Rex Splode from ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'' briefly dated the title hero's crush Atom Eve, sparking a long-standing rivalry between the two that has gotten very violent. Rex seemed like a complete JerkAss at first but turned out to be just a somewhat arrogant [[TheAce Ace]]. Eventually the two became somewhat reluctant friends. Mark and Eve ''did'' [[HeroesWantRedHeads get together]], but much later. [[spoiler:Then Rex dies rather tragically in a HeroicSacrifice to defeat a group of lesser villains that Mark could've handled easily...if he and Eve hadn't needed to leave the planet to fight a greater threat at the exact same moment.]]

* Katara has a crush on Jet in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', at least until she finds out his true colors. Even then, she was blushing every time the subject was brought up until his HeroicSacrifice closed that particular possibility off for good, and she ends the series getting to get her with Aang. Interestingly, Aang shows little to no signs of jealousy towards Jet. It was Sokka (Katara's brother) who disliked Jet because he felt OvershadowedByAwesome.

%% * ''Series/TheOfficeUS'' has Pam's fiancé, Roy, who is repeatedly shown to be an unfeeling, selfish jerk at every possible opportunity.
* In ''Series/TheOfficeUK'':
** Dawn's fiancé Lee is mainly notable for his total lack of notable characteristics. He was more objectionable in the ChristmasEpisode than in the main series, leading her to ([[StarCrossedLovers finally!]]) hook up with Tim because she wants someone who appreciates her.
** There was also Katy (a.k.a. The Purse Girl), who Jim dated from the end of Season one to the second episode of Season two. Even if you didn't know that Jim and Pam were the OfficialCouple, you'd know Katy wasn't long for this world - she's played by [[NarrowedItDownToTheGuyIRecognize Amy]] [[Film/{{Enchanted}} Adams]].
** Though he certainly fits the trope, Roy wasn't presented as a completely bad guy. He was always friendly, but insensitive. And even though season 3 made sure to put the nail in the coffin on him and Pam, Roy got a bit of character development that season that made him very sympathetic, except when he lost his temper.

* ''Fanfic/ACrownOfStars'': After the Third Impact, thinking Shinji could not protect her or would let her down ''again'', Asuka briefly dated Hans, a subordinate of a warlord named Winthrop. When his boss sent him away she "voluntarily" went to Winthrop for protection. She spent over a year as his toy before he tired of her and gave her to his chief of staff, Colonel Jinnai. She spent two years with him before meeting Shinji again. After many, ''many'' ordeals and shared pain she and Shinji started to reconcile and try to have a real relationship. Hilariously Jinnai got mad when he found out, claiming he had been dumped by a slut despite Asuka being nothing but her toy and her telling plainly she never liked him and she serviced him and his former commander because they would put a bullet in her head if she did not "behave".
* ''Manga/{{Evangelion 303}}'': Asuka was unknowingly this to [[OriginalCharacter Mandy]]. Mandy's girlfriend Jessika fell in love with Asuka - something Asuka was completely unaware of - and when Mandi found out [[spoiler:after Jessika's death]] she was jealous, thinking wrongly Jessika had been unfaithful.

* In ''Series/{{Castle}}'', Detective Tom Demming became this for Richard Castle in regards to their mutual interest in Detective Kate Beckett in the second season. Unlike a lot of false leads, however, Demming is a genuinely good guy who really does like Kate for exactly who she is. Castle and Beckett are the OfficialCouple, however, so it was pretty clear he wouldn't last too long...

Characterisation can also be tricky. If the false lead is too likable, then the [[GreenEyedEpiphany jealous character]] will seem like a selfish jerk who cares more about winning their beloved for themselves than [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy seeing them happy]] -- or alternatively, since 'perfect' tends to equal 'uninteresting' in the minds of many when it comes to fictional characters, a ''too'' perfect and nice character will just lose the audience's interest in comparison to the more flawed and interesting main character. Many writers go for making this character a [[VillainyFreeVillain complete jerk of a partner]] instead, but on the other hand, if this character is too unlikable, we'll wonder what the love interest could [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim possibly see in them]] and lose respect for them. And in extremely rare occasions, the Romantic False Lead might be more interesting and likable than both main characters together, making the audience wonder why we're not getting a better story about ''[[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter this]]'' person instead.

Characterisation can also be tricky. If the false lead is too likable, then the [[GreenEyedEpiphany jealous character]] will seem like a selfish jerk who cares more about winning their beloved for themselves than [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy seeing them happy]] -- or alternatively, since 'perfect' tends to equal 'uninteresting' in the minds of many when it comes to fictional characters, a ''too'' perfect and nice character will just lose the audience's interest in comparison to the more flawed and interesting main character. On the other hand, if he's too unlikable, we'll wonder what the love interest could [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim possibly see in them]] and lose respect for them. And in extremely rare occasions, the Romantic False Lead might be more interesting and likable than both main characters together, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter making the audience wonder why we're not getting a better story about]] ''[[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter this]]'' [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter person instead]].

** In ''[[VisualNovel/TheJunior]], Nathan Sterling is initially set up as a love interest, but then he is revealed to be the BigBad of the story, the president of a fraternity/prank club turned criminal organization.