History UnresolvedSexualTension / LiveActionTV

* ''Series/GossipGirl'': Done all sorts of backwards with Chuck and Blair. They ''start out'' by having sex, and have a friends-with-benefits thing going for a few episodes. ''Then'' they end up in a drawn-out UST storyline, which includes playing ''Literature/DangerousLiaisons'' type games, Chuck pretending to be Blair's boyfriend during a blackout, and generally wanting nothing more than to get together but neither willing to really be the initiator. Even lampshaded by Chuck in one episode, when he can't perform with other women thanks to his UST with Blair (the subsequent plan to use her as sexual Drano doesn't go all that well).

* ''Series/RizzoliAndIsles'': Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles ooze this. SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped; two women are ''very'' rarely the primary UST couple, and never in a police procedural (HeteronormativeCrusader meets ExecutiveMeddling), and some of us are very pleased indeed to see a ''Series/{{Bones}}''-worthy level of UST between them. [[LGBTFanbase For obvious reasons]]. It helps that one of them is [[Series/LawAndOrder Abbie Carmichael]] and the other is [[Series/{{NCIS}} Kate Todd]]. (Amusingly, fanon says BlondeRepublicanSexKitten Abbie was gay as well.)

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Captain Picard and Doctor Crusher have UST from the very first two episodes (wherein he nearly has a stroke upon first seeing her and then again when she comes on to him while under the influence) to the last (wherein they eventually (in what may be an averted alternate future) marry, and then divorce, though she keeps his name). This gets particularly bad when they are telepathically joined in season 5, discover and openly discuss the UST, and still choose not to resolve it.

* ''{{Series/Survivors}}'': Anya and Tom have this for most of the series.

*** Oliver and Felicity remained at a smolder for two seasons. Oliver clearly wants her, as evidenced by his obvious jealousy when Felicity shows interest in Barry Allen, but never makes a move, variously pursuing Laurel and Sara Lance instead. Amps up in Season 3 when they admit their mutual feelings but still don't get together due to the dangers of their vigilante lifestyle. [[spoiler: They eventually get together at the end of the season and are together on and off for the rest of show, eventually getting married in Season 6, raising a family together and ending the show in a pocket "paradise" dimension to spend eternity together.]]
*** Oliver Queen and Laurel Lance had this at the beginning of the series, and even after Oliver got together with Felicity, hints of it still lingered. Season Five eventually confirmed that Oliver was still in love with Laurel even during his relationship with Felicity (with the crossover basically confirming that Laurel was [[OneTrueLove the love of his life]]), and always would be -- [[spoiler:something that only provides more grief for Oliver, as Laurel was KilledOffForReal in Season Four, after confessing that she still loved him as well. The love he still has for his Laurel is part of why he is so conflicted over Black Siren, Laurel's evil Earth-2 doppelganger, who, despite all her malice, is still in love with her Oliver, someone that is also deceased]].

*** Oliver and Felicity remained at a smolder for two seasons. Oliver clearly wants her, as evidenced by his obvious jealousy when Felicity shows interest in Barry Allen, but never makes a move, variously pursuing Laurel and Sara Lance instead.

** There is also plenty of tension between, [[FoeYay surprisingly]], River and Jayne.

* ''Series/TheAvengers'': John Steed and Emma Peel. And episodes when he's there when she wakes up! Patrick Macnee once said, "Of course they're sleeping together! It doesn't mean they have to show the world!" Cue PSL.

** The study group complains about this getting unbearable in the episode [[Recap/CommunityS1E23ModernWarfare Modern Warfare]]:

** Beyond that example, [[FanPreferredCouple Jeff and Annie]] have been [[HeldGaze smouldering]] with each other since season 1 and kissed at least three times. The show has demonstrated various times that no matter how much they try to deny it, they always end up close, pairing up for campus-wide games and getting jealous of any attention they get from other people. In the season 5 finale, Jeff's feelings for Annie are the key to opening the door and saving Greendale. In the season 6 finale, [[spoiler:they admit that while it's not the best time to get together--they both have some issues they should work out on their own and Annie is leaving for an FBI internship--they admit they have feelings for each other and imply they'll get together in the future]].
--->'''Annie:''' [[spoiler:I think if you don't kiss me goodbye you'll regret it for the rest of your life]].

* ''Series/{{ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia}}'': One could argue that there's been UST between Mac and Dennis throughout the whole show, with it becoming particularly apparent after Mac comes out of the closet in Season 12 and Season 14 offering perhaps the most concrete examples. In "The Gang Gets Romantic," Mac and Dennis share a bed; in "The Gang Chokes," Mac carries Dennis back home when Dennis doesn't feel well (granted, Dennis only feels sick because Mac poisoned him to make Dennis dependent on him); and, in "The Gang Texts," it's revealed in a paragraph-long text message from Mac that he has been dyeing Dennis's hair and massaging his pecs after workouts.

* ''Series/{{It'sAlwaysSunnyinPhiladelphia}}'': One could argue that there's been UST between Mac and Dennis throughout the whole show, with it becoming particularly apparent after Mac comes out of the closet in Season 12 and Season 14 offering perhaps the most concrete examples. In "The Gang Gets Romantic," Mac and Dennis share a bed; in "The Gang Chokes," Mac carries Dennis back home when Dennis doesn't feel well (granted, Dennis only feels sick because Mac poisoned him to make Dennis dependent on him); and, in "The Gang Texts," it's revealed in a paragraph-long text message from Mac that he has been dyeing Dennis's hair and massaging his pecs after workouts.

* ''Series/{{ItsAlwaysSunnyinPhiladelphia}}'': One could argue that there's UST been between Mac and Dennis throughout the whole show, with it becoming particularly apparent after Mac comes out of the closet in Season 12. The Season 14 episodes "The Gang Gets Romantic," "The Gang Chokes" and "The Gang Texts" all offer perhaps the most concrete examples of UST. In "The Gang Gets Romantic," Mac and Dennis share a bed; in "The Gang Chokes," Mac carries Dennis back home when Dennis doesn't feel well (granted, Dennis only feels poorly because Mac poisoned him to make Dennis dependent on him); and, in "The Gang Texts," it's revealed in a paragraph-long text message that Mac has been dyeing Dennis's hair and massaging his pecs.

** Clara and the Eleventh Doctor start off as JustFriends, but this trope slowly develops [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E10JourneyToTheCentreOfTheTARDIS between the two of them later on]]. While they do grow to love each other dearly, they ultimately subvert the trope by deciding to stay PlatonicLifePartners instead (or, at least, so they admit to each other; both characters have moments out of earshot of the other where the [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E12NightmareInSilver opposite]] desire is expressed). The romantic tension that existed in their friendship is punctuated in the [[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor Eleventh's final episode]] and the [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath opening episode of the Twelfth Doctor]] (in Series 8), where it's very obvious that Clara feels heartbroken about losing the incarnation of the Doctor she grew to love beyond just friendship. In a ThrowTheDogABone moment at the end of that episode, [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold the more aloof but still kind]] Twelfth [[AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther makes peace with her]] and [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments both of them agree to stay good friends]]. (At the same time, however, he confesses that he ''did'' believe himself to be Clara's boyfriend.)

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': According to the {{fandom}}, [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Castiel]] wants [[CosmicPlaything Dean]]; the plot point in the way seems to be the fact that Dean is apparently [[TheCasanova straight]].
** Although Dean's SomethingElseAlsoRises moment after Castiel [[SheCleansUpNicely Cleans Up Nicely]] in season eight may have something to say about said plot point. They really couldn't get any more blatant.

** B'Elanna and Tom Paris, for the first few seasons at least, before they get married.

** Has Wayne Rigsby and Grace Van Pelt. At least once per episode there is some mention that one of them is attracted to the other one, and they've actually kissed once while he was under hypnosis. This doesn't look to get resolved any time soon, either: workplace rules prohibit them from dating. [[spoiler:Later it got resolved.. Rigsby and Van Pelt got found out and it led to their breakup. Rigsby still loves Van Pelt, she started dating a new guy. They get engaged, but then the new guy turns out to be a {{Mook|s}} for [[BigBad Red John]], and is shot. So, back to square one.]]
** Jane and Lisbon have some UST, and a fair amount of ShipTease.

** Later seasons have Olivia and ADA Rafael Barba, what with the lingering looks, {{held gaze}}s, habitual post-case drinks (or Barba asking her out for the aforesaid, at least), and one particular episode which has them hoping to be "squabbling at eighty-five". [[note]]This one was emphasized/played up by the actors, who believed their characters were a good match and ''should'' have dated, though this never came to pass.[[/note]]

* ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'': This show has devoted partners Robert Goren and Alexandra Eames. The UST is finally acknowledged in one episode by Goren's brother Frank, who irritably tells Bobby to "take Eames to a motel and get it out of your system." Since Alex is Bobby's BerserkButton, you can imagine the response. This one is unusual in that it has a fairly non-sexual feel to it - they act as if they're in love with each other, but there isn't a lot of ''heat'' between them.

** Later seasons have Olivia and ADA Rafael Barba, what with the lingering looks, {{held gaze}}s, habitual post-case drinks (or Barba asking her out for the aforesaid, at least), and one particular episode which has them hoping to be "squabbling at eighty-five".

* ''Series/{{Bones}}'': Everywhere. The season four finale shows how Brennan and Booth would be if they got married -- it's really boring without the UST. WordOfGod states that Booth remembers the fantasy. Booth's present feelings might be the result of ''brain damage'' and everyone from Angela's psychic to ''his own BadassGrandpa'' is telling him to hook up with Brennan. Episode 100 reveals that ''they were attracted to each other a year before the series started'' but then had a very bad falling out. Back in the present they finally open up to each other on camera, but Bones tearfully admits she can't get rid of her doubts about relationships and Booth is tired of waiting for her to change. Resolved off-screen.

* ''Series/{{The 100}}'':
** Clarke and Bellamy, making them a FanPreferredCouple, even though WordOfGod says that, as of Season 2, their feelings for each other aren't romantic or sexual (at least on Clarke's end; [[ShrugOfGod Bellamy's feelings are left up in the air]]).
** Clarke and Lexa have this in Season 2, eventually leading to a kiss in "Bodyguard of Lies", but any potential relationship is but on hold due to '''a)''' Clarke still recovering from [[spoiler:killing her previous LoveInterest]], and '''b)''' [[spoiler:Lexa betraying their political alliance shortly afterwards]].

*** Liz. In particular, he clearly flirts with her in two scenes in "Spearhead From Space", though it is only to trick her into doing what he wants.

*** Sarah Jane. This could have been [[ImpliedLoveInterest intentional]], or could have been real-life sexual tension accidentally manifesting onscreen (both Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen have admitted they [[RomanceOnTheSet fancied the other actor enormously]], although both knew not to take the crush seriously and Elisabeth was married), or [[ActorInspiredElement a mixture of both]]. This was eventually {{Deconstructed}} several decades later in "School Reunion", where the Tenth Doctor meets up with Sarah Jane again and it's played like she's an OldFlame. The Doctor eventually admits he'd been in love with her, but knew he couldn't do anything about it because of their species difference, with the implication that she feels the exact same way.
*** Leela, ironically as the actors famously disliked each other. Leela was MsFanservice and pitched as being sexier than Sarah - both were likely asked to play this up.

*** There's a very random and slightly distracting amount of sexual tension between the Doctor and Bettan in "Genesis of the Daleks".

** The Eleventh Doctor and River Song have ridiculous levels of UST. Which isn't surprising, considering the Timey-Wimey nature of their relationship, it's entirely possible that from River's perspective, they've, ah...''resolved'' it in her past, (and therefore his future). [[spoiler: Now quite firmly resolved, with only a mild stretch of the imagination regarding River's prison nights. Justified in the context of the show in that the two are married]].
** Clara and the Eleventh Doctor start off as JustFriends, but this trope slowly develops [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E10JourneyToTheCentreOfTheTardis between the two of them later on]]. While they do grow to love each other dearly, they ultimately subvert the trope by deciding to stay PlatonicLifePartners instead (or, at least, so they admit to each other; both characters have moments out of earshot of the other where the [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E12NightmareInSilver opposite]] desire is expressed). The romantic tension that existed in their friendship is punctuated in the [[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor Eleventh's final episode]] and the [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath opening episode of the Twelfth Doctor]] (in Series 8), where it's very obvious that Clara feels heartbroken about losing the incarnation of the Doctor she grew to love beyond just friendship. In a ThrowTheDogABone moment at the end of that episode, [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold the more aloof but still kind]] Twelfth [[AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther makes peace with her]] and [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments both of them agree to stay good friends]]. (At the same time, however, he confesses that he ''did'' believe himself to be Clara's boyfriend.)
** While he seems to have concluded that it was a mistake to ever let himself pursue her, old habits die hard and you could make as strong a case for obvious residual feelings between Twelve and Clara as for anything on this list; While he couldn't manage a compliment if he tried, and usually makes a point not to, he does his communicating in different ways and there are, depending on the mood, challenging cocky grins and forlorn little glances going both ways, that very particular cheeky tone she sometimes speaks with, and incidents such as the time he off-handedly referred to his [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E5TimeHeist latest outing with Clara as a "Date"]], [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E4Listen Clara's casual remark comparing his voice/accent with mood lighting]], [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E6TheCaretaker his very blatantly flattered reaction when he was under the mistaken impression that she had settled for a lookalike]], before you even get to mention [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E8MummyOnTheOrientExpress "Mummy on the Orient Express"]] which was chock full of it, probably in part because both thought this would be the last they might see of each other (WordOfSaintPaul - the director of the episode - has confirmed the UST here). After the [[spoiler: [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E11DarkWater death of Danny Pink]]]], her boyfriend, the UST between the two increased and is particularly noticeable in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E3UnderTheLake Under the Lake]]", "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E9SleepNoMore Sleep No More]]" and the opening scene of "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E10FaceTheRaven Face the Raven]]", until tragic circumstances bring out other priorities in their relationship. Some residual UST, however, is evident when, [[spoiler: after he loses most of his memories of her, [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent Clara attempts to make him remember her]]]].
** At least three cases of ''one-sided'' UST have been noted: Martha Jones wanted nothing better than to jump the Doctor's bones in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E2TheShakespeareCode The Shakespeare Code]]" when they briefly shared a bed together (for sleeping only) but he'd have none of it. In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E5FleshAndStone Flesh and Stone]]" Amy Pond - experiencing conflicting feelings over her impending marriage - attempts to ''resolve'' the UST by [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids seducing the Doctor]]. And Osgood, whose crush on the Doctor - especially the Twelfth - is undisguised, goes so far as to aim a suggestive remark his way in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E7TheZygonInvasion The Zygon Invasion]]". The Twelfth Doctor and Kate Stewart also exhibit UST when they meet in Series 8 and 9, but both seem oblivious to it.

* ''Series/{{Eureka}}'' and ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'': During the {{Crossover}} of these two shows, Fargo and Claudia had a full serving of geeky sexual tension in the first half of the crossover, which looked like it would go nowhere until Claudia's boyfriend dumped her at the end of the first half. In the 2nd half, back in Eureka, they got their CrossoverShip sailing, making out after they geekily disabled a mine that would've killed them.
* ''Series/{{ER}}'': Between Dr. Mark Greene and Dr. Susan Lewis, Dr. John Carter and Dr. Anna Del Amico

--->'''Zoe''': [Voice completely unemotional and with no desire at all] Take me, sir. Take me hard.
--->'''Jayne''': Now somethin' about that is just downright unsettlin'.

-->'''Parker''': So the thing is, I think that maybe I might be having feelings, like weird feelings, for...pretzels.
-->'''Hardison''': Well, they're right here, when you want them.
** After [[spoiler: defusing the bomb]] in The Big Bang Job
-->[[spoiler:Parker: You know what I'm in the mood for? Pretzels.]]

--> '''Vex''': Oh, go ahead and merge naughty bits already. Seriously?! Am I the only one seeing this?
** Also Kenzi and Dyson, especially in seasons 3 and 4.
* ''Series/{{Luther}}'': Between John Luther and Alice Morgan, he's a big black cop with anger issues. She's a small redheaded sociopath who commits multiple murders. And yet they tend to get into each others personal space and look a heartbeat away from hate sex.

* ''Series/{{Remington Steele}}'': Beautiful, successful Laura Holt and dashing, mysterious "Remington Steele", the show's two leads, had this in spades throughout the entire series, as they worked closely together on cases for her detective agency.

* ''Series/StargateAtlantis'': Sheppard and Weir provide the UST. Until Weir leaves the show in the fourth season premier, that is.
* ''Series/StargateSG1'':
** O'Neill and Carter are the epitome of this. Behind-the-scenes forces make any romantic feelings between them ''genuinely'' appear and disappear at apparent random (as opposed to WillTheyOrWontThey). Nonetheless, it showed up least once a season. It's so obvious it hurts. Them being married in at least one AU doesn't help. And kissing. WordOfGod votes in favor of the romance. The producer stated in an interview that while it was never presented officially on the show, "in my mind, they got together [after O'Neill retired] and have been together ever since." A deleted scene from one episode ''strongly'' suggests that O'Neill and Carter finally got their resolution on.
** After O'Neill left the show, Daniel and Vala took over the job of teasing the audience about the potential of their relationship, though it was less heavy-handed in that case. Well, at least until [[spoiler:they got together in a timeline that ended up being reset]].
** Daniel and Janet had it as well. This was notable because the writers themselves didn't plan it. Daniel and Janet's actors made a conscious decision to throw it into their scenes together quite deliberately to give the fandom something to talk about, and the show's director let them do it. It did get the fandom talking about it.

* On ''{{Series/The Vampire Diaries}}'', there are ''many'' examples:

* ''Series/TrueBlood'': This show is laden with sex and sexual tension. Sookie and Bill have tension from the first episode until their initial get together early in the season, but the series most prominent UST is between Sookie and Eric from the moment they meet until their UST's resolution in season 4. Sookie and Alcide have a fair amount as well. Jason and Jessica get hot and bothered in seasons 4 and 5. Tara and Pam start and resolve their UST in season 5.

-->'''Pete:''' The real Myka would ''never'' kiss me – not if her life depended on it!

-->'''HG''': How do you say goodbye to the one person who knows you better than anyone else?
-->'''Myka''': ''(holding back tears)'' I wish I knew.

* ''Series/TheXFiles'': Mulder and Scully. According to internet lore, the term and abbreviation for this trope originated in the online forums when the show first aired to describe their relationship, though the writers didn't intentionally start capitalizing on it until nearly half-way through the show's run; WordOfGod maintained that there was nothing romantic between Mulder and Scully. However, the chemistry between the leads looked pretty non-platonic from day one, and whether or not it was intentional, nearly every episode from seasons 1-7 had at least one moment highlighting this and driving fans crazy. It finally was resolved in season 7 (offscreen, to the dismay of fans), and had arguably started drifting into RomanticPlotTumor territory. Perhaps ironically, both the episode where the UST is eventually resolved and "The Unnatural," which contains probably the most shining example of their UST in a HandsOnApproach baseball lesson, were written and directed by the actors themselves.

* ''Series/{{Merlin}}'': Has this with pretty much all of its main characters at some point in time, although the most persistent/popular ones seem to be Arthur & Merlin and Arthur & Gwen. [[spoiler: Arthur and Gwen's OfficialCouple status gets firmly resolved in the series 4 finale when they get married.]]

*** Creator/CoteDePablo's departure during the eleventh season forced the writers to bring an end to the UST. [[spoiler:Ziva and Tony share a BigDamnKiss before she boards a plane that takes her back to Israel.]] Furthermore, Creator/MichaelWeatherly's final episodes three years later reveal that [[spoiler:the UST ''did'' get resolved, as he and Ziva had "a fond farewell" before she left NCIS - which resulted in the birth of their daughter Tali.]]

** Mutt and Alexis have much tension between them in the first season, until they share their BigDamnKiss.
** Alexis and Ted have much tension from the mid-second season until [[spoiler: their reunion and BigDamnKiss at the end of Season 4.]]

* ''Series/AshesToAshes'': Gene and Alex have been dancing around the will-they-won't-they issue since the first episode of the show, the whole police force already thinks they're shagging, and the writers have ramped up the tension even more drastically in the second series. Of course, any potential relationship between the two may be seriously hampered by the fact that Alex is quite probably trapped in her own head and Gene himself is quite possibly imaginary... Pretty darn resolved as of the [[GrandFinale series finale]]: [[spoiler: There's feelings there, but Gene, as the guardian of Dead Copper Purgatory, can never move on when there's new coppers to help, and it's time for Alex to "cross over". They do kiss before Alex walks into the Railway Arms.]]