User blog:General Khor/Let's talk about: Favourite Love Interests

Hello everyone, this is General Khor, or as some of you may know me as, one of the wiki's resident book critics and conspiracy theorists. Welcome to my first discussion blog, and today, I'll be talking about the most popular love interests by series.

So I started some polls to find out which love interests are the most popular in each series after I found out that some LIs are more favoured by Youtube players than others, and those LIs tend to be the first LI we meet or those featured on book covers, so the question that immediately hit my mind was: why? Why do people prefer these LIs over others?

Since it's been a month since I started those polls, it's time to reveal the results, and just as I thought, for most series, whichever LI we first meet or is shown on the book covers tends to be the favourite LI for most wiki users. Then there's the forced LI effect: whenever an LI is forced down our throats, s/he tends to be the most preferred. I will omit the results for no one, as these votes tend to make up a small minority, and not every series allows you to be single. And now, without further ado, it's time to announce the results.

Poll Results
All figures shown exclude votes to be single.

LI choice for Endless Summer (231 votes)

 * Sean: 21 votes (9%)
 * Jake: 127 votes (55%)
 * Quinn: 54 votes (23%)
 * Estela: 29 votes (13%)

Three years on, Jake remains the most popular ES LI on the wiki, and a good number of players chose Quinn. I guess it's because Jake comes up with funny nicknames for everyone, and he's also the unlucky pilot who crashes every plane he flies. As for Quinn, she's a beautiful flower who's about to wilt away, no wonder she received quite a number of votes. I'm not surprised Sean got the least votes, even though he's the first LI we meet, since he's considered by many to be the most boring LI.

LI choice for It Lives in the Woods (190 votes)

 * Connor: 65 votes (34%)
 * Stacy: 56 votes (29%)
 * Ava: 19 votes (10%)
 * Lucas: 24 votes (13%)
 * Andy: 26 votes (14%)

I don't think I should be surprised that Connor won this poll, since he's the only LI to survive no matter what. Stacy won an earlier poll three years ago, and now she still has a fair share of votes. I guess she's the easiest LI to romance other than Connor, and you have to spend big to romance Ava, which is why she got the least votes.

LI choice for High School Story: Original (281 votes)

 * Michael: 162 votes (58%)
 * Aiden: 13 votes (5%)
 * Caleb: 8 votes (3%)
 * Maria: 45 votes (16%)
 * Emma: 53 votes (19%)

Three years on, Michael still has more fans than anyone else. I guess it's because he's the Leader of the Rebellion in Book 2 (or is it the MC?). Another probable reason that led to his popularity is that most players chose to matchmake the other LIs (Emma, Aiden and Caleb), which leads me to believe that whenever an LI has an alternate LI, players tend to prefer to matchmake him/her with the alternate LI rather than pursue him/her themselves.

LI choice for Veil of Secrets (210 votes)

 * Flynn: 118 votes (56%)
 * Grant: 8 votes (4%)
 * Naomi: 47 votes (22%)
 * Kate: 37 votes (18%)

When it comes to superhero stories, there is usually the hero, the sidekick, the villain and the love interest/damsel in distress, yet the LI with the most fans is Flynn the badass sidekick. I don't know if I should be surprised, but I think had Kate been introduced as an LI earlier, she would have been the most popular choice, instead, as Circy would put it, PB dangled Kate under our noses like a carrot. "You want it? You get it at the finish line". And it's just because she's the DID. It's no surprise Grant got the least votes, even though he's the first LI we meet, since he's considered by many to be the most boring LI.

LI choice for Perfect Match (207 votes)

 * Hayden: 97 votes (47%)
 * Damien: 80 votes (39%)
 * Sloane: 12 votes (6%)
 * Alana: 15 votes (7%)
 * Khaan: 3 votes (1%)

Is it really a surprise that Hayden won this poll? Of course not. I mean, the story basically revolves around us and our robot lover. And I can see a fair share of players chose Detective Damien, and I get it: who doesn't like detectives? Had Alana been introduced as an LI in Book 1, she would have gotten more votes. As for Khaan, it's also no surprise he got only 3 votes, since he was introduced pretty late in the story. Besides, I'm sure many players prefer to matchmake Sloane and Khaan, which seems to be the most probable reason for them to be the least popular PM LIs. I know there's an option to romance everyone in this story, and I'm sure most players choose to do just that, but the reason I've excluded this option from the results is because not every series gives you this option (besides, there's no space left in the poll for that option anyway).

LI choice for It Lives Beneath (210 votes)

 * Tom: 33 votes (16%)
 * Imogen: 27 votes (13%)
 * Parker: 97 votes (46%)
 * Danni: 53 votes (25%)

Again, who doesn't like cops, as long as they're the good guys? This is the first reason I can think of when I saw the results. Another probable reason for Parker winning this poll is that most players do everything in their power to prevent him from bolting on the gang. I'm surprised Imogen got the least votes, since she loses nerve the fastest, so I thought players will try their very best to save her, apparently players are more afraid of Parker bolting than they are of Imogen dying. Also, only 16% of votes went to Tom, the first LI we meet.

LI choice for America's Most Eligible (247 votes)

 * Adam: 58 votes (23%)
 * Mackenzie: 55 votes (22%)
 * Derek: 6 votes (2%)
 * Jen: 33 votes (13%)
 * Bianca: 8 votes (3%)
 * Slater: 87 votes (35%)

I expected Adam to be the most popular AME LI, since he's the first LI we meet, and also the easiest to romance out of the contestants. If we're not counting the new additions in Book 3, then Adam has won this poll hands down, followed closely by Mackenzie. I don't think it's a surprise that Derek got the least votes, because as I mentioned in my AME review blog, you have to spend big in order to get him to be in love with you. As for Jen, I can understand why she's not as popular as Adam or Mackenzie, even though she's the cheapest out of the 4 main LIs, after all everyone wants to win, right? However, I've included the Book 3 additions, and surprise surprise, the winner turns out to be Slater of all people, even though he was a cheater in Book 2. I guess being hot made most players willing to forgive him by Book 3. As for Bianca, while fans have successfully petitioned PB to bring her back in Book 2, she seems to have lost her popularity in Book 3, as she only got slightly more votes than Derek. While Slater's hotness worked wonders for him, the same didn't happen for Bianca.

LI choice for High School Story: Class Act (206 votes)

 * Rory: 102 votes (50%)
 * Ajay: 39 votes (19%)
 * Skye: 65 votes (31%)

Unsurprisingly, Rory won this poll hands down. This is one of those series where we see the forced LI effect: Rory isn't just featured on the book covers and the first LI we meet, s/he is also our neighbour and childhood friend, so the devs decide to force him/her down our throats by giving us more scenes with him/her than anyone else and making him/her our LI on stage, first in Book 1 and then in Book 3. Also, a good number of players chose Skye, after all she's the damsel in distress who's constantly abused by mean parents and an obnoxious brother, so of course players couldn't not be there for her. As for Ajay, turns out not many players are keen on being his emotional support person. Come on, if he's going to get fewer scenes than anyone else, why make him go through family problems?

LI choice for Bloodbound (234 votes)

 * Adrian: 116 votes (50%)
 * Kamilah: 71 votes (30%)
 * Jax: 34 votes (15%)
 * Lily: 13 votes (6%)

This result also shouldn't be surprising, after all Adrian's featured on the covers and the first LI we meet. Is it because he's our boss, or is it because he's a badass? Whatever the reason is, he's too scary for me, so I chose Jax instead. A fair share of players meanwhile chose Kamilah. I get it, she and Adrian are badasses. I guess this is why PB chose to kill off one of the underrated ones, because they don't want to break many fans' hearts.

LI choice for Nightbound (224 votes)

 * Nik: 110 votes (49%)
 * Vera: 28 votes (13%)
 * Cal: 36 votes (16%)
 * Katherine: 50 votes (22%)

Another unsurprising result. After all, we're meant to be Nik's, right? His property, that is. Oh yes, we're very fragile, and it's Nik's job to keep us from breaking. I remember mentioning this in my NB review blog, but the interaction between the MC and Nik is one of the fatal flaws of the series. Not only does Nik treat the MC as his property, the MC also acts like his property if you don't spend diamonds, not to mention we get more scenes with him than anyone else. Then there's a good number of players who chose Katherine, I guess most players prefer badass monster hunters to an accursed Reimonenq and a werewolf (sorry Vera and Cal, I don't mean to insult you, but it's true).

LI choice for The Heist: Monaco (201 votes)

 * Rye: 8 votes (4%)
 * Eris: 20 votes (10%)
 * Fabien: 87 votes (43%)
 * Tillie: 19 votes (9%)
 * Sonia: 67 votes (33%)

I expected Sonia to have the most fans because she's featured on the cover, but surprise surprise, the winner turns out to be Fabien, with Sonia in 2nd place. I guess people prefer a dashing (literally and figuratively) F1 racer to a corrupt billionaire's goon. I'm also kind of surprised Tillie ended up in 4th place while Eris the explosives expert finished 3rd. I guess people prefer a badass explosives expert to a daredevil, however H-O-T that daredevil is (that's exactly why I chose her). As for Rye, sure, he's our best friend and the first LI we meet, but honestly, he's kind of boring, no wonder he ended up dead last in this poll.

LI choice for The Elementalists (234 votes)

 * Beckett: 121 votes (52%)
 * Shreya: 83 votes (35%)
 * Griffin: 10 votes (4%)
 * Aster: 20 votes (9%)

I don't think I should be surprised with this result as well. The devs seem to like "enemies to lovers" stories, so much so that they focus on Beckett a lot, trying to convince fans he's a good guy, while depriving the others of screen time, and I think that's one of the reasons that led to the series' cancellation. Meanwhile, a fair share of players chose Shreya. I'm surprised Griffin finished dead last, even though Aster only officially joined the team in Book 2.

LI choice for Desire and Decorum (222 votes)

 * Mr Sinclaire: 111 votes (50%)
 * Luke Harper: 15 votes (7%)
 * Prince Hamid: 28 votes (13%)
 * Miss Parsons: 68 votes (31%)

Again, it's no surprise who will win this poll. Featured on the covers? Check. First LI we meet? Check. However, I think the main reason Sinclaire bagged exactly half the votes is that he's the knight in shining armor who saves and protects us from the evil Mr Richards, and even in Season 3, the story still revolves around his and Richards' history (after all, we're dealing with Richards' son, who's also that of Sinclaire's wife), as well as our fight for our rightful home. Miss Parsons meanwhile also got a fair share of votes. I guess the reason Luke ended up in last place is that players prefer to matchmake him with Miss Cordelia.

LI choice for Across the Void (173 votes)

 * Zekei: 26 votes (15%)
 * Sol: 70 votes (40%)
 * Titania: 28 votes (16%)
 * Meridian: 26 votes (15%)
 * Kepler: 23 votes (13%)

Unsurprisingly, the winner is the LI featured on the cover. The rest got a roughly equal share of votes (I guess most players prefer Zekei with Eos). I wonder what's so special about Sol that made him so popular.

LI choice for Big Sky Country (209 votes)

 * Sawyer: 100 votes (48%)
 * Juliette: 52 votes (25%)
 * Dallas: 23 votes (11%)
 * Asha: 34 votes (16%)

The forced LI effect strikes again. Yes, we're staying at Romeo's - I mean Sawyer's home, we get more screen time with him, and his dad entrusted his farm to us, so we're meant to be Sawyer's, right? Besides, he fulfills the two criteria mentioned earlier to be the most popular LI. Meanwhile, Juliette also got a good number of votes. I guess players prefer the cowboy and cowgirl to a man on the run and a grocery store owner. Had we been given the choice to matchmake Sawyer and Juliette, I'm sure the other two would have been more popular.

LI choice for Distant Shores (260 votes)

 * Edward: 82 votes (32%)
 * Charlie: 82 votes (32%)
 * Oliver: 96 votes (37%)

I expected Edward to win this poll for reasons previously mentioned, but surprise surprise, the winner turns out to be Oliver of all people, the LI who was only introduced in the middle of the story and got the least screen time. I guess many players aren't fans of being a pirate.

Conclusion
As Nectaris7 puts it, the most prominent (or forced) LI is like the deuteragonist of the story, and I can agree with that. I may not be in the majority for all these polls, but I still find these stories as good as ever, so I have no issue with that.

So who is your LI in these series? What influences your choice of LIs? Let me know in the comments, and be sure to check out my next discussion blog next week. That's all for today, until then, this is General Khor. The end, and thank you for reading.