When I first began watching Gilmore Girls (aka when I binge-watched it during one marvelous summer), I fully expected myself to be Team Dean. I began this show as a huge Jared Padalecki fan so it was only natural for me to assume I would be rooting for his character of Dean Forester.

I mean, just look at him.

So I was quite surprised that when the "bad boy" love interest of Rory Gilmore appeared for the first time in season 2, my thoughts on Dean and Rory together began to change. You see, I'm not one to normally root for the "bad boy". I much prefer the innocent one, the one who cares deeply and actually shows it, the one who is passionate, the one who fights for what they want in life.

I hated Jess Mariano at first. He was arrogant, obnoxious, uncaring, and just plain mean. He was disrespectful to Luke Danes, his uncle, and cared little about anyone but himself. His character was unsympathetic and, at first, just seemed like an annoying obstacle that was getting in the way of what appeared to be the perfect relationship of Dean and Rory.

Of course, as was to be expected from the moment he first appeared, Rory chose Jess over Dean in the classic bad boy vs. good guy dynamic. I didn't get it. Jess was cruel and Dean was gentle. How could she choose the bad over the good? I thought that Jess didn't really care about Rory as a person but, instead, just wanted to beat Dean in the "game" of stealing her away. He wanted to know he was better than Dean, someone who the whole town loved and admired, especially ever since he and Rory began dating. I believe that it did start out as a game for Jess, if I'm being completely honest. I hope I'm wrong in that but it would make sense for how long the whole "battle" played out for. Jess' feelings in the end were real but I don't know if it started out as a genuine interest in Rory.

But, see, the problem wasn't Jess as a person but, rather, what Jess allowed everybody else to see. He wasn't cold, he wasn't uncaring, he was simply just putting up a front to appear tough and unaffected. Because, as time went on, we began to see more and more of who he was.

Throughout the entire series, especially in the first few seasons where Jess is still learning, he always tried his best. His timing was pretty terrible, if I'm honest, when it came to saying things and acting on his eventual feelings for Rory. But every single thing he did and said was always for her. He tried so very hard to be good for her, to treat her right, even if he didn't always know the best way to go about it.

He understood Rory and saw her for who she really was. He saw her flaws (and, let's be honest, she sure had a lot of those) and said, "Hey, I have flaws too. Let's be messed up and figure it out together." He was always pushing her out of her comfort zone, challenging her both intellectually and personally. They were figuring out life together as it continued to play out.

They were dysfunctional. Man, were they ever. But that didn't mean their relationship was a bad thing. On the contrary, it was the most beautiful and captivating one of Rory's throughout the entire series. As I watched this relationship play out, there were moments where I thought I could never again be Team Jess- like when he just up and left town right after he said those three words that he should have said to Rory a hell of a long time ago. Again with the poor timing, Jess.

But I found there to be something so beautiful and captivating in their messed up relationship. Rory always found her way back to Jess in one way or another and I always thought that should have been the biggest sign to her. Jess was the most dysfunctional of them all but he was by far the best thing for her. Dean was good but Jess was better. And then there's scumbag Logan whom you will never find me rooting for. But that's for another day.

Until then, keep shipping Literati, my friends. I know I sure will.