Is it even summer without a teen romance?
It certainly doesn’t feel like it. And this summer, we’re gearing up for two, baby. July comes in hot (and we mean hot) with the highly anticipated final season of Prime Video’s megahit book-to-screen adaptation, The Summer I Turned Pretty.
But you’ll barely have a month to lick your proverbial wounds or gloat after its conclusion before August rolls in with Netflix’s endearing hit My Life With the Walter Boys.
However, which teen love triangle is vying for first place in your heart? Surely, there’s one you’re anticipating more than the other, right?
The Summer I Turned Pretty is giving beachside angst and a dash of Taylor Swift vibe.
But My Life with the Walter Boys has cool ranches, cowboy boots, and family feels.
The vibes are different, the fandoms are equally passionate, and anticipation is high.
Vibe Checks – Angsty versus Cozy
When it comes to these teen romances, it’s all bout the vibes, and both are serving up something different.
TSITP is all angst. If you want feelings, oh, it’s going to give you feelings. ALL of them.
Grief, nostalgia, young love, trauma, family legacy, and personal growth, it’s running the gamut on the heavy stuff, so the angst factor? Oh, it’s high, and so are the stakes.
I mean, the final season is taking it to the altar, so yes, it’s getting serious!
Love and romance here aren’t light — they’re messy, painful, bone-achingly tough, and tortured. It’s the type of love that people write emotional ballads about — and by people, we mean Taylor Swift.
There’s a reason it’s the soundtrack of the series.
Meanwhile, My Life with the Walter Boys? It’s giving warm and cozy.
The stakes on the series aren’t nearly as high, but to be fair, it’s not a love triangle that was brewing amongst the main trio their entire lives either.
No, My Life with the Walter Boys is new, fresh, and with the type of tension that’s palpable and entirely unexpected. Yeah, you’re holding your breath during scenes.
It has that small-town quality that’s endearing. Jackie’s fish-out-of-water shtick is cute. The Walter family brings the perfect blend of heart and chaos, and it’s just as much about found family as it is about romance.
The layers are different. It’s still about trauma, grief, and loss, but it’s also about self-discovery, wonder, and hope. It’s lighter and easier to consume, like cozying up with your favorite beverage on a rainy summer day vibes.
Beautiful Babes and the Bros Who Stole Their Hearts – Our Trios
In reality? A girl caught between two brothers? Side-eye central. That’s just too much mess, unnecessary drama, and lowkey wrong on way too many levels.
Seriously, does this happen as much in real life as it does on television? Anyway. Onscreen? Oh, it’s great television. I’m grabbing snacks, drinks, and my best witty retorts.
TSITP gives us Belly — occasionally annoying, indefinitely messy, and making chaotic decisions with her whole chest. Bless her heart. We love her, though, weird nickname and all.
Our suitors?
We have Jeremiah, the human version of a golden retriever (not just because of those blond curls). He presently has the edge. But for how long? Well, we’ll see.
Flirty, suffers from Little Brother Syndrome, for some reason, frequently shirtless, and totally fails to be considered in conversations about his own mother’s death. Seriously, the kid lost his mother, too.
He’s mostly a green flag, but still a teenage boy.
Conrad? Leading the charge in fandom’s hearts.
Broody trope on steroids, poetic, introspective, and emotionally constipated. He brings 90% of the angst, struggles with his mental health, and his hair does that thing. You know the thing. We love the thing.
Our emotionally unavailable king is a hot mess, but he’s our hot mess, you know? It works.
Meanwhile, in Colorado…
My Life with the Walter Boys gives us uptight but endearing Jackie. Our girl is carrying her fair share of trauma. Somehow, the lighter show of the two has a protagonist who only falls into this love triangle because she’s an orphan who has moved in with her mother’s old college friend.
She’s “not like the other girls.” Is that annoying? Sometimes, but we still ride at dawn for Jackie. Protect her at all costs, you know?
Jackie is brilliant, complex, and just a bit broken, but that’s why we love her. It makes her love triangle feel less messy.
And the hot brothers? Similar setup.
Cole is more emotionally repressed than should be legally allowed. Tortured? He has that in spades. Battling mental health issues? Of course, with a sprinkling of chronic pain and identity issues.
He somehow manages to pull off being the biggest jerk and most vulnerable, thoughtful sap at the same time. The guy contains multitudes.
And he’s also the most likely front-runner. But who’s keeping tabs? Just kidding, many of you are.
Alex? He’s bookish, nerdy, and sweet.
Does he, too, suffer from Younger Brother Syndrome? Totally. However, it also adds the necessary tension to the love triangle.
He’s perfectly imperfect, a little aloof at times, and occasionally treats Jackie like a prize worth winning. But he knows her worth, and he’s ready to earn her, so we can’t be too mad about that.
Will he prevail next season? It’s hard to say. Our girl chose herself and avoidance after lip-locking with both brothers — personally, my favorite ship is Jackie and therapy, you know, BECAUSE HER PARENTS JUST DIED, but to each their own.
Rewatchable? Totally. Bingeable? Well…
The Summer I Turned Pretty is going to make us work for it.
Everything about the series is rewatchable (thus far), which is likely why the conversation never stops among viewers who love dissecting every aspect of every scene after however many rewatches.
However, they’re likely to encourage people to binge the entire season the moment it concludes.
Why? Because we’re getting weekly releases. Hey, at least we’ll get to savor every last episode until the end.
My Life with the Walter Boys is a rewatchable series. It’s less to dissect among the series because the stakes feel different, and the vibe is more Hallmark feel-good than anything else.
But it’s the type of series that you’ll happily play in the background many times over.
It’s also bingeable, and it’s escaping that annoying Netflix two-cycle rollout. This sweet, fun series is getting the full-season drop treatment, and that gives it a great edge.
Fandom Passion Doesn’t Distinguish Itself
It’s easy to believe that TSITP has the most passionate fan base.
But the truth is, both fandoms are unhinged (affectionately). The meltdowns? Pretty much weekly. Fandom wars? Practically to the death.
Everyone has strong feelings about their favorite teen love triangles and who they want to see Belly and Jackie choose in the end.
Personally, I’m more vibes than “teams,” and I’m just along for the ride.
But summer also isn’t summer without some healthy competition. If the girls have to choose, we have to as well!
So, which teen love triangle will be heating up your screen and warming your heart this summer?
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