Geometry and Teen Romance

I'm finding an annoying trend in young adult fiction:
A book introduces us to the young female protagonist. She meets a dreamy dude and you are led to believe that the universe aligned in such a way that they were made for each other.
Then in the second book, the young female protagonist meets some other dude. Maybe he's a badboy, maybe he's the quiet introvert, maybe he's just a normal dude (this never happens). Girl gets squishy feelings and suddenly she's torn between two hunky love machines (bonus points if she describes herself as plain).
It would be easy to point the finger at Twilight, but this trend is older than Jane Austen. What's up with that? Is it too much to think that a young female protagonist can be happy with her contrived soulmate and blissfully ignore every other guy who rips his shirt off in her presence? Am I missing something?
Tell me reader, if you're out there, does this appeal to you? Am I just a prude? I admit, I've been involved in exactly zero love triangles in my life, but honestly, I can't say that I feel as though I've missed out on anything.

Comments

  1. I don't usually like romance so much, in part because the girl always chooses the wrong boy. The first time I was truly miffed was at the end of "Pretty In Pink". I would totally have gone for Duckie, personally.

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    Replies
    1. Supposedly, the original script was exactly that, but the producers wanted the lame-o formulaic ending. Cool geek always trumps feathered hair!

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    2. Supposedly, the original script was exactly that, but the producers wanted the lame-o formulaic ending. Cool geek always trumps feathered hair!

      Delete

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