Cody completely objectified Gwen when he bet Owen that he could get her bra. That's pretty demeaning to Gwen right there. And Cody went out of his way to flash that same bra on the Aftermath episode. I'd say inexperience and immaturity are at the root of the matter, as Cody's generally a nice kid, but it's hard to justify any guy as being deserving of a relationship with a girl if he's willing to turn her into a bet or use her bra as a status symbol. At the very least it shows that he is not ready for a relationship until he can treat the girl with more respect. Would you really want to date a guy who flashes your undergarments on TV?

When exactly did people say bad things about Gwen in front of Trent during that episode? Trent heard Geoff's line at the beginning of the segment about Gwen "betraying" him, and that's when Trent learned Gwen had told his team to vote him off. His immediate reaction was shock and disbelief. He begged Geoff to say it was a joke. Then they cut off the screen so he was isolated in the green room. There was no time or reason for him to be defending Gwen at that point. Trent wasn't present at all for the back and forth debate about who was at fault, so are you expecting him to stand up for Gwen when he's not even there? He was back in the green room crying and writing sad songs. All indications are that he didn't hear a thing the others said, as he was even completely oblivious to the fact that they turned on the monitor to check on him. Don't forget that plenty was said against Trent during that same conversation, and he showed no signs of having heard that either. When he came out, he didn't say anything bad about Gwen. He blamed Duncan for the misunderstanding about his lucky number. Bridgette drew big shocked eyes on a picture of Gwen and said this was how Gwen would look upon learning the truth. Trent looked uncomfortable at even that much being said against Gwen, but since it wasn't an insult on Gwen there wasn't anything for him to say. It's the truth that's she's going to be shocked about his lucky number. Was he supposed to rail at Katie and Sadie for innocently exclaiming, "I'm so on Team Trent" when it harkened back to that conversation he didn't hear? They were simply being nice to him, and they didn't say anything bad about Gwen in the process. Nobody said anything bad about Gwen in front of him, except for Eva pretending to be her own fan, saying that Trent and Gwen both sucked, and declaring, "Go Team Eva!" She got outed in the process, so there was no need for him to defend himself or Gwen then either.

If the question is "Who's better for Gwen?" there's nothing wrong with someone taking Gwen's choice into account as an indicator to her potential happiness. If you were discussing a real person it would be very rude to not take their choice into account--it's like saying they aren't capable to choose for themselves. Gwen's shown no sign of being incompetant in her personal life, in my opinion. She didn't pick a guy who was nasty, or a womanizer, or inconsiderate. So there's no reason to think that Gwen is a character who is incapable of chosing a good guy. Between two nice guys, the one you actually want to be is the better guy for you. But that's just my opinion.

And this echoes my point: Women choose their mates and guys really do not have a lot of control in it beyond putting themselves out there and facing rejection or getting the response they desire. Given all that you said about Cody's earlier behaviour regarding the bra and so forth, it does show a lack of underlying respect and Gwen is someone who will not tolerate disrespect from anyone.

Cody was less dejected than Trent when Gwen picked Trent over him. In fact, he wasn't devastated at all. He was happy for Gwen and acknowledged that he wasn't her dream guy. That makes him... calm and accepting of her choice. By your logic, that means Gwen isn't Cody's only one either. Trent reacted exactly the fashion I'd expect from a guy who'd lost a girlfriend he really liked (and been voted off at her suggestion); he cried, felt used and betrayed, and tried to reconcile himself to the situation. That's an expected reaction of a normal guy in love. He also didn't seem comfortable at all with any girls suggesting that he could love them instead in the Aftermath episode, since he obviously still has unresolved feelings for Gwen.

Romeo and Juliet isn't a depiction of healthy love; it's a tragically-flawed love. In fact, when we studied it in highschool, we had to learn about the ways Shakespeare foreshadows it as a dangerous love that can only end badly (in death). There's the consumption comparison taken from the friar's line: "These violent delights have violent ends and in their triumph die, like fire and powder, which as they kiss consume." That one was all about how they were consumed by their own feelings instead of following the friar's advice to love moderately (comes later in that line), as well as foreshadowing their parallel consumption of mysterious potions that ultimately lead to their deaths. There's also the lightning similie, taken from the balcony scene: "It is too rash, too unadvised, too like the lightning, which doth cease to be ere one can say 'It lightens.'" That one was also about them burning themselves out instead of keeping any semblance of control over their immediate passions. There are more, but those were always some of my favorites. Romeo and Juliet are far from the standard by which love should be measured, and a guy who commits suicide without you (or vice versa) has problems. I can't see any pertinence to holding Gwen/Trent up to this model of tragic love in any respect. They were on opposing teams for all of three episodes--not even remotely star-crossed lovers from irreconcilable backgrounds--and I wouldn't wish Romeo and Juliet's unbalanced relationship on anyone. Trent, despite his brief obsessive bout, still values a healthy relationship, as shown by his admiration for Bridge and Geoff's reconciliation... before they start their snogfest.

How does Cody love Gwen for who she is when they've never even had any real conversations for him to get to know Gwen? Trent chose Gwen out the exact same options and demographics. Then Trent actually spent time getting to know her, having long conversations, sharing things about themselves, and he still liked her best... even making extra effort to win back her trust after Heather set them up. Just because other girls could like Trent doesn't make him less deserving of a girl he likes. There's just no logic to the assertion that a nice guy doesn't deserve a girl if other girls find him attractive.

Highschool guys have a reputation (particularly in cinema) of trying to make it look like they have scored with a girl. Following the example of Sixteen Candles from which the undergarment bet was taken, getting Gwen's bra was meant to suggest exactly that she was a chick Cody had scored with... a notch on his belt or bedpost. Though the viewers all know how Cody got the bra, he doesn't announce it was given in pity/thanks after he helped her... or that he's never seen the goods that were under it. Gwen isn't the type to sexually objectify a guy to make herself look like she could score with someone hot. That's what I meant by the phrase, "turn her into a bet". It's also why she smacked Cody in the groin with the paddle after he first asked for her bra. When teenage boys do that stuff, any girl with self-respect would get upset and, depending on what's done, very emotionally hurt. Molly Ringwald's character screamed her head off after finding out that the nerd charged people admission to see her panties. It's not that the freshman/nerd character in that film was a bad guy either, he admitted to the guy she liked that nothing had happened and gave Jake the panties to return. He was just wasn't mature enough yet to be the guy she needed.

Remember, if two girls like the same guy, it's the guy's choice if he likes either... or neither... of them. Heck, even if a girl just sends a guy a note or asks a guy out, it's his decision. It's not a matter of decision being gender specific. Both parties have to be interested in pursuing a relationship. If it's one-sided in either direction, it's just a crush. We females get to face rejection too. Been there, done that. It's part of life, and everyone gets the horns sometimes.

I understand cheering for the underdog, and I don't expect anyone to change their choices. These are just our personal opinions, anyhow. Still, if one is picking the answer based on a bias towards seeing the underdog win, the focus is entirely on what will make Cody happy rather than what would make Gwen happy. So does that really answer the question, "Who's the better guy for Gwen?" Or does it answer, "What's better for Cody?" Just a thought.

I think the show has given a few underdog-type guys winning hands in relationships so far. Harold and Owen aren't the gorgeous, popular, or cool types (Owen's a 300lb fart machine, and Harold picks his nose and wears a wizard's cloak); but both are making strong showings in the relationship department--and with pretty girls! Cody and Ezekiel are probably the only other underdogs, so that's 2 out of 4 who are winning their dream girls.

The female underdogs, on the other hand, seem to be limited to Sadie, Eva, and Beth. (LeShawna might be big/curvy, but she's portrayed as pretty, popular, and cool. Izzy is pretty and may be on her second boyfriend among the contestants--even if she is crazy as a bedbug. Both have a guy pursuing them, rather than needing to win over a guy they like. So neither of them are particularly underdogs, when you get down to it.) Sadie is known to have come in second to Katie concerning the boy they liked in elementary school, whether or not the deciding factor was Katie's PB&J sandwich as Sadie insisted. She liked Justin, who didn't like her at all. She's not got a shot with Trent, despite telling him he could date her post Gwen. The BFFs were even seen hanging around Noah, with no interest coming from his side. (While Katie doesn't have a shot with Justin or Trent either, she's probably got a shot with many normal guys and is the likely winner over Sadie in relationships as suggested by the elementary school incident.) Unless Brady is real and really everything Beth says... Beth has no likely candidates at present. Winning Justin is next to impossible and wouldn't be likely to make her happy in the longrun--unless he undergoes a personality transplant, it'd probably be the surest sign that she's still cursed. I don't think Beth meant anything by the kiss to Cody, but even if she liked him he likes the cooler and prettier Gwen. The guys are generally terrified of Eva, with the possible exception of Noah who can make pointed remarks without getting murdered, but none show any attraction to her. She was attracted to Justin briefly (the mojo is strong with that one), but that's not happening and she actively dislikes him now. 0 out of 3 winners on the girl side. Seems to me it's still easier for the underdog guys to succeed than it is for the girls according to our tally so far.

While I love to see underdogs win, I don't consider it a win unless what they win makes them happy. For me, Gwen ultimately wouldn't make Cody happy either because as of this point her romanctic feelings lie elsewhere. It goes the same way for our female underdogs. Until I see one of them fall for someone who seems as though he could like them back, I just have to keep waiting.

@HankL

LOL Mandatory indeed!