Thanks to all who voted in the second annual One Tree Hill Evaluation.
The winners of each of these–except for the returning characters question–will face-off against the eventual winners in the Gossip Girl and 90210 polls.
FAVORITE CHARACTERS
Winners: Brooke, Nathan
Noteworthy: Although I noticed Brooke easily winning in the beginning, in the end the results were neck-and-neck with Haley earning 44 percent of the vote to Brooke’s 48.6 percent. For the first day or so, Quinn didn’t have any votes but by the end, she scrounged up 7, but not enough to beat Alex. Nathan won by a landslide, garnering 73.1 percent of the votes.
Last Season’s Winners: Brooke, Lucas
Thoughts: I can’t say I’m surprised that Nathan won or that Brooke did, but it’s a little strange not seeing Haley next to Nathan’s name. Nathan and Haley, in my opinion, are so intertwined, so it’s surprising to me that one won but the other didn’t. Like Quinn, Clay came in last. Granted the number of voters is a minuscule amount of One Tree Hill’s audience, but perhaps this is an indication of where some would like season 8 to go…or not go.
FAVORITE COUPLE
Winner: Nathan and Haley
Noteworthy: Naley received more than 2.5 times more votes than Brulian.
Last Season’s Winner: Lucas and Peyton
Thoughts: So, individually, voters prefer Nathan and Brooke but couples-wise, Nathan’s pairing trumps Brooke’s. I don’t quite get it. There was some love for Clay and Quinn (13 votes) and Clay and Sara (8 votes).
WORST CHARACTERS
Winners: Alex, Clay
Noteworthy: Clay received the majority of the vote, while Alex and Quinn were pretty close: 51.1 percent versus 41.3 percent.
Last Season’s Winners: Peyton, Lucas
Thoughts: It was no surprise to me that Clay would win this category (and it’s sad to say “win” here because it’s not a positive thing) when he was stacked up against Nathan and Julian, who, if nothing else, have been around for more than 22 episodes. I was surprised, however, to see Alex “beat” Quinn (and therefore really lost), given the results of the first poll, where a few more voted for Alex than Quinn as best character. Perhaps the difference can be attributed to the fact that the first poll had more votes cast in it. Maybe if more people voted in this poll, Quinn would’ve earned the dishonor just as she did in the first poll? Of course, I’m still perplexed by last year’s results on this one (where Leyton were named worst characters but also best couple) so what do I know?
WORST COUPLE
Winner: Clay and Sara
Noteworthy: Clay and Quinn were the runner-up, but still a decent ways behind.
Last Season’s Winner: Brooke and Owen
Thoughts: This one kind of disappointed me. I wasn’t surprised that Naley or Brulian got some votes–not everyone is a fan–but Clay and Sara in episode 7.07, I And Love And You was quite possibly the highlight of the season for me. Certainly the Katie storyline tarnished it a bit and maybe it did for others, too, leading to the worst couple title.
FAVORITE SUPPORTING CHARACTER
Winner: Jamie
Noteworthy: Most of the contenders got 3 percent of the vote or less.
Last Season’s Winner: Jamie
Thoughts: Jamie took this title two seasons in a row (I did not have the site during season 5, his first season on the show) and I’m kind of surprised. Maybe I’m biased, since I mostly haven’t dug him this season. I guess I expected Dan to win, despite his absence from the second-half of the season.
FAVORITE RETURNING CHARACTER
Winner: Rachel
Noteworthy: Last year, some people wrote in Rachel as their answer to this question, even though she wasn’t eligible since she didn’t appear in season 6. Bet those people were happy she did appear this season!
Last Season’s Winner: Karen
Thoughts: Figured this category would really be a toss-up, as I easily saw any of the candidates winning. While I was far from completely happy with Rachel, Taylor or Lydia’s storylines, I think all three actresses kicked major butt.
BEST STORYLINE
Winner: Lydia’s return and death from cancer
Noteworthy: Haley’s depression came in second, with less than 10 votes separating it from first place. The next highest was Brulian’s relationship followed by the Nathan/Renee scandal. Many things got one vote but among the more interesting picks (read: slightly puzzling) to me were Grubbs, Brooke dealing with Alexander/Victoria and “the entire 80’s episode. Only quality episode all season, besides the final.” There was also one person who said “none” and another who wrote “All of them!!! They were amazing this year :)”
Invalid Others: Lucas and Peyton, the school shooting, Jamie’s birth and season 3
Last Season’s Winner: Leyton’s relationship
Thoughts: It amuses me and frustrates me when people don’t follow the instructions–answers are to be based only on the season that just ended. (Not to mention some people selecting the wrong choice and not writing anything in at all.) Not sure what the two voters who said Lucas and Peyton meant–happy they’re gone or thinking about a past season? The Jamie’s birth one made me laugh. And perhaps those that put the schooling shooting and season 3 were thinking about the show overall, as I definitely understand those picks in that context. Anyway, Haley clearly dominated in this poll, between the depression storyline, Lydia’s death and votes for how Nathan’s scandal affecting Naley, plus picks for her pregnancy and one for her album…and yet she didn’t manage to win best female character.
WORST STORYLINE
Winner: Psycho Katie
Noteworthy: The second highest was the Nathan/Renee scandal, which I guess, given the previous question, split many viewers. In third was Julian and Alex’s interactions and how it affected Brulian. Again, many things got single votes including Nathan and Julian’s “KISS” scene, the overall focus on the guest/new characters and the Mouth/Lauren/Skills triangle. And, of course, there were a couple “none” and “all”-type votes.
Invalid Others: Nanny Carrie, Nathan and Brooke’s sex tape, Anna and Felix, season one
Last Season’s Winner: Nanny Carrie’s return
Thoughts: As someone who has a lot of beef with this season, the results here were like a giant love letter to me. It was reassuring to see many shared my same gripes, such as the rest of Haley’s siblings being MIA during Lydia’s death, Leyton’s absence (I think it was put best in this answer: “Peyton and Lucas not being there for the friends when they needed them”), Grubbs/Miranda and the misuse of Dan and Rachel.
BEST CLIFF-HANGER
Winner: Clay and Quinn getting shot
Noteworthy: The next highest results were actually what many considered to be happy (resolved?) endings: Naley’s pregnancy and Brulian’s proposal. There were some genuinely interesting answers (read: clever and/or frank): “Not much this season held my interest. Big disappointment from season’s past,” “By a long shot (no pun intended) Quinn,” “Will they kill off yawn-a-minute Quinn and keep Clay alive?” and “Would the show be renewed.”
Invalid Others: Season 3’s ending, Lucas’ proposal, if Leyton are coming back
Last Season’s Winner: Peyton’s health scare(s)
Thoughts: I expected Alex’s suicide attempt to garner more than 3 votes, but perhaps that’s just because I thought the scene was pretty awesomely done. I was surprised to see a vote for Mia and Chase (will they or won’t they get back together is really your biggest unanswered question?) and more pleasantly surprised to see a vote for Haley finding Renee’s phone number on Nathan’s phone bills.
RATE THE SEASON OVERALL
Winner: 8
Noteworthy: There were just 6 votes between “7” and “8.” Every value got at least 3 votes.
Last Season’s Winner: 8
Thoughts: For a while, if I recall correctly, there weren’t votes for 9 or 10 but those ended up earning a fair amount. I have to admit the 10 votes throw me off. It’s surprising to me that some think this season was just as good or better than past seasons as, in my opinion, it was just a vastly different show this year. But I guess it’s totally fair for it to be vastly different and people to like it.
RATE THE SHOW OVERALL
Winner: 10
Noteworthy: Won with a larger margin than the last question, more than doubling the votes that “9” got. Every value got at least 2 votes.
Last Season’s Winner: 10
Thoughts: Last year One Tree Hill was the only show to earn a 10 here. It remains to be seen whether that’ll happen again…
Don’t forget to vote in the Gossip Girl evaluation if you haven’t already.
TeenDramaWhore 