Every rom-com could be solved by one text message.

Let me start by saying this: I am a certified lover girl. Rom-coms are my absolute favourite genre, my comfort food, my emotional support entertainment. I love the drama, the sometimes cheesy storylines, even the things that make absolutely no logical sense. Give me a meet-cute in a coffee shop, a dramatic airport chase, or someone standing outside with a boombox, and I am THERE for it.

I've watched How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days approximately 47 times. I know every word of Crazy Rich Asians. I will defend Bridget Jones's Diary to my dying breath, even the problematic bits. When people say rom-coms are unrealistic, I will be the first to say… that's the bloody point.

But here's the thing — as I've aged (gracefully, thank you very much), I couldn't help but find some guilty pleasure in poking fun at the more obvious tropes and plot holes. Don't get me wrong, I still love every ridiculous minute of these films, but sometimes there's no avoiding the elephant in the room. And that elephant is this: most romantic comedies could be solved by one simple text message.

Watch the trailer for 2005's Pride and Prejudice. Article continues after video.

Imagine this: Girl meets boy. Complications arise. "We should talk." Send. The protagonists have said talk. Happily ever after. The end. Is that so much to ask for?

Now, I'm not saying EVERY rom-com falls into this trap. Some have proper stakes — family pressure, life stage misalignment, actual life-or-death situations. But others? The drama just feels a little too low stakes to be real. And the biggest culprit? The complete and utter refusal of perfectly intelligent adults to just... communicate.

Take Normal People, the show that had us all ugly-crying into our tissues while simultaneously wanting to shake both Connell and Marianne until their teeth rattled. Here are two people who clearly adore each other, have incredible chemistry, and spend literal years orbiting around their feelings for each other.

Connell's whole "I can't afford to stay in Dublin for the summer" crisis could have been solved with one conversation. Instead of assuming Marianne wouldn't want him living with her (spoiler: she absolutely would have), he just... doesn't ask. Meanwhile, Marianne interprets his silence as rejection and starts dating someone else.

The most maddening part? Every time they do actually talk honestly — really talk — they're perfect together. But then one of them clams up again, and we're back to square one. Connell, mate, she's literally in love with you. Marianne, he's been pining for you since secondary school. JUST SAY THE WORDS. SEND THE TEXT.

Image: Element Pictures

Then there's Emily In Paris, the show we all love to hate-watch (or hate to love-watch, we're not judging). The show has somehow managed to create a love triangle so confusing that you need a flowchart and a PhD in French drama to keep track of who's supposed to be with whom.

Even Lucas Bravo, who plays Gabriel, has called out his own show for this exact problem.

"Everything is based on a lack of communication," he told French publication Le Figaro's TV about Emily and Gabriel's relationship.

"It's a bit archaic. These days, the new generation verbalises, they confront, and that no longer works in this case, we do not understand each other."

Look, I love Emily In Paris unabashedly, and I am also not at all thrilled about Lucas dissing the show that literally made him famous (come on, man)... but mate's got a point with this one. It's been four seasons of watching Emily and Gabriel not communicate with each other and, frankly, we've had enough.

Image: Netflix

And then there's When Harry Met Sally, the granddaddy of zero communication rom-coms. Harry and Sally spend twelve years — TWELVE YEARS — debating whether men and women can be friends while being living proof that sometimes friendship is just the scenic route to love.

The whole "men and women can't be friends" conversation happens in the first act, and then they proceed to be friends for over a decade while occasionally having moments of "wait, do I fancy you?" But instead of exploring those feelings, they just... don't. They date other people, have that friendship-ending fight, and only figure it out when Harry has his big realisation on New Year's Eve.

This was the pre-texting era, but a phone call would have sufficed. An afternoon chit-chat, perhaps.

Image: Columbia Pictures

And let's not forget my beloved Pride and Prejudice. 2005's Pride and Prejudice, to be specific.

I know it's a period piece, but hear me out — this is the ultimate example of how one honest conversation could have saved everyone a lot of angst.

Elizabeth Bennet spends most of the film thinking Mr. Darcy is an arrogant snob who ruined her sister's chances, while Darcy thinks Elizabeth's family is beneath him but can't stop thinking about her anyway. Meanwhile, Wickham is out here spreading lies about Darcy like it's his full-time job, and nobody thinks to fact-check anything.

Even if texting was obviously not a thing back then… that strongly-worded letter should have come much sooner, Mr. Darcy! Sure, we wouldn't have gotten that iconic hand-flex scene or the misty morning proposal if they'd had the technology to just text each other, but imagine how much simpler it would have been. And they could have spent more time being adorable together instead of misunderstanding each other's every move.

Image: Focus Features

But hey, at the end of the day, I'm not actually complaining. If rom-coms were realistic, they'd be documentaries about people having healthy conversations and resolving conflicts like adults. And where's the fun in that?

We watch these movies precisely because they're ridiculous. Because sometimes we want to yell at the screen "JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER!" while eating ice cream and pretending our own communication skills are flawless.

Plus, without all that delicious miscommunication, we wouldn't get the grand gestures, the airport chases, or the dramatic declarations of love in the rain. And honestly? Sometimes we need fantasy more than we need the reality.

So here's to every rom-com that could be solved by a simple text message. Keep being beautifully, frustratingly, wonderfully unrealistic. Just maybe throw us a bone occasionally and let someone have one honest conversation before the third act.

And if you're living in the real world, not on my screen, then please have some honest conversations with your significant other. I beg of you.

Feature Image: Paramount Pictures.