Bromance Is In The Air

This summer I split up with a long term girlfriend. To borrow a phrase from the Ramones, it was loud, fast and out of control. Let’s just say I put plenty of research into my last piece.

Fortunately, a slew of recent prospects have kept me busy in the dating world. I’ve enjoyed diners out, shows and movies, nights spent leaning over drinks, chatting in the dim backs of bars or cafes. I even got a sleepover this weekend after pizza, pitchers of beer and a teetering tandem ride home on my bike. The best part? He had an Xbox 360.

Sorry ladies, it’s the season of bromance. As much as I’m missing the smooth-legged company of your fairer sex, I’m more interested in male companionship these days. And not for beer commercial clichés like poker nights or ‘the big game.’ Rather, I’ve found that myself, and a lot of other male friends, are comfortable spending time one-on-one and developing friendships that aren’t a threat to masculinity as they might have been in the past. Conversations tackle emotions, ideas and feelings with a sincerity that would have challenged the masculine ideal in more conservative eras.

One of the great symptoms of this shift in the way men uphold the masculine ideal is the ‘man crush,’ a nonromantic attraction between men. A man crush is basically a guy’s mirroring a way of being or lifestyle that he desires. It can develop between buddies, as in my recent experience, or can be directed at an especially admired celebrity. The first time I ever heard the phrase man crush was in reference to Jack Sparrow-era Johnny Depp. Depp is handsome, funny, intelligent and has had a wild social life with a supporting cast of beautiful women. When his popularity became enormous with Pirates of the Caribbean, what guy didn’t envy his suave and teetering antics?

Other man-crushable men include:

-Seth Rogan: Rogan and the rest of the Apatow comedy gang epitomize bromantic friendship.

-Don Draper: The flawed hero of TV’s Mad Men dresses, drinks and womanizes better than anyone, making him a man crush idol.

-Jon Stewart: A respected political and social critic who’s also hilarious? I know men who would trade a date with Megan Fox for one with Stewart.

–Barack Obama: This pic says it all.

Men, who are your man crushes?