The hit animated show close-knit friendships like Jimmy Pesto Jr. and Zeke. Even the Pesto twins. Another friendship to look at is between Tammy and Jocelyn.
The dynamic duo doesn't have many scenes together as one might think. But it's clear that the two are close friends in many ways. Taking a closer look it's also clear that the two teens aren't always the best of friends to each other. Sometimes there's a bit of rivalry, bitterness and even jealousy.
Best Friends: They Genuinely Think They're Best Friends
One of the reasons why these two are Bff's is because they think they are. Combing through the entire show, it's not often that these two aren't together in some way. When audiences are first introduced to Tammy, she tries to become friends with Tina by being controlling.
It doesn't work in her favor. Tina has a different mindset compared to Tammy. Jocelyn on the other hand seems like a good match. They automatically click in many ways. By proxy, these two are best friends simply because they're written that way.
Not: Jocelyn Wasn't At Tammy's Bat Mitzvah
Taking into that Tammy and Jocelyn are attached to the hip, it's a bit bizarre that she never shows up at Tammy's big birthday. In "Mazel-Tina," Tammy makes a big deal about her big birthday celebration where she becomes a young woman in the Jewish faith. Throughout the whole episode, Jocelyn is nowhere to be seen.
This can be tagged as bad friend behavior. Could it be that Jocelyn wasn't invited? Or maybe that she simply wasn't written in the storyline? The episode makes a big deal that no one notices that Tammy went missing while being stuck in her own giant head with Louise. That even includes Jocelyn.
Best Friends: Jocelyn Helps Tammy When Needed
There's a small moment where Jocelyn proves herself as a good friend to Tammy. When needed, she's there to help out. In season five when the Belcher kids, Kimmy Jr., Zeke, Tammy and Jocelyn Tina start fighting over who gets to wear the sparkly jelly bracelet.
It's clear to see that Jocelyn tries to pull Tina of Tammy in order to stop the fight. She knows if caught, they would be in serious trouble. It's good friend behavior to help out your bestie when they're involved in a scuffle at school.
Not: They Try To Outdo Each Other
As much as Tammy and Jocelyn seem to fit as friends, there's a brewing rivalry between them that's evident. It's clear that Tammy is the more dominant friend of the two. In the show, when there's a supposed lice outbreak, Tammy is confined to the nurse's office.
Jocelyn takes over Tammy's job as head anchor for the Wagstaff student news. Tammy is fuming in anger. Jocelyn could care less and sees it as an opportunity to take Tammy's place and be on top. This isn't the first time this type of competitiveness has occurred.
Best Friends: They Have The Same Interests
One of the reasons why friends become best friends is that they share the same interests. This is certainly true for Tammy and Jocelyn. Both characters are described as being a bit self-absorbed and caring a bit too much about how they're perceived by others. Hence, why both of them bond over makeup and their looks.
They like to go to the mall and wear similar outfits and try to keep up with the latest trends. They also gossip about the boys in school. No teen friendship would be complete without obsessing over boy bands. There's an episode that centers around Boy4Now breaking up. During the school news, both Tammy and Jocelyn start weeping over the split of the band. They even buy similar chapstick flavors.
Not: They Casually Insult Each Other On A Regular Basis
The fact that Tammy and Jocelyn insult each other regularly doesn't necessarily make for best friend material. It might be because they often try to outdo each other. In season four, during the Valentine's Day episode special, Tammy makes a remark. She quietly jabs at Jocelyn that she definitely received more flowers than her.
In other episodes, Tammy talks about a certain fashion sense being out of style. Tammy is shocked because Tammy told her that it's popular. Tammy slyly says it is and it works well for Jocelyn. It might have been slight shade thrown at Jocelyn. Jocelyn also makes it clear that Tammy wore a headband to cover up her roots.
Best Friends: They Try New Things Together
In many episodes, Tammy and Jocelyn are seen hanging out together. When Tina gets to go to horse camp, she runs into them. Tammy explains that it was either a horse camp or spending time with her relative which she didn't want. It's one thing for Tammy to go to horse camp, it's another that Jocelyn goes as well.
It might be that Tammy laid out the idea to Jocelyn and Jocelyn tagged along with her best friend. It's a nice gesture to go with Tammy to horse camp and see it as a way to hangout than not going at all.
Not: Tammy Leaves Jocelyn Out Of Things
Tammy is known for being more concerned with herself than others. She has a "rich girl" superiority complex. Despite Tammy and Jocelyn often being seen together, Tammy has ways of not including Jocelyn. When the students are given the opportunity to create a new Wagstaff anthem, they in.
Tammy's grand idea is to simply list out all the students' names tied with a nice jingle. Jocelyn realizes that Tammy didn't include her's. She complains about it and Tammy gives a lame excuse saying that there're too many names to include. A bit odd not to include your best friend's name in a song that will be immortalized for years to come.
Best Friends: They Each Other On The Little Things
Tammy and Jocelyn each other in small ways that people might not notice. When they get immunity from creating an outfit during Frond's Saturday detention, Jocelyn says, "We have immunity. That means we don't have to design an outfit this round and we can never die."
Tammy quickly backs her up and corrects her saying it's really just immunity from the contest. There are also smaller moments like backing up Tammy when she makes an insult. Even Jocelyn being happy for Tammy when she gets a fake ghost boyfriend in "Tina and the Real Ghost."
Not: Jocelyn Isn't Her Own Person In The Friendship
When it comes to Tammy and Jocelyn, Tammy is definitely the leader. On more than one occasion, Jocelyn thinks too much about what other people think and what Tammy wants. Instead of focusing on herself. One of her more memorable quotes is, "I need to start thinking for myself. Unless you guys don't think that's cool, then I won't."
It's a clear indicator that Tammy wants to be her own person but instead would rather follow a crowd or what Tammy wants to do. Tammy also never tells Jocelyn to do her own thing. In "Legends of the Mall," Jocelyn goes along with Tammy's plan of wearing a cute outfit and then returning them. Also to find boyfriends while there just to rival Tina.