When Lucy Maud Montgomery began her Anne Of Green Gables novels, she created a journey for a young girl who believed no one would ever love her finding that love in friendship, family, and romance. That story provided the inspiration for Netflix’s Anne With An E, and created many examples of the different friendships a person can have. Some blossom into love, others are kindred spirits, and still others are better left to fade away with age.
It’s the friendships in the series that allow the audience to explore Avonlea best, whether that’s Anne growing to see Gilbert as a person instead of a rival, or Marilla and Rachel calling on a lifetime of friendship to understand one another’s feelings. The friendships showcased in the series are one of the most compelling aspects of the show.
Worst: Josie And Anne
Josie Pye is set up as the Avonlea school’s mean girl in the first season of the series. Though she’s part of Anne’s friend group, Anne remains the better friend to Josie than Josie ever is to Anne.
Josie never misses a chance to remind everyone that Anne is poor and strange. She even targets Anne during games with the boys to make sure that all of the negative attention is thrown Anne’s way. Over the course of the show, Josie thaws to Anne, but she’s been raised to focus on her image and to think of herself as better than her peers, so she never truly connects with Anne the way any of the other girls do.
Best: Rachel And Marilla
Rachel is the town gossip and Marilla prefers to hide out on her farm. The two are very different people, who see the world in very different ways, but are completely at ease around one another.
Rachel is one of the few people Marilla can completely be herself around, and the same is true of Marilla. No topic is off limits between them - even the things Rachel wouldn’t go around Avonlea gossiping about. Every fight they have over the course of the show is patched up with baked goods and a quick chat, proving these life-long friends can get through anything together.
Worst: Ruby And Gilbert
Gilbert is nice to everyone. He’s usually unfailingly polite unless stepping in to defend someone else. Gilbert being nice to everyone and Gilbert being friendly with someone, however, are two very different things.
While Ruby spends most of her formative years pining for Gilbert Blythe, he barely notices her. He greets her when he sees her and humors her friends when they talk, but beyond that, he doesn’t really have an interest in her - romantic or otherwise. Ruby, on the other hand, is too busy obsessing about him to really get to know him and attempt to be his friend. Though their classmates might all think of one another as friends, Ruby and Gilbert never really are.
Best: Anne And Ka’Kwet
Created for the show, Ka’Kwet is a new friend of Anne’s introduced in season three. Their friendship is born out of their interest in one another’s cultures, and it’s one where they enjoy sharing their differences and teaching one another. There’s just about nothing Anne wouldn’t do for the other girl.
Anne cares so much for Ka’Kwet that she wants to help the other girl learn as much as possible, encouraging her to attend school. When Anne discovers that the “school” isn’t what she thought, she immediately tries to rectify her mistake, going with Matthew and Ka’Kwet’s parents to retrieve her. It doesn’t go the way she planned, and Ka’Kwet’s story never receives closure as a result of the show’s cancellation, but their friendship remains a bright spot in season three.
Worst: Josie And Jane
Josie and Jane Andrews were almost sisters when Josie courted Billy Andrews in the third season. If Josie is the school’s mean girl, Jane is her second-in-command. Of all of the girls in their friend group, they are the most likely to belittle others. They even turn on one another as a result of Billy taking advantage of Josie’s affection.
Despite spending years as friends, Jane refers to Josie as “low born” when she decides that Billy couldn’t possibly be in the wrong. She ostracizes Josie, seemingly for the rest of the season until the girls make their way to Queens. Their friendship may mature into a healthier relationship during their college years, but now, fans may never know.
Best: Gilbert And Anne
The relationship that provides the foundation for the story of Anne’s life in the novels is hers with Gilbert Blythe. They go from academic rivals to friends to star-crossed lovers to the perfect wedded couple. The TV series doesn’t take exactly the same route, but they do have one of the best friendships in the show.
Anne misjudges Gilbert’s initial attempts to get her attention before realizing how caring he really is. He’s there whenever she needs him, and the two become as close as family after he takes a brief leave from Avonlea. They constantly help one another - and their extended families - in seasons two and three. Anne and Gilbert are equals, treating each other with a mutual affection and respect that is sometimes missing in the friendships of the opposing genders in the series.
Worst: Diana And Moody
When the series begins, the boys and the girls of the Avonlea school are firmly in separate cliques. Moody is one of the few boys who tries to befriend the girls over the course of the show, even helping with their effort to save Miss Stacey’s job when he feels guilty about his role in her potential firing.
That being said, Moody’s relationship with Diana is a lot like Ruby’s with Gilbert. Diana doesn’t care to give him the time of day, much less friendship. Moody, on the other hand, worships the ground she walks on when he develops a crush. Diana, unlike Gilbert, remains cold to Moody instead of polite.
Best: Gilbert And Bash
Gilbert and Bash meet while working on a steam ship. Their obvious differences make them unlikely allies, but Gilbert soon proves himself a valuable friend by intentionally getting himself in trouble to help Bash. Bash, in turn, teaches Gilbert that there’s a much wider world than Canada.
The two are there for one another when they need it most. Bash gives Gilbert a family after he loses his father. Gilbert gives Bash a home when it’s hard for a man of color to be accepted. They’re more than friends; they’re brothers.
Worst: Billy And Gilbert
Gilbert seems to get along with all of the boys at the Avonlea school - to a point. He plays hockey with the boys, but that’s all we get to see of their friendships. His friendship with Billy, however, sours quickly.
When Billy repeatedly picks on Anne early in the series, Gilbert stands up for her. At one point, he even threatens the other boy. He also ignores Billy’s jabs at his own romantic entanglements in season three, despite Billy’s repeated, cocky attempts to be friends. Gilbert has no time for someone like Billy Andrews.
Best: Anne And Diana
The most important friendship in Anne’s life is hers with “kindred spirit” Diana Barry. Diana is the first true friend Anne makes in Avonlea, and really, the first friend in life. Despite the many attempts by Diana’s mother to drive a wedge between them, they always find their way back to one another.
It’s Anne that Diana turns to when her little sister is sick, and it’s Anne who first plants the seed of college in Diana’s mind. Likewise, it’s Diana who knows Anne well enough to recognize that Anne has feelings for Gilbert, and lays into Gilbert when she thinks he’s wronged Anne. They don’t pull their punches with one another, both willing to tell the other when they think they’ve been unkind or unfair. Anne and Diana would grow up to be even closer than Rachel and Marilla if the series continued.