George and Zoe

For much of season 1 I fully wanted Zoe to end up with George. Oh, I thought it might be fun for her to have a short fling with Wade but I certainly didn't see long term potential there. I was fully on the Zoe/George bandwagon. Somehow, that changed. I can't remember exactly when it change but somewhere in the last couple episodes of season 1 - beginning of season 2 I changed my mind and wanted her with Wade.

I do kind of wish they had put Zoe and George together for a short time. I wouldn't have wanted a whole half season but I thought maybe 4-6 episodes. In my head, they would have gotten together and tried dating for a few episodes before eventually coming to the conclusion that they are better off as friends, probably right before they got to the point of sleeping together. I know there are some people that think Zoe being with George, even for a short time, would have meant there could never again be Zoe/Wade but I think if it was handled right, and was relatively short, it could have worked.

The way they had the "we're better as friends" conversation on the show was so out of the blue and random, especially considering Zoe and George had spent very, very little time together during season 3. It didn't flow and didn't feel like they had really done anything, spent time together, to come to that conclusion then. I do think it was a missed opportunity and something they could have dealt with if season 3 hadn't been handled so poorly in general.

While on paper George is clearly the choice that makes more sense, relationships aren't had on paper, or at least they shouldn't be. In the reality of the show, Wade was the much better choice for Zoe. They challenged each other and pushed each other and helped each other grow in a way I really doubt Zoe and George would have, ever.

So frustrating that they don't get together!

There are many other fans out there, mostly it seems to be hard core Zoe/George fans, who are convinced Leila Gerstein (EP) originally planned to have Zoe end up with George but changed the story because of the overwhelming fan response to Zoe/Wade. I tend to disagree with that belief although I like your reasoning better than she just "caved to the fans" :). The EP made comments in interviews pretty early on that she thought the "unexpected could be more interesting" which clearly indicates Wade/Zoe since George is who you would expect Zoe to be with, who she "should" end up with. I actually don't agree with people who say Zoe and George had no chemistry. I think she had more chemistry with Wade for sure but I think she and George had chemistry too, although probably not as intense.

In any case, whether or not the EP planned having Zoe end up with Wade or George or if she honestly hadn't decided, there is no doubt in my mind she always intended to have Lemon and Lavon end up together. She called them an "epic couple" in more than one interview very early on in the series. I never really saw it myself but I don't think she ever seriously considered having either of them end up with anyone else.

As for Annabeth, don't forget that she started out as a pretty minor character and remained so throughout the entire first season. In a lot of ways Shelly was a bigger part of the show season 1 than AB was. They began to involve her more in season 2 and eventually elevated her to series regular before season 3, which they admitted was at least partly because they knew they would be losing Jamie King for some number of episodes due to her pregnancy. Don't get my wrong, I love the Annabeth character and her friendship with Zoe especially, and I am certainly in the camp that liked Lavon better with her than Lemon, but I highly doubt she was a consideration when the EP was mapping out who would end up with who before the series started. Remember, she was married for that first season to an often mentioned but never seen character (at least I don't remember ever seeing Jake).

Lemon and Wade were fun as friends and when working together but there's no way she ever planned to have them end up together. Sorry, I don't think it was possible.