'Downton Abbey,' 'Modern Family' and 'The Good Wife' show what fashionable love looks like

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Valentine's Day fashion should be so much more than red negligees. Sure, romance can be sparked by an outfit, but romance can flourish in spite of it.

When couples are together for a while, their fashion, like other facets of their lives, melds. They don't need to dress alike, but their styles mesh, as these characters who are very much in love prove.


Homer and Marge Simpson, "The Simpsons," Fox

Scoff if you must, since they're cartoon characters, though oddly real to millions. They almost always wear the same outfits: Homer a short-sleeved white shirt and blue pants, Marge a strapless green dress and pearls. Admittedly, the strapless dress is an odd choice for running to the market and school pickups, though its midcalf length and flat shoes offset its usual sexiness. And if Marge can love Homer in - bleach our memories now -- tighty whities, who are we to argue?

Mike and Molly, "Mike & Molly," CBS

Mike ( Billy Gardell), a Chicago cop, is probably the largest leading man on TV. And Molly ( Melissa McCarthy) knows how good a man looks in uniform. For her part, Molly has fun with her wardrobe.

She dresses like most women, with her outfits looking as if they came from stores, not designers, and she, not a stylist, put them together. McCarthy, who studied textiles in college and used to make her own clothes, likes Molly's wardrobe. "It's cute and it's comfortable," she says.

Mitch and Cam, "Modern Family," ABC

Mitchell ( Jesse Tyler Ferguson) has to wear suits, conservative shirts and ties to his job at a law firm. Cam ( Eric Stonestreet), however, understands the value of dressing for drama. He also understands the value of living for drama. We are still trying to forget his devotion to bike shorts, because honestly, if the Tour de France is not part of your life, bicycle shorts should be worn sparingly.

Peter and Alicia Florrick, "The Good Wife" CBS

Valentine's Day need not be only about gushy love. Though people may not get it, Alicia and Peter ( Julianna Margulies, Chris Noth) have a deep love. Some might say understanding, and yes, that is part of it. They dress for their jobs -- she in chic suits and dresses and always tailored, he in as much a uniform as Mike or Homer, only the governor's is a white shirt and a suit.

Lord and Lady Crawley, "Downton Abbey" PBS

When dressing was an art and the well-heeled required a staff to do so properly, no one did it better than these two. Cora's ( Elizabeth McGovern) lavish lace and silk outfits and Robert's ( Hugh Bonneville) tweeds and formalwear are exquisite, expensive and always completely historically accurate. Despite requiring multiple layers, or perhaps because of it, nothing is more romantic, which is how it should be on Valentine's Day.
Photo/Video credit: FOX, CBS, ABC, PBS