JJ and Pope

### Status

Best Friends; Declared Family; Allies; JJ went to jail for Pope; Willing to die for each other; JJ said I love you

### Started

Before Pilot; Childhood

**JJ and Pope** are best friends and both members of the close-knit friend group The Pogues. JJ and Pope are extremely close and they both seem to love each other a lot, they both protect each other and are both willing to go as far as risking their own life for the other, they're always there for each other and JJ considers Pope (along with the other Pogues) to be his family. JJ feels extra strongly about Pope and the Pogues since his father left the OBX for good in The Cross. Pope has also been seen jeopardizing things that are important to him for JJ and the pogues. JJ has declared that Pope, along with the other Pogues, is his family and everything he has left.

## History

Pope and JJ have known each other since before the Pilot, it was implied that they met during their childhood. They are probably the closest out of all of the Pogues and they are always there for each other and neither one is afraid to say what is on their mind to the other, and it rarely takes any toll on their friendship. They are often seen bickering and making fun of each other, as well as hanging out just the two of them outside the story's plotline.

Pope is often the one that is able to keep JJ in line, often trying to talk JJ out of doing stupid things as well as looking out for him when needed. JJ is also often seen to be talking Pope into doing stupid and reckless things, which Pope in turn often ends up regretting later on.

## Throughout The Series

### Season 1

Pope and JJ are shown to be very close throughout all of Season 1. They are seen hanging out a lot, even outside the main plotline of the show. They are often seen laughing and joking together, having fun. It is also a recurring theme throughout the season that JJ irritates Pope and vice versa, like when JJ and John B are about to go into the Motel, Pope stops John B and asks him to make sure JJ doesn't do anything stupid, to which he replies that he won't make any promises.

JJ is always there for Pope to help him through all of his struggles and he always has his back when times are tough, likewise, Pope was very supportive of JJ when he was being abused by his father.

Pope and JJ are always looking out for each other and they constantly prove how strong their bond is. Like when they are running from guards in the Pilot, and Pope falls while jumping over a fence, JJ helps him up. When they are out on the HMS Pogue and JJ falls in the water, Pope expresses concern for JJ and asks if he is okay. When they are in the salvage yard and are cornered by the dog Tebow, JJ helps Pope escape by distracting the dog.

When JJ comes back from delivering groceries to the Cameron's, he notices that Pope is hurt and worriedly asks him what happened while carefully lifting his hat. When he finds out that Rafe and Topper jumped him, he gets angry and convinces Pope into getting revenge. After Pope sunk Topper's boat as revenge, JJ tells him that he is proud of him. When Topper and Rafe go to Heyward's Seafood to mad-dog Pope, Pope gets paranoid and goes to see JJ to express his concern and JJ tells him to stop feeling guilty about it. Later Topper and Rafe pick a fight with them at the movies because of Topper's boat, and they almost kill both JJ and Pope before Kiara saves their lives.

When Pope is about to get arrested for sinking the boat, JJ makes an impulse decision to take the blame for Pope. JJ got arrested outside of Heyward's Seafood and he gets taken to the station. When JJ is in jail, he smiles at the thought of Pope not getting in trouble for it, despite knowing what was going to happen later with his dad. When he is released to his dad, he finds out that he owes $30,000 in restitution and his dad beats him for it once they've left the police station. At the midsummers party, Pope is clearly agitated and asks Kiara if she has heard from JJ and he gets more worried when she says no. When he sees JJ walk into the party, he walks up to him and throws his arms around him, JJ makes a sarcastic comment about Pope and then he tells him that he loves him too. Pope then notices the bruises on JJ's face and when JJ brushes it off as just a jab, Pope gets worried and tells him it looks more than that, and when JJ tells him it's "nothing that hasn't happened before" Pope has a guilty and sad look on his face and starts to apologize, but JJ won't have it and tells him to trust someone else for once.

When Barry stops the Pogues on the road to rob them, he points a gun toward Pope and the other Pogues and we can see JJ standing in front of Pope and the other Pogues in an attempt to protect them. Later JJ goes to Barry's house to steal money from him. He finds $25,000 which he steals, but the other Pogues don't like it and they start yelling at him because they are "sick of his shit". Pope tells him he acts like a maniac, and JJ snaps and brings up that he took the fall for Pope. Pope has a guilty look on his face when he tells him that he will pay him back the restitution and that he never even asked JJ to do that when JJ suddenly says that he's going off by himself and then leaves. Pope doesn't hesitate to follow him, but before Pope can do more than call out JJ's name, John B stops him. Afterward, we see the Pogues hanging out and having talked about JJ. John B mentions that he will come around when Kie asks if the others think he will go home, Pope responds that there is about a 0% chance that JJ will go home, Pope seems at this point to be the only one who knew about JJ's abuse.

Later in the same episode Pope and Kiara arrive at the Chateau to prepare the winch for when they are supposed to go get the gold the next day. As they are unloading Heyward's truck, lights all around the Chateau's backyard turn on so they go there to check it out and they find JJ sitting drunk in a hot tub. Pope asks him how much he spent on it and when JJ tells him he spent all the money, in one day, both Pope and Kie start yelling at him. As JJ stands up and confronts them, they see all the bruises and cuts on his abdomen, and Pope, realizing it must have been his dad, has a somber look on his face. JJ starts saying he did it for them and Kiara runs forward to hug him and Pope quickly joins the hug and they all share that very emotional and intimate moment together as JJ cries in their arms.

After Shoupe tells the Pogues that Sarah and John B are dead, both Pope's and Kiara's parents show up, but JJ's doesn't. When JJ is crying, standing there alone, Heyward invites him into their hug. Pope and JJ both cry as they are all hugging and Mrs. Heyward tell them both that it's okay.

### Season 2

They're first seen together this season when they are making a memorial for John B with Kiara. They drink to John B's & Sarah's memory. When they and Kiara find out that John B and Sarah are still alive, the two of them cry and hug. The three of them then group hug.

When Rafe tried to drown Kiara while she was in the drains looking for Rafe's gun, Pope and JJ worked together to save her life.

When Heyward got jumped by Renfield, JJ seemed genuinely worried and ran to Pope panting that something happened to his dad.

After JJ helped his dad escape the island, he realized that Pope and the Pogues were all he had. He told Pope and the Pogues that he had come too close to losing them, and that they were everything he had now.

When JJ and Kiara were missing, Pope was worried for them. And when JJ almost died, Pope was visibly distressed and very worried about JJ. When JJ revealed that he was alive and well, Pope was relieved.

## Quotes

> **JJ (to Pope):** "You with me?"
>
> **Pope (to JJ):** "I'm with you."
>
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Coastal Venture**

> **Pope:** "How much did this cost?"
>
>
>
> **JJ:** "Uh... [..] pretty much all of it, yea."
>
> **Pope:** "All of it?"
>
> **JJ:** "Yeah, all of it."
>
> **Pope:** "You spent all the money in one day?"
>
>
>
>
> **JJ:** "Yeah, burned a hole right through my pocket."
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **Dead Calm**

> **Pope to JJ:** "Oh, great! While you were having family time with your pops, John B got bit by a gator!"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Cross**

> **Pope to JJ:** "Get up! JJ!"
>
> **Pope to John B (about JJ):** "Is he alive?"
>  **John B to Pope:** "Uh- I don't know"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Bonfire**

> **Pope:** I gotta say, I'm just a tad uncomfortable with all of this."
>
>
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> **John B (to Pope):** When are you not uncomfortable?
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> **Pope:** I dunno, I rode here on the back of JJ's bike pretty comfortably."
>
>
>
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> **JJ:** "It's true. Most relaxed I've ever seen him."
>
> **--Pope, JJ and John B** in **Parcel 9**

> **Pope:** "Well If you come up too fast, nitrogen gets into your blood, and you get the bends."
>
>
>
> **JJ:** "Bends like, bend over?"
>
>
>
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> **Pope:** "The bends kill you."
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> **--Pope and JJ** in **Pilot**

> **Pope:** "So, which is it? Fantasy or reality?"
>
> **JJ:** "Why are you so weird, Pope?"
>
> **--JJ and Pope in Dead Calm**

> **John B (about Pope and Cleo):** "They did it, they took the bridge!"
>
> **JJ (about Pope):** "That's our boy!"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Coastal Venture**

> **Pope (about Topper, Rafe and Kelce):** "Great, the whole death squad."
>
> **JJ:** "Don't stare, bro"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **Spy Games**

> **Pope:** "I can't, my pops got me on lockdown"
>  **JJ (about Heyward):** "Your dad's a pussy. Over"
>
> **Heyward to JJ:** "Oh, I heard that you little bastard"
>
> **--Pope, Heyward and JJ** in **Pilot**

> **JJ & Pope (in unison):** "Woogity woogity woogity!"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Gold**

> **Pope (to JJ):** "That bread had mold on it three days ago"
>
> **JJ:** " Yea I'll just pull off the bad parts. Plus, mold is good for you. It's just a natural... organism."
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **The Forbidden Zone**

> **JJ (talking about Pope):** "Ain’t all that bad. Just look at that guy over there. He would do anything for us. That’s a pogue if I’ve ever seen one. Bone-deep. That's just one man’s opinion though"
>
> **--Pope and JJ** in **Prayers**

## Trivia

* JJ once stepped between a gun and Pope to protect him.

## Gallery

JJ, John B and Pope S2JJ, John B and Pope Season 1JJ & Pope Season 2JJ & Pope Season 1 GIFJJ, John B & Pope Season 2JJ & Pope Season 1JJ & Pope Season 2JJ & Pope Season 1The PoguesJJ & Pope Season 2JJ, Kiara & Pope Season 2The Pogues 2x04The Pogues S1The Pogues S1The PoguesJJ & Pope Season 2JJ & Pope S2
## References

1. ↑ The Forbidden Zone, 1x03
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Spy Games, 1x04
3. ↑ Midsummers, 1x05
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Dead Calm, 1x07
5. ↑ The Phantom, 1x10
6. ↑ The Gold, 2x01
7. ↑ The Heist, 2x02
8. ↑ My Druthers, 2x06
9. ↑ The Cross, 2x08
10. ↑ The Coastal Venture, 2x10