With Jersey Shore’s highly-anticipated reunion underway, it’s got a lot of us feeling pretty sentimental. As we look back on all of the laughs, romance, adventures, and drama, it’s important that we pay homage to the Shore’s most beautiful duo: Pauly D. and Vinny. When DJ Pauly D. and Vinny Guadagnino first entered the Jersey Shore house, they were total strangers. But over the years, their bond has become unbreakable, growing stronger with time. That’s why we decided to get a little nostalgic and look back on 16 times Pauly D. and Vinny were the ultimate BFFs.
16. When they first met and ~sparks flew~
Some friendships take a long time to reach BFF status, but this definitely wasn’t the case for Pauly D. and Vinny. The two have been two peas in a pod since the first ever episode of Jersey Shore, and their relationship has only gotten stronger since. In an interview with MTV, Pauly reminisced with Deena about the beginning of their bromance. As he put it: “Me and Vinny were always like, we hit it off, we were really cool. It actually started the first time we met.” Talk about love at first sight.
15. When Pauly defended him at a nightclub
Sure they got along when they first met, but Pauly D. proved his real loyalty when things got rough on the gang’s first night out. If you’ve ever watched Jersey Shore, you know that it’s pretty much impossible for them to go to a club without some sort of drama going down. In this case, someone decided to mess with Vinny and shoved him while they were at a nightclub. Pauly D. when into full-on mama bear mode, and punched the guy in the face. As he put it during a reunion interview, “I didn’t like that, somebody hit my boy.” After that, they were family.
14. When they weren’t afraid to talk about their feelings for each other
Let’s be honest, most of the stuff that goes down on the Jersey Shore is less than politically correct. All the dudes are crazy hyper-masculine and absurdly misogynistic. That’s why it’s surprising that Vinny and Pauly D. are so blatant about their love for each other. They’re definitely not afraid to get intimate. In one episode, Vinny pours his lil’ heart out, saying: “When you find someone that you really really get along with and you realize that, and you live with them. You know, you form a little relationship.” Or, as Pauly said: “It’s weird when you discover your soulmate is actually your roommate.”
13. When they introduced Louie and Tony
Mushy stuff aside, we all know that Pauly D. and Vinny are probably funniest members of the Jersey Shore fam (rivaled only by Snooki and JWoww, of course). When the two of them get together, they’re unstoppable. One of their best bits, however, was created in Italy. The two of them dressed up in the most stereotypically-douchey outfits they could muster up, and called themselves Louie and Tony. They talked in crazy-strong Jersey accents and danced around like morons. It was one of the J Shore’s most iconic moments.
12. When Louie and Tony taught everyone a new mantra
And of course, with these new characters came a whole slew of ridiculous dance moves and catchphrases. They fist pumped together, they applied their chapstick meticulously and amped each other up for scoring chicks. From this, came one of Pauly D. and Vinny’s most iconic lines: “fist pumps, pushups, chapstick.” It’s almost as legendary as “gym, tan, laundry.” Don’t deny it.
11. When they were prank war champions
As you can imagine, things got pretty ridiculous in the Jersey Shore house. One of the best examples of that was during the prank war that ensued between members of the house. Obviously, Pauly D. and Vinny teamed up and decided to prank Deena and Snooki, who are constantly victimized by their ridiculous antics. The boys decide to take the cute pictures Deena has of her and her boyfriend and replace them with pictures of themselves. Once, they even hung Snooki’s favorite stuffed crocodile from the roof.
10. When they got manicures together
If you haven’t gone deep into the Jersey Shore’s bonus videos, there are a lot of gems waiting for you. Obviously the men in the J-Shore house are not strangers to meticulous grooming. Between Pauly’s absurd blowouts, the amount of product in all of their hair, and the hours spent in the gym — these guys care about their appearance. But Vinny and Pauly D. took it to a new level when they decided to treat themselves to mani-pedis. They had an excellent time, and Vinny even proposed that they add this to their GTL routine.
9. When Vinny went to leave and Pauly got emotional
By season five of Jersey Shore, everyone had pretty much started to reach their breaking point. After heading back from Florence, they almost immediately went right back to the shore to film the next season. While the rest of the cast was ready to party, Vinny wasn’t quite there. He’s always been one of the more sensitive housemates, and he realized he just wanted to be with his family and take some time off. Pauly D. was devastated and tried convincing him to stay, and said: “You just expect him to be there; you don’t realize what you got till it’s gone, I’ll tell you that.” Heartbreaking stuff!
8. When they reunite, season after season
Everyone in the shore house is pretty much like family, which makes every season premiere like a big, ridiculous family reunion. Everyone kisses, hugs, jumps all over each other and of course — drinks massive quantities of booze and parties hard. But no one’s reunions are as emotional as Pauly D. and Vinny’s. The two of them act like they’re being reunited after one of them was away at war.
7. When they had to say their sad farewells
And of course, the goodbyes are just as emotional as the first hellos. Every time a season ended, Pauly D. and Vinny would get pretty sentimental, sadly packing their things up as they thought back on all the good times they had that season. Before the reunion was ever in the works, they had an especially intense goodbye when they left their housemates for what they thought would be the last time. When Pauly D. looked over at Vinny and said: “You thought I was a toolbag or whatever, did you ever think you’d be best friends with one? Don’t judge a blowout by its cover.” Poetry.
6. When they plotted together
Some of Vinny and Pauly D.’s best antics came out when Sam and Ron were fighting. In order to escape the drama of what was hands-down the most toxic relationship in television history, Vinny and Pauly D. got up to a lot of pranks and hijinks to try and lighten the mood in the house. However, they also weren’t afraid to poke fun at how ridiculous Ron and Sammi’s relationship was. When they got into a particularly rough argument after a night out, the boys jokingly made a plan to write Sam a note that was “politically correct” that would state: “Ronnie hooked up with Deena in the hot tub, in lieu of, resulting in ending up in the bed with you.” Obviously, the boys were teasing Snooki and JWoww for their infamous note to Sammi from season one.
5. When they went as dates to Deena’s wedding
In one of the peak moments of their bromance, the two of them got together and took Deena’s wedding by storm. This moment was great because it took place when the Jersey Shore wasn’t filming, proving that they truly are best friends IRL. When Deena got married last year, the whole cast was obviously there to celebrate with her. But rather than finding their own hot dates, Pauly D. and Vinny decided to go together and kept us updated on their night via Vinny’s Snapchat.
4. When Vinny proposed to Pauly
In case people weren’t aware of just how true their love was, Vinny decided to take things to the next level. At a season three reunion show, we got to see some hugely important behind-the-scenes footage, in which Vinny gets down on one knee and finally pops the question to Pauly. Pauly obviously says yes, and reveals to the camera how he really feels about Vinny. As he put it: “There’s only one guy in my life that I’ve had a romance with, and that’s Vinny.”
3. When Pauly lovingly roasted Vinny’s outfit
Every now and then, Vinny and Pauly had to make sure they were keeping each other in check, because that’s what friends are for. One night before they were heading out to Karma, Vinny decided to wear a pretty bold, new, plaid and denim shirt. The second he walked out, Pauly laid into him, saying: “Where is your tan, Vanilla Ice?” Followed by “Your sister was nice enough to give you her outfit, shoes and all?” And finally, “is that a JERT?” Vinny took it all in stride, of course.
2. When Pauly met Vinny’s parents in Italy
Going to Italy was a life-changing trip for the entire Jersey Shore cast. Returning to the homeland meant getting in touch with a lot of their Italian roots, and for Vinny in particular, this trip was super special. Being a true Italian, a lot of his extended family still lives in Italy, and some of his family members from the states were visiting. So, he decided to pay them a visit. It gets even cuter because he decided to bring Pauly along to meet them. When Pauly asked if Vinny’s parents would like him, he replied: “Oh they will baby, don’t worry about it.”
1. When they invented the Jersey Shore national anthem, “Tee Shirt Time”
This may be hands-down the most important moment, not only in Pauly D. and Vinny’s history but in Jersey Shore history. If you’ve watched the show even once, you’re probably familiar with “tee shirt time.” Basically, it’s when the boys throw on their “fresh” shirt for the night, moments before getting in the cabs to go out. That’s to ensure that their shirts are as clean and new as possible. Pauly and Vinny took it to the next level, by inventing a song to go with it that they belt every time they put their shirts on. You’ve probably heard it shouted by boys in your freshman dorm at least once.