Buddyshipping

Buddyshipping is the slash ship between Dan Mandel and Chris Pearson from the Dan Vs. fandom.

Canon
Dan and Chris have a very close relationship in the show. They have been an important part of each other's lives since they met at summer camp as children and vowed to be "friends for life." They attended the same high school and still hang out regularly as adults. The two of them have many common interests and enjoy various activities when they meet up, such as getting lunch at Burgerphile, watching movies like Space Monkeys from Planet Space and even playing bingo. Every episode of the show has Dan involving Chris in some sort of revenge scheme. While Chris is often a less-than-willing accomplice in these schemes, he always has Dan's back. There are also times when he agrees with Dan's anger and wants to help get revenge, like in the episode "The Gym" when he decides to assist Dan after the personal trainer Chad puts Chris on a diet.

Dan constantly fights with Elise for Chris' attention and complains that Chris never should have married her. He told Chris not to marry Elise as he was driving Chris to his wedding and ranted about how marriage was a scam in his Best Man speech. In the episode "Dancing," he agrees to abandon his revenge and help Elise after she says Chris can stay in Dan's apartment for three weeks. Also, whenever Dan needs help, his first move is usually to call Chris.

Chris regularly drops whatever he's doing and runs to help Dan. He will even go if Elise doesn't want him to. In "The Wolf-Man," he is relieved when Elise says he can go help Dan with his plan, and when she doesn't in "The Salvation Armed Forces," he claims he's going out to buy a swimsuit and sneaks off to help Dan anyway. He also clearly enjoys Dan's company. Chris is excited for the two of them to work together in "The Boss."

Moments
The Wolf-Man


 * When Dan and Chris get their belongings back at the police station, Dan notices that Chris has a locket with Elise's photo in it and exclaims, "Hey! That's not me!"

New Mexico


 * In an effort to make Chris eat more healthfully, Elise tells him they will have salad for dinner. Chris complains that Dan had promised him burgers instead. Elise then asks, "If Dan jumped off a cliff, would you?" Chris is unable to respond.

The Animal Shelter


 * Dan struggles to lug around Chris' semi-conscious body to get him medical attention. In frustration, Dan says, "Seriously, if this doesn't work, I'm leaving you." Upon realizing what he said, Dan looks guilty and whispers, "I would never leave you."
 * Dan has a conversation with an unconscious Chris where he puts words in Chris' mouth and makes him say, "I love you." Dan immediately looks embarrassed and says, "Um, I feel...somewhat warmly towards you. But to be honest, this conversation is making me uncomfortable." Notably, this mirrors the line Dan later tries to tell Hortense, a character he canonically had romantic feelings for. In the episode "The Wedding," Elise pushes Dan to confess his feelings to Hortense via skywriting, and he fights to change the message from "Hortense, I love you, don't marry him, Dan" to "Hortense, I feel warmly towards you."

Canada


 * Dan tells Chris that he's "so clean you could eat off [him]" and then gets offended when Chris says he won't.

The Salvation Armed Forces


 * Elise tells Chris to focus on preparing for their vacation instead of helping Dan. Chris lies to her by saying he's going out to buy a swimsuit and goes to help Dan anyway.

The Beach


 * Dan comes to Chris' rescue, and Chris exclaims, "You came here to help me. You do care!" Dan glares at him and then pinches him. Chris says, "Aw, you can't fool me! That felt like a love pinch!"

George Washington


 * After talking with the museum actor playing George Washington, Chris complains, "This is why our children are getting dumber. No standards!" Dan thinks for a moment and responds, "We don't have children!"

The Fancy Restaurant


 * Chris sneaks past the sleeping restroom attendant to help Dan, who got stuck in a vent in one of the stalls while trying to escape the dungeon under the restaurant. As Chris strains to pull him out, we cut to the attendant, who has woken up and looks confused about the ruckus coming from the stall. He looks surprised as Chris and Dan walk out together, disheveled, and Chris says, "Let's go home. You can help me think of how I can make this up to my lovely wife."

Dan* (*Impostor)


 * When Dan and Chris set out to search for the impostor, Dan helps Chris off the couch and the two walk out the door hand in hand.

The Family Camping Trip


 * Dan lures the Hockey Mask Maniac away from Chris, saving his life.

The Lemonade Stand Gang


 * After first being assaulted by the Lemonade Stand Gang, Dan tells Chris, "Crush them with your big, strong hands!"
 * When Dan and Chris are attacked again by the Lemonade Stand Gang, Chris is knocked to the ground and tells Dan, "Can't move. Save yourself!" Dan replies, "No! No man left behind!" and stays to help Chris to his feet.

The Family Thanksgiving


 * Dan and Chris spend Thanksgiving together every year. Dan compliments Chris' bacon-wrapped turducken, saying, "I may not care for the duck, but the bacon, tur, and ken are mellifluously delectable."

The Neighbors


 * Chris steps in the way of Dan's ballista. Dan says, "Get out of the way, Chris. This is life or death for me! You think I won't shoot you!?" But when Chris refuses to move, Dan backs down and says, "All right, you win."

Dancing


 * Dan plans to get revenge on Elise by making her lose her dance competition. However, he abandons this plan and helps her win instead after she promises him Chris' undivided attention for three weeks. She says Chris can even stay at Dan's apartment.

The Bank


 * The bank manager asks if Dan and Chris have come to open a joint checking account together.

The Monster Under the Bed


 * There are scenes of Dan clinging to Chris' arm and of Chris cradling Dan after he collapses.

Stupidity


 * Dan encourages Chris to win the eating competition. "You absolutely have to do this! Not for Elise, because who cares about her, but for yourself. Listen, I've been watching you eat for more years than I care to remember. My friend, a gift like yours comes along once in a lifetime!"

The Telemarketer


 * Dan compliments Chris' hot cocoa. "Okay, that's really good!"

Chris


 * Even though their argument got pretty out of hand throughout the episode, Dan completely forgives Chris during their "Amok Time" inspired battle and lets everything go without Chris even having to apologize. This is especially meaningful because the idea of forgiving Elise's parents, even after they apologized, conflicted so heavily with his need for vengeance in "The Family Thanksgiving" that Dan actually fainted.
 * At the end, Chris gives Dan the death ray and returns his box of special memories. Dan is touched, and they make plans to see a movie together.

The Boss


 * Dan finally has the perfect job and the perfect demonic boss. But when she asks him to help eliminate Chris, he doesn't hesitate to make holy water to send her back to Hell. Dan and Chris walk out of her office with their arms wrapped around each other.

The Common Cold


 * The episode starts with Chris coming over to pick Dan up so they can go play bingo together.
 * Chris tries some home remedies to make Dan feel better and generally takes care of Dan while he's sick.
 * When Dan survives in the end, Chris hugs him tight.

The DMV


 * Chris carries around a copy of Dan's mug shot. "This one looked so adorable I just had to keep it."

The Family Cruise


 * Dan holds Chris' hand as they get pulled into the Catalina Parallelogram.
 * As they get pulled into the time warp, Chris calls Dan's name and tries to tell him something, but he just ends up saying, "I forgot what I was going to say."

Summer Camp


 * Even though Camp Atrocious was a terrible experience, Dan remembers it fondly because he met Chris there.
 * Dan and Chris first met as kids when Chris saved Dan from some bullies. The two of them stuck close together for the rest of camp.
 * Chris also saved Dan's teddy bear for him. Dan said, "This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me."
 * Dan refused to leave Chris behind. "You're the best friend I've got."
 * They vowed to be friends for life with a handshake and a hug.
 * Dan saw how much Chris wanted to win an award and make his parents proud, so he made Chris a "Best Sidekick Award."

Fanon
There are many pieces of fan art and fan fiction devoted to this pairing. There are fan fics written as early as 2011 when the first season was still airing. Many fans love the slow-burn, mutual pining, "best friends to lovers" dynamic of the ship. Even though the show has been off the air for years, people continue to post fan art somewhat regularly on sites like Tumblr.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

TUMBLR

Trivia

 * As the name of the pairing suggests, Dan and Chris (but especially Dan) commonly call each other "buddy."
 * The current name of the ship was first suggested by Tumblr user Prince-Luffy.
 * Actual co-creator of the show, the real Dan Mandel, has made jokes that seem suggestive of the pairing on the official Dan Vs. Facebook page. In one, he took an image of Chris with Dan—who is wearing Chris' clothes—and attached text reading "Next hump day I bring a change of clothes..." In another, he posted an image of Chris, Dan and Honey from "The Catburglar." Dan is gazing longingly at Honey, and the caption reads "Is that jealousy in Chris' eye?" He also posted fanart of Chris kissing Dan for Pride Month 2021.