Here are three reasons why She's Out of My League is a successful romantic comedy:
1. The awkward, geeky-looking lead is played by someone who really is awkward and geeky-looking.
Remember in Can't Buy Me Love when they dressed up Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey as an astronomy-loving lost cause? They hid his hotness under a bad hairstyle and stupid glasses, so when the bitchy, spoiled, popular girl came along to give him a makeover, voilĂ ! He was a hunk and she was a miracle worker. Barf. (See also: She's All That.) The star of She's Out of My League, though, Kirk (played by Jay Baruchel), really is a dork. Even when Baruchel tries to look Hollywood-hot in real life, he just looks like a scrawny nerd in fancy clothes with gel in his hair. But he's hilarious and endearingly goofy, so it's also completely plausible that chicks would love him. Which brings us to...
2. The hot, successful love interest is not unlikable.
Usually, I would hate watching a woman with huge boobs, flawless skin, and a paycheck five times bigger than mine get it on with the kind of dude I might have a chance with (read: geek). But Molly (Alice Eve) is pretty funny. She likes to fuck with people, especially Kirk's stupid family, so she's okay by me.
3. It's 30 percent romantic and 70 percent comedy.
Romantic comedies, no matter how romantic, need to be funny. Sandra Bullock rolling around on the floor, naked and wet, with Ryan Reynolds is not funny. It's slapstick bullshit. Sure, She's Out of My League used every rom-com stereotype in the book (the bitchy ex-girlfriend, the bullying older brother, a few smart-ass best friends for the guy, and a bitchy cock-blocking best friend for the woman), but it actually had jokes—funny jokes. Also: dude-on-dude ball-shaving scene. 
