Backstabbing and glad-handing, let’s talk about frenemies.
The term “frenemy” — an amalgamation of friend and enemy that dates back to the 1950s — is attributed to Aries gossip columnist Walter Winchell, who used it to describe the fraught relationship between Russia and the US.
In the ensuing decades, “frenemy” has been used to describe the dynamic between two friends that leaves either or both parties with a disquieting sense of ick.
Can I trust this person? Is their kind smile masking a dubious plot? Do they want to f–k my significant other and steal my job? Are they the Woody to my Buzz Lightyear? Is there poison in the cup of camaraderie? Et tu, Brute?
Some signs are more likely than others to operate in the realm and roles of frenemies, while others keep the peace and the pleasantries.
Pisces, like giant jellyfish and polar bears, tend not to have natural enemies or frenemies, as they are more self-indulgent/codependent than malicious/competitive.
They also do this wet-eyed approximation of remorse that makes it easy to forgive them. For evidence, look no further than Pisces Elizabeth Taylor legit running off with best friend Debbie Reynolds’s husband, and Reynolds welcoming her back in an act of true Aries armistice. Bless.
These three zodiac signs are the most likely to attract and act as frenemies.
LEO (July 23 – August 22)
Leos top the list of zodiac frenemies. Lions love hard, feel deep, commit to competition, and fight back with equal intensity.
The yellow journalists of the zodiac, Leos are oxygenated by theatrics and grand displays of love or ire. For this ilk, above all others, a dramatic friendship beats a dull one any day.
Ruled by the heart, they have high expectations of others and are prone to hold onto hurts, slights, and resentments. That same heart makes it difficult for them to cut ties or exile anyone. Weak for flattery and suckers for a redemptive arc, Leos keep company with those they would be better off excommunicating.
Weak for flattery and suckers for a redemptive arc, Leos keep company with those they would be better off excommunicating.
A Leo-on-Leo, claw-for-claw friendship — where competition is the bedrock and mangled manes are the casualties — is a classic frenemy dynamic.
Leo loves to be a hype man — so long as the object of their support does not surpass them, and a fellow lion is apt to do just that. The viability of this pairing relies solely on the emotional health and humility of the cats in question.
In a Leo/Taurus situation, we have a loyal, but immovable kind of friendship; neither is giving ground nor offering an apology, making it a kind of s–t talking frenemy stalemate.
Leo finds a most worthy adversary and frenemy in Aquarius. Zodiac opposites, there is mutual respect and zero compromise when it comes to these two. We see this dynamic at work in the personal and professional saga of lion king Slash and his triple Aquarius bandmate Axl Rose.
Interestingly, the only sign that habitually wages frenemy war against hard-to-hate Pisces is Leo, as big cats carry tall standards, and Pisces can’t even with that kind of pressure.
We see this dynamic of disappointment in the frenemy relationship betwixt Leo Jennifer Lopez and Pisces Eva Longoria. When J.Lo split from ex-husband Marc Anthony, she reasonably assumed Longoria would follow suit and sever ties with Anthony too, perhaps not realizing that asking a Pisces to hold a grudge is like asking a toddler to hold their bladder or a dog not to sniff. Some things defy nature.
LIBRA (September 23 – October 22)
Libra is the sign of forging partnerships/relationships, scratching backs, kissing babies, and keeping score. Ruled by Venus, the planet of maintaining appearances, Libras are more likely than others to avoid the kinds of conflicts that end friendships or the kind of commitments that fortify them.
Practiced in the art of diplomacy and getting theirs, Libras will wield charm, wear smiles, and keep it copacetic even and especially among those they despise.
For them, it ain’t about what you’ve done, but how you can be leveraged, utilized, and used for ulterior motives. Capricorn assumes a similar strategy in relationships, but they do so with less finesse and more brass tax.
A Libra is statistically just as likely to talk s–t/consort with your foes as they are to attend your child’s Bat Mitzvah, stay in your lake house, or recommend you for a raise. Fittingly, Libras make for excellent politicians, lawyers, double agents, used car salesmen, and frenemies. Lauded Libra Oscar Wilde proves the stance of his sign in the oft-quoted parable, “Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”
SCORPIO (October 23 – November 21)
Fixed water and born with a tail to sting and a claw to entrap, Scorpio is the most powerful sign under the sun and among the zodiac wheel.
The underbelly of the scorpion’s power is the relentless fear that someone (coughs, everyone) is trying to take it from them or they must take it from others to feel secure.
Suspicion is a hallmark of this sign, which can hold a grudge as well as it can hold eye contact and which believes that survival comes from competition. Scorpios expect absolute loyalty from the people they love and when dealt anything less, they get hurt and hateful.
Betrayal for these folk can be as simple as lying or as subtle as failing to take their side. Scorpios play the long game when it comes to revenge and are able to put on a friendly face to an enemy to exact their master plan of punishment and just desserts.
See apex Scorpio Puff Daddy’s long list of feuds and reconciliations including that time he got Wendy Williams fired. For further evidence, see the even longer list of Drake’s beef-starting, peace-making, and diss-track-releasing. Fine line between friend and foe, lover and lawsuit with that dude.
Scorpios live and love by the adage, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” As a kind of signature move, written in bold, Scorpio will always stab you right in the front — and right when you least expect it.
Astrology 101: Your guide to the star
- The 12 zodiac signs
- What are the astrology houses
- Here’s what each planet represents
- Sun, moon and rising signs: Get to know your Big 3
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.
