TV and music just go hand-in-hand so beautifully. Nancy Drew and Ace (Hardy) from The CW’s “Nancy Drew” and Taylor Swift are no exception! Here’s a full list of all the lyrics that reminded me of their love story in season three.
Missed seasons one and two? Read that article here!
Missed seasons one and two? Read that article here!
Season 3: Friends to cursed lovers
Daylight (Lover)
Ace is pure sunshine and daylight, and I won’t hear otherwise.
“My love was as cruel as the cities I lived in / Everyone looked worse in the light / There are so many lines that I’ve crossed unforgiven / I’ll tell you the truth, but never goodbye / I don’t wanna look at anything else now that I saw you / I don’t wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you”
gold rush (evermore)
Nancy knows how much she likes Ace in season three, but she is also trying to be respectful of his current relationship with Amanda. Thus, she “can’t dare to dream about [him] anymore.” He also just really has hair that falls “into place like dominoes.”
“What must it be like / To grow up that beautiful? / With your hair falling into place like dominoes / My mind turns your life into folklore /I can’t dare to dream about you anymore”
All Of The Girls You Loved Before (Lover)
I had to use “All Of The Girls You Loved Before” off “Lover” for when Ace and Amanda finally break up. Ace knew there was something missing from that relationship even if it took him a while to realize it was Nancy missing all along. All of the girls Ace loved before really made him the one Nancy adored. I love it here.
“All of the girls you loved before (ooh) / Made you the one I’ve fallen for /Every dead-end street / Led you straight to me / Now you’re all I need /I’m so thankful for / All of the girls you loved before / But I love you more”
The Outside (Debut)
“The Outside” for Ace stuck in the liminal space was too perfect not to use. My heart shattered watching him watch Nancy dance with Park from the outside.
“And I can still see you, this ain’t the best view / On the outside looking in /I’ve been a lot of lonely places / I’ve never been on the outside”
You Are In Love (1989)
Ace stuck in the liminal space watching from afar might have been heartbreaking, but it also made Hannah tell him that he loves Nancy! A win is a win. Ace using Morse Code by tapping on Nancy’s shoulder to make her feel his presence and get his message to her through a different plane of existence is true love at its finest.
“And your shoulders brush / No proof, one touch / But you felt enough /You can hear it in the silence, silence, you / You can feel it on the way home, way home, you / You can see it with the lights out, lights out / You are in love, true love”
Cruel Summer (Lover)
Nancy and Ace finally know at the same time that they love each other, but they keep getting interrupted. It’s only getting more cruel from here.
“Killing me slow, out the window / I’m always waiting for you to be waiting below / Devil’s roll the dice, angels roll their eyes / What doesn’t kill me makes me want you more / And it’s new, the shape of your body / It’s blue, the feeling I got / And it’s ooh, whoa, oh / It’s a cruel summer”
Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version) (1989)
“Nancy Drew” isn’t “Nancy Drew” without a dreamscape scene every season. “Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version)” encapsulates the perfection of the first part of Nancy’s dream weave when her and Ace acted on their love for each other (before Temperance came and messed everything up).
“Say you’ll remember me / Standing in a nice dress / Staring at the sunset, babe /Red lips and rosy cheeks / Say you’ll see me again / Even if it’s just in your wildest dreams”
Breathe (Fearless Taylor’s Version)
Ace’s fake hallucination death destroyed me. My parents were watching it with me and I had told them that Ryan and Ace were my two favorite characters right before we watched this episode. I full-on sobbed and felt like I couldn’t breathe. Turns out it wasn’t real, but nonetheless I have “Breathe (Taylor’s Version)” to represent this.
“Music starts playin’ like the end of a sad movie, /It’s the kinda ending you don’t really wanna see ‘Cause it’s tragedy and it’ll only bring you down, / Now I don’t know what to be without you around /… And I can’t, / Breathe, / Without you, / But I have to, /Breathe, / Without you, / But I have to”
Dear Reader (Midnights)
“Dear Reader” is so Nancy-learning-about-the-death-curse-from-Temperance coded. Finding out you’re in a trap? Making sure you don’t miss when you aim at the devil? Desperate prayers of a cursed man? It’s the entire premise of the season three finale. Perfection.
“Dear reader / If it feels like a trap, you’re already in one / … Dear reader / The greatest of luxuries is your secrets / Dear reader / When you aim at the devil make sure you don’t miss / … My fourth drink in my hand / These desperate prayers of a cursed man”
The Last Time (Red Taylor’s Version)
“The Last Time (Taylor’s Version)” really describes the entire scene of Nancy showing up at Ace’s door in the season finale to a T. She does find herself at his door. She does imagine that things are better and she does break his heart in the blink of an eye – stupid death curse but great song.
“Find myself at your door / Just like all those times before / I’m not sure how I got there /All roads, they lead me here / I imagine you are home / In your room, all alone /And you open your eyes into mine / And everything feels better /And right before your eyes / I’m breaking / No past, no reasons why / Just you and me /This is the last time I’m asking you this / Put my name at the top of your list /This is the last time I’m asking you why / You break my heart in the blink of an eye”
The Other Side Of The Door (Fearless Taylor’s Version)
I had to add a part two to the Nace heartbreak scene at the end of season three episode 13. “The Other Side Of The Door (Taylor’s Version)” just had to make this playlist. It’s yet another Taylor song that encapsulates that moment so well. Whenever I hear this song, I immediately think of Nancy leaning against his closed door crying.
“In the heat of the fight, I walked away / Ignorin’ words that you were sayin’ /Tryna make me stay / I said, ‘This time I’ve had enough’ /And you’ve called a hundred times / But I’m not picking up / ‘Cause I’m so mad, I might tell you that it’s over / But if you look a little closer /I said, “Leave”, but all I really want is you / To stand outside my window, throwin’ pebbles / Screamin’, ‘I’m in love with you’ “
If This Was A Movie (Fearless Taylor’s Version)
There are so many songs to describe that final Nace scene in season three. I must use them all. If this was a movie, Nancy would go back to Ace, but it’s not. Alas, it’s a TV show instead so they must yearn for each other for an entire extra season.
“Come back, come back, come back to me like / You would, you would if this was a movie / Stand in the rain outside ’til I came out / Come back, come back, come back to me like /You could, you could if you just said you’re sorry / I know that we could work it out somehow / But if this was a movie you’d be here by now”
my tears ricochet (folklore)
There were so many tears ricocheting everywhere in that finale from the characters and the entire fandom. This song was a given in my opinion.
“Cursing my name, wishing I stayed / Look at how my tears ricochet”
Death By A Thousand Cuts (Lover)
Like “my tears ricochet,” this finale also felt like “death by a thousand cuts.” It was so cruel but so validating as a fan. It was fabulous writing even if my heart hurt so badly afterwards. I think of this song as a transition into season four.
“’Cause saying goodbye is death by a thousand cuts / Flashbacks waking me up /I get drunk, but it’s not enough / ‘Cause the morning comes and you’re not my baby /I look through the windows of this love / Even though we boarded them up /Chandelier still flickering here / ‘Cause I can’t pretend it’s okay when it’s not /It’s death by a thousand cuts”
The Taylor Swift songs don’t end here! Read my final article in my #Nace (Taylor’s Version) here to see what songs reminded me of “Nancy Drew” in season four.
