I've read relatively few romance novels. While enjoyable, it's not really a genre I seek out. It's pretty similar for romance/romcom films. Unfortunately, it's so easy for writers to just be lazy and rely on the same tropes and cliches we're used to (which is why I'm so happy that
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is being careful about making theirs original and natural). Relationships can bring out many interesting aspects of a character, but so many writers ignore those complexities (or ignore half of the couple), and the result can be bland and uninteresting.
It sometimes annoys me when non-romantic films shoehorn in romantic subplots. I'm generally dissatisfied with the portrayals of women in popular culture, and so often a romantic interest is just introduced as an additional prize for the (usually male) main character to "win." It's a breath of fresh air to get a film like Pacific Rim that's completely free of that.
I don't read romance fics either, and I pretty much stay away from shipping entirely. I've never entirely understood the appeal of shipping, especially in a fandom like Pokemon where there is so little precedence of characters winding up together canonically. I am admittedly more forgiving of OC romance.
None of this is to say that I abhor romance - I just think it needs to be used strategically and written well.
~Psychic