Woohoo

Always felt this exact same way even back in the day. Helga is obsessive and Arnold just doesn't really care. Kind of a weird family show idea. I wonder how many shows have done that. Characters that are not friends because one supposedly hates the other but secretly loves them and eventually they hook up. Frankly it sounds like relationship toxicity incarnate. 

I still hold Hey Arnold in a high regard, but Arnold and Helga's "relationship" did not age well in my older eyes. 

Had Helga been given some sort of "redemption arc" in the show, then I wouldn't be so harsh.  In my opinion, they should just be really good friends.