The Friend Zone

Today the hilarious site Doghouse Diaries shared this little bit of wisdom about the human experience.

I was talking with a friend the other day and she was wondering if she could do anything to get a guy she likes to ask her out, when she's pretty sure that he's already placed her firmly in the friend zone. While clearly it's different from each gender's position (based on the standard gender roles, which aren't necessarily correct but nonetheless are generally followed), it got me thinking.

So my question to you in the blogosphere is this:
Is it possible to move from the friend zone to the dating zone?

A few years ago, I tried to subtly take the first option from the comic strip by asking out a girl that I'd been friends with for a long time. She accepted the date but then DTR'ed me even before we went out, letting me know she couldn't ever see us being more than the friends we were/are.

Things were awkward for a while, but we're still friends. However, I kind of decided at that point that I was done attempting to escape the friend zone going forward. Pain and rejection can be harsh teachers.

Any of you have stories to the contrary? Or is it just romantic comedy movies that this works in?