As mentioned earlier, the only reason this post exists is She-Hulk—I regret nothing. In the early years, the MCU struggled with romance, but I think they’ve managed to get quite a bit better at it. Across the films and shows, here are my favorite couples to date.
Steve Rogers & Peggy Carter
This pairing lost a bit of its shine for me after Endgame, but I can’t deny how much I love Peggy and Steve in Captain America. Despite some trite plotting at points, like the contrived misunderstandings that delay them actually getting together, I really enjoy their relationship. From the start, they respect each other, which is something both of them sorely need, and I like seeing them work together during the war. And regardless of where the franchise eventually takes things, the moments in Captain America that revolve around their planned date are lovely and bittersweet.
Vision & Wanda Maximoff
In the films, these two have very little screentime together, but their scenes are still strong enough to wreck me at the end of Infinity War. While I’m not sure if they would’ve made this list based solely on that, WandaVision is more than enough to seal the deal. Within the wild context of the Hex, they’re so funny and charming together, and as things start to get darker and more intense, we see the depth of their relationship and just how much they mean to one another.
Wenwu & Li
They’re only in one film, and Li is dead for most of it, but my god, the romance. The makers of Shang-Chi knew what they were doing by opening the film on Wenwu’s mythic history, and most particularly, the story of how he and Li met. The scene of their fight slowly becoming a dance/courtship is so beautifully shot and acted. In the space of a couple minutes, you fully believe that this serene warrior woman is something that 1000-year-old warlord has never seen before, and when she bests him in combat, his whole world turns on its head. Being together means giving up their old lives, but they both forge ahead into the unknown happily—the soft flashbacks of cozy Xu family time are absolutely lovely.
Marc Spector, Steven Grant & Layla al-Faouly
It’s hard to say exactly what the situation is between these three and what’s going to happen, but the dynamic between Marc, Steven and Layla is so messy and juicy I couldn’t help including it. Layla is Marc’s ex-wife, but he still loves her. He just pushed her away because he thought he was protecting her (a fact that Layla does not appreciate when she finds out.) Meanwhile, Steven has only just met Layla, having remerged from what seems to have been a long dormant period in his and Marc’s DID system, but he’s instantly taken with her, and she definitely appreciates his nerdy sweetness. In any future Moon Knight content we get, I’m rooting for Layla to be with both of them—I don’t know if a Disney property would ever go with that resolution, but I figure two guys with the same body might have a better shot at it than any other love triangle out there.
Matt Murdock & Jennifer Walters
Yes, the reason we’re here. Jen and Matt give off instant fireworks, from their competent sparring in the courtroom, to their after-hours flirting at the barring, to their eventual team-up in Jen’s first actual hero mission. They have some strong similarities but a lot of differences too, and as both superhero partners and a couple, their energy crackles on the screen. I love that Matt gets to be fun and breezy with Jen, it cracks me up that she can’t find the zipper to get his super suit off, and they have top-shelf banter. 100% fun MCU couple, and I am all the way here for it.
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