History FanPreferredCouple / ComicBooks

* Franchise/XMen:

** Like many other comic book examples, Rogue and Gambit used to be an item, and after the writers split them up in the '00s they continued to be preferred by the fans. Usually one of the first questions a new writer for one of these characters gets is "Are you going to hook them back up yet?" In this case, Gambit and Rogue have had an on-again-off-again since the early 1990s, and are considered one of the most memorable couples in the entire franchise. A number fans prefer Rogue's MentorShip relationship with ComicBook/{{Magneto}} but everybody else won't accept the idea of Rogue choosing a aged tyrant over a sexy thief. One memorable depiction was "X-Men" (2nd series) vol. #41 (February 1995). Earth-616 is dying (it got better) and its characters are erased. While expecting certain death, Gambit and Rogue spend their last moments kissing and embracing each other.
*** Marvel finally gave the shippers what they wanted and [[HappilyMarried hitched]] Gambit and Rogue, making them X-Men's longest enduring couple since the 90s.

** Outside New 52 and Rebirth (mostly), Wonder Woman is frequently shipped with Batman as a good number of fans prefer the [[MasculineGirlFeminineBoy Goddess and mortal man]] dynamic over the God and Goddess status with Supes and Diana, especially since Batman isn't usually put in the same situation as Steve Trevor in the comics. The clash between a godly heroine who has no qualms about killing and a dark AntiHero who [[ThouShallNotKill refuses]] to kill makes for good chemistry, it's also helped by Bruce and Diana's relationship in the ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' cartoon which was one of the best parts of the show. Interestingly Batman and Wonder Woman's Earth 3 counterparts Owlman and Superwoman are an [[UnholyMatrimony item]] so even their evil AlternateUniverse opposites get the hint. A few comics pull the MayflyDecemberRomance and have the agless Diana look after a dying Bruce which is quite the TearJerker .

** Bruce himself has had many girlfriends over time, yet the woman ''most'' fans want to see him with is Selina Kyle, Catwoman. Notably, the Golden Age versions of them ''were'' together and even had a daughter, Helena Wayne (the original Huntress), who has endured in the mainstream comics in spite of anything else that happens. Over recent years, Selina being presented as Batman's one true love has received a major boost in mainstream works--from the Dark Knight trilogy, to the Arkham video games, to the Gotham TV series, and finally to the comics themselves, it's starting to look like this couple is receiving the same kind of fundamentally important treatment as other comic couple standbys like Lois/Clark or Barry/Iris.

* ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]Mary Jane. Mary Jane's relationship with Peter was mostly written out of the books following ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'', and different love interests have been brought in to be Peter's romantic partner since (like Deb Whitman or Carlie Cooper). However, Mary Jane is still popular with many fans and from the very start of their relationship, many fans have preferred Peter to be with MJ. The duo remain a couple in some places, however, such as the ''ComicStrip/SpiderMan'' newspaper strip and the alternate universe ''ComicBook/RenewYourVows''. The main universe version of Peter and MJ eventually got back together when Nick Spencer took over the writing of ''Amazing Spider-Man'' in 2018.

** For a long time ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}[=/=]ComicBook/JeanGrey was a lot more popular than the well-established, long-term ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}/Jean Grey. The love triangle was popular enough to persist in most adaptations of the characters, but once Cyclops hooked up with ComicBook/EmmaFrost, and Jean Grey stayed dead for a longer time than she stayed alive, the ball was thrown back up into the air as to what was preferred. In 2010s stories, Marvel eventually killed off both Wolverine and Cyclops, meaning that all three members of the triangle were dead. In late 2017/early 2018, Marvel announced surprise resurrections for both Jean and Wolverine, though Scott is still dead.

* ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]Mary Jane. Mary Jane's relationship with Peter was mostly written out of the books following ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'', and different love interests have been brought in to be Peter's romantic partner since (like Deb Whitman or Carlie Cooper). However, Mary Jane is still popular with many fans and from the very start of their relationship, many fans have preferred Peter to be with MJ. The duo remain a couple in some places, however, such as the ''ComicStrip/SpiderMan'' newspaper strip and the alternate universe ''ComicBook/RenewYourVows''. Peter and MJ eventually got back together when Nick Spencer took over the writing of ''Amazing Spider-Man'' in 2018.

* ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]Mary Jane. Mary Jane's relationship with Peter was mostly written out of the books following ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'', and different love interests have been brought in to be Peter's romantic partner since (like Deb Whitman or Carlie Cooper). However, Mary Jane is still popular with many fans and from the very start of their relationship, many fans have preferred Peter to be with MJ. The duo remain a couple in some places, however, such as the ''ComicStrip/SpiderMan'' newspaper strip and the alternate universe ''ComicBook/RenewYourVows''.

** Bruce himself has had many girlfriends over time, yet the woman ''most'' fans want to see him with is Selina Kyle, Catwoman. There of course is frustration whenever writers fumble it up. Notably, the Golden Age versions of them ''were'' together and even had a daughter, Helena Wayne (the original Huntress), who has endured in the mainstream comics in spite of anything else that happens. Note that Batman expressed romantic interest in Selina in her very first appearance in 1940, and people have been pairing them up for more than 70 years. It was particularly egregious when in Batman #50 after spending 50 goddamn issues setting up the marriage between Bruce and Selina, it's ruined throw it all as Catwoman [[RunawayBride doesn't marry Bruce]] all because of the asinine SuperheroesStaySingle mentality. Bat/Cat fans were furious at DC and especially writer Tom King.

** After Linda, Wally's second-most popular ship, and the most popular ''non canon'' ship is him and [[HoYay Dick Grayson, Nightwing]]. The two being childhood best friends with a ''lot'' of chemistry and a well-documented Bromance makes fans really adore shipping the two. This stands out as its even shipped in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'', where [[AdaptedOut Linda isn't featured]] due to Wally never progressing into ''The Flash'' in that universe.

** Creator/GerryConway who succeeded Lee was a fan who ended up RunningTheAsylum (he was 19 when he wrote Spider-Man). He like the majority of older fans preferred MJ to Gwen, and so he wrote ''ComicBook/TheNightGwenStacyDied'' which was all about getting rid of Peter's bland DesignatedLoveInterest for as Conway put it, "the most interesting female character in comics at the time" and Peter and MJ under his pen became ''the'' OfficialCouple, which later went into adaptations where MJ often has AdaptationEarlyAppearance and is set up as Peter's number 1 girl right from the start. It should be noted that one of the more well-liked ''Spider-Man'' animated adaptations, ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'', would have had Peter and MJ as the OfficialCouple but for most of the first two seasons played with the LoveDodecahedron of the comics.

** Back when Gwen Stacy was still Peter's official love interest, Mary Jane Watson's unexpectedly huge popularity with the readers was a serious problem for Stan Lee and John Romita. They tried a lot of things to tone MJ down and make Gwen more "exciting", which in some respects only lampshaded their problem as it made Gwen more and more resemble MJ, most notably by changing her original hairstyle into a variant of Mary Jane's. Stan Lee ended up writing later that even he slowly began to find Gwen less interesting than MJ. It should be noted that one of the more well-liked ''Spider-Man'' animated adaptations, ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'', would have had this as the OfficialCouple.

* Many ''Comicbook/TeenTitans'' fans were thrilled when Beast Boy and Raven got together. Then came ''[[TimeSkip One Year Later]]'', during which they broke up. The fans were less than thrilled. The fandom rejoiced when the two finally grew up and reunited in the 100th issue of Teen Titans in 2011... but then came the ComicBook/{{New 52}} reboot. Shoot.

* ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]Mary Jane. Mary Jane's relationship with Peter has been mostly written out of the books, and different love interests have been brought in to be Peter's romantic partner (like Deb Whitman, or the more recent Carlie Cooper). However, Mary Jane is still popular with many fans and from the very start of their relationship, many fans have preferred Peter to be with MJ.
** If you know where to look, Peter and MJ are still very much together (the ''ComicStrip/SpiderMan'' newspaper strip, for example).
** Back when Gwen was still alive and Peter Parkers's official love interest, Mary Jane Watson's unexpectedly huge popularity with the readers was a serious problem for Stan Lee and John Romita. They tried a lot of things to tone MJ down and make Gwen more "exciting," which in some respects only lampshaded their problem as it made Gwen more and more resemble MJ, most notably by changing her original hairstyle into a variant of Mary Jane's. The way Stan Lee wrote about it later, the matter was not helped by the fact that he himself found Gwen less interesting than MJ...

* A lot of people forget that Archie and Veronica were the original OfficialCouple of ''ComicBook/ArchieComics''; it's only because of Betty being a BetterThanCanon match for him that BettyAndVeronica even became a ''question''. The newspaper comic version does a much better job of emphasizing Archie/Veronica, but this still just doesn't help at all. During the last couple of decades, the writers have tried to make the triangle more even; Betty gets about as many dates with Archie, and Veronica has several other (one-shot) boyfriends.

** Like many other comic book examples, Rogue and Gambit used to be an item, and after the writers split them up in the '00s they continued to be preferred by the fans. Usually one of the first questions a new writer for one of these characters gets is "Are you going to hook them back up yet?" In this case, Gambit and Rogue have had an on-again-off-again since the early 1990s, and are considered one of the most memorable couples in the entire franchise. One memorable depiction was "X-Men" (2nd series) vol. #41 (February 1995). Earth-616 is dying (it got better) and its characters are erased. While expecting certain death, Gambit and Rogue spend their last moments kissing and embracing each other.

** Bruce himself has had many girlfriends over time, yet the woman ''most'' fans want to see him with is Selina Kyle, Catwoman. There of course is frustration whenever writers fumble it up. Notably, the Golden Age versions of them ''were'' together and even had a daughter, Helena Wayne (the original Huntress), who has endured in the mainstream comics in spite of anything else that happens. Note that Batman expressed romantic interest in Selina in her very first appearance in 1940, and people have been pairing them up for more than 70 years.

* Due his relationship with Daisy being rather rocky at best, ComicBook/DonaldDuck has a few of these, the most notable being the one with Reginella, queen of the planet Pacificus, who he first encountered in the 1972 story "Donald Duck in the Underwater Adventure". She is considered a preferred option due her sweet nature, her tragic character, and being the one who actually has a chance (and would have already won ''four times'' [[StarCrossedLovers had something not always forced their separation]]), and is still popular enough to have [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsj6BZJFtsw a song dedicated to her]] and to receive new stories once every few years.

* A lot of people forget that [[Franchise/ArchieComics Archie and Veronica]] were the original OfficialCouple; it's only because of Betty being a BetterThanCanon match for him that BettyAndVeronica even became a ''question''. The newspaper comic version does a much better job of emphasizing Archie/Veronica, but this still just doesn't help at all. During the last couple of decades, the writers have tried to make the triangle more even; Betty gets about as many dates with Archie, and Veronica has several other (one-shot) boyfriends.

** Bruce himself has had many girlfriends over time, yet the woman ''most'' fans want to see him with is Selina Kyle, Catwoman. There of course is frustration whenever writers fumble it up. Notably, the Golden Age versions of them ''were'' together and even had a daughter, Helena Wayne (the original Huntress), who has endured in the mainstream comics in spite of anything else that happens.

* ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}} and ComicBook/{{Mockingbird}}, even after breaking up, are vastly preferred to the pairing of Hawkeye and Comicbook/SpiderWoman.

** For a long time ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}[=/=]ComicBook/JeanGrey was a lot more popular than the well-established, long-term ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}/Jean Grey. The love triangle was popular enough to persist in most adaptations of the characters, but once Cyclops hooked up with ComicBook/EmmaFrost, and Jean Grey stayed dead for a longer time than she stayed alive, the ball was thrown back up into the air as to what was preferred. In 2010s stories, Marvel killed off both Wolverine and Cyclops, meaning that all three members of the triangle were dead. In late 2017/early 2018, Marvel announced surprise resurrections for both Jean and Wolverine, though Scott is still dead.
** Like many other comic book examples, Rogue and Gambit used to be an item, and after the writers split them up in the '00s they continued to be preferred by the fans. Usually one of the first questions a new writer for one of these characters gets is "Are you going to hook them back up yet?"

* Many fans prefer [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Invisible Woman]] to be paired off with Namor rather than her own husband. Considering the playing-up of Mr. Fantastic's neglectful side AND having Sue and Reed be on opposite sides of the ComicBook/CivilWar, it seemed like a distinct possibility. (And, not surprisingly, it didn't happen. But they did tease us with it a bit.) Note that since meeting Susan, Namor has been married and widowed twice, and has had several "serious" relationships. Yet even modern canon stories depicted him as still smitten with Susan, the one that got away. A comic book depicted Franklin Richards explaining that he has got used to Namor looking longingly at his mother.

** For a long time ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}[=/=]ComicBook/JeanGrey was a lot more popular than the well-established, long-term ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}/Jean Grey. The love triangle was popular enough to persist in most adaptations of the characters, but once Cyclops hooked up with ComicBook/EmmaFrost, and Jean Grey stayed dead for a longer time than she stayed alive, the ball was thrown back up into the air as to what was preferred.

* Many fans prefer [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Invisible Woman]] to be paired off with Namor rather than her own husband. Considering the playing-up of Mr. Fantastic's neglectful side AND having Sue and Reed be on opposite sides of the ComicBook/CivilWar, it seemed like a distinct possibility. (And, not surprisingly, it didn't happen. But they did tease us with it a bit.)

* In ''ComicBook/{{Convergence}}'', many of these pairings that aren't in the ComicBook/{{New 52}} will be revisited, including [[Comicbook/{{Superman}} Clark Kent and Lois Lane]], [[Comicbook/TheFlash Wally West and Linda Park]], and [[Comicbook/{{Nightwing}} Dick Grayson]] with [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} Barbara Gordon]] ''and'' [[Comicbook/TeenTitans Starfire]] (in separate universes). Stephanie Brown and Tim Drake share some BelligerentSexualTension as well.

* ComicBook/{{Superman}} has zigzagged all over with FanPreferredCouple status. When the ComicBook/New52 launched, for the first time in the history of the characters, ComicBook/LoisLane and Superman was the Fan Preferred Couple, as he hooked up with ComicBook/WonderWoman instead of his classic love interest. Wonder Woman and Superman have long had staunch supporters and had been a couple in various Main/{{Elseworlds}} stories. However, in order to appease fans of the traditional pairing, DC brought back the original Superman and Lois into the New 52 Universe for ComicBook/DCRebirth, which [[spoiler:saw the seeming death of ''New 52'' Superman and Lois, only for ''ComicBook/SupermanReborn'' to reveal that they were still alive, that Superman and Lois were split into their pre-''Flashpoint'' and ''New 52'' selves, and upon the halves of both Clark and Lois remerging, and history being altered closer to the pre-''Flashpoint'' one (including the Superman/Wonder Woman being {{Retgone}}d.]]

* Due his relationship with Daisy being rather rocky at best, ComicBook/DonaldDuck has a few of these, the most notable beingthe one with Reginella, queen of the planet Pacificus first encountered in the 1972 story "Donald Duck in the Underwater Adventure". She's considered a preferred option due her sweet nature, her tragic character, and being the one who actually has a chance (and would have already won ''four times'' [[StarCrossedLovers had something not always forced their separation]]), and is still popular enough to have [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsj6BZJFtsw a song dedicated to her]] and receive new stories once every few years.

* Many ''Comicbook/TeenTitans'' fans were thrilled when Beast Boy and Raven got together. Than came ''[[TimeSkip One Year Later]]'', during which they broke up. The fans were less than thrilled. The fandom rejoiced when the two finally grew up and reunited in 100th issue of Teen Titans in 2011... but then came the ComicBook/{{New 52}} reboot. Shoot.

* ComicBook/{{Superman}} has zigzagged all over with FanPreferredCouple status. When the ComicBook/New52 launched, for the first time in the history of the characters, ComicBook/LoisLane and Superman was the Fan Preferred Couple, as he hooked up with ComicBook/WonderWoman instead of his classic love interest. Wonder Woman and Superman have long had staunch supporters and had been a couple in various Main/{{Elseworlds}} stories. However, in order to appease fans of the traditional pairing, DC brought back the original Superman and Lois into the New 52 Universe for ComicBook/DCRebirth. Now there will be two Supermen: One with an established relationship to Lois Lane, and another (New 52) sharing a history with Wonder Woman. How the two will coexist in the same universe remains to be seen.

** Almost all fans love [[ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} Dick]] [[Characters/{{Robin}} Grayson]] and [[ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey Barbara]] [[Characters/{{Batgirl}} Gordon]] together ([[BettyAndVeronica excepting]] the [[ComicBook/TeenTitans Dick/Starfire]] [[ShipToShipCombat fanbase]], that is). They've gone back and forth between being canon or not, but usually the two are incredibly close. While both had new love interests for a long while in the New 52 there was always tons of ShipTease whenever the two interacted, and it seemed the writers for everything the two appeared in very much wanted the two together but just weren't allowed or something. The only love interest who got even a slight degree of support was Helena Bertinelli, who ''was'' in a relationship with Dick Pre-Flashpoint, and even ''then'' it was considered nice for a ''temporary'' romance, and as part of the FishOutOfWater nature of Dick's series.

* Due his relationship with Daisy being rather rocky at best, ComicBook/DonaldDuck has a preferred pairing in Reginella, queen of the planet Pacificus first encountered in the 1972 story "Donald Duck in the Underwater Adventure", considered a preferred option due her sweet nature, her tragic character,, and being the one who actually has a chance (and would have already won ''four times'' [[StarCrossedLovers had something not always forced their separation]]). She's still popular enough to have [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsj6BZJFtsw a song dedicated to her]].

* ComicBook/SpiderMan[=/=]Mary Jane. Mary Jane's relationship with Peter has been mostly written out of the books, and different love interests have been brought in to be Peter's romantic partner (like Deb Whitman, or the more recent Carlie Cooper) However Mary Jane is still popular with many fans and from the very start of their relationship, fans preferred Peter with MJ.