fbpx
Wikipedia

Supercouple

January 01, 1970

"Power Couple" redirects here. For the Indian TV show, see Power Couple (Indian TV series). For the Brazilian TV show, see Power Couple (Brazilian TV series).

A supercouple or super couple (also known as a power couple) is a popular and/or wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or obsessive fashion. The term originated in the United States, and it was coined in the early 1980s when intense public interest in fictional soap opera couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber, from General Hospital, made the pair a popular culture phenomenon.[1][2][3][4]

Fictional couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber are credited with defining the term supercouple.

The term supercouple typically refers to fictional couples from television dramas and film, such as Gone with the Wind's Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara. With regard to real-life pairings, tabloids and the mainstream media have focused on wealthy or popular celebrity couples, and have titled them supercouples or power couples. Examples are the pairing of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez (which became known by the portmanteau "Bennifer"),[5][6] and the former relationship of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ("Brangelina"). In the 2020s decade, the high-profile relationship between pop star Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce (“Tayvis”) has led global news and media outlets to call them "America's Royal Couple".[7]

Definitions edit

Supercouples are defined as popular or financially wealthy pairings that are widely admired in an intense or obsessive fashion and influence society's expectations of what a great love story or relationship should be; they may or may not be romantic or high-profile,[1][8][9] and interest in the pairings may be due to a combination of chemistry, physical attractiveness, or because they seem fated.[1]

The term supercouple first appeared in 1981, with the wedding of General Hospital's Luke and Laura.[10] Thirty million viewers tuned into the event,[4][11] and the widespread media attention it received from prominent newspapers and magazines set the pairing up as the default model for other soap opera supercouples.[2][12][13] The model Luke and Laura originally followed consisted of action stories, romance, and obstacles for the couple to overcome.[2][3][12] This paradigm subsequently became ideal of fictional soap opera supercouples in America, and extended to other genres. In Queer TV: Framing Sexualities On US Television, Nancy Martin says, "Actively desiring heterosexual pairs not bent on reproduction became a required advertising device and a narratological mainstay on daytime and primetime."[10] In Russian Television Today, David MacFadyen concludes, "Even the busiest, most rambling soap operas are often neatly and conclusively distilled in the public's mind by a 'supercouple' or tiny, central pair of protagonists."[14] Luke and Laura's popularity resulted in fictional supercouples generally being regarded as soulmates.[2] The pairings have typically overcome numerous obstacles or significant strife in order to be together.[1][2]

Though a successful model, the concept has been criticized for hindering the growth of characters' relationships with other love interests; this has resulted in alternate definitions for the term. In her essay criticism of the term, The Siren Call of the Super Couple (ed. Suzanne Frentz, 1992), Diana Reep describes the love of a supercouple as "so perfect that they are incapable of having romantic feelings for anyone else under any circumstances. In addition, the two have no personal flaws or idiosyncrasies that could interfere with their perfect love. Only an evil, outside force could disturb their relationship".[2] While Days of Our Lives former supervising producer Al Rabin credited the supercouple aspect as the secret to the show's success, his then–executive producer Ken Corday stated, "By definition, supercouple excludes others on the show. Every time they walk into a room, every other character, no matter how important, becomes window dressing, I've never believed in it." Corday added, "Either people are involved in a good story or they're not. They're an interesting couple or they're not."[15]

Celebrity couples may also be regarded as supercouples.[6][16][17] Interest in the pairings ranges from media and public obsession to calculation of the couples' combined finances.[16]

Internet and media trends edit

Fans often use portmanteau to refer to their favorite couples on online message boards, a significant aspect of the "shipping fandom". The "shipping fandom" scene, whose name is derived from the word "relationship", is a general term for fans' emotional or intellectual involvement with the ongoing development of romance in a work of fiction. Though technically applicable to any such involvement, it refers chiefly to various related social dynamics observable on the Internet, and is seldom used outside of that context. "Shipping" can involve virtually any kind of relationship—from the well-known and established, to the ambiguous or those undergoing development, and even to the highly improbable and the blatantly impossible. People involved in shipping (or shippers) assert that the relationship does exist, will exist, or simply that they would like it to exist.

"Portmanteaux first came about with Lewis Carroll" as a way to blend words, stated Jonathan Gabay, author of the Copywriter's Compendium—a reference guide to the English language.[5] Gabay added that people blend words in this fashion because sometimes there are words an individual wants, but those words do not actually exist. "There's a feeling you are trying to get out", he said.[5] For fictional pairings, examples showcase themselves as Logan and Veronica (Veronica Mars) becomes "LoVe", Josh and Reva (Guiding Light) becomes "Jeva", Jack and Kate (Lost) becomes "Jate", Michael and Sara (Prison Break) becomes "MiSa", and so on. Some couples are given more complex portmanteaux; on How I Met Your Mother, the pairing of Barney and Robin is referred to as "BROTP", incorporating their initials, their platonic status as "bros", and the popular fandom term OTP ("One True Pairing"). Seth Cohen of the show The O.C. parodied name-blending trends when he talked about real couples' overexposure to one another; he wondered whether or not his pairing with Summer Roberts would be called "Summereth" or "Sethummer".[18]

Gabay said portmanteaux "...giv[e] people an essence of who they are within the same name. In double-barrelled names, the hyphen is almost pushing one name away from the other. Meshing says 'I am you and you are me', which is rather romantic".[5] Occasionally, even anti-fans come up with names for couples, such as General Hospital's Sonny Corinthos and Emily Quartermaine. The unpopular pairing of the mob boss and his enforcer's sweet younger sister became known as "Soily".[19] Similarly, name-blending exists with celebrities' first names. Said to be a sign of commitment and togetherness, meshing is also seen by some as an attempt to banish what might be considered a "sexist" tradition of a woman taking her husband's name when she marries.[5]

In other Internet trends, fans often take part in making fan videos (also referred to as fanvids, a compilation of favorite scenes stylishly intercut as music videos or other various forms of entertainment) and writing fanfiction (alternative endings and stories to the original story's outcome) for their favorite pairings. Sites such as YouTube, Archive of our Own, and Fanfiction.net help to facilitate this.[20][21]

Soap operas edit

Origins edit

See also: List of supercouples § Soap opera

According to American soap opera writer and romance novelist Leah Laiman, soap operas are best known and most remembered for romance.[22] The romances in daytime dramas are significantly characterized by bringing couples together, splitting them up, and starting the cycle over again to ensure that viewers remain invested in the pairings, if popular. This is a strategy that often succeeds within the medium.[22] A supercouple storyline is typically detailed by the couple's facing seemingly insurmountable challenges, such as a difference in social class, strong family interference, simple disagreements, marriages to other people, children with other people, etc.[2][23]

Two characters comprising a supercouple will usually reunite and marry,[2][23] while the most significant obstacle for the pairing is the soap opera genre itself; as soap operas typically continue for decades, there is no closure for the pairing unless both characters leave the show together or one of them dies. It is because of this, that after the usual fairytale wedding, if the supercouple remains on the series, writers do not allow the item to live happily ever after as a couple in a fairy tale would but rather subject them to a continual cycle of being separated and reunited. This factor has contributed to two characters of a supercouple normally divorcing and remarrying each other a few or several times.[2][23] Author Diana Reep argues that the supercouple phenomenon creates "serious storyline problems" for producers and writers due to characters' being destined for only one lover:

The problem supercouples create for storytellers is that, as characters, therefore, they are unchanging in a narrative form that emphasizes evolving characters and relationships... and as ideals, supercouples bring closure to a relationship in a world that is based in continuing expectations of change.[2]

Creators within the medium generally focus more on the benefits of supercouples rather than the potential problems the pairings can produce. Former One Life to Live co-head writer Josh Griffith said that the key to a show's success is "passionate, romantic storytelling and pairings, and that's what creates a supercouple". To him, they embody love and passion.[15]

Legends edit

Although the term was not coined until the early 1980s, some couples prior to that point have been retrospectively termed supercouples; for example, Jeff Baker and Penny Hughes[24] and Bob and Lisa Hughes, from As the World Turns. Doug Williams and Julie Olson from Days of Our Lives are sometimes considered the first supercouple. From 1970 until 1976, Doug and Julie's relationship wavers between love and hate. The chemistry the portrayers exhibited became evident offscreen; the real-life couple, Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth, were married in 1974.[25] This set off a commotion among thousands of fans, who wrote letters to the show asking that the couple also be allowed to marry in the story. Since the actors were already married, they felt this was a valid request.[25] NBC worked the tension and lengthened the anticipation of the wedding but eventually caved into the audience's pressure. Doug and Julie are married in October 1976 within the series.[25] They are the first soap opera characters to appear on the cover of Time.[26][27]

Luke Spencer and Laura Webber, portrayed by Anthony Geary and Genie Francis from General Hospital, are considered the most famous soap opera supercouple. Their romance enthralled viewers; when they wed on November 16, 1981, American daytime television recorded its highest-ever ratings, with 30 million people tuning in to watch them say "I do".[4] Elizabeth Taylor made a cameo appearance during the wedding,[3][4][28][29] and Princess Diana reportedly sent champagne.[4] The couple was featured on the covers of People and Newsweek, and was credited with having brought "legitimacy to daytime serials" and its fans by crossing boundaries and becoming celebrities in the mainstream media.[3] As a result, Luke and Laura have become regarded as daytime television's quintessential and most iconic couple.[1] While Guiding Light has the smallest number of supercouples, the series still had prominent pairings, notably Quint and Nola,[30] as well as Josh and Reva, one of the central supercouples from the 1980s onward.[15] In 1982, All My Children's Jesse and Angie became the first black supercouple.[31][32][33][34]

"Dirty" Den and Angie Watts, portrayed by Leslie Grantham and Anita Dobson on the British soap opera EastEnders, generated an audience response similar to Luke and Laura's. Den and Angie are renowned as arguably Britain's most iconic soap opera couple, having broken the record for episode ratings to 30.1 million viewers in 1986 on the episode of their divorce, a record that remains unbeaten by any British soap opera episode today.[35]

Golden Age: 1980s edit

The 1980s is known as the "Golden Age" of supercouples.[36] Shows such as All My Children, As the World Turns and along with the aforementioned General Hospital and Days of our Lives were well known for their supercouples. Days of our Lives in particular had a significant number of supercouples — Bo and Hope,[15] Shane and Kimberly,[37] Patch and Kayla,[15] and Jack and Jennifer all going on at roughly the same time. The show soon featured John and Marlena.[38] All My Children was represented by Cliff and Nina,[39] Greg and Jenny,[40] Jesse and Angie,[31][32][33][34] and later by Tad and Dixie.[41]

As the World Turns had the popular couples Holden and Lily,[42] Craig and Sierra, Tom and Margo,[43] and Steve and Betsy with Betsy Stewart being portrayed by future film star Meg Ryan.[44] Along with Luke and Laura, General Hospital also boasted Alan and Monica and Frisco and Felicia.[2] At the same time, Santa Barbara introduced another supercouple, Cruz and Eden.[15]

The supercouple phenomenon spread to foreign shores, with Scott and Charlene, portrayed by Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue on the Australian soap opera Neighbours.[45] The success of their romance prompted a fellow Australian daytime drama Home and Away to shelve out their own supercouple, Shane and Angel,[45] and Den and Angie from EastEnders emerged as Britain's most famous soap opera couple.[35]

Sheraton Kalouria, NBC's Vice President of Daytime Programming, said he believes in the "it" factor regarding fictional couples. "It's hard to imagine Bo and Hope as a supercouple and divorce that from the magnetic chemistry of Peter Reckell and Kristian Alfonso", he stated.[15] "Or Cruz and Eden from Santa Barbara days and A Martinez and Marcy Walker. Or McKenzie Westmore as Sheridan and Galen Gering as Luis, if I might be so bold as to dub them a supercouple. Actors bring a huge excitement to [their pairing]."[15]

Decline and remolding: 1990s–2000s edit

Popular, traditional, and altered setups edit

Popular couplings on soap operas exist today, but there are few termed supercouples by fans or the soap opera media.[15] Usually, the term is reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s. As such, supercouples that are still on serials today are mostly from the 1980s, or early 1990s. After the mid-1990s, the supercouple phenomenon slowly faded and the nature of soap operas today allows few couples to define the nature of the show anymore as original supercouples once did.[15]

Days of our Lives executive producer Ken Corday said that while he feels that "love in the afternoon" is still important to the genre, the supercouple title "disappeared from [his] vocabulary when Al Rabin [his supervising producer] left the show".[15] All My Children and One Life to Live creator Agnes Nixon argued, "[Supercouples are] still a vital component whenever possible." She stressed the importance of creating "young love [stories], the Romeo and Juliet" of tomorrow.[15]

Shows have attempted to revive the success of supercouples through modern couples. There are instances when a character becomes a part of two popular pairings, where both couples which include the character develop the same or close to the same amount of positive fan reaction from viewers. This causes a certain rivalry between the two couples, with both vying for the title of supercouple. An example of this was especially evident with the mid-1990s storyline of General Hospital's Sonny Corinthos, Brenda Barrett, and Jasper "Jax" Jacks, often referred to as "the hottest love triangle in soap opera history" by the soap opera media.[46] The couple combinations within the love triangle were equally in demand, and which of the two is a true supercouple remains in dispute. Though debated, both couples are referenced and listed as supercouples by the soap opera medium.[47][48][49] The Sonny character eventually acquired second supercouple status in the pairing of Sonny and Carly, becoming a part of two successful on-screen romances.[50]

In other instances, a character is part of two equally popular couplings, but the storyline does not lend itself to the scenario being referred to as a love triangle. Samantha "Sami" Brady of the soap opera Days of our Lives is romantically desired by the two men, Lucas Roberts and EJ Wells. However, she was not considered to be actively involved in a love triangle, and both couples (Lucas and Sami and EJ and Sami) resonate with fans and appear to be at least equal in comparison and popularity.[51]

In today's soap opera medium, there are couples which come close to gaining supercouple status in terms of popularity. Although these pairings have perceived chemistry and potential, the couple's story is cut short, often due to the actors leaving to pursue jobs outside of soap operas or due to the writers changing direction in a storyline. These couples do not last long enough onscreen to garner the long history of what is often considered a genuine supercouple. Such couples include Leo and Greenlee (All My Children), Ryan and Gillian (All My Children),[52] Dusty and Lucy (As the World Turns), Simon and Katie (As the World Turns),[15] Paul and Meg (As the World Turns),[53] Robin and Stone (General Hospital), Jonathan and Tammy (Guiding Light), and Todd and Téa (One Life to Live).[54][55]

Soap opera columnist Carolyn Aspenson stated that the "supercouple formula" should be redefined. She argued that tragic couples such as Leo and Greenlee are a better love story than if they had stayed together with a "boring" everyday life.[56] "A super couple shouldn't be designed to be a couple that beats the odds and sticks it out no matter what," she said.[56] "We're left with nothing on those terms. Instead, try redefining a super couple by the intensity of their love, their loss and their ability to move on without their other half. It leaves us frustrated, heartbroken and yearning for more. To me, that is the definition of a super couple."[56]

Gay and lesbian edit

Soap operas traditionally featured only heterosexual romance. For American soap opera, this began to change with characters Bianca Montgomery, Lena Kundera, and Maggie Stone from All My Children.[57][58] Bianca's unveiling as a lesbian was unique for daytime television. By being a core character and the daughter of legendary diva Erica Kane, "the show initiated an innovative discourse about the possibility, location, and representation of lesbian and gay characters in a television genre historically predicated on the celebration of heterosexual courtship, romance, and family life".[59]

In 2003, Bianca's relationship with Lena resulted in American daytime's first lesbian kiss.[57][60][61] The two became American daytime's first lesbian couple, and received significant press.[57][60] Though Lena and Bianca's romance was well-received, popular, and the couple became responsible for several historic moments within daytime television,[57] it was Bianca's relationship with close confidante Maggie that thoroughly captivated viewers.[58] The romance was considered unique and especially significant due to the show's insistence that Maggie was not gay; the show's insistence did not deter viewers from wanting the two romantically paired, and they often wrote in to the network (ABC) demanding that Bianca and Maggie become an official item.[62][63] Eventually, hints that Maggie might not be heterosexual started to appear throughout the series, complicated by Maggie insisting that she is not gay but is rather "into guys" and only guys. Yet fan mail for the Bianca and Maggie pairing was prominent.[58] The couple's popularity grew beyond soap opera press, as newspapers and television magazines became fascinated by the love story as well. TV Guide, The Advocate, and Daily News were among the media taking interest.[58][64][65] The pairing eventually became the most popular gay couple in soap opera history, which surprised industry insiders who had not believed that a gay pairing could be as significantly in demand as heterosexual pairings.[58] Though Bianca and Maggie's romance was not made official until both were offscreen, it made clear to writers and executives who had been conflicted about including gay and lesbian love stories that the daytime audience was interested. Bianca and Maggie subsequently became American soap opera's first same-sex supercouple.[66]

Soap opera analyst C. Lee Harrington stated, "While the past decade has witnessed a growing number of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters in primetime dramas and situation comedies, daytime soap operas offer unique challenges (and possibilities) regarding the inclusion and 'normalization' of varied sexualities in entertainment television."[59] Daytime television has been ahead of primetime for some time in exploring diverse or controversial storylines and characters, with the one glaring exception being homosexuality.[59] Gay and lesbian issues or characters were invisible in 1950s and early 1960s TV. When it came to the mainstream shows, audiences were built up as "replications of the idealized, middle-class nuclear family, defined as monogamous heterosexual couples with children" (Buxton, 1997, p. 1477). Because of this perception of what was ideal, networks geared programming toward it, feeling that viewers were exactly like these images on their television screens.[59]

In contrast to primetime, daytime dramas have different obstacles to developing innovative programming, with their advertising sponsors being more conservative, their audience smaller and "genre restrictions that emphasize continuity and respect for history over innovation".[59] Soap opera tried its first chance at including a gay character back in 1983 on All My Children. Actress Donna Pescow portrayed Dr. Lynn Carson, who "comes out" as a lesbian to patient and confidante Devon Shepherd McFadden (Tricia Pursley). The two women admit to having romantic feelings for each other, and that is as far as the relationship goes.[67]

A prominent obstacle for gay and lesbian characters on daytime television is interference from television network executives who fear a decline in their ratings.[67] The characters are often denied fulfilling and lasting romances with others of the same sex. "Before Bianca's gay character was written into All My Children, the purpose of gay characters was to make a point or explain homosexuality for the audience—a task handled within the course of a few episodes," said Zach Hudson of Washington Blade. "The distraught parents or angry bullies who caused the early gay characters so much turmoil would suddenly see the light. Then the story—and the character—would simply vanish." It was not until Bianca that prominent gay characters and couples seemed possible within American daytime.[59][67] Since then, American soap operas have tried to replicate the success of the Bianca character with the introduction of their own gay and lesbian characters.[67] One soap opera in particular, As the World Turns, has been successful in launching the first popular romance between two men on an American daytime drama, Luke Snyder and Noah Mayer. In late 2007, the two make television history by carrying out the first kiss between two male lovers on an American soap opera.[68] The popularity of the pairing borders on the same fascination level that centered around Bianca and Maggie's lesbian romance. Not even months into the romantic aspect of their relationship, TV Guide named the male duo a top power couple.[69]

Noah Mayer became one of the latest soap opera characters to come out as gay, and joined Bianca and others as visible gay characters in daytime. One year before Luke and Noah, the British soap opera Hollyoaks had already embarked on issuing their own gay male supercouple, between characters John Paul McQueen and Craig Dean;[70][71] the storyline became one of the show's most successful, gaining "legions" of fans.[72] The budding same-sex romance on Guiding Light between Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera Aitoro became popular with fans in 2009.[73] That same year, One Life to Live introduced its own male gay supercouple with Oliver Fish and Kyle Lewis.[74] On international television, the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe gained international popularity, with the storylines involving Carla and Stella, and later with the couple of Christian and Oliver.

Beginning in 2011, Days of our Lives broke new ground when it decided to have the character Will Horton come out as gay. The soap chronicled Will's struggle to accept his sexuality.[75] The show also highlighted many obstacles the LGBT community face, such as bullying,[76] hate crimes[76] and gay slurs.[77] The show cast actor, Freddie Smith in the role of Jackson "Sonny" Kiriakis, the second openly gay contracted character in a daytime soap opera.[78] Sonny would eventually become Will's ongoing love interest. To the surprise of the actors and writers, Will and Sonny were greeted with fan support, and were eventually titled a supercouple and "power couple".[79] The show pushed the envelope even further when it decided to air Will's first same-sex sexual encounter on-screen (which would become the first of many).[80] Chandler Massey went on receive the 2012 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first actor ever to receive a Daytime Emmy Award for playing a gay character.[81] He won his second consecutive Emmy for the role in the same category in 2013.[82] Smith received his first Daytime Emmy nomination for his role in 2013 pitting him against Massey for the same award.[83] In his acceptance speech, Massey thanked Smith.[84] The show won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Daily Drama in 2013.[85] In August 2013, it was announced that Massey had filmed his final episode as Will Horton, and that a recast had already been made.[86][87] Days had initially planned not to recast the role, but changed its mind due to fear of advertiser and fan backlash.[86]

In either aspect, fictional gay and lesbian romances have been argued as making an impact. "These stories have the ability to reach the many different generations of viewers who watch daytime and share with them stories of our lives," stated Damon Romine, media entertainment director for the GLAAD organization. "What viewers are seeing is that more and more of their own neighbors and friends are dealing with these issues, and the soaps are merely reflecting the reality of the world we live in."[67]

Primetime television edit

See also: List of supercouples § Prime time television

A paradigm used for primetime couples is the love-hate relationship plotline. In the television series Dynasty, characters Krystle and Blake (Linda Evans and John Forsythe) are seen fighting for years, through ex-lovers and a host of other interferences. Krystle winds up in a coma and Blake spends years in jail, but their love eventually wins out over their problems. This resulted in the couple subsequently becoming one of television's classic supercouples.[88] Other early primetime power couplings include Ricky and Lucy (Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball) from I Love Lucy,[89][90][91] Pam and Bobby (Victoria Principal and Patrick Duffy) from Dallas,[92] and Cliff and Clair Huxtable (Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad) from The Cosby Show, among others.[1]

Television shows also produce tragic love stories, such as Buffy and Angel from the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The pairing's persistent fight to be together is considered to have cemented their place in supercouple history.[93] Voted #2 on IGN's list of Top 10 Favorite TV Couples, and #5 on AOL's list of Greatest TV Couples of All Time, the sites categorized the pairing as "the ultimate" star-crossed couple.[90][94] The pairing's main predicament—unable to experience sexual intimacy without Angel losing his humanity—has been summarized by IGN:

After all, when you're a Vampire Slayer, it hardly seems like the appropriate person to fall for would be a Vampire. But fall for Angel Buffy did, setting up one of the most involving and tragic love stories we can remember on TV. After all, it's pretty rare for one half of a great couple to go from gentle and caring to sadistic and murderous in the course of a single night...and spurred on by having sex with the girl he loves no less.[94]

 
Tragedy comes about when Buffy has to face off with her true love Angel in order to save the world; episode "Becoming, Part Two"

Creator of the series Joss Whedon said, "'Becoming', Parts 1 and 2 ... really sort of charted the main points of the Buffy–Angel relationship in all its difficulty and romance."[95] Buffy's portrayer, Sarah Michelle Gellar, said, "I think deep down Buffy will always love Angel and she will never love anyone the way in which she loves him. I think they found a wonderful supercouple in Buffy and Angel."[96]

Certain shows may not be adequately suited for a tragic-love storyline. For comedies, the approach of pairing mismatched couples is also often applied, and for dramas, there tends to be a "will-they-won't-they" setup. Website Cinemablend states that there are two general formulas for a "will-they-wont-they" setup. "The first one is when one person pursues the other, then finally gives up and dates someone else," the site stated, "and the other scenario is when the two characters are so different and often do not get along with one another, they fight and argue constantly, but then one thing or a series of 'things' happen and they are forced to put up with each other."[97] Examples of popular couples cited for having displayed this formula are Buffy and Spike (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Ross and Rachel (of the show Friends), Logan and Veronica (of the show Veronica Mars), among others.[97]

There are numerous shows that tend to pair up two unexpected characters with other. For instance, Pacey Witter and Joey Potter from the drama Dawson's Creek.[98] Pacey and Joey did not like each other at all first, and Joey was in love with her soulmate Dawson Leery, but they eventually fell in love and became a supercouple of the show.[99] Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson and Santana Lopez and Brittany Pierce from Glee and are regularly quoted as TV's first LGBTQ powercouples.[100]

A well-known "will-they-won't-they" setups is the relationship of supercouple Agent Fox Mulder and Agent Dana Scully from the science fiction/thriller series The X-Files.[1][101] Mulder and Scully, two FBI agents investigating cases that involve the paranormal, are showcased as having a relationship which borders on subtle hints of romance throughout the series without the two being heavily romantically involved. Though anticipation for Mulder and Scully to romantically commit to each other had existed for years among the show's fanbase, the pairing's romantic intimacy was not written as soon as fans would have hoped for; when the two are finally shown sharing a kiss in 1999 after seven seasons of buildup, some viewers felt the show waited too long to script the event. Critics state that in such cases, if a series extends sexual tension for "too long" before finally acting on romantic intimacy between the characters, it can result in viewers feeling that the best part of the pairing's buildup was their "will-they-won't-they" status.

With some fictional supercouples from soap opera or primetime, the couple may have started out as an unexpected pairing and with or without a paradigm. Due to viewers becoming excited over the prospect of chemistry between the two, the show's producers and writers later decide to pair them.

Film edit

See also: List of supercouples § Film

Given that films inherently have a shorter amount of time to develop characters and carry out storylines, the task of convincing the audience that the film's couple are adequately suited for each other can be challenging. This is especially evident in cases where there is not enough plot focusing on the buildup of the characters' interaction, which can make the love story seem contrived.[102] A memorable line or catchphrase spoken between the characters has been suggested as a remedy to this, since it can elevate a pairing's popularity.[102]

Films may resort to the notion that romance is a solution to life's problems or is unchangeable, tapping into a "love conquers all" appeal;[103] for example, in "doomed" romances where the underlying message is that the love the couple shared endured even though their time together was cut short. A film supercouple can be a couple appearing with the same actors over the course of few or several films, making the actors the supercouples rather than the characters.[1]

Celebrity edit

See also: Hollywood marriage
 
Former supercouple Sonny & Cher at The Sonny & Cher Show

The media often focuses on celebrity pairings. Celebrity couples who are viewed as fascinating or create a power coupling due to finances are singled out as supercouples.[16] Since the term was coined, classic Hollywood couples have been regarded as supercouples,[6] including Clark Gable and Carole Lombard. People magazine stated that Gable and Lombard were "more than just Golden Age window dressing. The love they shared for six years was that Hollywood rarity: the real thing."[104] They were titled "The King of Hollywood and the Queen of Screwball Comedy", respectively, and eloped during a break in production on Gable's Gone with the Wind in 1939. Lombard died three years later in a plane crash on her way home from a war bond rally.[104] Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball were the stars and producers of I Love Lucy, and have since been credited as an onscreen and offscreen supercouple.[89][90] They divorced in 1960 after 20 years of marriage. People described Gable and Lombard, Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn,[6] Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner,[6] and Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor,[6] were couples recognized as "the greatest love stories of the century".[104]

The supercouple title has been similarly prolific with modern celebrity pairings. In 1997, rapper/actor Will Smith married actress Jada Pinkett. The couple were titled a supercouple due to their combined film star allure and perceived physical attractiveness.[6][17][105] In 2003 and 2008, People magazine categorized them as a supercouple due to their long marriage and widespread celebrity status.[105][106] Smith spoke of the power of love as a connective force to Essence magazine. "The truth about life is that we're all alone," he said. "But when somebody loves you, that experience is shared. Love is the only real connective tissue that allows you to not live and die by yourself."[106] In 1998, Brad Pitt met Friends actress Jennifer Aniston, and married her in a private wedding ceremony in Malibu on July 29, 2000.[107] They were titled a supercouple,[6][17][105] regarded as one of the film industry's most powerful,[108] and their marriage was considered a rare Hollywood success.[109] In January 2005, Pitt and Aniston announced they decided to formally separate after seven years together.[107][110][111] Two months later, Aniston filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.[112] In November 2000, Michael Douglas married Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, and the pairing, 25 years apart in age, were considered a supercouple.[6][17][105]

Pairing Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez incited unprecedented media attention for an American modern-day supercouple during their 2002-2004 relationship.[6] The two were referred to as the first superstar couple of the Internet age,[113] and the pairing's popularity resulted in their being known by the portmanteau "Bennifer" (for Ben and Jennifer) to the media, as well as to fans using the name combination.[5] The term Bennifer itself became popular and started the trend of other celebrity couples being referred to by the combination of each other's first names. The pairing eventually succumbed to overexposure, which caused public interest in their romance to result in less admiration and negatively affected their careers.[113][114][115] In 2007, Affleck stated:

[The romance] was probably bad for my career. What happens is this sort of bleed-over from the tabloids across your movie work. You go to a movie, you only go once. But the tabloids and Internet are everywhere. You can really subsume the public image of somebody. I ended up in an unfortunate crosshair position where I was in a relationship and [the media] mostly lied and inflated a bunch of salacious stuff for the sake of selling magazines. And I paid a certain price for that. Then, in concert with some movies that didn't work...[116]

 
Former supercouple Cruise and Holmes

A celebrity supercouple to emerge after Bennifer was "TomKat" (the coupling of celebrity stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes),[6][117] and other countries had already adopted the supercouple term. The United Kingdom had Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley (Grant 'n' Hurley) and Posh and Becks (Victoria and David Beckham).[16][118] Japan had Tomonori Jinnai and Norika Fujiwara; Jinnai established himself as a television regular and a "pin-geinin" or solo comedian while Fujiwara, a former Miss Japan, became known as a successful actress and "one of the business's biggest earners with a string of commercial contracts, regular TV and stage roles, and also active in charitable causes".[119] They were titled "one of the 'super couples' of Japanese showbiz" and "held their elaborate traditional wedding on February 17, 2007 at the Ikutajinja shrine in Fujiwara's hometown of Kobe, with hundreds of reporters and thousands of fans craning for a glimpse outside" and "invited 600 guests to the Hotel Okura the following April for a wedding reception that cost over ¥500 million. The event was broadcast live on TV and had a high audience rating of 40% in the Kansai region".[119]

Another American couple regularly titled a supercouple are musicians Jay-Z and Beyoncé, also known as The Carters.[6] Their marriage in New York City in early 2008, was reported by People.[120] Knowles and Jay-Z were listed as the most powerful couple for Time magazine's 100 most influential people of 2006.[121] In January 2009, Forbes ranked them as Hollywood's top-earning couple, with a combined total of $162 million.[122] They also made it to the top of the list the following year, with a combined total of $122 million between June 2008 and June 2009.[122] As of 2024, the couple has a combined total net worth of $3.3 billion.[123][124]

The spotlight and attention given to American celebrity supercouples reached its height in 2006, when the celebrity phenomenon dubbed "Brangelina" triggered media obsession surrounding screen stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.[117] The two emerged as a prominent supercouple,[6][125][126]

 
Former supercouple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, dubbed "Brangelina", at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival

Robert Thompson, director of the Centre for the Study of Popular Television, said the coupling of A-list stars like Pitt and Jolie, or in years gone by Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, was "a paparazzi's dream come true". He added that "as silly as it sounds, this new tendency to make up single names for two people, like 'Bennifer' (Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez) and 'TomKat' (Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes), is an insightful idea'. 'Brangelina' has more cultural equity than their two star parts."[117]

In India, cricketer Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma started dating in 2013, and tied the knot in December 2017, forming one of contemporary India's most famous and talked-about supercouple.[127] They have been referred to as 'Virushka', in line with Hollywood pairings such as 'Brangelina'.[128] Similarly, actors John Abraham and Bipasha Basu are a former supercouple.[129][130] Other Indian power couples, usually associated with the Hindi film industry, include: Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan;[131][132] Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai;[133][134][135] Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (cricketer) and Sharmila Tagore;[136] Dharmendra and Hema Malini;[137] Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor.[138]

Polly Vernon of the British newspaper The Guardian summed up her analysis of what makes a celebrity supercouple in her May 25, 2000 article:

The basic appeal of the accomplished supercouple can be reduced to this: by hooking up with another, carefully selected celeb, you can eliminate your bad points, compensate for your own shortcomings, and hint at a softer, more vulnerable side. Attach yourself to someone smarter, prettier, more fashionable, hipper, funnier than you are, and you will automatically acquire these missing qualities by osmosis. They, equally, will benefit from your particular brand of star quality. Your public perception will become more complete, more exciting. Together, you are quite literally, the ultimate individual.[16]

In 2023, American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce began dating, leading media outlets to call them a supercouple,[139][140][141] with some even going as far as dubbing them "America's Royal Couple".[142][143]The highly publicized relationship had a considerable cultural impact. Billboard opined that Swift and Kelce "are arguably the world's most high-profile couple right now, consistently making headlines on the daily for simply holding hands or enjoying dinner together."[144] The NFL viewership increased dramatically; the Chiefs–Bears game, which Swift attended, drew the most television viewers of the weekend, while sales of Kelce's jersey and Chiefs home game tickets surged.[145] The NFL and NBC used the relationship for social media content and to promote subsequent games.[146][147] A Chiefs–Jets game that Swift attended averaged 27 million viewers, making it the most-watched Sunday-night television show since Super Bowl LVII.[148]

 
 
The relationship between singer-songwriter Taylor Swift (left) and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (right) attracted significant media attention during the Chiefs' 2023 season and prior to the team's appearance in Super Bowl LVIII.

A number of couples in the public dressed up as Swift and Kelce as part of 2023 Halloween.[149] A television special by Nightline about the relationship and its media impact, titled Taylor + Travis, was released on Hulu in November 2023.[150] Journalist Emily Yahr opined in The New York Times that the United States "giddily contemplates" the pairing of Swift and Kelce that, "for many observers, checks all the right boxes."[151] Andrew Unterbeger of Billboard opined that Swift and Kelce's romance resulted in a "near-100% public approval" because "it just felt right: the All-American athlete dating the All-American pop star."[152]

Video games edit

See also: List of supercouples § In other media

Video game creators have realized the asset of incorporating supercouple romances within their products by stringing together epic stories of love and intrigue.[153][154][155] While writing epic romances into video games is not a new phenomenon, the idea of capturing a video game player through emotionally charged moments via the death of a hero's lover in order to produce feelings of attachment to the fictional environment has expanded,[153][155][156] especially within action-adventure/role-playing games (RPGs).[153] The goal is to make the gamer actually become emotionally invested in the characters and their actions, ultimately resulting in heightened gaming experience. Video game designer Peter Molyneux, when speaking of the main component he wanted in his game Fable 2, spoke of more than just the romantic aspect, stating, "We want you to feel loved. You can have sex and you can have a baby. That baby will grow up and will kind of look like you."[157]

In the early days of gaming, the idea of love and romance was used as little more than a plot point to urge the hero to complete the set of tasks put before him.[153] Mario, hero of the Super Mario series of games, has Princess Peach to rescue from the main villain. Link and Princess Zelda from The Legend of Zelda made gamers wonder why the two were not romantically together while rooting for the couple.[158] Double Dragon features the protagonist Billy Lee, as he attempts to rescue his girlfriend (Maria) from his evil twin brother (Jimmy), leader of a sinister street gang. This era of game-playing was not well known for equal opportunity in gender roles.[155]

Eventually, video games grew to become a respectable and rich source of storytelling.[154] "Larger disk space, greater production staffs, and more impressive budgets allowed more fleshed out characters, more elaborate plot points, and greater instances of interaction between characters."[attribution needed][155] The genre that benefited from this the most is the role-playing medium. The medium made romantic themes a prominent element of its story-telling, which became one of its staples.[155] This subplot is featured through the exploits of supercouples, the primary pair of lovers.[153]

"Usually, the 'supercouple' turns out to be the main hero and heroine of the game, though this is not always the case."[attribution needed][154][155] The Lunar series, for example, has become famous for creating several romantic pairings from the hero's party in addition to the hero and heroine. In a role-playing plot, often the romantic feelings the characters feel for one another somehow becomes entwined with the main plot itself. In Grandia, Justin, the main character, is compelled to fight against seemingly insurmountable odds in order to rescue the girl that he is in love with. In Tales of Legendia, the romantic feelings Shirley has for main character and brother in law Senel is a focus of the game, even though the latter seems oblivious of the former's true feelings even after they are accidentally engaged in the ending of the primary story mode. "When the love between the supercouple somehow becomes threatened by the machinations of the antagonist, the heroes fight back with everything they have and usually prove, once and for all, that 'love conquers all'."[155]

The Compilation of Final Fantasy VII has several notable couples, such as Cloud Strife and his relationships with childhood friend Tifa Lockhart and flower girl Aerith Gainsborough. Cloud Strife and Aerith Gainsborough have been called video games' greatest, as well as its most tragic, star-crossed love story.[159][160] The couple is also one of the most well-known video game couples in the history of video gaming.[158][161][162] In 2005, Electronic Gaming Monthly stated that without the game, "Aeris wouldn't have died, and gamers wouldn't have learned how to cry".[162]

Other popular couples from the Final Fantasy games include Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly (from Final Fantasy VIII),[158] Zidane Tribal and Princess Garnet til Alexandros (from Final Fantasy IX),[163] Tidus and Yuna (from Final Fantasy X),[158] Vincent Valentine and his lost love Lucrecia Crescent,[163] Zack Fair and Aerith Gainsborough in the prequel Final Fantasy VII game Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII,[163] Snow Villiers and Serah Farron from Final Fantasy XIII,[161] and Cecil Harvey and Rosa Farrell from Final Fantasy IV.[163]

Love stories such as Solid Snake and Meryl Silverburgh (from Metal Gear Solid),[164] which takes on more of a subtle approach, and couples defined more by their conflicts than their happiness, have also impacted the gaming industry. Video game insiders state that the need for these love stories within the gaming realm is valid and is a great addition to the gaming experience in most cases.[154][155][156]

Literature and toys edit

Romantic and tragic themes found in modern supercouple stories have often been borrowed from classic literary couples. Romeo and Juliet, due to their enduring legacy and popularity, are considered an ideal supercouple outline[15] for aspects of forbidden or tragic love, and the relationship between Antony and Cleopatra has been described as fitting the power-couple trope.[165]

In the genres of toys and comic books, toys were given their first prominent supercouple with the creation of Ken and Barbie by Mattel, in 1961,[166] and comic book supercouples such as Superman and Lois Lane (created in 1938),[167][168] and Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson (created in 1966) are still popular today.[169]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Martha P. Nochimson (2002). Screen Couple Chemistry: The Power of 2. University of Texas Press. p. 408. ISBN 0-292-75579-1.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Suzanne Frentz (1992). "The Siren Call of the Super Couple: Soap Operas' Destructive Slide Toward Closure". Staying Tuned: Contemporary Soap Opera Criticism. Popular Press. pp. 136 pages. ISBN 0-87972-537-0.
  3. ^ a b c d Dorothy Catherine Anger (1999). "Luke and Laura, Supercouple". Other Worlds: Society Seen Through Soap Opera. University of Toronto Press˕. ISBN 978-1-55111-103-2.
  4. ^ a b c d e Bauder, David (2006-11-14). "Luke and Laura's Altared State". Associated Press/The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Winterman, Denise (2006-08-03). "What a mesh". BBC News. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Top Celebrity Supercouples of All Time". Comcast/Comcast Interactive Media. 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
  7. ^ Thomas, Carly (September 28, 2023). "The Taylor Swift Effect Is Very Real and It's Now Taking the Sports World by Storm". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  8. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Timmy and Tabitha". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  9. ^ Branco, Nelson. . TV Guide. Archived from the original on 2007-10-20. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  10. ^ a b Nancy San Martin (2002). Queer TV: Framing Sexualities On US Television. University of California, Santa Cruz. pp. 690 pages.
  11. ^ Wolf, Buck (November 16, 2006). "Luke and Laura: Still the Ultimate TV Wedding". ABC.com. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
  12. ^ a b Christine Scodari (2004). Serial monogamy: soap opera, lifespan, and the gendered politics of fantasy. Hampton Press. pp. 208 pages. ISBN 978-1-57273-555-2.
  13. ^ V., Beverly. . tvfanonline.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-09-07.
  14. ^ David MacFadyen (2007). Russian Television Today: Primetime drama and comedy. Routledge. pp. 244 pages. ISBN 978-0-415-42462-2.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Di Lauro, Janet. . Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on May 31, 2009. Retrieved 2007-09-06.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  16. ^ a b c d e Vernon, Polly (2000-05-25). "The power of two". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
  17. ^ a b c d Monroe, Stella. . powermagazines.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-09-12.
  18. ^ . fashionclub.com. Archived from the original on 2007-04-05. Retrieved 2007-06-13.
  19. ^ Banks, Carol (2006-04-17). "News for the week of 17-April-2006: Soap opera commentator sorry for Soily mention". soapzone.com. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
  20. ^ Gomes, Lee (2006-08-30). "Will All of Us Get Our 15 Minutes On a YouTube Video?". The Wall Street Journal Online. Dow Jones & Company. Retrieved 2007-11-24.
  21. ^ Tancer, Bill (August 30, 2007), , Time, archived from the original on June 25, 2008, retrieved 2011-02-23
  22. ^ a b "I believe that [daytime] serial drama is all about 'When will they kiss?'" says Leah Laiman. "Give me romance. I don't care about anything else. Action/adventure only works as a backdrop for 'Will they kiss?' If that's absent, it's not interesting." (infra sub #60).
  23. ^ a b c Gerry Waggett (2007). You Know Your Life Is a Soap Opera If.... Hyperion. ISBN 978-1-4013-0292-4.
  24. ^ Lenhart, Jennifer. "AS THE WORLD TURNS Where Are They Now?: The First Supercouple". Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on 2013-02-02. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
  25. ^ a b c "All My Afternoons". Gilbert, Annie.
  26. ^ . TIME. Archived from the original on June 2, 2007. Retrieved 2011-04-10.
  27. ^ . Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on 2010-01-23. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
  28. ^ Pat Browne (2001). The guide to United States popular culture. Popular Press. pp. 1010 pages. ISBN 978-0-87972-821-2.
  29. ^ Leslie J. Reagan; Nancy Tomes; Paula A. Treichler (2007). Medicine's moving pictures: medicine, health, and bodies in American film and television. Boydell & Brewer. pp. 343 pages. ISBN 978-1-58046-234-1.
  30. ^ Kroll, Dan J. (2005-11-12). "GL's Quint and Nola Sit Down for Exclusive Interview". SoapCentral. Retrieved 2009-07-08.
  31. ^ a b West, Abby (2008-01-29). "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Jesse and Angie". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  32. ^ a b Amatangelo, Amy (2008-01-17). "Daytime's '80s 'Supercouple' Returns to 'All My Children'". The Boston Herald. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
  33. ^ a b . NewsAdvance.com. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12. Retrieved 2007-08-16.
  34. ^ a b . Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on 2009-08-03. Retrieved 2009-03-31.
  35. ^ a b "A history of festive soap misery". BBC News. 2006-12-22. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  36. ^ Hayes, Bill and Susan. "Like Sands Through The Hourglass". NAL Hardcover. Retrieved 2007-09-06.
  37. ^ "Making of a Super Couple - Soap Opera Digest, May 5, 1987". Soap Opera Digest. Retrieved 2011-04-10.
  38. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: John and Marlena". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  39. ^ "Biography of Peter Bergman". allamericanspeakers.com. Retrieved 2007-07-05.
  40. ^ "NIXON, AGNES: U.S. Writer-Producer". museum.tv. Retrieved 2007-08-16.
  41. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Tad and Dixie". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  42. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Holden and Lily". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  43. ^ "Ellen Dolan". TV Guide. 2007-08-12.
  44. ^ Christopher Schemering (1985). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia. Ballantine Books. p. 358. ISBN 0-345-32459-5.
  45. ^ a b Andrew Mercado (2004). Super Aussie Soaps: Behind the Scenes of Australia's Best Loved TV Shows. Pluto Press Australia. ISBN 1-86403-191-3.
  46. ^ . soapdom.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2007-06-27.
  47. ^ Gallo, Joanne. . Soap Opera Digest. Archived from the original on 2008-12-08. Retrieved 2008-12-28.
  48. ^ "It was very hot! They were very successful together (there's an understatement), and their love story was the centerpiece of that long story. I didn't know what it meant to be part of creating a supercouple at the time ... and of course, we couldn't know they'd be a supercouple until we got well into it. But Sonny & Brenda are a huge source of pride for me. I love them still." — Longtime General Hospital writer Karen Harris in a 2008 interview about Sonny and Brenda.
  49. ^ Sloane, Stephanie (2009-02-24). "Cover Me". Soap Opera Digest. p. 70.
  50. ^ "STANDOUT SCENE: SONNY & CARLY REUNITE!". Soaps In Depth. 2004-08-04.
  51. ^ "Soap Opera Weekly, editorial in magazine, week of September 10, 2007". Soap Opera Weekly.
  52. ^ . totaltvonline.com. Archived from the original on 2008-02-09. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  53. ^ > Are As the World Turn's Paul and Meg a SuperCouple or a Super Mistake?, soaps.sheknows.com
  54. ^ "Tough Man Todd Returns!". About.com. 2000-02-10. Retrieved 2007-08-26.
  55. ^ "prince of darkness returns". About.com. 2000-06-01. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  56. ^ a b c Aspenson, Carolyn (2009-02-05). . eyeonsoaps.net. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  57. ^ a b c d Yimm, Lisa (April 2004). . AfterEllen.com. Archived from the original on 2008-01-16. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
  58. ^ a b c d e Warn, Sarah (2003-02-03). . AfterEllen.com. Archived from the original on 2007-06-29. Retrieved 2007-07-24. Reference mentions how All My Children's lesbian romances were ground-breaking for gay visibility. American couples.
  59. ^ a b c d e f C. Lee Harrington (2003). Homosexuality on All My Children: transforming the daytime landscape. Blackwell Publishing.
  60. ^ a b Yimm, Lisa (October 2003). "Interview with Olga Sosnovska". AfterEllen.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-01. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
  61. ^ "Top Story: Daytime Television Shows First Lesbian Liplock". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on 2012-12-06. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
  62. ^ . Soap Opera Digest. 2003-07-08. Archived from the original on 2007-09-16. Retrieved 2008-01-22.
  63. ^ . Soap Opera Weekly. 2003-02-11. Archived from the original on 2007-09-16. Retrieved 2008-01-22.
  64. ^ . New York Daily News. 2004-06-13. Archived from the original on 2008-05-04. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
  65. ^ Behrens, Web (2003-04-29). . The Advocate. Archived from the original on 2005-01-20. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
  66. ^ "DC #279: Eden Riegel & Elizabeth Hendrickson Interview". Daytime Confidential. 2008-08-01. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
  67. ^ a b c d e Hudson, Zach (2006-07-07). . Washington Blade/sovo.com. Archived from the original on 2008-06-03. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  68. ^ . gay.com. Archived from the original on 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2007-11-24.
  69. ^ Branco, Nelson. . TV Guide. Archived from the original on 2008-06-12. Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  70. ^ "The latest breaking news about Hollyoaks". Soaplife. 2007.
  71. ^ Green, Kris (2007-11-03). "'Hollyoaks' honoured at Stonewall Awards". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2008-08-17.
  72. ^ Green, Kris (2008-06-09). "EXCLUSIVE: Craig Dean returns to 'Hollyoaks'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2008-08-19.
  73. ^ Fairman, Michael (2009-03-10). "Otalia in Love on Guiding Light? Women in love: Are Crystal Chappell and Jessica Leccia becoming daytime's new "it" couple?". The Advocate. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
  74. ^ . open.salon.com. Archived from the original on 2010-01-01. Retrieved 2009-12-30.
  75. ^ Logan, Michael (November 30, 2011). "Exclusive: Chandler Massey Delivers Scoop on His Days of Our Lives Coming Out Plot".
  76. ^ a b Wong, Curtis M. (2013-03-26). "Days Of Our Lives' Anti-Gay Bullying Storyline And Romance For Sonny Kiriakis Planned". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2008-08-12.
  77. ^ Hernandez, Greg (March 26, 2012). "Days of Our Lives: After Nick uses gay slur on Sonny, Will resolves to not let him raise his daughter".
  78. ^ Rice, Lynette (Jun 17, 2011). "Official: 'Days of Our Lives' begins gay storyline -- EXCLUSIVE". EW.
  79. ^ Benkovic, Andrew (July 4, 2013). "The Daytime TV Power Couple That May (or May Not) Surprise You". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 4, 2013.
  80. ^ Logan, Michael (October 25, 2012). "Video Exclusive: Will and Sonny Finally Have Sex on Days of Our Lives".
  81. ^ Halterman, Jim (June 24, 2013). . Archived from the original on June 26, 2012.
  82. ^ Rudolph, Christopher (June 18, 2013). "Chandler Massey, 'Days Of Our Lives' Star, Wins Second Emmy For Gay Teen Portrayal". Huffington Post.
  83. ^ Halterman, Jim (May 3, 2013). ""Days'" Freddie Smith Talks First Daytime Emmy Nomination".
  84. ^ Higbee, Jonathan (June 17, 2013). "Video: "Days Of Our Lives"' Chandler Massey Wins Another Emmy, Thanks Onscreen Boyfriend In Speech".
  85. ^ Fairman, Michael (April 21, 2013). . Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved August 17, 2013.
  86. ^ a b "Exclusive: US soap star Chandler Massey done with gay role on Days of Our Lives". August 24, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2013.
  87. ^ "Exclusive! Chandler Massey Off DAYS - Effective Immediately!". August 24, 2013. Retrieved August 23, 2013.
  88. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Krystle and Blake". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  89. ^ a b Schindehette, Susan. "The Real Story of Desi and Lucy - Super-Couples, Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball". People. Retrieved 2009-10-13.
  90. ^ a b c In addition to other couples, the source mentions Ricky and Lucy as a supercouple. . AOL. Archived from the original on May 8, 2009. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  91. ^ "Classic Showbiz Supercouples/(Changed title by site: Classic Hollywood Romances)". Life. Retrieved 2009-08-03.
  92. ^ West, Abby. "17 Great Soap Supercouples: Pam and Bobby". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
  93. ^ Fickett, Travis. "Broken Remote: TV Moment Spotlight Favorites from yesteryear: Scrubs, Buffy, and West Wing". IGN. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
  94. ^ a b Eric Goldman; Brian Zoromski; Dan Iverson. "IGN's Top 10 Favorite TV Couples". IGN. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  95. ^ Joss Whedon – 'Becoming' Parts 1 & 2 Commentary on the Buffy Season 2 DVD.
  96. ^ "Better than Buffy and Angel?" — 2000, MTV FANatic - Gellar surprised the fan preferred couple Buffy and Riley Finn.
  97. ^ a b West, Kelly (2006-11-05). "The Clicker Examines Great TV Romances". Cinemablend. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  98. ^ Gelsomino, Tara. . www.heroesandheartbreakers.com. Archived from the original on 2016-08-25. Retrieved 2016-07-02.
  99. ^ "15 TV Teen Super Couples". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-07-02.
  100. ^ Trouble with Glee Supercouples "The fourth episode of the new Glee season will be a turning point for all of the show's supercouples. "I'm not going to say who breaks up and who doesn't, but they all —Santana/Brittany..."
  101. ^ Leibrock Davis, Rachel (July 25–31, 1996). "The X-Phile Facts". Metroactive.com. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  102. ^ a b Arcieri, Joanna (2008-02-14). . www.themhnews.com. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved 2008-02-20.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  103. ^ Schreiber, Michele. . CSW update. Archived from the original on 2007-03-14. Retrieved 2007-06-12.
  104. ^ a b c "Clark Gable & Carole Lombard". People. February 12, 1996. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  105. ^ a b c d "Hollywood's Hottest Couples – Super-Couples". People. 2003-06-30. Retrieved 2009-08-08.
  106. ^ a b Curti, Jesse (2008-11-11). "Super-Couples: Will and Jada Celebrate 11 Years of Marriage". People. Retrieved 2009-08-08.
  107. ^ a b Mai Dinh; Janet Murphy. "Brad Pitt Biography". People. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
  108. ^ "Jennifer Aniston, Brad Pitt separate". Today.com. Associated Press. 2006-03-27. Retrieved 2009-08-11.
  109. ^ Ventre, Michael (2005-03-26). "The demise of Jen and Brad. This ridiculously beautiful couple seemed to genuinely love each other". Today.com. Retrieved 2009-08-11.
  110. ^ "Pitt and Aniston announce split". BBC News. 2005-01-08. Retrieved 2009-03-19.[permanent dead link]
  111. ^ "Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt Separate". People. 2005-01-07. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
  112. ^ "Judge signs Aniston-Pitt divorce papers". USA Today. Associated Press. 2005-08-22. Retrieved 2008-11-14.
  113. ^ a b "The Jennifer Syndrome". Newsweek. April 2010. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  114. ^ Bonin, Liane (2003-10-31). "Pot Pans Kettle. Madonna calls J.Lo overexposed. The Material Girl says Bennifer could have avoided the media meltdown that postponed their wedding". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
  115. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (2002-12-09). "Overexposed? Is There Too Much J.Lo?". People. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
  116. ^ Boehm, Kristin (2007-10-01). "Ben Affleck: Jennifer Lopez Romance Hurt My Career". Us Weekly. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
  117. ^ a b c "The Brangelina fever". The Age. Melbourne. 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2007-04-14.
  118. ^ Dennehy, Luke (2007-12-31). "Posh and David Beckham dubbed celebrity super-couple". news.com.au. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  119. ^ a b "Jinnai, Fujiwara Marriage to End After 2 Years". japan-zone.com. 2009-03-20. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
  120. ^ "Source: Beyoncé and Jay-Z Are Married". People. April 4, 2008. Retrieved April 4, 2008.
  121. ^ "Beyonce, Jay-Z the richest pair". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2011-01-11.
  122. ^ a b Kaufman, Gil (2010-01-13). "Jay-Z And Beyonce Named Top-Earning Couple In Entertainment". MTV News. Retrieved 2011-01-11.
  123. ^ Vega, Nicolas (2023-03-27). "Jay-Z is now worth $2.5 billion—Warren Buffett once said 'he's the guy to learn from'". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  124. ^ Dellatto, Marisa. "Beyoncé Is Now Worth $800 Million". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  125. ^ . People. Archived from the original on 2009-02-12. Retrieved 2007-09-12.
  126. ^ "Brad, refugees and kids need her; Jolie says she'll take a year off". Chicago Sun-Times. 2007-05-07.
  127. ^ "Newlyweds Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma's new romantic pictures from their Italian resort". Retrieved 2017-12-25.
  128. ^ "Virushka Wedding Reception: Indian Cricket Stars Attend Grand Event In Mumbai". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 2017-12-26.
  129. ^ Indonesia, Femina. "Supercouple Bollywood: Bipasha Basu dan John Abraham". www.femina.co.id. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  130. ^ "John Abraham and Bipasha Basu break-up: What exactly went wrong between them". Retrieved 2017-12-25.
  131. ^ "Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan's love story | The Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2017-12-25.
  132. ^ "Power couple Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan grace the GQ Men of the Year Awards night!". www.pinkvilla.com. 28 September 2016. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  133. ^ "Love Story Of Power Couple Of Bollywood: Aishwarya Rai And Abhishek Bachchan". Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  134. ^ "Power couple Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan chill with Karan Johar and Manish Malhotra". www.pinkvilla.com. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  135. ^ "Abhishek Bachchan talks about his relationship with Aishwarya - Abhishek-Aishwarya's love story". The Times of India. Retrieved 2017-12-25.
  136. ^ "Unconventional Love Story Of Bengali Beauty Sharmila Tagore And Charming Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi". BollywoodShaadis. Retrieved 2017-12-25.
  137. ^ "Hema Malini and Dharmendra are Haryana Tourism's new brand ambassadors". The Times of India. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  138. ^ Pagnamenta, Robin (2012-10-17). "Bollywood power couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor marry in style". The Times. London. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  139. ^ Maria Elena Little Endara (September 25, 2023). "Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce? The possibility has led to memes galore". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  140. ^ Blanchet, Brenton (November 20, 2023). "Travis Kelce Shares the Real Story of How Taylor Swift Romance Began in Wide-Ranging Interview". People. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  141. ^ Aniftos, Rania (2023-11-20). "A Timeline of Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce's Relationship". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  142. ^ Burack, Emily. "Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are America's "Royal Couple," According to Jenna Bush Hager". Town and Country. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
  143. ^ Ryder, Taryn. "Are Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce America's royal couple? Why experts say 'Traylor' mania 'isn't dying down anytime soon.'". Yahoo!. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
  144. ^ Dailey, Hannah (2023-11-20). "Travis Kelce Reveals How He First Got in Touch With Taylor Swift: 'I Had Somebody Playing Cupid'". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  145. ^ Thomas, Carly (September 28, 2023). "The Taylor Swift Effect Is Very Real and It's Now Taking the Sports World by Storm". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  146. ^ Dye, Natasha (September 29, 2023). "Sunday Night Football Debuts Taylor Swift-Themed Promo Ahead of Travis Kelce and Chiefs' Game — Watch!". People. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  147. ^ Porter, Rick; Weprin, Alex (2023-10-12). "The NFL's Taylor Swift Era: Who Wins the Most?". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  148. ^ Bell, BreAnna (October 2, 2023). "Chiefs-Jets NFL Game Hits 27 Million Viewers as Taylor Swift Makes Second Week Cheering on Travis Kelce". Variety. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  149. ^ Vasquez, Ingrid (November 1, 2023). "Travis Kelce Says 'It Was Cool' Seeing People Dress Up as Him and Taylor Swift for Halloween". People. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  150. ^ Darney, Caroline (November 30, 2023). "Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are Hulu official thanks to a TV special about their relationship". For The Win. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  151. ^ Yahr, Emily (2023-10-03). "Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and a monoculture yearning for romance". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  152. ^ Unterberger, Andrew (2023-12-15). "Billboard's Greatest Pop Stars of 2023: No. 1 — Taylor Swift". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  153. ^ a b c d e "1997 issue". NEXT Generation. January 1997.
  154. ^ a b c d "FABLE: EXCLUSIVE DETAILS ON XBOX'S MOST ANTICIPATED RPG". Game Informer. January 2003.
  155. ^ a b c d e f g h Hall, Robert (2008). "Gamers' Philosophy II: "Love" is a Four-Letter Word". allrpg.com.
  156. ^ a b "Happiness, Engagement and Love in Video Games". affectivedesign.org. 12 April 2007. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
  157. ^ Waters, Darren (2007-03-09). "Designer hopes for love in games". BBC News. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
  158. ^ a b c d Villafania, Alexander. . Archived from the original on February 22, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  159. ^ Danesi (2013). Danesi, M. (5 December 2013). The History of the Kiss: The Birth of Popular Culture, Semiotics and Popular Culture. Palgrave Macmillan pages 50-51. Springer. ISBN 978-1-137-37683-1.
  160. ^ Blake_Morse (2011-02-14). "5 Greatest Video Game Romances". gamerevolution.com. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
  161. ^ a b McGrath, Jack (2011-04-29). "The Ten Greatest Romances in Gaming History". technobuffalo.com. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
  162. ^ a b "10: The 10 Most Important Games". Electronic Gaming Monthly. January 2005. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
  163. ^ a b c d Stephen P (2014-03-18). "The Top 10 Final Fantasy Romances". leviathyn.com. Retrieved 2016-02-04.
  164. ^ IGN Staff. . IGN. Archived from the original on 2006-03-07.
  165. ^ New lipstick lesbians are doing it for themselves Carol Hunt, Sunday February 15, 2009.
  166. ^ "Almost two years after the doll supercouple ended their 43-year romance, Ken is considering a makeover in an effort to win back Barbie." "Will Ken doll get makeover to win back Barbie? Mattel hints at big changes for dumped doll". MSN. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  167. ^ "WHAT WEDDING GIFT WOULD YOU GIVE TO SUPERCOUPLE?". newsbank.com. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
  168. ^ "LOOK! UP ON THE ALTAR! IT'S SUPERCOUPLE!". newsbank.com. 1990-10-20. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
  169. ^ Andrews, Tae. . media.www.ndsmcobserver.com. Archived from the original on 2008-03-07. Retrieved 2008-02-16.

Further reading edit

  • O'Rourke, Michael (June 3, 2006). San Antonio Express-News, S.A. LIFE; Pg. 1E. "Supercouple must have supername". An analysis concluding that "Bennifer, Tomkat and Brangelina. To be considered a supercouple, it isn't enough to be compatible, loving and gorgeous anymore. Your names have to fit together to form a headline-pleasing moniker. You have to be a portmanteau."

January 01, 1970
supercouple, power, couple, redirects, here, indian, show, power, couple, indian, series, brazilian, show, power, couple, brazilian, series, supercouple, super, couple, also, known, power, couple, popular, wealthy, pairing, that, intrigues, fascinates, public,. Power Couple redirects here For the Indian TV show see Power Couple Indian TV series For the Brazilian TV show see Power Couple Brazilian TV series A supercouple or super couple also known as a power couple is a popular and or wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or obsessive fashion The term originated in the United States and it was coined in the early 1980s when intense public interest in fictional soap opera couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber from General Hospital made the pair a popular culture phenomenon 1 2 3 4 Fictional couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber are credited with defining the term supercouple The term supercouple typically refers to fictional couples from television dramas and film such as Gone with the Wind s Rhett Butler and Scarlett O Hara With regard to real life pairings tabloids and the mainstream media have focused on wealthy or popular celebrity couples and have titled them supercouples or power couples Examples are the pairing of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez which became known by the portmanteau Bennifer 5 6 and the former relationship of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Brangelina In the 2020s decade the high profile relationship between pop star Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce Tayvis has led global news and media outlets to call them America s Royal Couple 7 Contents 1 Definitions 2 Internet and media trends 3 Soap operas 3 1 Origins 3 2 Legends 3 3 Golden Age 1980s 3 4 Decline and remolding 1990s 2000s 3 4 1 Popular traditional and altered setups 3 4 2 Gay and lesbian 4 Primetime television 5 Film 6 Celebrity 7 Video games 8 Literature and toys 9 See also 10 References 11 Further readingDefinitions editSupercouples are defined as popular or financially wealthy pairings that are widely admired in an intense or obsessive fashion and influence society s expectations of what a great love story or relationship should be they may or may not be romantic or high profile 1 8 9 and interest in the pairings may be due to a combination of chemistry physical attractiveness or because they seem fated 1 The term supercouple first appeared in 1981 with the wedding of General Hospital s Luke and Laura 10 Thirty million viewers tuned into the event 4 11 and the widespread media attention it received from prominent newspapers and magazines set the pairing up as the default model for other soap opera supercouples 2 12 13 The model Luke and Laura originally followed consisted of action stories romance and obstacles for the couple to overcome 2 3 12 This paradigm subsequently became ideal of fictional soap opera supercouples in America and extended to other genres In Queer TV Framing Sexualities On US Television Nancy Martin says Actively desiring heterosexual pairs not bent on reproduction became a required advertising device and a narratological mainstay on daytime and primetime 10 In Russian Television Today David MacFadyen concludes Even the busiest most rambling soap operas are often neatly and conclusively distilled in the public s mind by a supercouple or tiny central pair of protagonists 14 Luke and Laura s popularity resulted in fictional supercouples generally being regarded as soulmates 2 The pairings have typically overcome numerous obstacles or significant strife in order to be together 1 2 Though a successful model the concept has been criticized for hindering the growth of characters relationships with other love interests this has resulted in alternate definitions for the term In her essay criticism of the term The Siren Call of the Super Couple ed Suzanne Frentz 1992 Diana Reep describes the love of a supercouple as so perfect that they are incapable of having romantic feelings for anyone else under any circumstances In addition the two have no personal flaws or idiosyncrasies that could interfere with their perfect love Only an evil outside force could disturb their relationship 2 While Days of Our Lives former supervising producer Al Rabin credited the supercouple aspect as the secret to the show s success his then executive producer Ken Corday stated By definition supercouple excludes others on the show Every time they walk into a room every other character no matter how important becomes window dressing I ve never believed in it Corday added Either people are involved in a good story or they re not They re an interesting couple or they re not 15 Celebrity couples may also be regarded as supercouples 6 16 17 Interest in the pairings ranges from media and public obsession to calculation of the couples combined finances 16 Internet and media trends editFans often use portmanteau to refer to their favorite couples on online message boards a significant aspect of the shipping fandom The shipping fandom scene whose name is derived from the word relationship is a general term for fans emotional or intellectual involvement with the ongoing development of romance in a work of fiction Though technically applicable to any such involvement it refers chiefly to various related social dynamics observable on the Internet and is seldom used outside of that context Shipping can involve virtually any kind of relationship from the well known and established to the ambiguous or those undergoing development and even to the highly improbable and the blatantly impossible People involved in shipping or shippers assert that the relationship does exist will exist or simply that they would like it to exist Portmanteaux first came about with Lewis Carroll as a way to blend words stated Jonathan Gabay author of the Copywriter s Compendium a reference guide to the English language 5 Gabay added that people blend words in this fashion because sometimes there are words an individual wants but those words do not actually exist There s a feeling you are trying to get out he said 5 For fictional pairings examples showcase themselves as Logan and Veronica Veronica Mars becomes LoVe Josh and Reva Guiding Light becomes Jeva Jack and Kate Lost becomes Jate Michael and Sara Prison Break becomes MiSa and so on Some couples are given more complex portmanteaux on How I Met Your Mother the pairing of Barney and Robin is referred to as BROTP incorporating their initials their platonic status as bros and the popular fandom term OTP One True Pairing Seth Cohen of the show The O C parodied name blending trends when he talked about real couples overexposure to one another he wondered whether or not his pairing with Summer Roberts would be called Summereth or Sethummer 18 Gabay said portmanteaux giv e people an essence of who they are within the same name In double barrelled names the hyphen is almost pushing one name away from the other Meshing says I am you and you are me which is rather romantic 5 Occasionally even anti fans come up with names for couples such as General Hospital s Sonny Corinthos and Emily Quartermaine The unpopular pairing of the mob boss and his enforcer s sweet younger sister became known as Soily 19 Similarly name blending exists with celebrities first names Said to be a sign of commitment and togetherness meshing is also seen by some as an attempt to banish what might be considered a sexist tradition of a woman taking her husband s name when she marries 5 In other Internet trends fans often take part in making fan videos also referred to as fanvids a compilation of favorite scenes stylishly intercut as music videos or other various forms of entertainment and writing fanfiction alternative endings and stories to the original story s outcome for their favorite pairings Sites such as YouTube Archive of our Own and Fanfiction net help to facilitate this 20 21 Soap operas editOrigins edit See also List of supercouples Soap opera According to American soap opera writer and romance novelist Leah Laiman soap operas are best known and most remembered for romance 22 The romances in daytime dramas are significantly characterized by bringing couples together splitting them up and starting the cycle over again to ensure that viewers remain invested in the pairings if popular This is a strategy that often succeeds within the medium 22 A supercouple storyline is typically detailed by the couple s facing seemingly insurmountable challenges such as a difference in social class strong family interference simple disagreements marriages to other people children with other people etc 2 23 Two characters comprising a supercouple will usually reunite and marry 2 23 while the most significant obstacle for the pairing is the soap opera genre itself as soap operas typically continue for decades there is no closure for the pairing unless both characters leave the show together or one of them dies It is because of this that after the usual fairytale wedding if the supercouple remains on the series writers do not allow the item to live happily ever after as a couple in a fairy tale would but rather subject them to a continual cycle of being separated and reunited This factor has contributed to two characters of a supercouple normally divorcing and remarrying each other a few or several times 2 23 Author Diana Reep argues that the supercouple phenomenon creates serious storyline problems for producers and writers due to characters being destined for only one lover The problem supercouples create for storytellers is that as characters therefore they are unchanging in a narrative form that emphasizes evolving characters and relationships and as ideals supercouples bring closure to a relationship in a world that is based in continuing expectations of change 2 Creators within the medium generally focus more on the benefits of supercouples rather than the potential problems the pairings can produce Former One Life to Live co head writer Josh Griffith said that the key to a show s success is passionate romantic storytelling and pairings and that s what creates a supercouple To him they embody love and passion 15 Legends edit Although the term was not coined until the early 1980s some couples prior to that point have been retrospectively termed supercouples for example Jeff Baker and Penny Hughes 24 and Bob and Lisa Hughes from As the World Turns Doug Williams and Julie Olson from Days of Our Lives are sometimes considered the first supercouple From 1970 until 1976 Doug and Julie s relationship wavers between love and hate The chemistry the portrayers exhibited became evident offscreen the real life couple Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth were married in 1974 25 This set off a commotion among thousands of fans who wrote letters to the show asking that the couple also be allowed to marry in the story Since the actors were already married they felt this was a valid request 25 NBC worked the tension and lengthened the anticipation of the wedding but eventually caved into the audience s pressure Doug and Julie are married in October 1976 within the series 25 They are the first soap opera characters to appear on the cover of Time 26 27 Luke Spencer and Laura Webber portrayed by Anthony Geary and Genie Francis from General Hospital are considered the most famous soap opera supercouple Their romance enthralled viewers when they wed on November 16 1981 American daytime television recorded its highest ever ratings with 30 million people tuning in to watch them say I do 4 Elizabeth Taylor made a cameo appearance during the wedding 3 4 28 29 and Princess Diana reportedly sent champagne 4 The couple was featured on the covers of People and Newsweek and was credited with having brought legitimacy to daytime serials and its fans by crossing boundaries and becoming celebrities in the mainstream media 3 As a result Luke and Laura have become regarded as daytime television s quintessential and most iconic couple 1 While Guiding Light has the smallest number of supercouples the series still had prominent pairings notably Quint and Nola 30 as well as Josh and Reva one of the central supercouples from the 1980s onward 15 In 1982 All My Children s Jesse and Angie became the first black supercouple 31 32 33 34 Dirty Den and Angie Watts portrayed by Leslie Grantham and Anita Dobson on the British soap opera EastEnders generated an audience response similar to Luke and Laura s Den and Angie are renowned as arguably Britain s most iconic soap opera couple having broken the record for episode ratings to 30 1 million viewers in 1986 on the episode of their divorce a record that remains unbeaten by any British soap opera episode today 35 Golden Age 1980s edit The 1980s is known as the Golden Age of supercouples 36 Shows such as All My Children As the World Turns and along with the aforementioned General Hospital and Days of our Lives were well known for their supercouples Days of our Lives in particular had a significant number of supercouples Bo and Hope 15 Shane and Kimberly 37 Patch and Kayla 15 and Jack and Jennifer all going on at roughly the same time The show soon featured John and Marlena 38 All My Children was represented by Cliff and Nina 39 Greg and Jenny 40 Jesse and Angie 31 32 33 34 and later by Tad and Dixie 41 As the World Turns had the popular couples Holden and Lily 42 Craig and Sierra Tom and Margo 43 and Steve and Betsy with Betsy Stewart being portrayed by future film star Meg Ryan 44 Along with Luke and Laura General Hospital also boasted Alan and Monica and Frisco and Felicia 2 At the same time Santa Barbara introduced another supercouple Cruz and Eden 15 The supercouple phenomenon spread to foreign shores with Scott and Charlene portrayed by Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue on the Australian soap opera Neighbours 45 The success of their romance prompted a fellow Australian daytime drama Home and Away to shelve out their own supercouple Shane and Angel 45 and Den and Angie from EastEnders emerged as Britain s most famous soap opera couple 35 Sheraton Kalouria NBC s Vice President of Daytime Programming said he believes in the it factor regarding fictional couples It s hard to imagine Bo and Hope as a supercouple and divorce that from the magnetic chemistry of Peter Reckell and Kristian Alfonso he stated 15 Or Cruz and Eden from Santa Barbara days and A Martinez and Marcy Walker Or McKenzie Westmore as Sheridan and Galen Gering as Luis if I might be so bold as to dub them a supercouple Actors bring a huge excitement to their pairing 15 Decline and remolding 1990s 2000s edit Popular traditional and altered setups edit Popular couplings on soap operas exist today but there are few termed supercouples by fans or the soap opera media 15 Usually the term is reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s As such supercouples that are still on serials today are mostly from the 1980s or early 1990s After the mid 1990s the supercouple phenomenon slowly faded and the nature of soap operas today allows few couples to define the nature of the show anymore as original supercouples once did 15 Days of our Lives executive producer Ken Corday said that while he feels that love in the afternoon is still important to the genre the supercouple title disappeared from his vocabulary when Al Rabin his supervising producer left the show 15 All My Children and One Life to Live creator Agnes Nixon argued Supercouples are still a vital component whenever possible She stressed the importance of creating young love stories the Romeo and Juliet of tomorrow 15 Shows have attempted to revive the success of supercouples through modern couples There are instances when a character becomes a part of two popular pairings where both couples which include the character develop the same or close to the same amount of positive fan reaction from viewers This causes a certain rivalry between the two couples with both vying for the title of supercouple An example of this was especially evident with the mid 1990s storyline of General Hospital s Sonny Corinthos Brenda Barrett and Jasper Jax Jacks often referred to as the hottest love triangle in soap opera history by the soap opera media 46 The couple combinations within the love triangle were equally in demand and which of the two is a true supercouple remains in dispute Though debated both couples are referenced and listed as supercouples by the soap opera medium 47 48 49 The Sonny character eventually acquired second supercouple status in the pairing of Sonny and Carly becoming a part of two successful on screen romances 50 In other instances a character is part of two equally popular couplings but the storyline does not lend itself to the scenario being referred to as a love triangle Samantha Sami Brady of the soap opera Days of our Lives is romantically desired by the two men Lucas Roberts and EJ Wells However she was not considered to be actively involved in a love triangle and both couples Lucas and Sami and EJ and Sami resonate with fans and appear to be at least equal in comparison and popularity 51 In today s soap opera medium there are couples which come close to gaining supercouple status in terms of popularity Although these pairings have perceived chemistry and potential the couple s story is cut short often due to the actors leaving to pursue jobs outside of soap operas or due to the writers changing direction in a storyline These couples do not last long enough onscreen to garner the long history of what is often considered a genuine supercouple Such couples include Leo and Greenlee All My Children Ryan and Gillian All My Children 52 Dusty and Lucy As the World Turns Simon and Katie As the World Turns 15 Paul and Meg As the World Turns 53 Robin and Stone General Hospital Jonathan and Tammy Guiding Light and Todd and Tea One Life to Live 54 55 Soap opera columnist Carolyn Aspenson stated that the supercouple formula should be redefined She argued that tragic couples such as Leo and Greenlee are a better love story than if they had stayed together with a boring everyday life 56 A super couple shouldn t be designed to be a couple that beats the odds and sticks it out no matter what she said 56 We re left with nothing on those terms Instead try redefining a super couple by the intensity of their love their loss and their ability to move on without their other half It leaves us frustrated heartbroken and yearning for more To me that is the definition of a super couple 56 Gay and lesbian edit Soap operas traditionally featured only heterosexual romance For American soap opera this began to change with characters Bianca Montgomery Lena Kundera and Maggie Stone from All My Children 57 58 Bianca s unveiling as a lesbian was unique for daytime television By being a core character and the daughter of legendary diva Erica Kane the show initiated an innovative discourse about the possibility location and representation of lesbian and gay characters in a television genre historically predicated on the celebration of heterosexual courtship romance and family life 59 In 2003 Bianca s relationship with Lena resulted in American daytime s first lesbian kiss 57 60 61 The two became American daytime s first lesbian couple and received significant press 57 60 Though Lena and Bianca s romance was well received popular and the couple became responsible for several historic moments within daytime television 57 it was Bianca s relationship with close confidante Maggie that thoroughly captivated viewers 58 The romance was considered unique and especially significant due to the show s insistence that Maggie was not gay the show s insistence did not deter viewers from wanting the two romantically paired and they often wrote in to the network ABC demanding that Bianca and Maggie become an official item 62 63 Eventually hints that Maggie might not be heterosexual started to appear throughout the series complicated by Maggie insisting that she is not gay but is rather into guys and only guys Yet fan mail for the Bianca and Maggie pairing was prominent 58 The couple s popularity grew beyond soap opera press as newspapers and television magazines became fascinated by the love story as well TV Guide The Advocate and Daily News were among the media taking interest 58 64 65 The pairing eventually became the most popular gay couple in soap opera history which surprised industry insiders who had not believed that a gay pairing could be as significantly in demand as heterosexual pairings 58 Though Bianca and Maggie s romance was not made official until both were offscreen it made clear to writers and executives who had been conflicted about including gay and lesbian love stories that the daytime audience was interested Bianca and Maggie subsequently became American soap opera s first same sex supercouple 66 Soap opera analyst C Lee Harrington stated While the past decade has witnessed a growing number of lesbian gay bisexual and transgender characters in primetime dramas and situation comedies daytime soap operas offer unique challenges and possibilities regarding the inclusion and normalization of varied sexualities in entertainment television 59 Daytime television has been ahead of primetime for some time in exploring diverse or controversial storylines and characters with the one glaring exception being homosexuality 59 Gay and lesbian issues or characters were invisible in 1950s and early 1960s TV When it came to the mainstream shows audiences were built up as replications of the idealized middle class nuclear family defined as monogamous heterosexual couples with children Buxton 1997 p 1477 Because of this perception of what was ideal networks geared programming toward it feeling that viewers were exactly like these images on their television screens 59 In contrast to primetime daytime dramas have different obstacles to developing innovative programming with their advertising sponsors being more conservative their audience smaller and genre restrictions that emphasize continuity and respect for history over innovation 59 Soap opera tried its first chance at including a gay character back in 1983 on All My Children Actress Donna Pescow portrayed Dr Lynn Carson who comes out as a lesbian to patient and confidante Devon Shepherd McFadden Tricia Pursley The two women admit to having romantic feelings for each other and that is as far as the relationship goes 67 A prominent obstacle for gay and lesbian characters on daytime television is interference from television network executives who fear a decline in their ratings 67 The characters are often denied fulfilling and lasting romances with others of the same sex Before Bianca s gay character was written into All My Children the purpose of gay characters was to make a point or explain homosexuality for the audience a task handled within the course of a few episodes said Zach Hudson of Washington Blade The distraught parents or angry bullies who caused the early gay characters so much turmoil would suddenly see the light Then the story and the character would simply vanish It was not until Bianca that prominent gay characters and couples seemed possible within American daytime 59 67 Since then American soap operas have tried to replicate the success of the Bianca character with the introduction of their own gay and lesbian characters 67 One soap opera in particular As the World Turns has been successful in launching the first popular romance between two men on an American daytime drama Luke Snyder and Noah Mayer In late 2007 the two make television history by carrying out the first kiss between two male lovers on an American soap opera 68 The popularity of the pairing borders on the same fascination level that centered around Bianca and Maggie s lesbian romance Not even months into the romantic aspect of their relationship TV Guide named the male duo a top power couple 69 Noah Mayer became one of the latest soap opera characters to come out as gay and joined Bianca and others as visible gay characters in daytime One year before Luke and Noah the British soap opera Hollyoaks had already embarked on issuing their own gay male supercouple between characters John Paul McQueen and Craig Dean 70 71 the storyline became one of the show s most successful gaining legions of fans 72 The budding same sex romance on Guiding Light between Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera Aitoro became popular with fans in 2009 73 That same year One Life to Live introduced its own male gay supercouple with Oliver Fish and Kyle Lewis 74 On international television the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe gained international popularity with the storylines involving Carla and Stella and later with the couple of Christian and Oliver Beginning in 2011 Days of our Lives broke new ground when it decided to have the character Will Horton come out as gay The soap chronicled Will s struggle to accept his sexuality 75 The show also highlighted many obstacles the LGBT community face such as bullying 76 hate crimes 76 and gay slurs 77 The show cast actor Freddie Smith in the role of Jackson Sonny Kiriakis the second openly gay contracted character in a daytime soap opera 78 Sonny would eventually become Will s ongoing love interest To the surprise of the actors and writers Will and Sonny were greeted with fan support and were eventually titled a supercouple and power couple 79 The show pushed the envelope even further when it decided to air Will s first same sex sexual encounter on screen which would become the first of many 80 Chandler Massey went on receive the 2012 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series becoming the first actor ever to receive a Daytime Emmy Award for playing a gay character 81 He won his second consecutive Emmy for the role in the same category in 2013 82 Smith received his first Daytime Emmy nomination for his role in 2013 pitting him against Massey for the same award 83 In his acceptance speech Massey thanked Smith 84 The show won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Daily Drama in 2013 85 In August 2013 it was announced that Massey had filmed his final episode as Will Horton and that a recast had already been made 86 87 Days had initially planned not to recast the role but changed its mind due to fear of advertiser and fan backlash 86 In either aspect fictional gay and lesbian romances have been argued as making an impact These stories have the ability to reach the many different generations of viewers who watch daytime and share with them stories of our lives stated Damon Romine media entertainment director for the GLAAD organization What viewers are seeing is that more and more of their own neighbors and friends are dealing with these issues and the soaps are merely reflecting the reality of the world we live in 67 Primetime television editSee also List of supercouples Prime time television A paradigm used for primetime couples is the love hate relationship plotline In the television series Dynasty characters Krystle and Blake Linda Evans and John Forsythe are seen fighting for years through ex lovers and a host of other interferences Krystle winds up in a coma and Blake spends years in jail but their love eventually wins out over their problems This resulted in the couple subsequently becoming one of television s classic supercouples 88 Other early primetime power couplings include Ricky and Lucy Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball from I Love Lucy 89 90 91 Pam and Bobby Victoria Principal and Patrick Duffy from Dallas 92 and Cliff and Clair Huxtable Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad from The Cosby Show among others 1 Television shows also produce tragic love stories such as Buffy and Angel from the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer The pairing s persistent fight to be together is considered to have cemented their place in supercouple history 93 Voted 2 on IGN s list of Top 10 Favorite TV Couples and 5 on AOL s list of Greatest TV Couples of All Time the sites categorized the pairing as the ultimate star crossed couple 90 94 The pairing s main predicament unable to experience sexual intimacy without Angel losing his humanity has been summarized by IGN After all when you re a Vampire Slayer it hardly seems like the appropriate person to fall for would be a Vampire But fall for Angel Buffy did setting up one of the most involving and tragic love stories we can remember on TV After all it s pretty rare for one half of a great couple to go from gentle and caring to sadistic and murderous in the course of a single night and spurred on by having sex with the girl he loves no less 94 nbsp Tragedy comes about when Buffy has to face off with her true love Angel in order to save the world episode Becoming Part Two Creator of the series Joss Whedon said Becoming Parts 1 and 2 really sort of charted the main points of the Buffy Angel relationship in all its difficulty and romance 95 Buffy s portrayer Sarah Michelle Gellar said I think deep down Buffy will always love Angel and she will never love anyone the way in which she loves him I think they found a wonderful supercouple in Buffy and Angel 96 Certain shows may not be adequately suited for a tragic love storyline For comedies the approach of pairing mismatched couples is also often applied and for dramas there tends to be a will they won t they setup Website Cinemablend states that there are two general formulas for a will they wont they setup The first one is when one person pursues the other then finally gives up and dates someone else the site stated and the other scenario is when the two characters are so different and often do not get along with one another they fight and argue constantly but then one thing or a series of things happen and they are forced to put up with each other 97 Examples of popular couples cited for having displayed this formula are Buffy and Spike of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Ross and Rachel of the show Friends Logan and Veronica of the show Veronica Mars among others 97 There are numerous shows that tend to pair up two unexpected characters with other For instance Pacey Witter and Joey Potter from the drama Dawson s Creek 98 Pacey and Joey did not like each other at all first and Joey was in love with her soulmate Dawson Leery but they eventually fell in love and became a supercouple of the show 99 Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson and Santana Lopez and Brittany Pierce from Glee and are regularly quoted as TV s first LGBTQ powercouples 100 A well known will they won t they setups is the relationship of supercouple Agent Fox Mulder and Agent Dana Scully from the science fiction thriller series The X Files 1 101 Mulder and Scully two FBI agents investigating cases that involve the paranormal are showcased as having a relationship which borders on subtle hints of romance throughout the series without the two being heavily romantically involved Though anticipation for Mulder and Scully to romantically commit to each other had existed for years among the show s fanbase the pairing s romantic intimacy was not written as soon as fans would have hoped for when the two are finally shown sharing a kiss in 1999 after seven seasons of buildup some viewers felt the show waited too long to script the event Critics state that in such cases if a series extends sexual tension for too long before finally acting on romantic intimacy between the characters it can result in viewers feeling that the best part of the pairing s buildup was their will they won t they status With some fictional supercouples from soap opera or primetime the couple may have started out as an unexpected pairing and with or without a paradigm Due to viewers becoming excited over the prospect of chemistry between the two the show s producers and writers later decide to pair them Film editSee also List of supercouples Film Given that films inherently have a shorter amount of time to develop characters and carry out storylines the task of convincing the audience that the film s couple are adequately suited for each other can be challenging This is especially evident in cases where there is not enough plot focusing on the buildup of the characters interaction which can make the love story seem contrived 102 A memorable line or catchphrase spoken between the characters has been suggested as a remedy to this since it can elevate a pairing s popularity 102 Films may resort to the notion that romance is a solution to life s problems or is unchangeable tapping into a love conquers all appeal 103 for example in doomed romances where the underlying message is that the love the couple shared endured even though their time together was cut short A film supercouple can be a couple appearing with the same actors over the course of few or several films making the actors the supercouples rather than the characters 1 Celebrity editSee also Hollywood marriage nbsp Former supercouple Sonny amp Cher at The Sonny amp Cher Show The media often focuses on celebrity pairings Celebrity couples who are viewed as fascinating or create a power coupling due to finances are singled out as supercouples 16 Since the term was coined classic Hollywood couples have been regarded as supercouples 6 including Clark Gable and Carole Lombard People magazine stated that Gable and Lombard were more than just Golden Age window dressing The love they shared for six years was that Hollywood rarity the real thing 104 They were titled The King of Hollywood and the Queen of Screwball Comedy respectively and eloped during a break in production on Gable s Gone with the Wind in 1939 Lombard died three years later in a plane crash on her way home from a war bond rally 104 Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball were the stars and producers of I Love Lucy and have since been credited as an onscreen and offscreen supercouple 89 90 They divorced in 1960 after 20 years of marriage People described Gable and Lombard Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn 6 Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner 6 and Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor 6 were couples recognized as the greatest love stories of the century 104 The supercouple title has been similarly prolific with modern celebrity pairings In 1997 rapper actor Will Smith married actress Jada Pinkett The couple were titled a supercouple due to their combined film star allure and perceived physical attractiveness 6 17 105 In 2003 and 2008 People magazine categorized them as a supercouple due to their long marriage and widespread celebrity status 105 106 Smith spoke of the power of love as a connective force to Essence magazine The truth about life is that we re all alone he said But when somebody loves you that experience is shared Love is the only real connective tissue that allows you to not live and die by yourself 106 In 1998 Brad Pitt met Friends actress Jennifer Aniston and married her in a private wedding ceremony in Malibu on July 29 2000 107 They were titled a supercouple 6 17 105 regarded as one of the film industry s most powerful 108 and their marriage was considered a rare Hollywood success 109 In January 2005 Pitt and Aniston announced they decided to formally separate after seven years together 107 110 111 Two months later Aniston filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences 112 In November 2000 Michael Douglas married Welsh actress Catherine Zeta Jones and the pairing 25 years apart in age were considered a supercouple 6 17 105 Pairing Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez incited unprecedented media attention for an American modern day supercouple during their 2002 2004 relationship 6 The two were referred to as the first superstar couple of the Internet age 113 and the pairing s popularity resulted in their being known by the portmanteau Bennifer for Ben and Jennifer to the media as well as to fans using the name combination 5 The term Bennifer itself became popular and started the trend of other celebrity couples being referred to by the combination of each other s first names The pairing eventually succumbed to overexposure which caused public interest in their romance to result in less admiration and negatively affected their careers 113 114 115 In 2007 Affleck stated The romance was probably bad for my career What happens is this sort of bleed over from the tabloids across your movie work You go to a movie you only go once But the tabloids and Internet are everywhere You can really subsume the public image of somebody I ended up in an unfortunate crosshair position where I was in a relationship and the media mostly lied and inflated a bunch of salacious stuff for the sake of selling magazines And I paid a certain price for that Then in concert with some movies that didn t work 116 nbsp Former supercouple Cruise and Holmes A celebrity supercouple to emerge after Bennifer was TomKat the coupling of celebrity stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes 6 117 and other countries had already adopted the supercouple term The United Kingdom had Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley Grant n Hurley and Posh and Becks Victoria and David Beckham 16 118 Japan had Tomonori Jinnai and Norika Fujiwara Jinnai established himself as a television regular and a pin geinin or solo comedian while Fujiwara a former Miss Japan became known as a successful actress and one of the business s biggest earners with a string of commercial contracts regular TV and stage roles and also active in charitable causes 119 They were titled one of the super couples of Japanese showbiz and held their elaborate traditional wedding on February 17 2007 at the Ikutajinja shrine in Fujiwara s hometown of Kobe with hundreds of reporters and thousands of fans craning for a glimpse outside and invited 600 guests to the Hotel Okura the following April for a wedding reception that cost over 500 million The event was broadcast live on TV and had a high audience rating of 40 in the Kansai region 119 Another American couple regularly titled a supercouple are musicians Jay Z and Beyonce also known as The Carters 6 Their marriage in New York City in early 2008 was reported by People 120 Knowles and Jay Z were listed as the most powerful couple for Time magazine s 100 most influential people of 2006 121 In January 2009 Forbes ranked them as Hollywood s top earning couple with a combined total of 162 million 122 They also made it to the top of the list the following year with a combined total of 122 million between June 2008 and June 2009 122 As of 2024 the couple has a combined total net worth of 3 3 billion 123 124 The spotlight and attention given to American celebrity supercouples reached its height in 2006 when the celebrity phenomenon dubbed Brangelina triggered media obsession surrounding screen stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie 117 The two emerged as a prominent supercouple 6 125 126 nbsp Former supercouple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie dubbed Brangelina at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival Robert Thompson director of the Centre for the Study of Popular Television said the coupling of A list stars like Pitt and Jolie or in years gone by Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton was a paparazzi s dream come true He added that as silly as it sounds this new tendency to make up single names for two people like Bennifer Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez and TomKat Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes is an insightful idea Brangelina has more cultural equity than their two star parts 117 In India cricketer Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma started dating in 2013 and tied the knot in December 2017 forming one of contemporary India s most famous and talked about supercouple 127 They have been referred to as Virushka in line with Hollywood pairings such as Brangelina 128 Similarly actors John Abraham and Bipasha Basu are a former supercouple 129 130 Other Indian power couples usually associated with the Hindi film industry include Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan 131 132 Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai 133 134 135 Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi cricketer and Sharmila Tagore 136 Dharmendra and Hema Malini 137 Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor 138 Polly Vernon of the British newspaper The Guardian summed up her analysis of what makes a celebrity supercouple in her May 25 2000 article The basic appeal of the accomplished supercouple can be reduced to this by hooking up with another carefully selected celeb you can eliminate your bad points compensate for your own shortcomings and hint at a softer more vulnerable side Attach yourself to someone smarter prettier more fashionable hipper funnier than you are and you will automatically acquire these missing qualities by osmosis They equally will benefit from your particular brand of star quality Your public perception will become more complete more exciting Together you are quite literally the ultimate individual 16 In 2023 American singer songwriter Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce began dating leading media outlets to call them a supercouple 139 140 141 with some even going as far as dubbing them America s Royal Couple 142 143 The highly publicized relationship had a considerable cultural impact Billboard opined that Swift and Kelce are arguably the world s most high profile couple right now consistently making headlines on the daily for simply holding hands or enjoying dinner together 144 The NFL viewership increased dramatically the Chiefs Bears game which Swift attended drew the most television viewers of the weekend while sales of Kelce s jersey and Chiefs home game tickets surged 145 The NFL and NBC used the relationship for social media content and to promote subsequent games 146 147 A Chiefs Jets game that Swift attended averaged 27 million viewers making it the most watched Sunday night television show since Super Bowl LVII 148 nbsp nbsp The relationship between singer songwriter Taylor Swift left and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce right attracted significant media attention during the Chiefs 2023 season and prior to the team s appearance in Super Bowl LVIII A number of couples in the public dressed up as Swift and Kelce as part of 2023 Halloween 149 A television special by Nightline about the relationship and its media impact titled Taylor Travis was released on Hulu in November 2023 150 Journalist Emily Yahr opined in The New York Times that the United States giddily contemplates the pairing of Swift and Kelce that for many observers checks all the right boxes 151 Andrew Unterbeger of Billboard opined that Swift and Kelce s romance resulted in a near 100 public approval because it just felt right the All American athlete dating the All American pop star 152 Video games editSee also List of supercouples In other media Video game creators have realized the asset of incorporating supercouple romances within their products by stringing together epic stories of love and intrigue 153 154 155 While writing epic romances into video games is not a new phenomenon the idea of capturing a video game player through emotionally charged moments via the death of a hero s lover in order to produce feelings of attachment to the fictional environment has expanded 153 155 156 especially within action adventure role playing games RPGs 153 The goal is to make the gamer actually become emotionally invested in the characters and their actions ultimately resulting in heightened gaming experience Video game designer Peter Molyneux when speaking of the main component he wanted in his game Fable 2 spoke of more than just the romantic aspect stating We want you to feel loved You can have sex and you can have a baby That baby will grow up and will kind of look like you 157 In the early days of gaming the idea of love and romance was used as little more than a plot point to urge the hero to complete the set of tasks put before him 153 Mario hero of the Super Mario series of games has Princess Peach to rescue from the main villain Link and Princess Zelda from The Legend of Zelda made gamers wonder why the two were not romantically together while rooting for the couple 158 Double Dragon features the protagonist Billy Lee as he attempts to rescue his girlfriend Maria from his evil twin brother Jimmy leader of a sinister street gang This era of game playing was not well known for equal opportunity in gender roles 155 Eventually video games grew to become a respectable and rich source of storytelling 154 Larger disk space greater production staffs and more impressive budgets allowed more fleshed out characters more elaborate plot points and greater instances of interaction between characters attribution needed 155 The genre that benefited from this the most is the role playing medium The medium made romantic themes a prominent element of its story telling which became one of its staples 155 This subplot is featured through the exploits of supercouples the primary pair of lovers 153 Usually the supercouple turns out to be the main hero and heroine of the game though this is not always the case attribution needed 154 155 The Lunar series for example has become famous for creating several romantic pairings from the hero s party in addition to the hero and heroine In a role playing plot often the romantic feelings the characters feel for one another somehow becomes entwined with the main plot itself In Grandia Justin the main character is compelled to fight against seemingly insurmountable odds in order to rescue the girl that he is in love with In Tales of Legendia the romantic feelings Shirley has for main character and brother in law Senel is a focus of the game even though the latter seems oblivious of the former s true feelings even after they are accidentally engaged in the ending of the primary story mode When the love between the supercouple somehow becomes threatened by the machinations of the antagonist the heroes fight back with everything they have and usually prove once and for all that love conquers all 155 The Compilation of Final Fantasy VII has several notable couples such as Cloud Strife and his relationships with childhood friend Tifa Lockhart and flower girl Aerith Gainsborough Cloud Strife and Aerith Gainsborough have been called video games greatest as well as its most tragic star crossed love story 159 160 The couple is also one of the most well known video game couples in the history of video gaming 158 161 162 In 2005 Electronic Gaming Monthly stated that without the game Aeris wouldn t have died and gamers wouldn t have learned how to cry 162 Other popular couples from the Final Fantasy games include Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly from Final Fantasy VIII 158 Zidane Tribal and Princess Garnet til Alexandros from Final Fantasy IX 163 Tidus and Yuna from Final Fantasy X 158 Vincent Valentine and his lost love Lucrecia Crescent 163 Zack Fair and Aerith Gainsborough in the prequel Final Fantasy VII game Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII 163 Snow Villiers and Serah Farron from Final Fantasy XIII 161 and Cecil Harvey and Rosa Farrell from Final Fantasy IV 163 Love stories such as Solid Snake and Meryl Silverburgh from Metal Gear Solid 164 which takes on more of a subtle approach and couples defined more by their conflicts than their happiness have also impacted the gaming industry Video game insiders state that the need for these love stories within the gaming realm is valid and is a great addition to the gaming experience in most cases 154 155 156 Literature and toys editRomantic and tragic themes found in modern supercouple stories have often been borrowed from classic literary couples Romeo and Juliet due to their enduring legacy and popularity are considered an ideal supercouple outline 15 for aspects of forbidden or tragic love and the relationship between Antony and Cleopatra has been described as fitting the power couple trope 165 In the genres of toys and comic books toys were given their first prominent supercouple with the creation of Ken and Barbie by Mattel in 1961 166 and comic book supercouples such as Superman and Lois Lane created in 1938 167 168 and Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson created in 1966 are still popular today 169 See also editBennifer Love team Sonny amp Cher Ike amp Tina TurnerReferences edit a b c d e f g h Martha P Nochimson 2002 Screen Couple Chemistry The Power of 2 University of Texas Press p 408 ISBN 0 292 75579 1 a b c d e f g h i j k Suzanne Frentz 1992 The Siren Call of the Super Couple Soap Operas Destructive Slide Toward Closure Staying Tuned Contemporary Soap Opera Criticism Popular Press pp 136 pages ISBN 0 87972 537 0 a b c d Dorothy Catherine Anger 1999 Luke and Laura Supercouple Other Worlds Society Seen Through Soap Opera University of Toronto Press ISBN 978 1 55111 103 2 a b c d e Bauder David 2006 11 14 Luke and Laura s Altared State Associated Press The Washington Post Retrieved 2007 06 12 a b c d e f Winterman Denise 2006 08 03 What a mesh BBC News Retrieved 2008 07 17 a b c d e f g h i j k l m Top Celebrity Supercouples of All Time Comcast Comcast Interactive Media 2009 Retrieved 2009 12 05 Thomas Carly September 28 2023 The Taylor Swift Effect Is Very Real and It s Now Taking the Sports World by Storm The Hollywood Reporter Retrieved September 29 2023 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples Timmy and Tabitha Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 Branco Nelson Soaps best super couples Brooke Logan and Stephanie Forrester TV Guide Archived from the original on 2007 10 20 Retrieved 2007 11 12 a b Nancy San Martin 2002 Queer TV Framing Sexualities On US Television University of California Santa Cruz pp 690 pages Wolf Buck November 16 2006 Luke and Laura Still the Ultimate TV Wedding ABC com Retrieved May 20 2009 a b Christine Scodari 2004 Serial monogamy soap opera lifespan and the gendered politics of fantasy Hampton Press pp 208 pages ISBN 978 1 57273 555 2 V Beverly General Hospital Luke amp Laura The Rape tvfanonline com Archived from the original on 2007 09 29 Retrieved 2007 09 07 David MacFadyen 2007 Russian Television Today Primetime drama and comedy Routledge pp 244 pages ISBN 978 0 415 42462 2 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Di Lauro Janet Supercouples A Relic From the 80s or Still Alive and Kissing Soap Opera Digest Archived from the original on May 31 2009 Retrieved 2007 09 06 a href Template Cite magazine html title Template Cite magazine cite magazine a CS1 maint unfit URL link a b c d e Vernon Polly 2000 05 25 The power of two The Guardian London Retrieved 2008 01 06 a b c d Monroe Stella The Power of Love Super Celebrity Couples powermagazines com Archived from the original on 2007 09 27 Retrieved 2007 09 12 The O C Report FashionClub Looks at the Style amp Fashion in the TV show fashionclub com Archived from the original on 2007 04 05 Retrieved 2007 06 13 Banks Carol 2006 04 17 News for the week of 17 April 2006 Soap opera commentator sorry for Soily mention soapzone com Retrieved 2007 11 28 Gomes Lee 2006 08 30 Will All of Us Get Our 15 Minutes On a YouTube Video The Wall Street Journal Online Dow Jones amp Company Retrieved 2007 11 24 Tancer Bill August 30 2007 Life after Potter Bonanza and Gunsmoke Time archived from the original on June 25 2008 retrieved 2011 02 23 a b I believe that daytime serial drama is all about When will they kiss says Leah Laiman Give me romance I don t care about anything else Action adventure only works as a backdrop for Will they kiss If that s absent it s not interesting infra sub 60 a b c Gerry Waggett 2007 You Know Your Life Is a Soap Opera If Hyperion ISBN 978 1 4013 0292 4 Lenhart Jennifer AS THE WORLD TURNS Where Are They Now The First Supercouple Soap Opera Digest Archived from the original on 2013 02 02 Retrieved 2007 11 20 a b c All My Afternoons Gilbert Annie Time Magazine Cover Soap Operas Jan 12 1976 TIME Archived from the original on June 2 2007 Retrieved 2011 04 10 SOAP STAR STATS Susan Seaforth Hayes Julie DAYS Soap Opera Digest Archived from the original on 2010 01 23 Retrieved 2009 05 20 Pat Browne 2001 The guide to United States popular culture Popular Press pp 1010 pages ISBN 978 0 87972 821 2 Leslie J Reagan Nancy Tomes Paula A Treichler 2007 Medicine s moving pictures medicine health and bodies in American film and television Boydell amp Brewer pp 343 pages ISBN 978 1 58046 234 1 Kroll Dan J 2005 11 12 GL s Quint and Nola Sit Down for Exclusive Interview SoapCentral Retrieved 2009 07 08 a b West Abby 2008 01 29 17 Great Soap Supercouples Jesse and Angie Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 a b Amatangelo Amy 2008 01 17 Daytime s 80s Supercouple Returns to All My Children The Boston Herald Retrieved 2008 01 20 a b Timeline of daytime soaps NewsAdvance com Archived from the original on 2007 10 12 Retrieved 2007 08 16 a b Soap Opera Digest is turning 30 Soap Opera Digest Archived from the original on 2009 08 03 Retrieved 2009 03 31 a b A history of festive soap misery BBC News 2006 12 22 Retrieved 2007 06 14 Hayes Bill and Susan Like Sands Through The Hourglass NAL Hardcover Retrieved 2007 09 06 Making of a Super Couple Soap Opera Digest May 5 1987 Soap Opera Digest Retrieved 2011 04 10 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples John and Marlena Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 Biography of Peter Bergman allamericanspeakers com Retrieved 2007 07 05 NIXON AGNES U S Writer Producer museum tv Retrieved 2007 08 16 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples Tad and Dixie Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples Holden and Lily Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 Ellen Dolan TV Guide 2007 08 12 Christopher Schemering 1985 The Soap Opera Encyclopedia Ballantine Books p 358 ISBN 0 345 32459 5 a b Andrew Mercado 2004 Super Aussie Soaps Behind the Scenes of Australia s Best Loved TV Shows Pluto Press Australia ISBN 1 86403 191 3 SOAPNet s Brenda Brenda Brenda Benard Marcil Rademacher Ultimate Triangle soapdom com Archived from the original on 2011 07 16 Retrieved 2007 06 27 Gallo Joanne Every Cover Tells a Story Maurice Benard Sonny GH Soap Opera Digest Archived from the original on 2008 12 08 Retrieved 2008 12 28 It was very hot They were very successful together there s an understatement and their love story was the centerpiece of that long story I didn t know what it meant to be part of creating a supercouple at the time and of course we couldn t know they d be a supercouple until we got well into it But Sonny amp Brenda are a huge source of pride for me I love them still Longtime General Hospital writer Karen Harris in a 2008 interview about Sonny and Brenda Sloane Stephanie 2009 02 24 Cover Me Soap Opera Digest p 70 STANDOUT SCENE SONNY amp CARLY REUNITE Soaps In Depth 2004 08 04 Soap Opera Weekly editorial in magazine week of September 10 2007 Soap Opera Weekly A Skewed View 5 10 Next to the saga of Tad and Dixie Ryan and Gillian s love affair and short marriage should be listed in the annals of AMC s great love stories and super couples totaltvonline com Archived from the original on 2008 02 09 Retrieved 2007 11 25 gt Are As the World Turn s Paul and Meg a SuperCouple or a Super Mistake soaps sheknows com Tough Man Todd Returns About com 2000 02 10 Retrieved 2007 08 26 prince of darkness returns About com 2000 06 01 Retrieved 2008 07 20 a b c Aspenson Carolyn 2009 02 05 Redefining the Super Couple eyeonsoaps net Archived from the original on June 27 2009 Retrieved 2009 03 05 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link a b c d Yimm Lisa April 2004 Olga Sosnovska AMC s Unlikely Lesbian Icon AfterEllen com Archived from the original on 2008 01 16 Retrieved 2008 04 07 a b c d e Warn Sarah 2003 02 03 The Battle for Bianca and Maggie on All My Children AfterEllen com Archived from the original on 2007 06 29 Retrieved 2007 07 24 Reference mentions how All My Children s lesbian romances were ground breaking for gay visibility American couples a b c d e f C Lee Harrington 2003 Homosexuality on All My Children transforming the daytime landscape Blackwell Publishing a b Yimm Lisa October 2003 Interview with Olga Sosnovska AfterEllen com Archived from the original on 2013 01 01 Retrieved 2008 04 07 Top Story Daytime Television Shows First Lesbian Liplock Hollywood com Archived from the original on 2012 12 06 Retrieved 2007 07 02 AMC Hope for BAM Fans Soap Opera Digest 2003 07 08 Archived from the original on 2007 09 16 Retrieved 2008 01 22 Performers of the Week Elizabeth Hendrickson amp Eden Riegel Soap Opera Weekly 2003 02 11 Archived from the original on 2007 09 16 Retrieved 2008 01 22 BAM Maggie s in Love New York Daily News 2004 06 13 Archived from the original on 2008 05 04 Retrieved 2007 07 24 Behrens Web 2003 04 29 Bianca gets it on All My Children s lesbian finally gets some lovin But will girl on girl action help or hurt the ratings plagued soap The Advocate Archived from the original on 2005 01 20 Retrieved 2007 07 24 DC 279 Eden Riegel amp Elizabeth Hendrickson Interview Daytime Confidential 2008 08 01 Retrieved 2008 08 12 a b c d e Hudson Zach 2006 07 07 All my gay children Soap operas continue inclusive if incidental use of gay characters Washington Blade sovo com Archived from the original on 2008 06 03 Retrieved 2007 11 21 Daytime s gay kiss What s next gay com Archived from the original on 2007 10 17 Retrieved 2007 11 24 Branco Nelson Soaps best super couples Luke and Noah TV Guide Archived from the original on 2008 06 12 Retrieved 2007 11 12 The latest breaking news about Hollyoaks Soaplife 2007 Green Kris 2007 11 03 Hollyoaks honoured at Stonewall Awards Digital Spy Retrieved 2008 08 17 Green Kris 2008 06 09 EXCLUSIVE Craig Dean returns to Hollyoaks Digital Spy Retrieved 2008 08 19 Fairman Michael 2009 03 10 Otalia in Love on Guiding Light Women in love Are Crystal Chappell and Jessica Leccia becoming daytime s new it couple The Advocate Retrieved 2009 12 05 One Life To Live Kyle and Oliver make love history open salon com Archived from the original on 2010 01 01 Retrieved 2009 12 30 Logan Michael November 30 2011 Exclusive Chandler Massey Delivers Scoop on His Days of Our Lives Coming Out Plot a b Wong Curtis M 2013 03 26 Days Of Our Lives Anti Gay Bullying Storyline And Romance For Sonny Kiriakis Planned The Huffington Post Retrieved 2008 08 12 Hernandez Greg March 26 2012 Days of Our Lives After Nick uses gay slur on Sonny Will resolves to not let him raise his daughter Rice Lynette Jun 17 2011 Official Days of Our Lives begins gay storyline EXCLUSIVE EW Benkovic Andrew July 4 2013 The Daytime TV Power Couple That May or May Not Surprise You Huffington Post Retrieved July 4 2013 Logan Michael October 25 2012 Video Exclusive Will and Sonny Finally Have Sex on Days of Our Lives Halterman Jim June 24 2013 Chandler Massey On His Emmy Win It Was Crazy Archived from the original on June 26 2012 Rudolph Christopher June 18 2013 Chandler Massey Days Of Our Lives Star Wins Second Emmy For Gay Teen Portrayal Huffington Post Halterman Jim May 3 2013 Days Freddie Smith Talks First Daytime Emmy Nomination Higbee Jonathan June 17 2013 Video Days Of Our Lives Chandler Massey Wins Another Emmy Thanks Onscreen Boyfriend In Speech Fairman Michael April 21 2013 Days of our Lives Wins GLAAD Media Award For Outstanding Daily Drama Archived from the original on April 6 2016 Retrieved August 17 2013 a b Exclusive US soap star Chandler Massey done with gay role on Days of Our Lives August 24 2013 Retrieved August 24 2013 Exclusive Chandler Massey Off DAYS Effective Immediately August 24 2013 Retrieved August 23 2013 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples Krystle and Blake Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 a b Schindehette Susan The Real Story of Desi and Lucy Super Couples Desi Arnaz Lucille Ball People Retrieved 2009 10 13 a b c In addition to other couples the source mentions Ricky and Lucy as a supercouple Top 20 TV Couples AOL Archived from the original on May 8 2009 Retrieved 2008 03 03 Classic Showbiz Supercouples Changed title by site Classic Hollywood Romances Life Retrieved 2009 08 03 West Abby 17 Great Soap Supercouples Pam and Bobby Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2008 01 29 Fickett Travis Broken Remote TV Moment Spotlight Favorites from yesteryear Scrubs Buffy and West Wing IGN Retrieved 2007 12 09 a b Eric Goldman Brian Zoromski Dan Iverson IGN s Top 10 Favorite TV Couples IGN Retrieved 2007 06 12 Joss Whedon Becoming Parts 1 amp 2 Commentary on the Buffy Season 2 DVD Better than Buffy and Angel 2000 MTV FANatic Gellar surprised the fan preferred couple Buffy and Riley Finn a b West Kelly 2006 11 05 The Clicker Examines Great TV Romances Cinemablend Retrieved 2007 06 12 Gelsomino Tara The Power of Pacey How Dawson s Creek Switched Ships Mid Stream by Tara Gelsomino www heroesandheartbreakers com Archived from the original on 2016 08 25 Retrieved 2016 07 02 15 TV Teen Super Couples Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2016 07 02 Trouble with Glee Supercouples The fourth episode of the new Glee season will be a turning point for all of the show s supercouples I m not going to say who breaks up and who doesn t but they all Santana Brittany Leibrock Davis Rachel July 25 31 1996 The X Phile Facts Metroactive com Retrieved 2007 06 12 a b Arcieri Joanna 2008 02 14 The power of cinematic love A tribute to supercouples www themhnews com Archived from the original on June 27 2009 Retrieved 2008 02 20 a href Template Cite news html title Template Cite news cite news a CS1 maint unfit URL link Schreiber Michele You don t WANT to be in LOVE You want to be in LOVE in a MOVIE CSW update Archived from the original on 2007 03 14 Retrieved 2007 06 12 a b c Clark Gable amp Carole Lombard People February 12 1996 Retrieved January 27 2014 a b c d Hollywood s Hottest Couples Super Couples People 2003 06 30 Retrieved 2009 08 08 a b Curti Jesse 2008 11 11 Super Couples Will and Jada Celebrate 11 Years of Marriage People Retrieved 2009 08 08 a b Mai Dinh Janet Murphy Brad Pitt Biography People Retrieved 2008 05 16 Jennifer Aniston Brad Pitt separate Today com Associated Press 2006 03 27 Retrieved 2009 08 11 Ventre Michael 2005 03 26 The demise of Jen and Brad This ridiculously beautiful couple seemed to genuinely love each other Today com Retrieved 2009 08 11 Pitt and Aniston announce split BBC News 2005 01 08 Retrieved 2009 03 19 permanent dead link Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt Separate People 2005 01 07 Retrieved 2008 05 16 Judge signs Aniston Pitt divorce papers USA Today Associated Press 2005 08 22 Retrieved 2008 11 14 a b The Jennifer Syndrome Newsweek April 2010 Retrieved 2010 05 04 Bonin Liane 2003 10 31 Pot Pans Kettle Madonna calls J Lo overexposed The Material Girl says Bennifer could have avoided the media meltdown that postponed their wedding Entertainment Weekly Retrieved 2009 07 06 Silverman Stephen M 2002 12 09 Overexposed Is There Too Much J Lo People Retrieved 2009 07 06 Boehm Kristin 2007 10 01 Ben Affleck Jennifer Lopez Romance Hurt My Career Us Weekly Retrieved 2009 07 06 a b c The Brangelina fever The Age Melbourne 2006 02 06 Retrieved 2007 04 14 Dennehy Luke 2007 12 31 Posh and David Beckham dubbed celebrity super couple news com au Retrieved 2008 01 15 a b Jinnai Fujiwara Marriage to End After 2 Years japan zone com 2009 03 20 Retrieved 2009 12 05 Source Beyonce and Jay Z Are Married People April 4 2008 Retrieved April 4 2008 Beyonce Jay Z the richest pair The Sydney Morning Herald Retrieved 2011 01 11 a b Kaufman Gil 2010 01 13 Jay Z And Beyonce Named Top Earning Couple In Entertainment MTV News Retrieved 2011 01 11 Vega Nicolas 2023 03 27 Jay Z is now worth 2 5 billion Warren Buffett once said he s the guy to learn from CNBC Retrieved 2024 02 25 Dellatto Marisa Beyonce Is Now Worth 800 Million Forbes Retrieved 2024 02 25 Angie amp Baby Are Fantastic Birth Angelina Jolie Brad Pitt People Archived from the original on 2009 02 12 Retrieved 2007 09 12 Brad refugees and kids need her Jolie says she ll take a year off Chicago Sun Times 2007 05 07 Newlyweds Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma s new romantic pictures from their Italian resort Retrieved 2017 12 25 Virushka Wedding Reception Indian Cricket Stars Attend Grand Event In Mumbai NDTV Sports Retrieved 2017 12 26 Indonesia Femina Supercouple Bollywood Bipasha Basu dan John Abraham www femina co id Retrieved 2017 12 27 John Abraham and Bipasha Basu break up What exactly went wrong between them Retrieved 2017 12 25 Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan s love story The Times of India The Times of India Retrieved 2017 12 25 Power couple Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan grace the GQ Men of the Year Awards night www pinkvilla com 28 September 2016 Retrieved 2017 12 27 Love Story Of Power Couple Of Bollywood Aishwarya Rai And Abhishek Bachchan Retrieved 2017 12 27 Power couple Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan chill with Karan Johar and Manish Malhotra www pinkvilla com Retrieved 2017 12 27 Abhishek Bachchan talks about his relationship with Aishwarya Abhishek Aishwarya s love story The Times of India Retrieved 2017 12 25 Unconventional Love Story Of Bengali Beauty Sharmila Tagore And Charming Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi BollywoodShaadis Retrieved 2017 12 25 Hema Malini and Dharmendra are Haryana Tourism s new brand ambassadors The Times of India Retrieved 2017 12 27 Pagnamenta Robin 2012 10 17 Bollywood power couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor marry in style The Times London ISSN 0140 0460 Retrieved 2017 12 27 Maria Elena Little Endara September 25 2023 Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce The possibility has led to memes galore The Boston Globe Retrieved 2023 12 16 Blanchet Brenton November 20 2023 Travis Kelce Shares the Real Story of How Taylor Swift Romance Began in Wide Ranging Interview People Retrieved November 20 2023 Aniftos Rania 2023 11 20 A Timeline of Taylor Swift amp Travis Kelce s Relationship Billboard Retrieved 2023 11 20 Burack Emily Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are America s Royal Couple According to Jenna Bush Hager Town and Country Retrieved October 18 2023 Ryder Taryn Are Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce America s royal couple Why experts say Traylor mania isn t dying down anytime soon Yahoo Retrieved January 26 2024 Dailey Hannah 2023 11 20 Travis Kelce Reveals How He First Got in Touch With Taylor Swift I Had Somebody Playing Cupid Billboard Retrieved 2023 12 16 Thomas Carly September 28 2023 The Taylor Swift Effect Is Very Real and It s Now Taking the Sports World by Storm The Hollywood Reporter Retrieved September 29 2023 Dye Natasha September 29 2023 Sunday Night Football Debuts Taylor Swift Themed Promo Ahead of Travis Kelce and Chiefs Game Watch People Retrieved September 29 2023 Porter Rick Weprin Alex 2023 10 12 The NFL s Taylor Swift Era Who Wins the Most The Hollywood Reporter Retrieved 2023 11 20 Bell BreAnna October 2 2023 Chiefs Jets NFL Game Hits 27 Million Viewers as Taylor Swift Makes Second Week Cheering on Travis Kelce Variety Retrieved October 6 2023 Vasquez Ingrid November 1 2023 Travis Kelce Says It Was Cool Seeing People Dress Up as Him and Taylor Swift for Halloween People Retrieved November 12 2023 Darney Caroline November 30 2023 Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are Hulu official thanks to a TV special about their relationship For The Win Retrieved December 2 2023 Yahr Emily 2023 10 03 Taylor Swift Travis Kelce and a monoculture yearning for romance Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Retrieved 2023 12 16 Unterberger Andrew 2023 12 15 Billboard s Greatest Pop Stars of 2023 No 1 Taylor Swift Billboard Retrieved 2023 12 16 a b c d e 1997 issue NEXT Generation January 1997 a b c d FABLE EXCLUSIVE DETAILS ON XBOX S MOST ANTICIPATED RPG Game Informer January 2003 a b c d e f g h Hall Robert 2008 Gamers Philosophy II Love is a Four Letter Word allrpg com a b Happiness Engagement and Love in Video Games affectivedesign org 12 April 2007 Retrieved 2007 06 15 Waters Darren 2007 03 09 Designer hopes for love in games BBC News Retrieved 2007 06 15 a b c d Villafania Alexander The most memorable video game love teams Archived from the original on February 22 2008 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link Danesi 2013 Danesi M 5 December 2013 The History of the Kiss The Birth of Popular Culture Semiotics and Popular Culture Palgrave Macmillan pages 50 51 Springer ISBN 978 1 137 37683 1 Blake Morse 2011 02 14 5 Greatest Video Game Romances gamerevolution com Retrieved 2016 01 30 a b McGrath Jack 2011 04 29 The Ten Greatest Romances in Gaming History technobuffalo com Retrieved 2016 02 04 a b 10 The 10 Most Important Games Electronic Gaming Monthly January 2005 Retrieved 2007 10 09 a b c d Stephen P 2014 03 18 The Top 10 Final Fantasy Romances leviathyn com Retrieved 2016 02 04 IGN Staff Top 10 Tuesday Best Videogame Romances IGN Archived from the original on 2006 03 07 New lipstick lesbians are doing it for themselves Carol Hunt Sunday February 15 2009 Almost two years after the doll supercouple ended their 43 year romance Ken is considering a makeover in an effort to win back Barbie Will Ken doll get makeover to win back Barbie Mattel hints at big changes for dumped doll MSN Retrieved 2007 12 06 WHAT WEDDING GIFT WOULD YOU GIVE TO SUPERCOUPLE newsbank com Retrieved 2007 11 20 LOOK UP ON THE ALTAR IT S SUPERCOUPLE newsbank com 1990 10 20 Retrieved 2007 11 20 Andrews Tae Comic book supercouple splits fans cry collective tear media www ndsmcobserver com Archived from the original on 2008 03 07 Retrieved 2008 02 16 Further reading editO Rourke Michael June 3 2006 San Antonio Express News S A LIFE Pg 1E Supercouple must have supername An analysis concluding that Bennifer Tomkat and Brangelina To be considered a supercouple it isn t enough to be compatible loving and gorgeous anymore Your names have to fit together to form a headline pleasing moniker You have to be a portmanteau Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Supercouple amp oldid 1220115787, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.