The Best Power Couple Weddings in Comics History

For a certain section of the population, the news that pop icon Taylor Swift and football star Travis Kelce are engaged to be married is a seismic event. How else could you describe the pairing of such titanic figures?

For others, it’s old news—at least when those others are superhero fans. After all, those of us who have been following comic book adventures have seen the rise and fall of superstars far more spectacular than anyone on the Billboard Top 40.

Still, the pairing of big names calls for a big event, and Taylor and Travis will certainly have quite the shindig. In preparation, let’s offer the real-world couple a few pointers by looking at some of the biggest weddings from the cape and cowl set.

Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman

Fantastic Four Annual #3, 1965

As MCU fans saw in the recent The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the FF are the true superstars of the Marvel Universe and not just because they have incredible abilities and save the world from Galactus. People also love the FF because they are a family, with married couple Reed and Sue at the center.

It’s fitting, then, that the marriage of Reed and Sue is a star-studded event, one attended by most of Marvel’s top characters at the time. And with so many good guys all in one place, the bad guys couldn’t resist crashing the party. Fantastic Four Annual #3, written by Stan Lee and penciled by Jack Kirby, involves attacks from Attuma and the armies of Atlantis, the magical Mindless Ones, Iron Man’s arch-enemy the Mandarian, and more. Still, at the end of the day, Reed and Sue tie the knot, with a little help from their super friends.

Lightning Lad and Saturn Girl, Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy

Adventure Comics #337, 1965

Drawn by Curt Swan, the cover of Adventure Comics #337 shows the Legion of Super-Heroes gathered to celebrate not one, but two sets of couples getting hitched, founders Lighting Lad and Saturn Girl wed, as do later additions Phantom Girl and Ultra Boy. But it’s Superboy and his worried expression that captures the tone of the title that writer Edmond Hamilton gave the issue: “The Weddings That Wrecked the Legion.”

You see, as a team of super-powered teens, the Legion of Super-Heroes is governed by a strict charter, with rules such as, “No member can be married.” So when four members decide to marry each other, they threaten to severely cripple the team’s manpower. It’s a good thing, then, that super-genius Brainiac 5 discovers that the quartet aren’t acting of their own accord and are in fact pawns of alien invaders. Brainy manages to stop the ceremony before the baddies get their way and prevents his pals from making a major mistake… at least for a few years, when all four of them get married for real.

Yellowjacket and the Wasp

Avengers #60, 1969

Unsurprisingly, the wedding between founding Avengers Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne is equally chaotic as that of the Richards. However, in this instance, the craziness starts with the couple themselves. Yellowjacket is one of several alter egos adopted by Pym, and a particularly troublesome one at that. Hank became Yellowjacket when he purged all of the self doubt from his psyche, resulting in an arrogant jerk of a superhero.

The thing is, no one in the Avengers knew that Yellowjacket was their old pal Hank… not even Wasp. So when Wasp suddenly announced that she planned to forget her old beau and marry this brash newcomer, her teammates were more than a little worried. Written by Roy Thomas and penciled by John Buscema, Avengers #60 is just one of many upsetting events in the married life of Hank and Janet, a far cry from the relatively stable relationship we see in the MCU.

Doctor Octopus and Aunt May

Amazing Spider-Man #131, 1974

In most of these examples, a supervillain interrupts the wedding ceremony between heroes. Not the case in Amazing Spider-Man #131, written by Gerry Conway and penciled by Ross Andru. Okay, it’s not completely the case. Yes, the first person who smashes into the church to prevent May Parker from wedding Otto Octavius is Hammerhead, a minor mob enforcer with a super strong head.

But after Doc Ock dispenses of Hammerhead, it’s Spidey who leaps into action, befuddling the baddie until he finally reveals that he only wanted May for her family connection to a nuclear facility. Over the years, various writers have returned to this oddball plot point to add more depth to the story, suggesting that perhaps May and Otto did have something genuine between them. That wrinkle also adds nuance to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, in which May gives a particularly withering eye roll when Liv Octavius arrives, the type of eye-roll reserved for an ex.

Spider-Man and Mary Jane

Spider-Man Annual #21, 1987

Written by Jim Shooter and penciled by Paul Ryan, Spider-Man Annual #21 features a scene in which Spider-Man stands in full costume next to his soon-to-be bride Mary Jane Watson. Behind them are friends and foes alike, including Thor, Captain America, and Hobgoblin (who, upon seeing the happy couple, mutters to himself, “Die”). Peter’s also greeted by Aunt May and his deceased Uncle Ben, a happy reunion that turns sour when the wedding is interrupted by another dead loved one, his former girlfriend Gwen Stacy. Gwen’s arrival gives the baddies the distraction they needed, and they leap into action to attack MJ.

And then Peter wakes up. Yes, the requisite big superhero fight sequence in Spider-Man Annual #21 happens in a dream. And that’s a good thing, because that leaves plenty of room to truly explore everything that Peter went through to get to this point, the one time his Ol’ Parker Luck worked in his favor. By the time Pete and MJ say “I do,” they’ve established one of the best marriages in comics, one so strong that only Satan, or rather Mephisto, could undo it.

Superman and Lois Lane

Superman: The Wedding Album, 1996

Not to be outdone, DC Comics finally wedded its primary couple in 1996, bringing together Clark Kent and Lois Lane. As with the Parkers, Lois and Clark have a relatively uneventful event—a fact helped in universe by the fact that Superman had recently lost his powers when the sun was extinguished during the Final Night crossover (don’t worry, Green Lantern turned it back on).

However, outside of the fictional universe, the marriage was a key event. After all, DC was undoing one of the genre’s greatest ficitional love triangles, a decision that could be even more momentous as killing Superman just a few years later. To do it right, DC brought aboard a host of top-notch creators to tell the story, including Dan Jurgens (the primary Superman creative at the time), as well John Byrne, George Pérez, Gil Kane, and Curt Swan. Even if the plot itself isn’t too crazy, the creatives involved in the Superman: The Wedding Album remain impressive.

Colossus and Kitty Pryde

X-Men Gold #30, 2018

The ceremony between long-time lovers Colossus and Kitty Pryde is yet another on this list that has a major interruption. But in this case, it comes from the bride herself. One of the key characters of Chris Claremont’s defining X-Men run, Kitty Pryde has always been a fan favorite, as has the gentle Russian giant Colossus. And yet, the duo’s pairing has always seemed a bit off, not just because Kitty was about fifteen and Colossus at least eighteen when the two started dating.

The relationship also felt off because Kitty never seemed completely straight. Now, that was the case with many characters that Claremont had written, as the writer was forced by Marvel editorial to avoid any explicit same-sex attraction. And yet, Claremont’s writing was so strong and true that we readers never fully believed that Kitty was 100% devoted to Colossus. So when Kitty phases away and disappears mid-ceremony, you could hear comic nerds across the globe breathe a sigh of relief—especially when the issue does find a way to end with a marriage. Shortly after Kitty explains her complicated feelings to Colossus, Gambit and Rogue decide they won’t let a good party go to waste. And, unlike the original couple, the love between Gambit and Rogue has never been in doubt.

Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy

Injustice: Year Zero #8, 2020

The romance between Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy has been one of the most enjoyable and well-earned in recent comic book memory. It began as a few sly asides in episodes of Batman: The Animated Series, and remained a possibility when Harley was Joker‘s abused girlfriend. The mainline DC Universe has been slow to fully embrace the duo’s love, but it has been a major part of non-canonical stories, including the animated series Harley Quinn and the comic Injustice, a spin-off of the video game series.

Written by Tom Taylor and penciled by Cian Tormey, the duo’s nuptials happen just like you’d expect. We’ve got Harley breaking Ivy out of Arkham, Ivy threatening to kill the Joker, and an over-the-top trip to Vegas. Yet, as wacky as the adventure gets, there’s also a genuine sweetness, especially the moment when they finally give one another a long-awaited kiss as wives.