I admit, I'm not really one for romance when it comes to the shows I watch and the books I read. However, I do love it when stories have some nice romantic chemistry going on, as long as it is well balanced and doesn't interrupt the flow of the story. I've just been thinking a lot lately about my personal favorite fictional couple, and I'm curious about who other peoples favorites might be. So, who is your OTP? Your favorite ship? The couple that you just fawn over whenever they're together? For me, at least at this moment, it's Percy and Marguerite Blakeney from the Scarlet Pimpernel. They're just so devoted to each other, even when they've only known each other for a short time. Their relationship isn't perfect, and there are moments when they act coldly or distant from each other, but what makes their relationship so beautiful, at least to me, is that they still turn around and sincerely say how much they love each other. Percy will do anything to protect his wife and her family, and Marguerite will do anything to protect her husband, even after she learns that he's not the man she thought he was. Their devotion to each other is clear in the words they say, and the things they do, and I just want a relationship like that someday.
My first romantic coupling was AshxMisty. I watched them slowly develop over the course of Kanto, the Orange Islands, and Johto, only for poor Misty to get shoved onto the bus when Advanced started. Since then, the anime hasn't had the same magic it once had... I mean, sure, at first Ash was rude as all get-out to Misty, and Misty was borderline-abusive (only borderline because anime-physics; IRL it'd be beyond abusive), but they definitely grew close, especially during the Orange Islands and Johto. My OTP, though, is YuxYukiko (from Persona 4), though going into the reasons involves spoilers, so I can edit if y'all don't mind my explaining it.
Fictional couples? I have too many. I must say my OTP/favourite shipping is probably Pearl x Marina from Splatoon 2. Their dialogue and interactions are adorable, and I love how they apologize to each other when the Splatfest banter gets too far - something Callie and Marie never really did.
I have an appreciation for the entire romance web to be seen in in Legend of Korra. Between how Korra and Mako started out, Bolin's and Eska's comically misunderstood relationship, Bolin and Ginger (poor guy gets so much not-right not-romance), and even some of the more mundane relationship problems between various partners in Book 4! It all felt so actual, notvjust cheesy middle-school crushing. My favorite fictional romantic couple is probably Batman anyone he becomes romantic with: whether it's Catwoman or Poison Ivy or Talia AlGhul or Wonder Woman, they all seem so complicated and usually well-made. He and Catwoman are either exactly the same or exactly opposite in so many ways, Poison Ivy mostly just wants to keep him in an abusive relationship, his relationship Talia AlGhul brings in family drama (as well as Batman being the victim of assault) and surprise fatherhood, and Wonder Woman was a somewhat better almost-relationship, but it's a shame those two never went anywhere (as far as I know). He has such a variety of relationships, it's a shame he never settled down and had himself a waifu.
I think one of my favourite couples would be Yuki x Haru (from Tsuritama). Yuki has social anxiety, and finds it difficult to speak to people and make friends. On from outer space (literally) comes barging in Haru, who has no perception of human customs, and he wants to be Haru's friend. He's cheerful and childish-like in personality. He's bright and always tries to cheer Yuki up. Yuki, of course, sometimes doesn't know how to convey his feelings and sometimes ends up hurting Haru, because of misunderstandings, stress, or lashing out. Their relationship is really great (and I totally recommend the anime btw). As for other couples, I'll mention a few more: Yuu x Touko (Yagata Kimi ni Naru). It's such a complicated relationship. The manga is sooo well done, and delves a lot into asexuality, aromanticism, and lesbianism. It's an exemplar work. It's so good it got an anime and it's really popular. Ruby Rose x Weiss Schnee (RWBY). I just love these two! Cheerful Ruby and Prissy Weiss. They do make the perfect couple. Mariko x Akko (Girl Friends). Another amazing manga. Delves into their relationship from best friends to lovers in such a great, down-to-earth way. Mariko also finds it hard to socialize, really hard, but thankfully Akko is there to make her have fun. But oh... will she end up falling for her? I love it. Chidori x Nanoha (Hana ni Arashi). From best friends to couple. Such a nice slice-of-life. Pikari x Teko. (Amanchu!). It's so good, it's a manga that has an anime with two seasons. Teko finds it difficult to socialize, and has to change schools and cities and so loses touch with her only two friends. But, such lucky she has, that she finds Pikari! An over-enthusiastic girl who loves scuba diving and... also loves Teko! Their relationship is so natural and carefree, and the emotional problems they go through (especially Teko) are really interesting to see. Diana x Akko. (LWA). It's almost practically Ruby x Weiss XD. Hiyori x Yato. (Noragami). The manga is so good. The drawings are superb. The pairing is great, love them. EDIT: I almost forgot one of the most important pairings. Zen x Shirayuki. (Akagami no Shirayuki-hime). This is the best shojo. Non-cliche. Super cute. Definitely give it a watch! Well that got kinda out of hand! I just had lots of fun doing it and stuff, remembering so fondly such great stories. I think I'm kinda seeing a pattern in the couples, huh? There definitely is one hah.
