Sci-Fi & Fantasy TV’s Hottest Couples: ‘Outlander,’ ‘A Discovery of Witches’ & More
This is an excerpt from TV Guide Magazine’s Sci-Fi & Fantasy Special Collector’s Issue, which is available for international pre-order online at SciFi2021.com and available nationwide on newsstands now.
Devils and detectives, killers and clones, zombie world survivors—these passion players have some of the most fiery romances in the universe.
So whether you prefer your relationships with a side of magic (A Discovery of Witches, Motherland: Fort Salem), time travel (Outlander, Star Trek: Discovery, Legends of Tomorrow), or a bit with life after death (Upload, spoiler alert! Lucifer), we’ve got you covered. We fell in love with these relationships across time, space, and universes, as they fought off walkers, villains, metahumans, and more.
Scroll down to take a look at some of sci-fi and fantasy TV’s hottest couples (in no particular order).
Claire and Jamie Fraser (Outlander)
Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan
Match Points A circle of magic stones sends a former World War II combat nurse back in time…where she meets a Scottish Highland warrior and falls in love. Their steamy story of passion sets screens afire.
Words of Love
Claire: “Blood of my blood.”
Jamie: “Bone of my bone.”
Claire: “As long as we both shall live.”
Toughest Hurdle They’ve been separated time and again—by abductions, multiple rebellions around the world and time itself—but fate keeps pulling them back to each other.
Why We Love Them No matter what trials they’ve suffered through and what foes they’ve faced together and apart—such as the sadistic Black Jack Randall—nothing can undo the deep devotion they share. Starz
Lt. Cdr. Paul Stamets and Dr. Hugh Culber (Star Trek: Discovery)
Anthony Rapp and Wilson Cruz
Match Points Science officer Stamets and medical officer Culber, Star Trek’s first openly gay characters, were in love even before we started following their space exploration.
Words of Love
Culber: “You have to let me go.”
Stamets: “I can’t leave you twice.”
Culber: “If you stay, it’ll be twice as deadly for the network.”
Stamets: “We’ll find another way.”
Toughest Hurdle Culber’s death nearly spelled the end…until Stamets kissed a tear on his cheek, an act that allowed Stamets to become a conduit and transfer Culber’s DNA into the mycelium network and bring him back.
Why We Love Them They won us over as they stood brushing their teeth while discussing their day—an ordinary, loving moment in their extraordinary world. Paramount+
Nathan Brown and Nora Antony (Upload)
Robbie Amell and Andy Allo
Match Points In a to-die-for romance, he’s a deceased—then uploaded—computer programmer; she’s the guardian angel (literally) who helps him navigate a digital afterlife.
Words of Love
Nora: “I love you, Nathan. Can you handle me saying that? Nathan?”
Nathan: [Freezes, having run out of data]
Toughest Hurdle Usually, “she’s alive, he’s not” would be a dead end for romance. But in this case, we’re not even worried about her still-living love interest or his ex-
girlfriend uploading herself to be with him.
Why We Love Them If Nathan giving Nora stars to increase her customer service rating isn’t love, we don’t know what is. And seriously, even in death, he’s changed for the better—all because of her. Who says you have to be on the same plane of existence to form a meaningful connection? Prime Video
Barry Allen and Iris West-Allen (The Flash)
Grant Gustin and Candice Patton
Match Points Lightning certainly struck for these two after a S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator exploded. The superhuman speedster and one of Central City’s top journalists quickly shifted from childhood friends to lovers; now, they continue to face powerful threats.
Words of Love
Barry: “Are you sure you don’t want to know about the other timeline?”
Iris: “No, I guess in my mind, wherever you go, you’ll always be Barry and I’ll always be Iris, and we always find each other.”
Toughest Hurdle When Iris was trapped in the Mirrorverse, not only did the duo refuse to give up on each other, but Flash went as far as tampering with his Artificial Speed Force generator to get her home—even when his single-minded pursuit nearly made him ignore several other friends in peril.
Why We Love Them Duplicates and body swaps may come and go, but Barry and Iris always know how to find the real version of each other, whether on this Earth or another. The CW
Sara Lance and Ava Sharpe (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow)
Caity Lotz and Jes Macallan
Match Points The Legends leader with an assassin’s past and a clone from the future begin by battling things out before falling for each other while on Arrowverse missions across time and space.
Words of Love
Sara: “What if I can’t be the person that you need?”
Ava: “Neither of us needs anybody. But you are who I want.”
Toughest Hurdle Sara was abducted by aliens (just as she planned to propose!), and Ava had to continue to captain the Waverider in her absence while attempting to get her back. Also, Sara becoming a human-alien hybrid clone in her time away was tough to swallow.
Why We Love Them We don’t know what we love more: their sweet, domestic, couple-y moments or their kickass action scenes. The CW
Michonne and Rick Grimes (The Walking Dead)
Danai Gurira and Andrew Lincoln
Match Points These two resolute survivors found comfort in each other while navigating the darkest of worlds: a zombie apocalypse after the collapse of modern civilization.
Words of Love
Rick: “You OK?”
Michonne: “Yeah.”
Rick: “I’m OK.”
Michonne: “I know.”
Rick: “How?”
Michonne: “Because I’m OK too.”
Toughest Hurdle She thought he died sacrificing himself to take out a bridge of walkers, only to find proof he likely survived. With a goodbye to their children over a walkie-talkie, she set out to find him—and there’s always hope for a reunion in the upcoming Rick movie franchise.
Why We Love Them They went from building trust as partners to becoming a power couple that could dispatch walkers and lead a community, all while forging a new family at the most unlikely moment. (And her pep talks always helped him.) AMC
Diana Bishop and Matthew Clairmont (A Discovery of Witches)
Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode
Match Points She’s a historian studying alchemy at Oxford (as well as being a powerful witch); he’s a professor of biochemistry (and an ancient vampire). They’re drawn to each other as they search for the powerful, long-missing Book of Life.
Words of Love
Diana: “Tell me.”
Matthew: “If I do, there’s no turning back. You have to understand what that means.”
Diana: “Ysabeau made me understand. Tell me.”
Matthew: “From this moment, we will always be one. Diana, I love you.”
Toughest Hurdle Neither the
Congregation that forbids their relationship nor Matthew’s dangerous blood rage has stopped them from mating for life.
Why We Love Them They’re magical when together—and not just when she uses her powers to connect them. Sundance Now
Kelly Olsen and Alex Danvers (Supergirl)
Azie Tesfai and Chyler Leigh
Match Points Department of ExtraNormal Operations agent Danvers and soldier Olsen’s mutual support and complementary skills made it so easy to slip into a relationship—and to eventually suit up as Sentinel and Guardian—while battling both human and alien threats.
Words of Love
Alex: “You helped me heal, from wounds to scars to just memories, and that’s all I want to do for you.… I meant it when I said that you feel like home.”
Kelly: “You feel like home too.”
Toughest Hurdle With no way to ask her girlfriend to change, Kelly had to accept that she could lose someone she loved again due to the danger Alex faces as a superhero.
Why We Love Them It’s rare to find a pair that communicates as well as this one, starting from the moment they met while Kelly’s brother James was in the hospital. The CW
Lucifer Morningstar and Chloe Decker (Lucifer)
Tom Ellis and Lauren German
Match Points The vacationing lord of the underworld and a hard-working LAPD detective come together as they play to their particular strengths while also solving crimes.
Words of Love
Chloe: “I love you. Please don’t leave.”
Lucifer: “My first love was never Eve. It was you, Chloe. It always has been.”
Toughest Hurdle Would you believe an origin story that hellish? Chloe certainly didn’t for a long time, even plotting against him before finally buying that Lucifer really is the Devil.
Why We Love Them He evolved from being physically vulnerable around her to emotionally open too. Our wait to see him realize he was capable of loving her was worth it—especially since it took nearly sacrificing himself to bring her back to life. Netflix
Raelle Collar and Scylla Ramshorn (Motherland: Fort Salem)
Taylor Hickson and Amalia Holm
Match Points Raelle is only a minor witch (Dad’s a civilian, after all) and Scylla has her own past issues as the daughter of military dodgers. Still, they fight for each other and for what they believe in—even though Scylla’s ties to the Spree terrorists are against Raelle’s world of army conscription.
Words of Love
Scylla: “I was scared.”
Raelle: “Scared of losing your mark?”
Scylla: “It started like that. Then you were you. I fell for you. I promise I’m telling the truth.”
Raelle: “Was anything real? Any of it?”
Scylla: “All of it.”
Toughest Hurdle Even though it seems like all the lies—among them that Scylla infiltrated the army for the Spree and learned Raelle’s mother is alive—should be too much, there’s no denying their shared passion.
Why We Love Them As soon as Scylla introduced Raelle to flying (using the drug Salva)—which led to a much-needed moment of fun amid the training and subsequent combat—we were hooked. Freeform
Conversation7 Comments
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B
No love Is equal then Jaimie & Claire no couple can or be superior then them.
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R
Claire & Jamie, Lucifer & Chloe, Barry (flash) & Iris. My favorite couples.
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C
Lucifer!!
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G
Avalance (Sara Lance and Ave Sharpe) are the most stable and realistic Arrowverse couple. As Sara says in her wedding vows, “It was not love at first sight.” The writers did a wonderful job in developing a very “normal” relationship that allowed both characters to get to know each other and understand how they are so much stronger and better as a couple than individually. It has been extremely entertaining and enjoyable to see their relationship progress. I agree with Ms. Jacobs. I don’t know what I like better, their quiet very intimate conversations or their wild time traveling, superhero antics.
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R
I'm torn..... I've been a die hard Lucifer fan, dying for Luci to get with the "detective" & seeing them FINALLY together in season 6 is going to be exciting.... But I'm a new Outlander fan, like 2020 new. Jamie & Claire (mostly Jamie 😜) won me over in the first few episodes & had me hooked by the end of the 2nd season (I did binge the entire series in a couple days). I'm torn between Lucifer & Jamie Frasier....
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G
Nothing can beat Jamie and Claire in outlander!
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G
Diana and Matthew are fire together! I love them a little more than Jaime and Claire.
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