Marvel Comics is known for having a lot of incredible superheroes and even more for the superhero teams that are brought together within their pages. But aside from great teams, there are great pairs of heroes and villains that come together frequently and manage to create constant magic either from a romantic angle, a hero-villain relationship, or just a wholesome, productive friendship.
Everybody in the world of comics knows Batman and Robin as a great duo, but there are just as many iconic, excellent pairs through the pages of Marvel Comics as well that don’t always get the recognition they deserve.
7 Captain America & Bucky Barnes
One of the most historically great duos from the pages of Marvel Comics, Steve Rogers was almost always joined on his early World War II adventures by his trusty sidekick Bucky Barnes. While the development of that character in both the MCU and Marvel Comics involved his rebirth as the Winter Soldier, it would eventually lead to him taking on the mantle of Captain America in the comics.
This full-circle path for Bucky was significant, as he was originally portrayed as a younger sidekick helping Captain America. Their relationship was more similar to Batman and Robin, but it was a truly wonderful relationship that led to some heart-breaking moments when they were later pitted against each other. No matter what position they are in when together this duo creates emotional chemistry charged by a long history.
6 Ant-Man & The Wasp
With the upcoming release of Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania, it will be no surprise to MCU fans to hear that this duo has been a legendary part of Marvel Comics lore. However, it was Hank Pym, not Scott Lang, and Hank’s wife Janet Van Dyne, that were the original shrinking duo of heroes that worked together as a successful husband-wife team for many years.
This pair was a huge part of Marvel Comics lore, being a sizable chunk of the original Avengers team when it was first created. Although they fell apart and many things have gone wrong in more recent years, nothing can tarnish the legacy created by this duo, who will appear as mentor figures once more in the upcoming Quantumania extravaganza.
5 Rocket & Groot
A more recent duo that many fans don’t realize was only made part of the main Guardians of the Galaxy team in Marvel Comics around 2008 when the modern version of the team was first formed. These characters were all previously unrelated to each other, but Rocket has been around since the mid-seventies and Groot was created in 1960. The two paired together quickly became so popular that they got their own spin-off series in 2016.
Groot is happy as “the muscle” commonly for the smaller Rocket, who as the loudmouth of the pair makes them a classic buddy comedy duo. They are hilarious and beloved in the MCU Guardians Of The Galaxy films, in their unrelated animated series, and in comics where they have quickly become a staple for Marvel.
4 Luke Cage & Iron Fist
Many MCU fans will be surprised to learn that this pair, who each had their own individual Netflix shows, are usually a pair in the pages of Marvel Comics. Luke Cage AKA Power Man and the Iron Fist formed a team called Heroes For Hire that has been around since the 1970s. When Iron Fist’s own series was canceled due to low sales, he joined Luke Cage who had begun working on an idea where he would do “superhero work” for a price.
This enabled them to pay their bills practically while engaging in heroic activities and was a unique idea for the time which worked well. Their partnership has remained an infamous one in more recent times but was surprisingly left unexplored in the MCU so far. With the reappearance of other Netflix characters like Daredevil more recently, this pair could find fresh success together.
3 Clint Barton & Kate Bishop
Another more recent duo, Kate Bishop was only introduced in the pages of Marvel Comics in 2005 when she joined up with the Young Avengers as Hawkeye. Clint Barton was already Hawkeye and when they met and became a team in the famous Matt Fraction comic series, it was a pairing that would make for some of the best storytelling in Marvel Comics this century.
Barton and Bishop both retained the title of Hawkeye, but in tackling thugs and goons alongside their one-eyed dog, they created a new style of partnership that wasn’t quite teacher and student or equals. It has always been a pleasure to see the pair together and their series was so popular it led to the comic series being closely recreated by the Hawkeye show produced within the MCU.
2 Cyclops & Jean Grey
A long-running relationship is a rare thing within the pages of any comic book. Marvel is especially bad at keeping two characters romantically linked for a long period of time, but Cyclops and Jean Grey of the X-Men managed to stay linked throughout most of their comic book lives.
These two always manage to find their way back to each other, and despite the fondness of the X-Men films for Wolverine and Jean Grey having something, Marvel Comics has held strong in keeping tradition for this duo. Though it has led to heartbreak for Scott more than once, with Jean’s destiny always seeming to lead to the Phoenix Force and some sort of death or darkness, this pair’s history never seems to be put to a final rest.
1 Charles Xavier & Magneto
One of the strangest pairs in all comics, Charles Xavier has always had a curiously compelling friendship with Magneto. The leader of the X-Men constantly has to fight against the extremists and his armies of mutants, but that hasn’t stopped them from remaining truly civil to each other most of the time.
Magneto has almost never wanted to actually hurt Charles, he only wishes that Xavier would stay out of his path as he tries to do what he believes is best for mutant-kind. It is a hard friendship to maintain, but the famous duo Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen brought this duo to the screen with the same level of friendship and adversity they have always had in the comics.