15 TV/Movie Power Couples of 2014

Eyes were mostly on Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Amy (Mayim Bialik) this year thanks to an unexpectedly hot kiss, but Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) have been reliably charming throughout their years-long, on-and-off courtship. And, hey, if they can survive adult prom and Penny’s controversial haircut, they might just be able to survive anything.

Dealing with their cancer diagnoses with maturity well beyond their years, Hazel Grace (Shailene Woodley) and Gus (Ansel Elgort) strengthened one another by forming a bond that transcended death.

The bickering doctors (played winsomely by Mindy Kaling and Chris Messina) have turned into one of TV’s most stable couples. Despite wacky colleagues, Danny’s overbearing mother, and constant comedy-ready misunderstanding, they inevitably find their way back to each other after 23 minutes. If Danny is stripper dancing and/or wearing his signature snap-together red glasses to read to Mindy? Even sweeter.

While guarding the galaxy, the out-of-this-world assassin (Zoe Saldana) and the ’70s music aficionado (Chris Pratt) set off major sparks—before, during, and even after Gamora gave Star-Lord (né Peter Quill) a swift smack in the middle of their first kiss.

Standing by each other from Pawnee to D.C., Ben (Adam Scott) and Leslie (Amy Poehler) may have gotten married in a bit of rush back in 2013, but—as season 6’s three-year time jump showed—the new parents have only gotten better with time.

Nobody said power couples have to be likeable. These twisted urban sophisticates fell from grace, out of love, and into each other’s bad graces. That neither comes off as more sinister (or, for that matter, more sympathetic) by the end of the David Fincher-helmed adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s page-turner is a testament to how much they really do belong together…regardless of whether viewers were happy with the ending.

The most literal power couple on this list, the King and Queen of France (Toby Regbo and Adelaide Kane) fought first for their love, then to keep their control over a country in the thrall of religious revolution. Yet they still managed to carve out a little one-on-one time. Multitasking has never been irresistible.

There’s not a greedy green doppelgänger in the world that could tear this hall-of-fame, interspecies couple apart. But oh, did we have fun watching the musical numbers along the way.

Suburbia and four kids can’t squash these super-sweethearts’ flame. Dre (Anthony Anderson) and ”Bow” (Tracee Ellis Ross) may not agree on certain political topics (and, uh, the topic of Dre’s overbearing mother, played by Jenifer Lewis), but they come together on the important issues—like dressing up as the Jackson 5 for Halloween.

The dopey construction worker (Chris Pratt) and the tough-chick Master Builder (Elizabeth Banks) teamed up and did nothing less than save the world. Whether that world was real or imagined did nothing to stop it from being ”Awesome.”

No word better describes this pair than dysfunctional—quite literally so in Masters’ case during season 2—but the real-life sexuality doctors who inspired the series forged history with their revolutionary studies. And, as played by Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan, they have an undeniable, if sometimes self-destructive, chemistry.

Where Spidey 2 fizzled, off-screen couple Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield sizzled. Most endearing, they mocked their real-life kissing style (or lack thereof) in a hilarious awkward—and awesome—Saturday Night Live sketch.

The epidemiologists (Corey Stoll and Mía Maestro) may not have the most conventional love, but any couple that finds time to get it on during a vampire apocalypse is in this thing for the long haul. Or at least a satisfying short term.

Take the high-concept shenanigans of Groundhog Day, add in sci-fi elements and Tom Cruise’s action-star bona fides, then top off with sexy ass-kicker Emily Blunt, and you’ve got an undeniable popcorn powerhouse.

The fixer (Kerry Washington) may struggle when choosing between loves Fitz (Tony Goldwyn) and Jake (Scott Foley), but there’s one rich, full-bodied favorite to whom she always returned—a well-pressed grape. When Olivia told Jake ”I choose me” in Scandal‘s midseason finale, it was understood ”me” comes with a steady stream of fine vine.