Here at the Arts desk, we do not support couples with major swag gaps. If one member simply does not pull their weight, they’ve got to go. Drop your boyfriend who gets you fluorescent, plastic-wrapped grocery store flowers the morning of. Forget your situationship whose life’s mission is to avoid a label. You deserve a partner who makes your day-to-day better, rather than someone who drags you down. Find someone who understands you, matches your intellect and would even risk their life to save you. Let the following pairs be your guide to what being in a true power couple looks like.

Joan & Larry in ‘Eternity’ (2025)

There’s nothing more powerful than a love of mutual understanding. A24’s romantic comedy “Eternity” poses an impossible question through its protagonist Joan (Elizabeth Olsen): Would you spend the afterlife with your first love or your longest love? While it’s hard to deny the allure of someone as strapping as Luke (Callum Turner), Joan’s first husband who died in the Korean War, there’s no one better for Joan than her husband of 65 years, Larry (Miles Teller). As the two take literal trips down memory lane, you grow endeared by the pair’s banter and comfortability with one another, especially as Larry reminds himself to appreciate his marriage and the years of friendship he and Joan shared.

— Dani Biondi, Arts Editor

Anne & Gilbert in ‘Anne with an E’ (2017-2019)

To me, the coolest couples are those who can match each other’s intellect. Anne and Gilbert in the cancelled-too-soon Netflix show “Anne with an E,” based on a book series by L.M. Montgomery, are the embodiment of this ideal. In fact, they begin the show as academic rivals, both vying for the top spot in their class — an ever-exciting trope. Over time, the two grow from enemies to friends who deeply respect, and secretly yearn for, one another. This power couple uses their shared intelligence to forge a more socially progressive 1800s Canada. Despite having their own professional goals, the pair still push and support each other to their fullest potential. Isn’t that what we all want?

— Skylar Boilard, Arts Editor

Mark & Eve in ‘Invincible’ (2021-present)

Superhero power couples are nothing new, but there’s something special about Mark and Eve. In season one of Amazon’s adult animated superhero series, tension bubbles between the two classmates and fellow crimefighters, known to the world as Invincible and Atom Eve. After Mark becomes single, the duo takes a chance on a real relationship in last year’s season three. In a show filled with alien empires, roaring kaijus and fugitive clones, the couple grounds it all in refreshing honesty, embodying the effort it takes to maintain a grown-up relationship. Mark and Eve talk through their problems in the healthiest way imaginable and lean on each other in times of struggle. And when it comes to jointly kicking ass, they can do that too.

— Leo Field, Film & TV Editor

Katniss & Peeta in ‘The Hunger Games’ (2008)

Everyone has a young adult literary couple they’re willing to go to war for, and for me, I’ve been deeply attached to the complex romance between Katniss and Peeta since I first read “The Hunger Games” in sixth grade. Unlike many modern dystopian or fantasy series that romanticize toxic masculinity and patriarchal dynamics, Katniss and Peeta’s slower-than-slow burn is built on emotional healing and vulnerability, shared trauma aside. And while I’ll gladly get into detail about how the Hunger Games films mischaracterize their relationship to something far more sterile than what exists in the books, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anxiously awaiting Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson’s reunion in “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping” this November.

— Amelia Knust, Music Editor

Devi & Ben in ‘Never Have I Ever’ (2020-2023)

Devi and Ben were my original “Heated Rivalry.” As the endgame couple of Netflix’s iconic “Never Have I Ever” love triangle, these two set the yearning bar dangerously high. I’ll admit to being Team Paxton in high school — because, well, look at him — but rewatching in college made one thing clear: It was always going to be Ben. Mature baddies understand that he challenges her both academically and emotionally, paralleling her ambition and intensity at every level. Devi always strived to be the best, and Ben was really the only person who could match her freak. And while my 15-year-old self wouldn’t want to admit it, their chemistry was undeniable. Plus, Princeton and Columbia? Extreme power couple energy. 

— Rhea Kohli, Fine Arts Editor

Rachel & Luce in ‘Imagine Me & You’ (2005)

While I typically would not endorse homewrecking or falling in love with a straight woman, Rachel and Luce’s relationship in the 2005 rom-com “Imagine Me & You” is my exception to the rule. After they meet during Rachel’s wedding preparations, where Luce is the florist — because of course she is — the two instantly fall in love despite the minor issue of Rachel being at the altar to marry a man. As Rachel grapples with her sexuality, the two finally confess their love for each other in the middle of a traffic jam — because publicly leaving your husband for your lesbian lover during rush hour is the ultimate power move.

— Chantal Mann, Performing Arts Editor

Contact the Arts desk at [email protected].