They say “true love stories never have endings”*. But I gotta tell you, it’s not that easy to find great pop-culture couples getting their happily ever after. Somehow we’re all more drawn to love stories that end badly. Like “Romeo and Juliet”. Or “Titanic”. Or, in fact, “Love Story”.
But as much as we all adore the idea of love in its wildest and dangerous form, at the end of the day, most of us choose someone to cuddle with. So, for this year’s Valentine’s Day, I bring you the 14 couples from books, movies and TV shows that, presumably, are now old, boring and live in the suburbs. Have a read!
1. Monica & Chandler (Friends)
We said our goodbyes to all “Friends” when Monica and Chandler were moving to their new house in the suburbs. Therefore, we have every right to expect that they are still living there, with the twins turning 17 this year and uncle Joey in his room over the garage. Are they boring? I don’t know. But they sure are happy.
2. Lorelai & Luke (Gilmore Girls)
We were watching Luke and Lorelai going on and off for seven seasons, till they finally ended up together at the very end of the series. It is one unboring couple, I can tell you that much. And judging from the revival season episodes, they are very happy in their sarcasm and coffee-seasoned relationship.
3. Amy & Jake (Brooklyn 99)
“Brooklyn 99” is still on, so anything can happen (name of your sex tape!), but since Amy and Jake are married and (spoiler alert!) just had a baby, it’s safe to assume they will live happily ever after. Also, it’s a comedy series, so no one expects death or other trauma to step in at the very end of the show. Amy and Jake are one of these couples which prove that even if you base your relationship on practical jokes and ridiculous workplace challenges, you have a chance to end up with the love of your life.
4. Blair & Chuck (Gossip Girl)
This love-hate relationship from “Gossip Girl” is really a dazzling one. Two incredibly strong personalities got married after six seasons of jealousy, cheating, proving points to one another and hurting over their broken hearts. It’s probably the strongest relationship on this list, simply because they already put each other through hell, so now they no longer have to. Suburb house? Maybe. Old and boring? I don’t think so.
5. Princess Leia & Han Solo (Star Wars)
The latest Star Wars trilogy gave us some idea of how the story of Han and Leia could go after “Return of the Jedi”. But according to my geeky husband who has read the books, the couple did not have one very ugly baby, later to cause his father’s untimely demise. Leia and Han had twins: Jaina and Jacen, and a younger son named Ben. All three kids became Jedi Knights (Jacen turned to the Dark Side), and it seems their parents outlived all of them. In the books, Han and Leia lived happily ever after and their death has not yet been read by my geeky hubby.
6. Bridget & Mark (Bridget Jones’s Diary)
Do opposites attract? Judging from this particular love story, the answer is “yes”. Bridget and Mark had their ups and downs, but let’s admit it: we were all secretly rooting for mister Darcy to take the stick out of his arse and build a life with silly little Bridget. Now that they have a child together, I think we can start expecting them to be a slightly more conventional couple, with less of Bridget’s hilarious fuckups and more of Mark’s emotional gestures.
7. Belle & Beast (Beauty and the Beast)
Belle and Prince Adam have not started their relationship on the right foot, but the story developed quite nicely. Let me just say, that if you brought a guy back from the dead and made him change his heart so much that he’s no longer a beast, it’s safe to assume that you will make it work together. Plus, it’s a fairytale and it wasn’t written by the Grimm brothers, so no one has to die.
8. Fiona & Shrek (Shrek)
They may be pretty green and… well, ogre, on the outside. But their story proves, you don’t need to be a Homecoming King and Queen to be happiest in life. You just ought to find the right companion and enjoy being yourself together. Fiona and Shrek seem to have some shared interests and behaviours, so I expect they are now a charmingly grumpy old couple living in the woods.
9. Kate & Alex (The Lake House)
In the century where social media made love yet another mass product, falling in love with someone who is essentially your penpal seems very old fashioned. But it seems that the 2-year time/space difference between these two allowed them to build a very strong relationship. So I would be very much disappointed, if Alex and Kate were not still living in the lake house, getting old together with their dog.
10. Vasya & Morozko (Winternight)
A relationship with a winter king can never be easy, but Vasya and Morozko both went out of their way to be together. Morozko was not supposed to fall in love, but we all know that rarely stands in the way. And since Vasya became a witch and her grandmother’s successor, they can now have a decent life together in a cottage house in Midnight Realm.
11. Anne & Gilbert (Anne of Green Gables)
Against the common belief, pulling on a redhead’s pigtails in primary school proves to be an amazing prelude to a heart-warming love story. Montgomery has dedicated ten quite thick books to Anne and Gilbert, and yet she wrote another one before she died — “The Blythes are Quoted”. I have yet to read this one, but I can tell you that both Anne and Gilbert reached their 70s in good health, and became grandparents to five grandchildren. If this isn’t a “happily ever after”, then I don’t know what is.
12. Sally & Gary (Practical Magic)
If you unknowingly created your perfect someone, you’ll have to end up together sooner or later. While Sally thought that her spell would make it impossible for her to fall in love at all, it only built her connection to a shy two-coloured-eye boy, with a flair at cooking, and enough imagination to mount a horse backwards. When the family curse was broken, Gary and Sally were all set for their uninterrupted happily ever after.
13. Sophie & Howl (Howl’s Moving Castle)
In Ingaria, the realm of this story, it’s the oldest child that can expect the most boring and uneventful life. Sophie was the oldest of the three, so she didn’t think she could ever come by any kind of adventure. But instead of a simple hatter’s life, she has been pushed on a path that had led her to the infamous Howl. How can a cursed 80-year-old and a narcissistic wizard end up in a loving relationship? Well, instead of a suburb house they live in a moving castle and the rest of their story just magically fits in.
14. Arwen & Aragorn (The Lord of the Rings)
Arwen had to resign from her immortality to stay with the long-lived, but still mortal, King of Gondor, so this story eventually ends with death. But it’s a natural death that we can imagine at the end of all of these tales. Aragorn and Arwen lived together for 120 years “in great glory and bliss”, so I’d say it’s as close to a happy ending as you can get being an Elf.
I hope you managed to find some of your favourite couples on this list, and that it has braced you before the obnoxiously pink and cotton candy-flavoured Valentine’s Day. Have a good one and remember to show love to each other every day, not just when it’s expected by society 😉
* Richard Bach said that.
