The 12 Best Love Stories in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Vincent D’Onofrio and Ayelet Zurer in Marvel’s “Daredevil”. (Photo: Netflix)

Wilson Fisk and Vanessa Marianna

It’s maybe a bit weird that one of the absolute best romantic relationships in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe belongs to one of its villains. (Particularly since Marvel doesn’t have the greatest track record with creating villains in the first place.) But it’s true. Daredevil’s Wilson Fisk is a pretty awful person. He’s a violent crime lord responsible for the deaths of many people. But he’s also completely in love with art dealer Vanessa, and their relationship is a surprisingly great one.

Before we even get to any of the majorly villainous stuff, Fisk and Vanessa already have a pretty great thing going together. After a kind of rocky start, they spend multiple episodes talking about their personal histories, relationship boundaries, and likes and dislikes. Like, you know, mature adults. And in a move that’s rare for any comic book adaptation: Fisk tells Vanessa the truth. He’s upfront with her about his criminal lifestyle. He doesn’t try to intimidate or gaslight her into going out with him. He offers her a choice about whether she wants to be with him, and promises to respect her decision. It’s kind of amazing. Fisk treats Vanessa like an equal, and she says yes to him with her eyes wide open about exactly who and what he is. In fact, she even helps him become a better version of his villainous self.

Plus, we all got a little emotional when Fisk proposed right as he’s getting dragged off by the Feds, right? Has Matt Murdock ever told any of his girlfriends anything as romantic as that “You are my heart” line? Up your game, Marvel guys.