right|thumb|220px|Fictional couple [[Luke and Laura|Luke Spencer and Laura Webber are credited with defining the term supercouple.]]
A supercouple or super couple (also known as a power couple) is a popular and/or wealthy pairing that intrigues and fascinates the public in an intense or obsessive fashion. The term originated in the United States, and it was coined in the early 1980s when intense public interest in fictional soap opera couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber, from General Hospital, made the pair a popular culture phenomenon.
First applied to fiction, supercouple can be used to refer to couples from television dramas and film, such as Gone with the Winds Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara. The term was expanded to real-life pairings; tabloids and the mainstream media have focused on wealthy or celebrity couples, such as the romances between Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez (which became known by the portmanteau "Bennifer") and of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ("Brangelina").
Definitions
Supercouples are defined as popular or financially wealthy pairings that are widely admired in an intense or obsessive fashion and influence society's expectations of what a great love story or relationship should be; they may or may not be romantic or high-profile, and interest in the pairings may be due to a combination of chemistry, physical attractiveness, or because they seem fated. Thirty million viewers tuned into the event, and the widespread media attention it received from prominent newspapers and magazines set the pairing up as the default model for other soap opera supercouples. The model Luke and Laura originally followed consisted of action stories, romance, and obstacles for the couple to overcome. Luke and Laura's popularity resulted in fictional supercouples generally being regarded as soulmates.
Celebrity couples may also be regarded as supercouples. Interest in the pairings ranges from media and public obsession to calculation of the couples' combined finances.
Gabay said portmanteaux "...giv[e] people an essence of who they are within the same name. In double-barrelled names, the hyphen is almost pushing one name away from the other. Meshing says 'I am you and you are me', which is rather romantic". Similarly, name-blending exists with celebrities' first names. Said to be a sign of commitment and togetherness, meshing is also seen by some as an attempt to banish what might be considered a "sexist" tradition of a woman taking her husband's name when she marries.
Soap operas
Origins
According to American soap opera writer and romance novelist Leah Laiman, soap operas are best known and most remembered for romance. The romances in daytime dramas are significantly characterized by bringing couples together, splitting them up, and starting the cycle over again to ensure that viewers remain invested in the pairings, if popular. This is a strategy that often succeeds within the medium.
Two characters comprising a supercouple will usually reunite and marry, and Bob and Lisa Hughes, from As the World Turns. Doug Williams and Julie Olson from Days of Our Lives are sometimes considered the first supercouple. From 1970 until 1976, Doug and Julie's relationship wavers between love and hate. The chemistry the portrayers exhibited became evident offscreen; the real-life couple, Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth, were married in 1974. This set off a commotion among thousands of fans, who wrote letters to the show asking that the couple also be allowed to marry in the story. Since the actors were already married, they felt this was a valid request.
Luke Spencer and Laura Webber, portrayed by Anthony Geary and Genie Francis from General Hospital, are considered the most famous soap opera supercouple. Their romance enthralled viewers; when they wed on November 16, 1981, American daytime television recorded its highest-ever ratings, with 30 million people tuning in to watch them say "I do". and Princess Diana reportedly sent champagne. as well as Josh and Reva, one of the central supercouples from the 1980s onward.
"Dirty" Den and Angie Watts, portrayed by Leslie Grantham and Anita Dobson on the British soap opera EastEnders, generated an audience response similar to Luke and Laura's. Den and Angie are renowned as arguably Britain's most iconic soap opera couple, having broken the record for episode ratings to 30.1 million viewers in 1986 on the episode of their divorce, a record that remains unbeaten by any British soap opera episode today.
Golden Age: 1980s
The 1980s is known as the "Golden Age" of supercouples. Shows such as All My Children, As the World Turns and along with the aforementioned General Hospital and Days of our Lives were well known for their supercouples. Days of our Lives in particular had a significant number of supercouples — Bo and Hope, Patch and Kayla, All My Children was represented by Cliff and Nina, Greg and Jenny, Jesse and Angie,
As the World Turns had the popular couples Holden and Lily, Craig and Sierra, Tom and Margo, and Steve and Betsy with Betsy Stewart being portrayed by future film star Meg Ryan. Along with Luke and Laura, General Hospital also boasted Alan and Monica and Frisco and Felicia. The success of their romance prompted a fellow Australian daytime drama Home and Away to shelve out their own supercouple, Shane and Angel, The couple combinations within the love triangle were equally in demand, and which of the two is a true supercouple remains in dispute. Though debated, both couples are referenced and listed as supercouples by the soap opera medium. The Sonny character eventually acquired second supercouple status in the pairing of Sonny and Carly, becoming a part of two successful on-screen romances.
In other instances, a character is part of two equally popular couplings, but the storyline does not lend itself to the scenario being referred to as a love triangle. Samantha "Sami" Brady of the soap opera Days of our Lives is romantically desired by the two men, Lucas Roberts and EJ Wells. However, she was not considered to be actively involved in a love triangle, and both couples (Lucas and Sami and EJ and Sami) resonate with fans and appear to be at least equal in comparison and popularity.
In today's soap opera medium, there are couples which come close to gaining supercouple status in terms of popularity. Although these pairings have perceived chemistry and potential, the couple's story is cut short, often due to the actors leaving to pursue jobs outside of soap operas or due to the writers changing direction in a storyline. These couples do not last long enough onscreen to garner the long history of what is often considered a genuine supercouple. Such couples include Leo and Greenlee (All My Children), Ryan and Gillian (All My Children), Dusty and Lucy (As the World Turns), Simon and Katie (As the World Turns), Robin and Stone (General Hospital), Jonathan and Tammy (Guiding Light), and Todd and Téa (One Life to Live).
Soap opera columnist Carolyn Aspenson stated that the "supercouple formula" should be redefined. She argued that tragic couples such as Leo and Greenlee are a better love story than if they had stayed together with a "boring" everyday life. "A super couple shouldn't be designed to be a couple that beats the odds and sticks it out no matter what," she said. Bianca's unveiling as a lesbian was unique for daytime television. By being a core character and the daughter of legendary diva Erica Kane, "the show initiated an innovative discourse about the possibility, location, and representation of lesbian and gay characters in a television genre historically predicated on the celebration of heterosexual courtship, romance, and family life".
In 2003, Bianca's relationship with Lena resulted in American daytime's first lesbian kiss. The two became American daytime's first lesbian couple, and received significant press. Eventually, hints that Maggie might not be heterosexual started to appear throughout the series, complicated by Maggie insisting that she is not gay but is rather "into guys" and only guys. Yet fan mail for the Bianca and Maggie pairing was prominent. The pairing eventually became the most popular gay couple in soap opera history, which surprised industry insiders who had not believed that a gay pairing could be as significantly in demand as heterosexual pairings.
Soap opera analyst C. Lee Harrington stated, "While the past decade has witnessed a growing number of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters in primetime dramas and situation comedies, daytime soap operas offer unique challenges (and possibilities) regarding the inclusion and 'normalization' of varied sexualities in entertainment television."
A prominent obstacle for gay and lesbian characters on daytime television is interference from television network executives who fear a decline in their ratings. The popularity of the pairing borders on the same fascination level that centered around Bianca and Maggie's lesbian romance. Not even months into the romantic aspect of their relationship, TV Guide named the male duo a top power couple.
Noah Mayer became one of the latest soap opera characters to come out as gay, and joined Bianca and others as visible gay characters in daytime. One year before Luke and Noah, the British soap opera Hollyoaks had already embarked on issuing their own gay male supercouple, between characters John Paul McQueen and Craig Dean; the storyline became one of the show's most successful, gaining "legions" of fans. The budding same-sex romance on Guiding Light between Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera Aitoro became popular with fans in 2009. That same year, One Life to Live introduced its own male gay supercouple with Oliver Fish and Kyle Lewis. On international television, the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe gained international popularity, with the storylines involving Carla and Stella, and later with the couple of Christian and Oliver.
Beginning in 2011, Days of our Lives broke new ground when it decided to have the character Will Horton come out as gay. The soap chronicled Will's struggle to accept his sexuality. The show also highlighted many obstacles the LGBT community face, such as bullying, hate crimes The show cast actor Freddie Smith in the role of Jackson "Sonny" Kiriakis, the second openly gay contracted character in a daytime soap opera. Sonny would eventually become Will's ongoing love interest. To the surprise of the actors and writers, Will and Sonny were greeted with fan support, and were eventually titled a supercouple and "power couple". The show pushed the envelope even further when it decided to air Will's first same-sex sexual encounter on-screen (which would become the first of many). Chandler Massey went on receive the 2012 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first actor ever to receive a Daytime Emmy Award for playing a gay character. He won his second consecutive Emmy for the role in the same category in 2013. Smith received his first Daytime Emmy nomination for his role in 2013 pitting him against Massey for the same award. In his acceptance speech, Massey thanked Smith. The show won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Daily Drama in 2013. In August 2013, it was announced that Massey had filmed his final episode as Will Horton, and that a recast had already been made. Days had initially planned not to recast the role, but changed its mind due to fear of advertiser and fan backlash. Other early primetime power couplings include Ricky and Lucy (Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball) from I Love Lucy, Pam and Bobby (Victoria Principal and Patrick Duffy) from Dallas, and Cliff and Clair Huxtable (Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad) from The Cosby Show, among others. Voted #2 on IGN's list of Top 10 Favorite TV Couples, and #5 on AOL's list of Greatest TV Couples of All Time, the sites categorized the pairing as "the ultimate" star-crossed couple. The pairing's main predicament—unable to experience sexual intimacy without Angel losing his humanity—has been summarized by IGN: