Marvel Movie Kisses Ranked Worst To Best

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has the keen ability to make us laugh, swoon, and cry in just a matter of seconds. So it's no surprise that a franchise with dozens of films under its belt has provided fans with kisses that provoke strong opinions. You'd be hard-pressed to name a single kiss in the MCU that fans don't feel some type of way about, in fact — and strongly at that. 

With MCU movies filled to the brim with action, drama, and heroics, it's hard to believe the heroes (and villains) even have any time to spend with their lovers. Yet they manage — though most characters do cram in the romance during or between battles, with varying amounts of buildup. From Peggy Carter and Steve Rogers providing us with years of relationship goals (albeit often tragic ones) to the considerably weirder smooch between Captain America and Sharon Carter, the MCU's kisses are certainly unique. We're here to rank them from "yikes" to "yes, please!" 

When people say, "keep it in the family," they generally don't mean like this. Seriously, Steve — it's pretty awkward when the girl you really want to kiss is dead, but you shouldn't go after her grand-niece instead. We know Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) misses Peggy (Hayley Atwell) in Captain America: Civil War. But the solution to that problem is to get a grief counselor, not make out with your (recently) dead girlfriend's distant relative. Who wants to put some cash on whether or not Steve comes clean to Peggy about the incident when he goes back to the past in Avengers: Endgame? Smart money's on no.

After Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) and Steve get hot and heavy in a deserted bridge underpass (so romantic!), Bucky and Sam give Cap the Respect Nod. It doesn't make anything less weird, though. In fact, it might make it creepier. To make matters worse, Steve's time travel in Endgame might make Sharon his own grand-niece. If he needed therapy then, he definitely needs it now. Sharon's possible failure to recognize her own uncle makes the situation even more bizarre (or, more likely, a plot hole from an unplanned character arc). Nevertheless, no TV for a week, Sharon.

There's nothing really terrible to be said about Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Jane (Natalie Portman), other than their having little to no chemistry. Both are great characters in their own right, but nothing makes them work as a pair. When they kiss in Thor, it looks like they're trying to eat each other's faces, and it's just hard to watch. He might be the God of thunder, but he doesn't exactly make Jane (or the audience) quake during the scene. Thor promises to come back for her when he leaves for Asgard, but we'd honestly rather he didn't. He came, he saw, he kind of conquered — now it's time to move on. 

Beyond that uncomfortable kiss, their relationship never really goes anywhere. The kiss is all build-up for no payout. Beyond some basic (and surface-level) attraction, the pairing is a subplot at best, and both characters deserve better. For fans who did enjoy their pairing, there's never much closure to their relationship beyond an off-screen breakup, making the whole affair that much more disappointing and insignificant.

While the MCU may be known for throwing couples together without much groundwork, Scott (Paul Rudd) and Hope (Evangeline Lilly) arguably have one of the best-built relationships in the franchise. Both Ant-Man films have significant emotional build-up between Scott and Hope, with their dynamic unraveling at a reasonable pace. In Ant-Man and the Wasp, Marvel turns the tide on the usual damsel in distress angle: Wasp saves Ant-Man from drowning, instead of the other way around. Also lovely to see is Wasp taking the initiative, leading the relief-driven kiss once she knows he'll be okay (albeit a little groggy).

It certainly doesn't hurt that both characters share namespace in the movie title, making them equal partners in every sense of the word. One member of most MCU pairs usually takes a backseat to the other — and it's usually the woman. In a refreshing change of pace, Hope wears the pants in her relationship with Scott, and fans can't get enough of their healthy bond.

Unlike most MCU kisses, T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) don't lock lips in a blaze of glory during a massive fight sequence -– and it makes all the difference. Instead, the couple has a quiet moment to themselves in Black Panther, where they confess their feelings. Entirely secure with himself, T'Challa doesn't get weird about being saved by a woman. He thanks Nakia for rescuing him and asks her to stay. Then, of course, they share a sweet and passionate kiss away from prying eyes and the usual explosions that accompany Marvel romance. Well, there's one explosion, but it's not tangible.

Sure, high-action romance scenes are fun, but this feels much more real and authentic than most of the MCU's defining kisses. It's nice to see the franchise go for some realistic build-up instead of throwing in a few moments of flirtation between world-saving. It's rare for fans to feel like they can see themselves in an MCU relationship, but during this moment, you forget about super suits and superpowers: The characters just are. We need more of this energy, Marvel!

Unlike most Snap disappearances, Clint's loved ones are lost to Thanos' brutality in a full-fledged scene. As Clint is one of the only Avengers to have a family we've followed for years (since Age of Ultron, in this case), this loss hits hard. But what's even worse? We have to watch Clint mourn them for the entirety of Endgame, listening to old voicemails and falling apart at every turn. The guy just can't catch a break, and it's pretty traumatic for everyone. After mourning alongside him for the whole film and watching Iron Man go out in a blaze of glory, Clint's reunion with his family in that cursed field is one of the Endgame's most cathartic moments.

Following a tear-filled moment with his kids, Clint gets to kiss his wife for the first time in five years. The embrace is short and sweet, but it's one of the most significant kisses in the MCU — and it makes Natasha's earlier sacrifice that much more meaningful. Nat would be so happy to know that Clint gets his happy ending, even though she couldn't. Clint tells Wanda after Tony's funeral, "You know, I wish there was a way that I could let her know ... that we won. We did it." Wanda simply tells him, "She knows." And Wanda would know. She is a witch, after all.

The best kiss in the MCU is a kiss on the forehead from a father to his daughter. After so much tragedy, watching Tony Stark be a good dad is one of the greatest joys of Endgame. He may not get to enjoy domesticity for very long, but in those years, Tony gets to be a loving husband and father in the middle of nowhere. Tony gets some of the most significant character growth in the franchise: It's incredible to watch him go from rich playboy to world-saving hero to loving family man.

Iron Man made the MCU possible in 2008, and his relationship with his daughter, Morgan (Lexi Rabe), marks the beginning of the MCU's heart-wrenching goodbye to his character. After he tells her a terrible bedtime story and says, "I love you tons," he kisses her on the forehead. But it's not his words that have stayed with the fandom ever since. Her declaration of "I love you 3,000" will reign as the four most powerful words in the MCU for a long while — possibly forever.

"Everybody wants a happy ending, but it doesn't always roll that way," Tony says. And that's okay. But in a way, Iron Man dies the most fulfilled he's ever been, and that's beautiful. It's only fitting that Tony's final words to his daughter (through a pre-recorded hologram) are "I love you 3,000."