Amanda Bridgeman shares favorite sci-fi movie romances.

Today, I have Amanda Bridgeman, author of the Aurora series, sharing her favorite sci-fi romances.

My Favourite SFF Couples

Some people are surprised to discover a strong romantic subplot threaded throughout my Aurora series. For some, science fiction should only cover science, technology and politics. But for me, an incredibly important area often overlooked is the study of humans themselves; how they interact, the gamut of emotions they experience, the way they interact with the society around them. 

The Aurora series is a very character-driven space opera, where the personal storylines are just as important as the over-arching action-thriller plot. Given this, the strong romantic subplot of the Aurora series, I thought I’d take a look at some of my favourite SFF couples in film/TV.

Aragorn and Arwen (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy)

This is a tale of two lovers effectively facing the difficulties of an interracial relationship. He is human, she half elven, and her father doesn’t approve of the pairing. She is destined to outlive him as she is immortal, so how could it possibly work? Aragorn tries to do the noble thing and do what is best for her (or what her society/father thinks is best for her), but their love and bond is too strong to keep them apart. They both make sacrifices in the name of love, and that’s what makes them an awesome couple. Also, Aragorn is pretty much the ultimate warrior/king/lover.

Princess Sorsha and Madmartigan (Willow)

This is a great example of the couple who meet and instantly dislike each other, and yet are incredibly sexually attracted to one another. Madmartigan is a thief and a scoundrel, and if he were in the real world, you’d probably say ‘he doesn’t apply himself properly’. But underneath, he is a valiant warrior, who just hasn’t met the right woman to sort him out yet. Princess Sorsha is a strong independent woman, who’s also a kick ass warrior, so she’s more than capable of handling him. Together they make a good match. Now if they could just get her ‘overbearing’ mother, the Queen, out of the way…

Trinity and Neo (Matrix Trilogy)

This pairing sees a ‘chosen one/novice’ (Neo) fall for his ‘guide/support’ (Trinity), and vice versa. Neo is thrown into a whole new world and Trinity is there to ease his transition, to watch over him and help guide him. She slowly falls for this ‘chosen one’ as she sees not only his special gift, but also the man underneath, and how ‘good’ he is. A match made in the Matrix heaven! And hey, they both look pretty damn awesome in black!

Princess Leia and Han Solo (Star Wars trilogy)

This is another couple modelled on the ‘dislike yet attracted as hell to each other’ trope. Han is another romantic lead who tends to do things on the wrong side of the law, whereas Princess Leia is the strong independent woman. Leia is a little more on the side of good and righteous than Princess Sorcha, although she too has a questionable parent (Darth Vader). Regardless, the two can’t help falling for each other and become a good match. He gets her to loosen up a little, and she gets him to straighten up a little. They meet each other half-way.

Kara Thrace – ‘Starbuck’ and Lee Adama – ‘Appollo’ (Battlestar Galactica)

This is another chalk and cheese pairing, although, unlike the Willow and Star Wars pairings, they don’t dislike each other at first. They’re friends, as Starbuck dated Lee’s brother first. That’s what initially brings them together – they bond over their mutual loss. Lee is pretty straight and well-behaved, whereas Kara is the complete opposite; she drinks too much, she smokes, she brawls and she’s generally a little reckless. But again they balance each other out. Theirs is rocky road to romance, that unfortunately sees the reckless Kara ruin many chances the two have. Even when they do hit their stride, they start out on the wrong foot (while being married to other people). They’re the kind that would be good together if they just didn’t let themselves get in the way. Regardless, theirs is the kind of love that lingers even after they’ve parted ways.

Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese (The Terminator)

You can’t really get much more romantic than someone coming back through time to save a woman he doesn’t know, but has fallen for all because of a photograph he has. What makes the whole scenario even better, is that he goes back in time to effectively ensure his own son is born. The leader he respects in the future, is the child he creates in the past with his mother. Poor Michael Biehn (the actor who plays him), they always kill him off right after he’s won the heart of our sci-fi heroines (they did the same in Aliens). 

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