Marvel's Most Iconic Super Hero Proposals

Amidst the terrible tragedies of FALL OF X, wedding bells are tolling for Tony Stark and Emma Frost. Iron Man and the White Queen found each other when the mutant-hating organization Orchis and its leader Feilong used Stark's technology to attack mutantkind. Now, following Stark's shocking proposal in X-MEN (2021) #26 by Gerry Duggan, James Towe, Javier Pina, Marte Gracia, and VC's Clayton Cowles, these two heroes are getting hitched.

To celebrate the upcoming nuptials, let's take a look back at a few of the most surprising and memorable proposals in Marvel history. Although not all of these proposals resulted in long-lasting marriages, they left an indelible impression on the Marvel Universe and the heroes who made them.

SPIDER-MAN AND MARY JANE

After dating her for years, Spider-Man finally proposed to his longtime girlfriend Mary Jane Watson in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #182—and MJ promptly broke up with him in the following issue. When the couple reconciled, Peter realized just how important Mary Jane was to him and asked her to marry him again in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #290 by David Michelinie and John Romita Jr. 

Even though they were not dating at the time, MJ accepted Peter's proposal after he helped her clear her sister's name and made her realize how important he was to her, too. After several years of wedded bliss, however, Peter and Mary Jane made a deal with Mephisto to erase their marriage in order to save Aunt May's life in the "One More Day" storyline. Since then, Peter and Mary Jane have had an off-and-on romantic relationship.

VISION AND SCARLET WITCH

When Scarlet Witch and Vision were taken captive during the Kree-Skrull War, Wanda Maximoff kicked off their relationship by kissing the android Avenger. After that auspicious beginning, an unlikely romance blossomed between these two longtime Avengers as the Vision began to understand his emotions. 

Scarlet Witch took some time away while studying under Agatha Harkness, but when she returned, Vision proposed to her in GIANT-SIZE AVENGERS (1974) #4 by Steve Englehart and Don Heck. After being married in a ceremony alongside Mantis and the Cotati Swordsman doppelganger, Vision and Wanda took some time away from the Avengers and moved to the suburbs. 

The couple also had a pair of twin sons, but these children were later revealed to be aspects of Mephsito given life through Wanda's reality-warping power. During this time, the Vision was also destroyed and rebuilt as an emotionless machine, leading the pair to split up for good. Despite their continued personal struggles, these veteran Avengers are still friends today.

LUKE CAGE AND JESSICA JONES

Before Jessica Jones was a private investigator, she was a hero who operated under the aliases Jewel and Knightress. During this time, she teamed up with Luke Cage, who was then working with Iron Fist as Power Man. 

Jessica retired from the Super Hero business after falling under the control of the Purple Man. However, she and Luke reconnected years later and became romantically involved. Jessica fell pregnant and moved in with Luke, who proposed to her in THE PULSE (2004) #13 by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos. 

After giving birth to their daughter Danielle, Jessica accepted Luke's proposal, and the couple married. During the DEVIL'S REIGN (2021) crossover, Luke was elected Mayor of New York City, and he and Jessica adopted Joe, one of the super-powered children of the Purple Man.

JEAN GREY AND CYCLOPS

Cyclops and Jean Grey met when they were just teenagers working together on the newly formed X-Men. However, this couple forged a relationship that survived Jean's apparent death and her replacement with a Phoenix clone, as well as Scott Summers' doomed marriage to Madelyne Pryor, Jean's clone. 

After Jean turned down Scott's first proposal due to his complex romantic history with her doppelgangers, she proposed to Cyclops in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #308 by Scott Lobdell and John Romita Jr. On a crisp Thanksgiving morning following the "Fatal Attractions" storyline, Jean asked Cyclops to marry her while reminiscing about their history together. 

Following their wedding, this mutant couple spent their honeymoon in the far future, where they raised a young Cable. When both mutants are alive, Cyclops and Jean Grey are still married, despite their respective romantic entanglements with Emma Frost and Wolverine.

THING AND ALICIA MASTERS

Despite his rocky appearance as the Thing, Ben Grimm has a gentle, sensitive side, which made Alicia Masters fall in love with him. After she was blinded in an explosion caused by her stepfather, the Puppet Master, Alicia was tasked with infiltrating the Fantastic Four during its early days. However, she fell in love with the Thing instead and became one of the group's closest allies. 

While the Richards family was rebuilding the Multiverse in the wake of SECRET WARS (2015), the Thing proposed to Alicia after years of dating in FANTASTIC FOUR (2018) #1 by Dan Slott and Sara Pichelli. Once Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman returned to the Marvel Universe, Alicia and Ben were married in a bubble of preserved time during a Galactus attack. Since getting married, the Grimms have adopted a Kree child named Jo-Ven and a young Skrull named N'Kalla.

NORTHSTAR AND KYLE

After beginning his Super Hero career as a member of the Canadian team Alpha Flight, the speedster Northstar went on to join several X-Men teams. During some time away from the X-Men, Jean-Paul Beaubier started Team Northstar Extreme Snow Sports, a business partially managed by Kyle Jinadu. Northstar and Kyle eventually began dating and stayed together, despite the challenges presented by Northstar's high-flying adventures. 

During a battle with a corrupted Karma and the Marauders, Jean-Paul proposed to Kyle in ASTONISHING X-MEN (2004) #50 by Marjorie Liu and Mike Perkins. After Kyle accepted, the pair got married in a history-making ceremony officiated by Beast. Throughout the rise and fall of the mutant nation Krakoa, Northstar and Kyle have remained together and plan to raise Jean-Paul's adoptive daughter Joanne after she goes through Krakoa's resurrection protocols.

GAMBIT AND ROGUE

Despite Gambit's criminal past and Rogue's inability to touch others without absorbing their power, those two mutants have defied the odds to become one of the X-Men's most iconic couples. After openly flirting with each other throughout their early missions together, Gambit dated Rogue until she learned about his involvement in Mister Sinister's Mutant Massacre, which left numerous Morlocks dead. Although they reconciled, Gambit and Rogue continued to have an off-and-on relationship for several years. 

After Kate Pryde's wedding with Colossus was called off mid-ceremony, Gambit proposed to a shocked Rogue in X-MEN: GOLD (2017) #30 by Marc Guggenheim and David Marquez. With most of their friends already gathered for Colossus and Pryde's wedding reception, Gambit and Rogue got married in an impromptu ceremony. Even as their respective roles changed throughout the Krakoan era, Rogue and Gambit remain one of the X-Men's most stable couples.

STORM AND BLACK PANTHER

Although Ororo Munroe and T'Challa shared a fleeting romance in their youth, they went their separate ways when they embraced their respective destinies as Storm and Black Panther. But after Storm and Black Panther reconnected, T'Challa promptly proposed to Ororo, just as she began mourning the time they spent apart, in BLACK PANTHER (2005) #14 by Reginald Hudlin and Scot Eaton. 

In the middle of CIVIL WAR (2006), Captain America and Iron Man's respective sides called a ceasefire and gathered for Storm and Black Panther's royal wedding in Wakanda, a massive event that drew leaders and heroes from around the world. After several years together as Wakanda's King and Queen, Ororo and T'Challa broke up in the wake of Namor's attack on Wakanda during AVENGERS VS. X-MEN (2012). Although Black Panther even had their marriage annulled, he and Storm have reconciled to a point where they have considered rekindling their feelings for one another.

IRON MAN AND EMMA FROST

Iron Man and Emma Frost have occasionally dated over the years, but they were never exactly star-crossed lovers. However, Tony Stark and the White Queen have both suffered due to Orchis and its mutant-hating leader Feilong, who bought Stark's company and used his technology to attack Krakoa's Hellfire Gala. With most of the world's mutants missing or forced into hiding underground, these two heroes found each other once again and have helped each other stay out of Orchis' grasp. 

After giving control of the Hellfire Club to Wilson Fisk, Emma Frost went undercover as an aide named Hazel Kendal, concealing her mutant powers with a power-inhibitor ring. Using Fisk's Hellfire Club as cover for her resistance, Emma worked with Tony, the new Black King of the Hellfire Club, to coordinate their efforts against Orchis. 

When she saw Feilong for the first time since the Hellfire Gala massacre, Emma almost revealed herself and attacked him. Fortunately, Tony stopped her just as she took her power-concealing ring off, only for her to knock him to his knees. Feilong stumbled into this scene, so Tony made an impromptu proposal to "Hazel" to protect Emma's cover in X-MEN (2021) #26 by Gerry Duggan, James Towe, Javier Pina, Marte Gracia, and VC's Clayton Cowles. Now, Iron Man and the White Queen are set to get married to keep the last embers of hope alive for mutantkind—whether they like it or not.

Witness Tony Stark's proposal to Emma Frost in X-MEN #26, on sale now!

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