From frenemies to match-ups between good and evil not every relationship in the MCU. But, as many fans and critics alike have pointed out, some of the most compelling antagonistic relationships in the franchise actually happen between heroes instead of between heroes and villains.
This is why storylines like Captain America: Civil War were often most interesting, even if not perfectly executed than stories centered around many of the actual villains. So, in this list, we mainly look at some stormy relationships between heroic characters, with a couple of notable exceptions, and rank them leading up to the best.
10 Pepper Potts and Natasha Romanoff
The earlier movies in the MCU had some pretty big issues when it came to women. There weren’t many female characters, and the few that were there were often used as love interests or just to look hot.
So, it was a bit of a disappointment when in the Iron Man films that these two women were pitted against each other as potential love interests. Both of these characters deserved better, and thankfully, this situation ended and wasn’t shown in later movies.
9 Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes
Steve and Bucky are definitely one of the more compelling relationships in the franchise, but they are low on this list because their stormy relationship doesn’t stay fraught. While the Winter Soldier seems like a HYDRA villain at first, Steve soon learns the truth about his identity.
Neither of these best friends really ever wanted to fight each other, but they were forced to because of the brainwashing done to Bucky Barnes, becoming enemies in the battle between Hydra and the remaining good guys on Steve's team.
8 Mysterio and Tony Stark
It’s practically a running joke at this point in the MCU that so many characters hate Tony Stark. There are so many villains that Tony Stark has created, many of them rather inadvertently. While this happens in the Iron Man trilogy, it went too far when another MCU villain’s origin story was hating Tony and trying to best him, even though Tony was already dead.
Fans would rather have seen Spider-Man face a villain more specific to him instead of continually entwining his storyline in the MCU with Tony Stark, and Mysterio’s origin story was just too shaky to really be believable.
7 Natasha Romanoff and Bucky Barnes
In the comics, these two characters have a much more complex history. They are rivals and they are also romantically linked, but the movies didn’t take this route with their stories.
Because of this, the brief moments when we learn that these two have interacted in the field and been rivals have some meaning. Fans enjoy the hints at the assassin past both these characters shared, and can imagine their clashing over missions to have been powerful indeed.
6 Tony Stark and Justin Hammer
This is another example of a character having an ax to grind with Tony Stark, and truthfully, he has a lot of them from Ultron to Steve Rogers to Loki. However, this feud is included because these two parallel each other in interesting ways.
They are both rich, powerful men who run the same circles, but Hammer is clearly the more pathetic of the two. This difference makes for some funny moments, but the impact was somewhat diluted when the kind of fraught relationship Tony has with Aldrich Killian became such a typical story for Tony.
5 The Hulk And The Hulk
There's no bigger feud in Marvel than the one between the Hulk and himself. Over the course of the MCU movies, fans watch as Bruce Banner wrestles with the angry, green part of himself to varying degrees of success.
Eventually, though, this feud ends on a positive note, and the two sides of the Hulk merge to become Professor Hulk in Endgame. A fitting ending for this quarrel.
4 Nebula and Gamora
Nebula and Gamora have one of the stormiest relationships in the MCU. They are family in the sense that they were raised as sisters after being adopted by Thanos. However, the way Thanos treated them was abusive, and he pitted them against each other in a terrifying way.
So, while they might start out as enemies, seeing them become close as sisters and seeing them come to forgive and understand one another was really rewarding.
3 T’Challa and Erik Killmonger
While in one way, these two function more like enemies as T’Challa is the hero of the story and Killmonger is the antagonist, who challenges T'Challa for the throne of Wakanda and everything that comes along with it, this relationship is very compelling.
Killmonger is one of the best MCU villains because there is a lot of truth to what he’s saying and doing even if he goes about things in a violent way. These two also end up having an understanding and their familial bond as cousins added depth to this rivalry.
2 Steve Rogers and Tony Stark
One of the most well-known and talked about stormy relationships in Marvel, both in the comics and the MCU, is between Captain America and Iron Man. At times, these two are close friends and work together well as teammates, but, in some situations, they are more like enemies.
They have very different personalities, and they approach problems in opposite ways at times. This leads them to often clash on the right thing to do and how to lead, but, at the end of the day, they do care for one another.
1 Thor and Loki
While Steve and Tony’s feuds might be iconic, Thor and Loki’s contentious relationship might be just a little better. These two are adopted brothers, and their dynamic is one that many fans enjoy as they vie for different parental affections, the throne, and other varied things.
While Thor tries his best to look out for his brother and treat him well, Loki is a rather morally grey character who isn’t very reliable. Despite Loki’s changing allegiances, Thor is always doing his best to be there for him, and this makes for an endearing but complicated, and very stormy, dynamic.
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