Supercouple.
It may - or may not - technically be one word.
However, when two soap opera characters come together to create a coupling that neither could have portrayed on their own - or with any other acting partner for that matter - the result is, indeed, super.
The term supercouple took on a definition of its own in the 1980s when General Hospital 's Luke and Laura were all the rage. It gained even bigger prominence in the American vernacular when Days of Our Lives practically owned the rights to the word from 1981 through the early '90s.
But, as you will see, the word isn't exclusive to that decade or to that one show. Even before that, there were supercouples all across the daytime dial.
What follows is my list of the 10 - actually 11 simply because I couldn't narrow it down to just 10 - couples that to this day bring the definition of the word supercouple to life.
This list isn't exclusive or exhaustive. I certainly don't expect every fan to agree with my choices or rankings.
They are just that: my rankings, my choices and my personal preferences, complete with an explanation as to why I chose them and listed them in the order that I chose to.
I'd love to hear yours.
First off are those that I considered, but that didn't quite make the cut.
All My Children - Erica & Jack, Phil & Tara, Greg & Jenny.
Another World - Ryan & Vicky.
As the World Turns - Jeff & Penny, Tom & Margo, Steve & Betsy.
Days of Our Lives - Patch & Kayla, Will & Sonny (the original Will, that is!)
The Doctors - Nick & Althea, Matt & Maggie
Edge of Night - Mike & Nancy
General Hospital - Frisco & Felicia
Guiding Light - Hope & Alan
Love of Life - Bill & Tess
One Life to Live - Viki & Dorian ( not a supercouple in the traditional romantic sense of the word, but, to me a super- coupling, nonetheless.)
Search for Tomorrow - Steve & Liza
The Young and the Restless - Victor & Nikki ( who just missed my cut at #12.)
And, now, without further ado, my top 11 daytime supercouples of all time!
11. Adam and Nicole ( Donald May and Maeve McGuire, The Edge of Night.)
Adam tamed the shrew, turning the haughty Nicole Travis Drake into the leading lady of Edge in the early-to-mid '70s. They would be on my list purely for Adam's rooftop proposal to Nicole after running through the streets of New York City in order to get to her before the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve. However, they are on it for so many other reasons, too, not the least of which is the clever banter and instant clicking that occurred from their first meeting to their final scene.
10. Roman and Marlena or John and Marlena (Wayne Northrop, Deidre Hall and Drake Hogestyn, Days of Our Lives.) Pick whatever incarnation of the couple or the characters, the simple fact is Deidre had undeniable chemistry with all of her leading men and especially with these two. I prefer the original coupling, and Northrop to Hogestyn, but just as many preferred the latter. Either way you slice it, the couplings were both magical, with the first one bringing Days back to the top 5 in the ratings in the early 80s and the current incarnation keeping viewers enthralled - and Hall and Hogestyn at the top of the fan polls - now in the couple's 30-year-plus mark.
9. Bob and Kim (Don Hastings and Kathryn Hays, As the World Turns.) No doubt about it, their love stood the test of time. From the characters first glance at one another in 1972 to the series finale in 2010, Kim and Bob were the real deal and the longest-lasting super coupling on the show. That they went through torture - and 13 star-crossed years - to get together and then remained viable through countless writing regimes is testament to their undeniable bond.
8. Bo and Hope (Peter Reckell and Kristian Alfonso, Days of Our Lives.) Put two young - yet very green - performers together and you could have a recipe for disaster. However, what Days fans got with 'Bope' is a 30-year love affair which grew as strongly as the two actors did in their signature roles. One only needs to watch Bo's death scene from last year to witness how much both grew in their parts, while, keeping intact that much-needed chemistry required for a supercouple.
7. Steve and Alice (George Reinholt and Jacqueline Courtney, Another World.) One of the original supercouples, writer Agnes Nixon created a triangle with Robin Strasser's Rachel that glued viewers to their screen in the late 60s and 70s, and that via very limited YouTube copies of those episodes, still holds up today. Despite the actors reputed reputations within the industry, their coupling was electric and the chemistry remained when Courtney & Reinholt took their talents to One Life to Live, even if the storyline they had their didn't fully utilize their talents or that chemistry.
6. Cruz and Eden ( A Martinez and Marcy Walker, Santa Barbara.) While I admittedly wasn't a Santa Barbara fan, which was too quirky for my tastes back then, but which I can better appreciate now in my more mature age, I was a Cruz and Eden fan. One of my best friends back then watched the show religiously and I would watch with her only when this couple was on. The magic they brought to the screen was evident and I would be remiss not to include them on this list. Both deservedly won Emmys for their roles on SB.
And now, my top five, which I actually had an easier time placing in order when compared to my 11-6 placements.
5. Luke and Laura (Anthony Geary and Genie Francis, General Hospital.) I know what you're thinking, how could the most popular soap coupling of All-Time be ranked so low on my list? It's not that the chemistry wasn't there, obviously it was, but as you will see with my top four couples, there were simply others I favored more. Granted, part of this ranking may have to do with Geary's vocal disdain for the coupling in later years. Part of it is definitely the fact that a supercouple is supposed to stand the test of time and Luke and Laura - mainly due to Geary's fault - did not.
4. Doug and Julie (Bill and Susan Seaforth Hayes, Days of Our Lives.) From the show - that for better or worse - made the word supercouple a noun, this is the original supercouple of Salem. The real deal. While Doug and Julie went through every trial and tribulation known to man before their characters married in 1976, Bill and Susan were falling in love in real life and recently celebrated their 42nd wedding anniversary. With a divorce or two in between, Doug & Julie are still married and creating daily magic on Days. Wish more video of their magic early years existed because their story was worthy of all the publicity it received and certainly was deserving of Emmys for both, although neither won the golden statue in a multitude of various nominations.
3. Travis & Liza (Rod Arrants and Sherry Mathis, Search for Tomorrow.) Many may have never even watched this supercouple, but they had me mesmerized in the Summer of '79, when Search came thisclose to knocking out GH for the #1 spot in the ratings. When Sherry's southern charm, beauty and impeccable singing voice and Rod's rugged leading man looks came together, there was little doubt the two were golden. Although the on the run perils various headwriting regimes created for the duo grew tiredsome and were an ends among themselves, the chemistry between the two never grew forced or tenuous. Whatever fool decided to kill off Travis deserves to never write soaps ever again. There's not a lot of this couple on YouTube, but what little there is simply is magic.
2. Mac & Rachel (Douglass Watson and Victoria Wyndham, Another World.) If you were alive in the 1970s, how could you not root for this couple? Mac turned Rachel's life around and provided her with the one thing she had been sorely lacking - a man who really loved her. He was her knight and shining armor and they were the show's signature couple from 1975 until Watson's untimely death in 1989. Yeah, the couple went through the wringer, but you never doubted they would find their way back to one another. And, I contend, they had the best fights in daytime history to boot! Think about the makeup sex that coupling had! Both seasoned performers rank among the best ever to appear on daytime.
And that leaves us with only one couple left....and I've saved the best - and my most detailed accolades - for last.
Here we go...of the hundreds - maybe even thousands of daytime supercouples to grace our screen, here's my choice for the best ever....
1. SKY & RAVEN ( Larkin Malloy and Sharon Gabet , The Edge of Night.) From the soap that was unlike any other comes the supercouple that stands out from the rest. Edge was a mystery soap, rather than a traditional soap, so it's appropriate that my #1 supercouple wasn't of the traditional mode of the others. Except for a plot contrivance made necessary by a plot too lengthy to detail here, the couple weren't really star-crossed lovers. And they didn't look all gaga at one another like many of the other couples on the list and that's because from the start, they were different, from the start they understood each other in a way most couples - even super ones - never did.
And from the start, they were destined only for each other. Unlike other couples on this list, for the majority of their joint time on the show, they were always together. Their coupling was fast and the spark instantaneous in both of its incarnations. (More on what that means, later.)
And while some tried to tear them apart - most notably Alicia Van Dine in the show's last great murder storyline - no one ever stood a chance of breaking the Whitneys apart. That's because the chemistry of Gabet & Malloy was second to none. While other shows could - and have - survived when their couples exited the canvas, Edge would have met an earlier death than it did without Sky and Raven. The bond between them was that great, the chemistry was that electric. When those two were in the room, it was if time stood still and like they were the only two in the scene, even if there were scores of other actors in it.
Even infidelity, a common soap staple, didn't break them up, as Sky only slept with Alicia to keep his beloved Raven out of jail. And in perhaps Malloy's finest moment as Sky, when he broke down on the Whitney stairs and later confessed his deed to Raven , the tears were palpable and free flowing because the bond between the two characters and the marvelous actors who portrayed them was so real - both on and off screen.
Sky and Raven also get this top ranking because they survived in two incarnations, the first being when Malloy portrayed Jefferson Brown pretending to be Sky, and the latter when due to Malloy's arresting characterization of Jeff, he returned to the show as the legitimate Whitney heir. Yeah, long story, I know. It's also a story - and coupling - that holds up brilliantly and stands the test of time via YouTube. By reliving those fine moments between two seasoned performers, their bond is forever saved, and forever etched in my mind. From recently rewatching many of the duo's finest moments, my ultimate selection of the ultimate supercouple was cemented and brilliantly justified.
Prior to Malloy's arrival on Edge, Gabet's Raven was successfully paired and had chemistry with each actor she worked with. She's that good and always delivered that nuanced of a performance. However, once paired with Larkin, those other couplings paled in comparison to what viewers had seen before he was written onto the canvas.
There are only two travesties worth mentioning about this duo, one is that many have never seen the couple in action. Edge was perennially run in early morning slots during its final years, that is if the ABC affiliate aired it at all. That, of course, reduced the number of people who were able to witness their undeniable electricity. The other travesty is that neither won an Emmy for their brilliant work. At least the first error can be corrected now, as the Edge archives of the Sky and Raven years exist on YouTube. I highly recommend you watch them. You won't be disappointed.
