In the Marvel Cinematic Universe fandom, as with most other fandoms, people have relationships they want to see happen. Shipping is a big part of fandom for some people, and often some of the most popular relationships are between characters that never get together officially in the canon. In the MCU, Steve and Natasha are both shipped in a variety of relationships since they are main and popular characters, and it’s also very common for them to be shipped together romantically.

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However, some fans really enjoy their friendship and see them more as friends. Both of these interpretations for their relationship make a lot of sense, and there are good reasons why they should remain friends as well as reasons they’d make a great romantic couple.

Couple: Their Relationship Develops Slowly And Organically

Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff

While these two characters are friends in the canon, this doesn’t mean there wasn’t room for it to develop into a different kind of relationship. While friendships are also valuable, these two could easily have changed their relationship into something else.

They get to know each other over time by starting out as co-workers and then becoming close friends. While Steve might have ended up with Peggy, things could have gone differently and still made a lot of sense.

Friends: They Have A Years-Long Friendship

Sam Wilson giving his resume to Steve and Natasha in Captain America The Winter Soldier

Most people who ship a relationship don’t particularly care if the relationship isn’t canon, but in this case, the situation between Steve and Natasha does make a lot of sense. They end up on the run together after Captain America: Civil War, along with Sam Wilson, so they were all three working together and becoming close as a friend unit.

That's even after already establishing their bond long before that. There’s definitely something important about these kinds of relationships, and seeing these two interact as friends so great.

Couple: They Have Great Rapport

Black Widow and Captain America on a ship in Captain America: The Winter Soldier

There are all kinds of romantic relationships shown on screen. Some of these are more antagonistic in nature where the couple doesn’t even seem to get along that well while others are pairings that seem very compatible.

While couples like Tony and Pepper in canon often fight,  Steve and Natasha are two people that seem quite compatible. While they don’t always agree on everything, they always care about one another, and this could translate to a romantic relationship thanks to their great communication skills.

Friends: Natasha Encourages Steve To Date

Cap and Black Widow in Captain America The Winter Soldier

While there are many valid reasons to see Steve and Natasha as possibly being attracted to one another, Natasha does often encourage Steve to date others, and she’s a big supporter of him getting out in the world. She doesn’t really ever offer to date him herself, and she also doesn’t seem jealous of the idea of him dating others.

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This behavior makes her seem more like a close friend to Steve than someone who wants to be with him in a romantic way as friends often encourage each other to date and hype them up.

Couple: It Makes More Sense Than Canon

Black Widow touches Hulk's hand in Age of Ultron

While Steve and Natasha are never together in canon, this relationship might have made more sense than the relationships these two actually have. Steve ends up with Peggy, and he has to break the rules of time travel and even act out of character to do so.

His relationship with Sharon might have been even weird in some ways. For Natasha, many people didn’t understand her relationship with Bruce Banner, and Steve would be a better option.

Friends: Because Friendship Between Men And Women Is Rare On-Screen

Black Widow and Captain America in Captain America: The Winter Soldier

While there’s nothing wrong with romantic relationships, there are many more heterosexual relationships in the media than there are friendships between men and women. It seems like that a male and female pairing is always assumed to be romantic instead of platonic.

It’s actually very important to see that men and women can be close friends and not end up together. That's the kind of healthy representation that audiences need to see more of.

Couple: Many Romances In Film Start As Friendships

Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow walk together in The Avengers

However, while there are some romantic relationships between men and women in movies that seem to come out of nowhere without any foundation, Steve and Natasha clearly do have a foundation. They are friends, and many real-life romantic relationships start out that way.

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Being friends help you get to know a person and learn to trust them and rely on them, and this kind of foundation can translate into a very healthy and loving romantic partnership. But, of course, some relationships are just best as friends.

Friends: They Had Too Many Love Interests Already

Steve Rogers about to kiss Peggy/Steve gets close with Sharon in the MCU.

If the MCU had taken these characters in different directions earlier on, things would be different. But, as it stands now in canon, it would have been a bit much to have them date one another.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that fans can’t or shouldn't enjoy imagining different storylines, but having Steve get three love interests, or more if you count Bucky and Sam, would feel like overkill. It also feels like Natasha was shown as a potential love interest to too many of the male characters.

Couple: Because Their Kiss Had Chemistry

Natasha and Steve Kiss in Captain America: The Winter Soldier

These two do seem great as friends, but they also have some level of chemistry. It’s up for debate as to if they had sensual chemistry or not, but they do seem to have more attraction to one another when they kiss than Steve had with either Sharon or Peggy.

While some people might disagree, Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson are friends in real life which translates to being comfortable around one another on-screen.

Friends: They Offered Each Other Emotional Support

Captain America and Black Widow in Captain America Civil War at Peggys' funeral

The way that Steve and Natasha interact with one another can be interpreted differently depending on how you view their relationship, but Steve and Natasha interact and relate as best friends would do.

They talk to each other in blunt but caring ways, and they support each other in a way that often reads more as being best friends than as being lovers. Whether it's Natasha comforting Steve over learning about the Winter Soldier or Steve listening to Natasha at Sam Wilson's house, they make great friends.

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