One of the most iconic couples in cinematic history also happens to be the most authentic. Coming from different backgrounds and with contrasting values, their love is messy from the beginning. They pick the corridors of Imperial superweapons to get into shouting matches and don't really appreciate catching feelings during a Galactic Civil War, but the honesty of their love is as inspiring as it is genuine.
The scruffy smuggler and Her Worshipfulness never cease to remind fans that they're a true dyed-in-the-Bantha-wool team, which is why they've been celebrated so raucously across the Star Wars franchise for decades. Even though they're from a galaxy far, far away they're relatable to anyone who's been in love and navigated its difficulties.
They Have A Dysfunctional Family
The Skywalker family might be one of the most famous lineages in the galaxy, but it's also one of the most melodramatic, with every familial argument turning into an event that plunges it into turmoil. Combine that with the Solos, which includes outlaw Han and a chosen family of smugglers, and it's not surprising that the family Leia and Han have is more than a little dysfunctional.
Leia's grandfather and moody brother aren't the only ones capable of petulant tantrums. Ben Solo turns his back on the Jedi and succumbs to the dark side in an act of teenage rebellion that shatters the peace his parents worked so hard to maintain.
They Don't Always Get Along
Like most couples, they have good and bad days. One minute they're celebrating blowing up the second Death Star and the collapse of the Empire, and the next they're dealing with the First Order and trying to form a Resistance. From the moment they meet in the detention block of the first Death Star, they rarely stop bickering.
While the scathing retorts may seem harsh, their style of communication allows them to vent their frustrations without taking them personally. With such strong personalities and forthright opinions, they don't expect each other to play nice all the time. But they always make up in the end, even after calling each other scruffy looking nerf herders.
They Make Each Other Jealous
It's increasingly clear over the course of two trilogies that Han and Leia have a dynamic tension between them, and all of their insults to one another conceal a passion they're always so remiss to reveal. Proud and committed to their independence, the two never want to admit how much they really care about one another.
It's not surprising that when Leia feels Han pulling away, she targets his ego with an ion cannon, even going so far as to kiss Luke right in front of him to make him jealous. Like many couples, their petty squabbles are just a chance for them to make up when their heads are clear.
They Fight About Money And Children
Like many couples, their biggest fights can be traced back to two things; money and children. They begin fighting about finances the moment Leia perceives Han taking his reward for her rescue and abandoning the Alliance when it needs him most, and his pursuit of smuggling over the years to get more cash doesn't endear him to a woman trying to rebuild the Republic.
After their son turns to the dark side, they fight about who failed him most, and the rift causes the destruction of their marriage. Even couples in a galaxy far, far away find themselves fighting about the same things that jeopardize the security of their relationship.
They Respect Each Other
Despite Han being a hot head and Leia being sanctimonious, the two come to respect each other. Leia calls Han a "natural born leader", and recognizes his talents even when his mouth gets in the way. Han recognizes that Leia's passion for injustice makes her a diplomat for a reason, and he marvels how she can get people behind a cause.
Whether it's exchanging a poignant look, or coming to each other's rescue time and again, it's clear that the two hold each other in the highest regard (though they might not always like to admit it aloud).
They're Devoted To One Another
Sure, Han might have been in it for fortune and glory when he agreed to save Princess Leia from Darth Vader's clutches, but as soon as she called him a laser brain he didn't know if he wanted to "kill her" or if he was "beginning to like her". And while she tried to fight her feelings for the rakish space pirate, she let him know how she felt right before he was being frozen in carbonite.
She helps lead a daring rescue of him from Jabba's Palace, and she's crucial in protecting him when Rebel forces take the Shield Generator during the Battle of Endor. Even after Han threw himself into his smuggling life following Ben Solo's turn, he couldn't help but come back to Leia, citing his time away as a means for her to "miss him".
Neither Of Them Runs The Show
When it comes to outrunning an Imperial Star Destroyer, Leia knows to let Han work his magic, even if she doesn't always agree with him concealing the Millennium Falcon in its floating garbage. When it comes to orchestrating large-scale assaults on Imperial Walkers trying to infiltrate Echo Base, Han knows to let Leia lay out the battle tactics to the A-wing pilots.
Like many couples, their relationship is comprised of two very independent people used to doing things their own way. As they learn to compromise, they also learn to rely on each other's strengths.
They Encourage Each Other To Do Better
Han becomes a more thoughtful, considerate, and compassionate person by knowing Leia because she encourages him to develop those sides of himself. Leia in turn becomes a carefree, visceral, warm-hearted person by knowing Han, who brings out these qualities in her over the course of their relationship.
What they each lack they find in one another, complementing each other with their personalities and abilities. Like other couples, they acknowledge their shortcomings while encouraging each other's strengths, even if it's difficult to do.
They Grow And Change
While Leia might seem very self-possessed as a teenage senator when Han first meets her, she grows a lot over the course of the Galactic Civil War. By the time the Empire is destroyed, she's learned who her real father is, and gained a brother, two things that force her to be more accepting and compassionate.
Han has to learn to accept his own growth and become a part of something greater than himself. Even when he's older, and nearly abandons the Resistance because of the emotional turmoil over failing to save their son, he accepts that he must bear some responsibility for the current course of events and returns to fight for his family.
They Accept Each Other For Who They Are
Han and Leia couldn't be more different from one another; she grew up in finery, a royal with a bright political future, while he grew up scrounging on the mean streets of Corellia, eventually becoming a smuggler. While their different perspectives create friction, they recognize that they're helpful in their relationship.
Han is flippant, overzealous, and often uses humor to diffuse stressful situations, whereas Leia is confident, determined, and hides her vulnerability behind sharp language. They both have flaws that annoy each other, but they also accept each other for the person they are, knowing the advantages that come with a complementary bond.