Kairos had a great idea, so I'm stealing it.
I read perpetual's awesome post about her favorite moms and dads in fiction, and I had to make my own.
Bob and Helen Parr (The Incredibles)
One of the biggest reasons I love these two so much is that Bob could pretty much *be* my dad, except for the whole super strength thing, obviously. Bob and Helen are the superheroes who are parents first. Bob's central conflict is learning that his family is more important to him than being a hero, and I love Helen to pieces because she's a superhero who believes that being a stay-at-home mom is more important than anything else she could have done with her life.
Sig and Izumi Curtis (Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
First of all, no couple can top the story of how these two met. Izumi had just killed a bear during a month-long survival trip in a very harsh winter climate. She was hauling the enormous carcass back to civilization when she bonked into a strange man and dropped it. He gallantly picked it up and handed it back to her, and they were madly in love from that moment on. I'm a sucker for visual contrast, and these two have it in spades. She's a (deceptively) dainty-looking housewife, and he's bigger than most grizzlies. These two have been through the hell of losing a child together, and even though they also have no hope of being able to have more children in the future, they've overcome it and are even stronger as a couple.
Rory and Amy Pond/Williams (Doctor Who)
These two had to overcome so much just to get married, let alone to stay together. He had a nasty habit of dying every other episode, and she was nowhere near ready to stop being a kid and having adventures with her imaginary friend. But they made it. He spent nearly two millennia protecting her, and she pulled time apart for him. Also their daughter is insanely awesome.
Mr. and Mrs. Darling (Peter Pan)
I'll just let Mrs. Darling do the work for me on this one.
Wendy: Father, brave?
Mrs. Darling: There are many different kinds of bravery. There's the bravery of thinking of others before oneself. Now, your father has never brandished a sword nor fired a pistol, thank heavens. But he has made many sacrifices for his family, and put away many dreams.
Michael: Where did he put them?
Mrs. Darling: He put them in a drawer. And sometimes, late at night, we take them out and admire them. But it gets harder and harder to close the drawer... He does. And that is why he is brave.
The King and Queen (Tangled)
Good grief. I started to tear up just looking for pictures of these two. If they ever teamed up with Carl and Ellie from Up, I'd be a goner. They don't even have any lines, and have probably a minute and a half of screentime total, but there's no doubt how much they love each other and their daughter.
Guido and Dora (La Vita è Bella)
Dora ordered a Nazi official to stop the train so that she could go to the concentration camp with Guido and Giosué. She wasn't Jewish; no one would have made her go, but she couldn't stay safe at home while her husband and little boy were at a place like that. And Guido managed to keep his family safe even in such dire circumstances. Excuse me while I go sob in the corner for an hour or two.
I'm limiting myself to those six main ones, but honorable mentions go to Little John and Fanny from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Sabriel and Touchstone from the Abhorsen trilogy, Arthur and Molly Weasley, and Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy (hey, they picked their son over Voldemort in the end after spending their entire lives following him, okay, and I defy anyone to look at Makani's fan art and not come away with loads of love for the Malfoys, so there).
Edit after Kairos's comment: Gah! And I forgot Tenzin and Pema from Legend of Korra! Them. Definitely also them.
'Nother edit: Argh! I forgot Fergus and Elinor from Brave! Them too.
Bob and Helen Parr (The Incredibles)
One of the biggest reasons I love these two so much is that Bob could pretty much *be* my dad, except for the whole super strength thing, obviously. Bob and Helen are the superheroes who are parents first. Bob's central conflict is learning that his family is more important to him than being a hero, and I love Helen to pieces because she's a superhero who believes that being a stay-at-home mom is more important than anything else she could have done with her life.
Sig and Izumi Curtis (Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
First of all, no couple can top the story of how these two met. Izumi had just killed a bear during a month-long survival trip in a very harsh winter climate. She was hauling the enormous carcass back to civilization when she bonked into a strange man and dropped it. He gallantly picked it up and handed it back to her, and they were madly in love from that moment on. I'm a sucker for visual contrast, and these two have it in spades. She's a (deceptively) dainty-looking housewife, and he's bigger than most grizzlies. These two have been through the hell of losing a child together, and even though they also have no hope of being able to have more children in the future, they've overcome it and are even stronger as a couple.
Rory and Amy Pond/Williams (Doctor Who)
These two had to overcome so much just to get married, let alone to stay together. He had a nasty habit of dying every other episode, and she was nowhere near ready to stop being a kid and having adventures with her imaginary friend. But they made it. He spent nearly two millennia protecting her, and she pulled time apart for him. Also their daughter is insanely awesome.
Mr. and Mrs. Darling (Peter Pan)
I'll just let Mrs. Darling do the work for me on this one.
Wendy: Father, brave?
Mrs. Darling: There are many different kinds of bravery. There's the bravery of thinking of others before oneself. Now, your father has never brandished a sword nor fired a pistol, thank heavens. But he has made many sacrifices for his family, and put away many dreams.
Michael: Where did he put them?
Mrs. Darling: He put them in a drawer. And sometimes, late at night, we take them out and admire them. But it gets harder and harder to close the drawer... He does. And that is why he is brave.
The King and Queen (Tangled)
Good grief. I started to tear up just looking for pictures of these two. If they ever teamed up with Carl and Ellie from Up, I'd be a goner. They don't even have any lines, and have probably a minute and a half of screentime total, but there's no doubt how much they love each other and their daughter.
Guido and Dora (La Vita è Bella)
Dora ordered a Nazi official to stop the train so that she could go to the concentration camp with Guido and Giosué. She wasn't Jewish; no one would have made her go, but she couldn't stay safe at home while her husband and little boy were at a place like that. And Guido managed to keep his family safe even in such dire circumstances. Excuse me while I go sob in the corner for an hour or two.
I'm limiting myself to those six main ones, but honorable mentions go to Little John and Fanny from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Sabriel and Touchstone from the Abhorsen trilogy, Arthur and Molly Weasley, and Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy (hey, they picked their son over Voldemort in the end after spending their entire lives following him, okay, and I defy anyone to look at Makani's fan art and not come away with loads of love for the Malfoys, so there).
Edit after Kairos's comment: Gah! And I forgot Tenzin and Pema from Legend of Korra! Them. Definitely also them.
'Nother edit: Argh! I forgot Fergus and Elinor from Brave! Them too.