It’s a well known fact that males can be, simply put, a little dumb. Many texts between my friends and I are some variation of “Boys are stupid” or “This isn’t difficult, I don’t understand what part of the male brain can’t comprehend this,” which is why we so often turn to fictional characters for our daily dose of romantic idealization. Any innocent conversation between the authors turned into a larger idea: fictional though they may be, many male characters can actually teach their real life counterparts a thing or two. Some of our favorites, in no particular order, are below.

1. Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Star Wars trilogies

He treated Leia as an equal: though he was snarky and a “scoundrel,” he never treated Leia as anything less than the strong leader she was. He challenged her and pushed her boundaries. He had no problem acknowledging that sometimes she was right and it was ok for the girl to do the rescuing. He also delivered one of the most rogue-ish but also most iconic romance lines of all time.

2. Coach Taylor, Friday Night Lights

Even though he's a big-time football coach, he always makes time for his wife, Tami, and his brat of a daughter. He puts them above everything. He shows constant respect for his wife, and he loves her more than he even loves football, which is saying something. Even though he already won the prize, he continually works at his marriage and making Tami happy. He's a true family man, and while he does have his moments of anger and makes mistakes, IMO, he's just about as close to perfect as a man can get.

3. Mr. Darcy, Pride and Prejudice

Darcy is flawed: his pride in his wealth and status in society make it hard for him to handle growing attraction to Elizabeth Bennett, because of this class difference. Nonetheless, he puts himself out there. Though Elizabeth rejects him angrily, he protects her family’s reputation at great cost to himself without the hope of her ever knowing, or reaping any reward. His love for her makes him a better person.

4. Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) 10 Things I Hate About You

He's a troublemaker, and despite his relationship with Kat starting out as a bet, he calls it off when he falls for her. Their headstrong personalities of each balance each other out. He saw the best in a girl no one else could, or bothered to; he was able to see beneath her armor, and realized the front she put on for the world wasn’t who she really was.

5. Jake, Sixteen Candles

Sam Baker was the epitome of a nerd. She was constantly either embarrassing herself or getting embarrassed by her family. Even though Jake was the hottest, coolest senior in the school, he didn't let social norms stop him from going after Sam. He didn't let her crazy family deter him, and he ended up being the only one who remembered her birthday. While this isn't a love story, their romance, and Jake throwing away his social status was one of the sweetest moments of the Brat Pack movies.

6. Troy Bolton (Zac Efron), High School Musical series

He didn’t let social stereotypes or pressure from his friends dictate who he liked and went after. He embraced a side of himself he never realized he had and was able to share that with Gabriella. He fought for her when she was scared, and realized when he messed up and owned up to it.

7. Albert Brennaman, Hitch

Albert is the lovable smart guy that falls for the gorgeous girl. He puts Allegra above everything, but he doesn't allow himself to be changed in order to get her to like him. He works every minute to be the best he can be, for her. He's also an incredible friend to Hitch, even when Hitch is being a jerk. We could all stand to be a little more like Albert.

8. Angel (David Boreanaz), Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Not everyone has a perfect past, and sometimes people can be downright cruel (in Angel’s case, a murdering demon vampire). But people can also change, and Angel learning from his past, working to better himself, remaining loyal, dedicated to justice, and committed to his woman show that even the bad boy can be a good man.

9. Captain America

Cap was stuck in time for years, and still loved Peggy more than anyone else. Even though she ended up with amnesia because of war injuries, he still loved her. His modern love interest, Sharon, is even thought to be Peggy's relative, so you know Peggy is never far from Cap's mind.

10. Forrest Gump

Let's get this out of the way right off the bat: NO girl should EVER be as mean to a man as Jenny is to Forrest. But Forrest is willing to do anything for Jenny, and he always forgives her for doing him wrong. He's so good to her, and he truly treats her like a queen. Also, what girl doesn't love to be called "my girl"? Through the whole movie, his love for Jenny is what drives him.

11. Noah Calhoun, The Notebook

Oh goodness, one of the most iconic love stories of all time. Every girl wants a Noah.

Where to start? First of all, Noah was willing to climb up a Ferris Wheel to get Allie to give him the time of day. He was so sweet and caring, and he truly loved her. When she broke up with him, he wrote her 365 love letters (one each day for a year!). Then, years later, when she showed up, he still loved her so much that he was willing to go to battle against her fiancé. After she got Alzheimer's, he would read their love story to her every day, in the hopes that she would remember and they would have a few moments of being Noah and Allie. Most of all, the way Noah looked at Allie every time the two of them were on screen is the way every girl wants to be looked at.

Bonus Animated Character: Prince Eric.

If actions speak louder than words, than that is certainly how Ariel and Eric fell in love -- he was willing to risk it all for her and didn’t care about where she came from.

Bonus Villain: Darth Vader

Though he turned to the Dark Side, everything he did he did out of love for Padme and their child, in the end defeating the ultimate evil to save his son.