Irulan is NOT AWESOME

[so_out_of_ideas]

There are a lot of writers today (mostly female, but not all) who think that a "strong" female character has to be this sort of angst-ridden thing with an attitude and a smart comeback for every response. Very few authors can pull that off, and I've started avoiding authors who trot out these characters in the opening pages of their novels altogether.

I also tend to roll my eyes when I ask someone what they like about a book or a show and they tell me "Oh, I always identify with a strong female character."

Now, before the knee-jerk reaction causes anyone to bruise their shins, take a look at my fiction. It always, without fail, contains female characters in lead roles, and those women either start out or become intelligent, witty, independent, educated people who can in most cases handle themselves just as well as the men in a fight, if not better.

So what am I rolling my eyes at? Essentially, it's this:

The phrase has become one of those things like "cool" which is so overused that nobody really knows what it means anymore. Any time there is a female protagonist--especially one who claims not to want to get married when cultural rules dictate that she should--the character is automatically placed in this class of sacroscant femininity, and to say that one does not find the character appealing becomes like saying that one prefers to eat babies. Very little critical analysis goes into figuring out exactly who this character is and why she acts the way she does. She's female. She can shoot. She has a chip on her shoulder, especially about guys. What else needs to be said?

This is my list of awesome female characters from books, film, and television. The list is not exhaustive. Some of them are rather obvious choices, others you may not be expecting. They aren't always the good guys and they aren't always likeable. They're just AWESOME. Characters who have minor roles and display no personality in their canon appearances but are developed in fanfiction don't count. They're pretty much in whatever order I thought of them because if I sat here and tried to list them in order of awesomeness, I'd go insane. Opinions are welcome, as are suggestions. Flaming is not, thank you. (There will also be a list of awesome male characters, as I happen to think there are plenty of those out there as well, and I'm not a sexist.)


Jaime Sommers (both, but more the original. She was my first role model as a child.)
Leia Organa Solo (my co-role modle with Jaime)
Shmi Skywalker
Padme Amidala (all of them, but Mom is my favorite. Mwhahahahaha.)
Mara Jade (both of them)
Polgara the Sorceress (David Eddings)
Jael (Jeffery Carver)
Janie (Zora Neal Hurston)
Jane Eyre
Liza Jane Wilder (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Harriet Oleson (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Anne Shirley Blythe
Julie of the Wolves (Jean Craighead George)
Wendy (Sharon Wagner)
Susan Pevensie (CS Lewis)
Aeon Flux
Sam Carter
Janet Fraiser
Elizabeth Weir
Teyla Emmagen
Katherine Langford
Vala Mal Doran (I liked Vala in Prometheus Unbound, then I just despised her throughout the beginning of season 9, so to anyone who isn't a Vala fan...I understand. Really. But she is awesome, and I love her now.)
Marlena Glenn (aka Queen Marlena)
Teela
Shadow Weaver
Hagar
Athena (Greek mythology. I loved her as a kid and have been fascinated by her ever since.)
Scarlett O'Hara (Margaret Mitchell)
Dana Scully
Kira Nerys (I thought Kira was a total pain, and I hated her throughout my entire first viewing of DS9. Then I realized that the reason she drove me up the wall was that she's exactly like me.)
Jadzia Dax
Beverly Crusher
Katherine Pulaski
Deanna Troi
Vash
Kamala
Uhura
Miramanee
Christine Chapel
Margaret Hoolihan
Edith Bunker
Gabrielle de Lioncourt
Lessa
Brekke
Menolly
Killashandra Ree
Ghanima Atreides
Gaius Helen Mohiam (I hate her too)
Chani Atreides
Jessica Atreides
Alia Atreides (*smacks self over and over and over!* *begs Alia for forgiveness for forgetting her*)
Hwi Noree
Irulan doesn't make the list. Irulan is NOT AWESOME. Read the books.
Lois Lane (Various incarnations)
Diana Prince (Various incarnations)
Shayera Hol (Hawkgirl)
Raven (Teen Titans)
May-Alice Culhain (Passion Fish)
Chantelle (Passion Fish)
Bonnie Barstow (Knight Rider)
Tessa Noel (Highlander)
Amanda (Highlander)
Yelena (Maria V. Snyder)
Irys Jewelrose (Maria V. Snyder)
Stephanie Plum (Janet Evanovitch)
Moiraine Damodred (Robert Jordan)
Tarma (Mercedes Lackey)
Kethry (Mercedes Lackey)
Kerowyn (Mercedes Lackey)
Selenay (Mercedes Lackey)
Xena
Discord
Maleficent (Any character who can still scare the crap out of me at 31 deserves to be on the list)