Okay, that's it.

[apocalypsos]

Tell me something awesome about a woman you love in any fandom. Wax poetic. I want to hear people talk about what they love about female characters. And try to pick female characters or women in RPF who haven't already gotten love so we can spread it around.

And no bashing other people's comments!

You know what? I'm picking Boo. Yeah, okay, she's a very tiny woman. Who cares? She's silly and fun and adorable, and looking at an icon of her always makes me feel better, and she learns how to be brave right before our eyes. I heart that so much that I really wish I had the time to rewatch Monsters Inc. before I leave for work, but I don't, damn it.

Now you go. :)

EDIT: Guys, if you want to do more than one character, go nuts. The more, the merrier, right? \o/

Comments

[poisontaster]

Billie Chambers (Fastlane)

She created the unit, she was the unquestioning, top of the line unit commander over two wild-card men and she regularly schooled them about who was alpha bitch there.

She was smart, devious, ruthless in pursuit of her goals, gorgeous, kickass and competent beyond all belief of the word. Yeah, man. Billie.

[rachel-w-wings.livejournal.com]

Rachel Morgan from Kim Harrison's The Hallows series. She is completely, unfailingly herself,flawed, struggling, and kick-ass.

[beautifulstars.livejournal.com]

i love these books.

[laughingacademy.livejournal.com]

Tiffany Aching, the aspiring witch from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld books. She’s smart, tough, brave, and sensible, yet believably flawed and human. And of course, her mentor Granny Weatherwax, who would have been a magnificent Bad Witch she hadn’t chosen Good.

Ofelia from Pan’s Labyrinth (see icon), who manages to be both dreamy and practical, and is willing to sacrifice her dreams and her life in defense of the innocent and helpless.

Ellen Ripley. In Alien she’s a competent woman unexpectedly plunged into a nightmare, who rises above her terror; in Aliens, she not only faces the monster a second time, but manages to get past the distrust of androids caused by Ash’s betrayal and comes to appreciate Bishop.

[wizefics.livejournal.com]

Ellen Ripley is one of my heroes. I love love love her.

[brynwulf]

I have to represent Amanda Darieux of Highlander: The TV Show. She's survived some horrid stuff, is strong, can steal your teeth out of your mouth and will give you the shirt off her back.

and of course, the MILF, Sarah Connor (from T2, not the TV series, although she's okay too).

[marinarusalka.livejournal.com]

Amanda! I love Amanda! After all these centuries, she still has fun and joy in life, and she's strong and smart and takes care of herself.

[hllangel]

Detective Olivia Benson (L&O: SVU)

She's been dealt some hard hands, and just keeps going, fighting for the victims, and doing what she does best.

Also, Martha Jones and Donna Noble (Doctor Who). Both of them are Kick-Ass.

[wizefics.livejournal.com]

Seconds Olivia Benson! She's so real and vulnerable, but not at all weak.

[huzzlewhat.livejournal.com]

Surfed over here at derryderrydown's prompt — It was so hard to pick just one, so I'm pleased that you've opened the gates!

Aeryn Sun, from Farscape. And while I'm at it, practically every single female character on that show.

Zoe, from Firefly.

And Lois Lane, in every incarnation of the Superman story ever told. My heroine.

[shinga.livejournal.com]

I'm going with an unpopular one...

Ana Lucia from Lost. She is flawed, she makes frequent mistakes... she lost her child and fiance and killed for revenge and ran away from the one person willing to help her but she relented, realized her fault, and was trying to fix it when the plane crashed. She shot Shannon and owned up to it. And despite her hatred for the Others, she had grown past her burning need for revenge and in the end couldn't bring herself to kill Ben.

She is strong, stubborn, determined, and protective. Everything she did she did to protect her people against impossible odds. She is proud to a fault but can and will admit when she's done the wrong thing and can put all of her pride and fear aside to apologize.

Why she is so hated by fandom, I will never guess. Maybe they don't like Michelle Rodriguez. Maybe Kate filled their "tough chick" quota. Maybe Ana Lucia didn't cave in or fall apart in girly tears as soon as a man came along and that makes her a cold bitch. (Meanwhile Kate falls the fuck apart as soon as there's ~*~romance~*~ in the air and everyone still thinks she's ~*~so strong~*~... but I digress)

I love Ana Lucia. <3

[allthelivesofme.livejournal.com]

Ana Lucia! :-)

I didn't like her for a while because I didn't quite get on board with MR's performance, but then I read some meta on the character and really thought about it and was like, "You know what? I'm being silly here. Yeah. She's cool. Interested to see where they go with her." And then LOST did what LOST tends to do with any character I have an actual interest in. Gah.

[spectralbovine.livejournal.com]

You know, I'm not even done with the series yet, but I think I'll toss in a mention of Tulip O'Hare from Preacher. Because she seriously does not take any shit from anyone, especially her boyfriend who espouses some of the more traditional ideals of male-female relations. She gets royally pissed at him for even thinking of "protecting" her because she can take care of her own damn self. She's self-assured and good with a gun, and the fact that she's also in love with Jesse Custer doesn't make her a mushy pushover by any means.

I'll also give some props to Pam Beesley for growing into her own person and defining her own happiness. (Don't call her Pammie.)

[tsuki-no-bara.livejournal.com]

eeee, tulip! i never would've thought of her, but oh yeah. (my only complaint about her would be that the way steve dillon drew her, she had a face like a shovel. >.< but a lot of his women did, and it's not a reflection on her character in any way.) she was no shrinking violet.

[earis.livejournal.com]

*hearts your icon*

[poisontaster]

Elizabeth Weir (SGA)

Civilian commander of a largely military expedition into an unknown galaxy. Where she has to deal with the likes of John Sheppard (who wanted to kamikaze a nuke into a Hive Ship) and Rodney McKay (who blew up a SOLAR SYSTEM). Not only deal with them, she has to HARNESS them, make them work together, for the good of the expedition, make their minds WORK to solve the problems facing them, she had to engender their loyalty (which she definitely did), she had to make them OBEY (which she had moderate success with)...she had to make it all WORK. And she DID.

Not a fighter, doesn't have any special skills, other than her brain and her iron will...but she made that WORK for her.

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

OH THANK GOD. I thought I was weird when I used to watch SGA and liked Elizabeth when the rest of the fandom I interacted with seemed to be so ragey-hating on her for no reason I could fathom.

♥ ♥

[justen.livejournal.com]

Many of my faves have been mentioned, so instead of adding to their love I'll put in a character who hasn't been mentioned yet: Captain Kathryn Janeway.

A strong female character in a position of power, she had to deal with incredibly difficult decisions. Through it all, she tried to remain steadfast to her morals, but in the occasions she faltered, she became even more human and an ideal to live up to who wasn't perfect. She was tough, intelligent, and tender, having to out-think and out-gun many enemies, but nearly always focusing on diplomacy as the first solution. And I could go on...

[wendelah1]

She is a wonderful character. I loved that show.

[beautifulstars.livejournal.com]

This is a great series of comments. Do I have to pick one?
I love Anya from Buffy The VS, because she always spoke her mind, and that included making herself vulnerable in love. And she loved until the very end. She faced up to the darkness.

I also love Sara Ramirez's character (her name escapes me at the moment) because she's curvy and beautiful, and she, too, was willing to make herself vulnerable in love, but when it ended, she didn't. She kept going.

[faithintheboys.livejournal.com]

I love Anya as well. Some of the best lines from the last seasons of Buffy were from her.

[opportunemoment.livejournal.com]

Cordelia Naismith/Vorkosigan, from Lois McMaster Bujold's sci-fi novels. She's a space captain, she's loving and motherly, she's violent, she's incredibly smart and empathetic. And she doesn't just embody righteousness, she actively works to make things better for the people around her...

Also, I've just finished watching the first series of Deadwood on DVD, so I want to give a big shout out to all the women in that, for different reasons. Trixie, Alma, Jody, Jewel, Calamity Jane, even the mostly-mute Norwegian girl. They're not all sympathetic, and they're certainly not all people you'd want to be, but they're all so interesting.

Special mention goes to Calamity Jane, who is probably the first female TV character for a very long time who if you told me her looks are not important to her, I would believe you. She's such a breath of fresh air when it comes to female TV characters. She is drunken and dirty and violent, and screwed up, and still a good person, and she makes her own way in the world in a way that no other woman anywhere in the show has managed.

One more! OK, two more. Captain Roland and her daughter Emily, from the Temeraire novels. They're maybe not that unloved, but they are certainly completely awesome.

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

OMMGGGGG JAAANNNEEEE AND ROLAND AND EMILY> ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[flewellyn.livejournal.com]

Cimmorene, from Patricia Wrede's "Dealing With Dragons" and its sequels. A princess who finds the life of a princess utterly boring, she runs off to live with a dragon, learns magic and swordplay, keeps house and keeps up a library, and makes friends with a matronly witch with lots of cats, and a giant couple who own the world's silliest flying carpet (cream colored, covered with teddy bears. PINK teddy bears. BRIGHT pink.).

[allthelivesofme.livejournal.com]

I have those books in my amazon.com cart! :-)

[girl-wonder.livejournal.com]

Oh! Another one:

Deb from Dexter. Fully her own woman, brass and competent, but not perfect. Never perfect. She's an awesome sister. She knows what she wants and finds a way to get it.

Even when she'd been kidnapped by her serial killer boyfriend, she learned how to fight back and reclaim herself.

[apiphile.livejournal.com]

OH MY GOD WHY DID I NOT THINK TO SAY DEB. *draws a million hearts* She's so ... I love her foul mouth and her way of dealing with insecurity isn't to hide behind her brother or whatever, it's to Get Tougher. Beautiful.

I'M SORRY I CANNOT CHOOSE. :(

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

OMG I CAN'T CHOOSE. I love Elle. And Jenny. And Gert. OMG GERT! I love Gert so much. And Molly and Nico. And Sue Storm. And bloody Brenda, and Milagro, and Mrs Reyes. And Atom Eve.

And I love Martha. I love Ellen and Jo. I love Amber. Haha I did a lot of crying last night.

And OMG TOPH. How much do I love Toph? I can't even count the ways without breaking down into a flailing mess. And I do love Katara. Even Azula, because I can't help loving the faily ones. AND MAIKO BECAUSE LOL. AND SUKI. SUKI IS BRILLIANT AND AWESOME AND YESSSSS ♥. AND TY LEE BECAUSE SHE IS TOTES ALL "STFU YOU EMO IDIOTS". AND YUE EVEN THOUGH, Y'KNOW.

AND I LOVE BOO. AND LILO. OMG LIIIIIILLLLLLOOOOOOO SHE IS THE ONLY DISNEY PRINCESS I CAN RELATE TO.

AND HAHA I KIND OF LOVE MIGNOLA'S LILITH. She is just so persistent and awesome and tormenting.

Re: I'M SORRY I CANNOT CHOOSE. :(

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

OH I FORGOT I LOVE ALL THE WOMEN FROM FIREFLY BECAUSE I AM EASY LIKE THAT.

[scary-being-me.livejournal.com]

I'm going with Polgara from the Belgariad books.

She's intelligent, kind, and motherly. She's the moral compass for her companions. She tolerates no foolishness. She doesn't mind telling a king (or a god for that matter) that they're out of line and exactly which line they need to be towing...NOW. She also kicks serious ass when someone threatens her family. Not bad for a cook on a farm.

[shadow-phoenix2.livejournal.com]

haha you just totally summed up my thoughts on Pol.

[daniidebrabant.livejournal.com]

I've got one.

The Keeper from The Invisible Man.

When it came right down to it, she was awesome. She was brilliant, she was patient, she could shoot, she could cajole, she could bullshit. She had a dog named Pavlov, she was strong when she needed to be and she took bullshit from no one. When it came right down to it, at the end of the series, she stuck by her friend and her principles and she gave Darien the cure even though it would cost her her job because she cared for him and she knew it was the right thing to do no matter what the Official said.

[the-ellcrys.livejournal.com]

It does my geeky heart good to see this here. There's not enough I-Man love to go around these days.

[poisontaster]

Christina Yang and Miranda Bailey (Grey's Anatomy)

Christina...dude. Where to start. Relentlessly smart. Ambitious. Amazingly skilled, super competent. Tremendously loyal. Wonderful friend, fierce lover. Tremendous inner strength and pride of self. Unafraid of her power, unafraid of her self.

Miranda Bailey. Tough, no-nonsense, smart, competent (do we see a theme here?). Steel will. Eminently truthful, even when people are not ready or unwilling to hear the truth. Huge heart. Deeply passionate, deeply emotional. She endures. Like The Dude, she abides.

Yeah.

[hobbit-feet.livejournal.com]

YES ON BOTH OF THESE! Particularly Bailey who is hilarious and tough and will not put up with your shit while still being profoundly compassionate.

*points to icon*

[telaryn.livejournal.com]

Because really...that woman is awesomeness that cannot be contained with mere words.

[fakymcfakerson.livejournal.com]

1) Laura Roslin (BSG). She's strong, she's smart, and she'll do anything to protect her people- even drive herself nigh unto death. Sure, it infantilizes them a bit, right now- but she doesn't have the energy to play the politics to explain to them why they *need* this.

2) Vesper Lynd (Casino Royale). Smart, gorgeous, and completely strong and independent even as her life was being ripped to shreds. She kept her shit together, and was on top of it, when most people would be running for the hills.

3) Pepper Potts (Iron Man movieverse). She's doing what she wants, and she doesn't take shit for it. She's brilliant- she's the social/life genius equivalent to Tony's mechanical genius. The über-working-woman.

4) Starbuck (BSG). She's gone crazy, but she's still awesome. She'll come back, I know it. Damaged, but still persevering- she epitomizes our weaknesses and strengths.

5) Deanna Troi (ST: TNG). Shut up. She was awesome and I loved her.

6) Willow (BTVS). Smart, funny, and insecure. And gorgeous.

7) That chick from The Thomas Crown Affair played by Renee Russo (...The Thomas Crown Affair). I just loved how she dressed, how she dealt with the cops, and how she handled herself as she was falling for the thief. A great blend of toughness, smarts, and personality. I started drinking green stuff for breakfast to be more like her. I'm even considering getting her haircut this week. :)

...I should stop now, it'll be a freakin' essay soon.

[fakymcfakerson.livejournal.com]

And Polgara (Belgariad), and Abby Carmichael (L&O), and Donna Noble (DW), and Ellen (SPN), and Teyla (SGA), and Belle (beauty & the beast, disney edition), and, and, and. There are so many great female characters out there.

[cereta.livejournal.com]

I love Susannah Dean (Stephen King's Dark Tower series) because she is smart and tough and idealistic in a world where she has every reason not to be. I love her because she's smart enough to realize that she need both halves of herself to be whole, that she needs Detta's anger as much as Odetta's reason. I love her because she loves, even after everything.

[allthelivesofme.livejournal.com]

Amen. :-D

[cereta.livejournal.com]

Five Reasons Jenny Shepard (NCIS) is Awesome

1. Jenny backs down for no one. If she makes a political decision, it's because she thinks it's what's best for NCIS and her country, not because she's being pressured.

2. Jenny is the perfect, absolute, 100% perfect boss of a maverick main character. Regardless of gender, she strikes a perfect balance of support and setting limits.

3. That said, Jenny is also a perfect woman boss. I might quibble about her romantic past with Gibbs, except that she makes that an asset rather than a liability, and she does it not by relying on Gibbs having a soft spot, but by letting what she knows of Gibbs help her make decisions.

4. Jenny has her team's back.

5. Jenny has relationships with other women that have nothing to do with men (see:Ziva). However, she is also able to use her mutual feeling for a man to bring her closer to other women rather than letting it drive her away from them.

That is why Jenny Shepard is awesome.

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

ILU A LOT RIGHT NOW. ♥ ♥ ♥

[jillybinks.livejournal.com]

I really love Angela Montenegro from Bones. I like the fact that has a lot of traditionally female characteristics that are usually used to show women as weak. She takes those characteristics and makes them awesome and shows how those so called flaws make her powerful.

She lives so much from her heart and is willing to let that overweigh the voice of her brain and it's awesome and right. However, while she makes decisions from her heart, he brain backs up her decisions with awesome reasoning. She also absolutely knows her own mind and does not comprimise what she believes in.

She's empathetic and loving but never weak. She's the heart of the show and the heart of the lab. She endlessly strives to do what she can to help others and to show her friends kindness, but is never a doormat. Plus, she's pretty damn sexy and owns it. She's good at her job, her life and her relationships.

[goddessleila.livejournal.com]

She takes those characteristics and makes them awesome and shows how those so called flaws make her powerful.

YES THAT EXACTLY.

[amalthia]

Aeyrn Sun from Farscape. I love her like seriously LOVE her. I loved seeing her growth from a solider to something more and she was beautiful and strong and smart and loyal to her friends. She also kicked some serious ass when she needed to. I kind of want to be her.