Welcome back to my lists!
I shall countdown my Top 20 Favourite Female Characters - characters from any medium, from films, TV shows, books, stage plays etc.
These are not just female characters I merely like, nor are they what is generally considered to be a "strong female character". That's a load of bollocks. These fantastic fictional women are what I consider to be the most well-rounded, the most complex, the most interesting, and the most relatable. They have left the biggest impression on me. It doesn't matter if they are "strong" and there's nothing else to them. What matters is how well-written they are, who are "strong" because they are women, not in spite of it. Or they are feminine and still fully-realised characters not put in a specifically-labeled box because of their gender. Or their gender doesn't matter at all and their stories would be made no different if they were men. They definitely don't exist for the sole purpose of cheesecake, or to be eye-candy, an object for the male gaze, or love interests for a male character.
Another thing to keep in mind: All the characters listed here are fictional. No persons directly based on real people will be included, so there will be no Erin Brockovich or any historical women on this list. This is because I want to highlight how a well-written female can come purely from the imagination of a writer - who can write women as people, who can break the sexist mindset that women are hard to write, without even trying.
Only one character per franchise gets a spot; a couple of times I might cheat and share two characters from the same franchise. Also, like I said last time, this is my list and so it contains my own subjective opinions.
And just in case someone on the internet accuses me of being sexist myself for making a list only about women: After this list is completed, I will start on my Top 20 Favourite Male Characters. Because lord knows there's such a shortage of well-written portrayals of men out there.
But anyway, as with before, let's begin.
20. Sora Naegino ('Kaleido Star')
A heroine from an obscure anime, Sora is one of the most optimistic, friendly, determined, earnest and triumphant characters I've ever seen. And given the amount of shoujo anime there is starring the same old hyper and sensitive girl lead, that is saying a lot. Sora is no naive fool, however. She is a friend to everyone and everything, but she isn't someone to be underestimated. An amateur Japanese acrobat and circus performer living and working in San Francisco, she knows exactly what she wants and she will go through hell and high water to achieve her dreams. She never gives up, even when dealing with physical and emotional pain. This big-eyed anime teen girl's determination and exertion - pushing herself further and further always - is awe-inspiring. Sora has a lot of female friends, and no romance interferes with her life - the Kaleido Stage is her love. She doesn't even like competition - she does what she does because it makes her happy, because she loves it with all her heart. She gets annoyed and angry sometimes, but who doesn't? Even this starstruck Pollyanna orphan has limits. Yeah, she has a tragic backstory as well, but it isn't at the forefront of her character. Her personality remains a winning, positive one. Sora Naegino - the girl who reaches for the stars and back again..
19. Sam Sparks ('Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs')
A lone female in an animated movie that's all about creativity, invention, and having a fun time? A contradiction to be sure. But weather girl Sam Sparks is on this list simple because of this: She is a female character in a slapstick comedy done right. She isn't ignored, written to be less funny than the guys, or abused. She is as much Looney Tunes as everyone else in 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'. Sam has many funny lines, and is a part of the film's cartoony physics and logic - she isn't out of place in the slightest. Even better, she's on the same level of genius as the male protagonist, Flint Lockwood, is, if not more so. She hides her intelligence because she was bullied for it at school. It's because of her intelligence that Flint falls in love with her, not her looks, and later on in the film she ditches her pretty weather girl image and wears glasses and a scrunchy - and she stays that way, even in the sequel. Her brain is respected as the most important thing about her. A reverse-makeover of a nerdy female character, in a children's film at that - absolutely revolutionary. I knew Sam Sparks would be a favourite of mine from that moment on. Plus Anna Faris does a terrific job in portraying her bubbly, hyper-energetic personality through voice alone - it's not just the animation which compliments this great character. Sam doesn't do or say a lot of funny things in the sequel, sadly, but in the original she is a gem, a darling. I adore her.
18. Geraldine Granger ('The Vicar of Dibley')
I love Dawn French. She's a very funny and talented woman, And her role as 'The Vicar of Dibley' is one I will always remember, having watched the classic British sitcom compulsively throughout my adolescence. Geraldine Granger is a woman vicar in the quaint little Oxfordshire village of Dibley, where everyone is mad in their own way. She isn't exactly a straight man herself, as this Christian lady is risque; possessing her own funny quirks and habits. Her love of chocolate and Sean Bean being only the start. Despite some of her hi-jinks, and having short fuse on occasion, Geraldine has a heart of gold, and sticks by her beliefs and ethics throughout the show's run. A caring individual who is very relatable as well as funny. She's significantly tolerant of others as well, living in a village full of odd individuals who she still views as family. A big lady - both literally and figuratively - she is the star of Dibley, and nearly every man she meets falls in love with her. It was so nice seeing a complex woman in a sitcom when I was a young girl; a woman who is sympathetic, and knows when to be both silly and serious where appropriate. No shock value or sexist stereotyping to lean back on - Dawn French is great doing her own thing. It is made a big deal later on that Geraldine is "lonely" and is never the bride in the weddings she conducts, and at the end of the show she gets married off on the fly. But oh well, it was fun while it lasted. Hilarious and lovely, Geraldine Granger is the kind of vicar perhaps every church should have, one to make friends with in real life.
17. Edna Krabappel ('The Simpsons')
Another older lady to admire growing up, just for how human she is. Edna Krabappel is the best recurring female character in 'The Simpsons', in my opinion. Marge's tolerance of Homer's near-sociopathy and abuse of her has become ridiculously grating and frustrating over the years, and Lisa has grown into less of a character and more of a Mary Sue annoyance. But Ms Krabappel, for the longest time, has remained funny and non-stereotypical all on her own. This fourth-grade schoolteacher has had relationships with nearly every man in Springfield and is completely unapologetic about it. Edna is never sorry for who she is and what she decides for herself, and she is the type of woman - once divorced - who never forgives and never forgets, hence why men will only really get one chance with her. As a teacher, she is the bored, chain-smoking, long-suffering supervisor of Bart Simpson and his antics, doomed to be responsible for him forever since, it being 'The Simpsons', the fourth grade will never end. But outside of the classroom she is confident and outgoing; Ms Krabappel is a middle-aged woman, childless and happy for it, who does whatever she wants. And people are okay with that, within the show and out. It's her business, and no one else's. Similar to Geraldine Granger, Edna's character arc shines a light on her independence, and sexist stereotyping isn't relied on for humour when it comes to her. That is until she is also married off at the end of her twenty-five-plus years of development. Urgh. I will remember the times she was truly funny, however.
RIP Marcia Wallace.
16. Donna Noble ('Doctor Who')
While it's been years since I've stopped watching 'Doctor Who' - it got worse and worse, and I can officially say that the show is dead to me - Donna Noble has to be on the list. Because she is the Doctor's best companion, bar none. Donna isn't a lovesick teenage girl or an obsessed, unstable fanatic wanting to suck the Doctor's thousand-year-old cock. Nor is she a typical "strong female character" so common in sci-fi - all kickass but still needing to rely on a man. Donna is a believably-flawed, older woman who gets to go on adventures through time and space, and she takes none of the Doctor's allusive BS. She calls him out whenever he makes bad decisions or says insensitive things. Even though the actors have great working chemistry, there is no romantic tension between the two. No romance for the Doctor with her. Wow. Catherine Tate is another brilliant British comedienne, and as Donna Noble she has proven she can act in drama just as well. Donna isn't as stupid or worthless as almost everyone in her life thinks she is (she's a temp living with her overbearing mother, plus her awesome grandfather). She is in fact proactive and very caring, especially towards children. Donna only needed to believe in herself; she acts ignorant and spoiled because that's the most other people expect of her. Hell, even the Ego Queen of Mary Sues, Rose Tyler, tells her of her importance to both the Doctor and the universe. Rose admitting that someone else might deserve some attention? It is the end of the universe! It raises my spirits that the writers of 'Doctor Who' recognized that Donna is fine on her own. That is until her terrible end at her season finale - I won't spoil much of what happens, but it's a betrayal to everyone who enjoyed watching Donna grow and develop, only to have all that erased and worth eff-all. What a crock. And she gets married off at the end. Shit! Why does that keep happening to my favourite girls? But the unique creation of Donna Noble and how she was treated by the 'Doctor Who' writers (until the end) is a landmark. She was a hoot, and could even make us cry. What an awesome English space lady. We will miss you.
To be continued in Part 2.
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