The Unpopular Woman Love Post

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Well. Another year, another halfamoon fest of awesome. Another chance to celebrate the characters who are unappreciated and unloved.

Personally I'm the kind of fan who always roots for the underdog, and there are many female characters who fill that role, and even more of them fill it role in fandom if not in their respective canons. This post is for people who want to fan the hell out of their unappreciated women and do it as loud as they can. It works like this:

1. Start a thread and put the character's name and the canon they come from in the subject line.

2. Those who love the character comment on the thread with squee, thoughts, fic/art/vid recs, picspams, essays, links and everything they can think of. Make sure your character gets all the love and the attention she deserves.

3. If a character has a thread and you want to talk about her, comment to the thread in question. General comments and threads for new characters go to the main post.

4. Focus on the love. This is an all positivity, all time post. Embrace your happy!

5. Avoid making negative comparisons to other characters or other character types. Those characters and character types have their fans too.

Links to the threads will be compiled in this post.

Being a love post for unpopular characters, this post is bashing free. If you have any negative thoughts either about the characters discussed or their rivals in fandom (meaning no "well this character sucks more!" kind of comments), please keep them to yourself. This is about celebration and love, so let's keep it that way!

And now, celebrate!

Threads

Gwen, BBC Merlin (Thread includes pictures, vid rec, fic rec and a link to picspam)
Gwen Cooper, Torchwood (Thread includes pictures and a vid rec)
Thirteen, House (Thread includes a link)
Ellen Harvelle, Supernatural (Thread includes a vid rec)
Kido Saori/Athena, Saint Seiya (all series)
Winry Rockbell, Fullmetal Alchemist (Thread includes pictures and fic recs)
Dawn Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Thread includes pictures)
Kate, Terminator (Thread includes pictures)
Anastasia "Dee" Dualla, Battlestar Galactica (new) (Thread includes pictures)
Riley Dawson, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Thread includes pictures)
Bela Talbot, Supernatural (Thread includes pictures, vid rec and a fic rec)
Niki Sanders, Heroes (Thread includes a link to fanmix)
Jo Harvelle, Supernatural (Thread includes links to fiction journal and to delicious links)
Cally, Battlestar Galactica (new) (Thread includes pictures and a fic rec)
Bonnie Bennet (Thread includes pictures and a vid rec)
Anji Kapoor, Doctor Who
Relena Peacecraft/Darlian, Gundam Wing (Thread includes pictures)
Jennifer Keller, Stargate: Atlantis (Thread includes pictures, fic recs and link to picspam)
Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter (Thread includes a link)
Izumi Orimoto, Digimon Frontier
Betty Draper, Mad Men
Chloe Payne, Mercy (Thread includes pictures)
Helen Cutter, Primeval (Thread includes pictures)
Nymphadora Tonks, Harry Potter (Thread includes pictures)
Amy March, Little Women (Thread includes pictures)
Alex Fielding, Wire in the Blood (Thread includes pictures)
Rita Bennett, Dexter (Thread includes a vid rec)
Tear Grants, Tales of the Abyss (Thread includes a shrine link)
Sophie Aubrey, the Aubrey/Maturin novels (Thread includes pictures)
Diana Villiers, the Aubrey/Maturin novels
Kate Freelander, Sanctuary (Thread includes pictures)
Elizabeth Weir, Stargate Atlantis
Kate Pulaski, ST:TNG (Thread includes pictures and vid rec)
Tosh, Torchwood (Thread includes a fic link)
Melanie Bush, Doctor Who (Thread includes pictures)
Josephine Grant, Doctor Who
Tory Foster, Battlestar Galactica (new)
Christine Everheart, Iron Man (film)
Myka Bering, Warehouse 13
Claudia Donovan, Warehouse 13
Diana Fowley, The X-Files
Jolinar, Stargate SG-1 (Thread includes pictures)
Anise/Freya, Stargate-SG-1 (Thread includes pictures)
Yuffie Kisaragi, Final Fantasy VII (Thread includes pictures)
Tifa Lockhart, Final Fantasy VII (Thread includes pictures)
Aerith Gainsborough, Final Fantasy VII
Anamaria, Pirates of the Caribbean (Thread includes pictures)
Atsuko Jackson, Michiko to Hatchin (Thread includes pictures)
Elizabeth Swann, Pirates of the Caribbean
Shan, Doctor Who (Thread includes pictures)
Mai, Avatar: the Last Airbender (Thread includes pictures)
Lila, Dexter (Thread includes pictures)
Christine Hill, Dexter (Thread includes pictures)
Amy Burley, True Blood (Thread includes pictures)
Chibiusa, Sailor Moon (Thread includes pictures)
Ezri Dax, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Tess Harding, Roswell (Thread includes pictures and a video clip)
Britta Perry, Community

Comments

Gwen - BBC Merlin

[robinmarian.livejournal.com]

I love her so freaking much!!! She's the ultimate QBIC!!!

LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!!!

(http://tinypic.com)

Re: Gwen - BBC Merlin

[mustbethursday3.livejournal.com]

I'll second that.

God, I love that pic, she's all fairytale heroine with a dash of 'I could kick your arse' - which is obviously a brilliant combination.

Arthur never stood a chance.

Gwen Cooper - Torchwood

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

Another Gwen! Gun hidden in your wedding bouquet; badass or really really badass?

Re: Gwen Cooper - Torchwood

[copracat]

Really, really badass, of course!

Thirteen - House

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

I somehow have no Thirteen icon, but she's a large part of the reason I got dragged back into House after drifting away mid-season 2. Snarky troubled bisexual doctors = yes please.

Re: Thirteen - House

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Thirteen! "Snarky troubled bisexual doctor" sums up everything that is awesome about her; I love that she has attitude and is not afraid to use it and her self-destructive streak makes her just so damn sympathetic and identifiable to be. She's just so awesome and interesting and one of the best things about House.

Ellen Harvelle - Supernatural

[sophiap.livejournal.com]

Not just a badass woman, but a badass woman of my generation. That's getting rarer and rarer to see.

(I really do need an Ellen icon - I should get on that).

Re: Ellen Harvelle - Supernatural

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

I've only seen two episodes with Ellen (the season 5 ones) but even on such a short acquaintance her epic amounts of win are obvious.

Kido Saori/Athena - Saint Seiya (all series)

[lilacfield.livejournal.com]

She's stronger and takes a more active role in Next Dimension than in TOS, but I think she's still pretty kickass in the Hades Chapter.

Winry Rockbell ~ Fullmetal Alchemist

[evil-little-dog.livejournal.com]

I've been waiting for a character like Winry Rockbell for a long time. A female character in a Japanese anime/manga with her own strengths that aren't hidden away under layers and layers of girly; who doesn't walk behind the hero but beside and even beyond him; who has her own life and her own feelings and isn't pining away when Edward's out doing his noble questown thing; intelligent, handy, adorable, semi-tragic-but-not-letting-that-interfere-with-her-life-goals, thankyewverrrrymuch; and possibly the strongest character in any of the three versions of the series.

Re: Winry Rockbell ~ Fullmetal Alchemist

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

I think Winry is great too, but I'd really like it if we didn't use the word "girly" in negative sense, okay? Girliness can be awesome too, that's just not something Winry's brand of awesome is about. (This is not intended to be snippy BTW, I just want to avoid the negative comparisons.)

Dawn Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer

[slartibartfast.livejournal.com]

There is so much hate towards this character but since reading season eight I can't help but love her.

Re: Dawn Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Awwww, Dawn! I always found her insecurities very easy to identify with, and I loved watching her grow into a strong, beautiful woman, and the relationship between her and Buffy is one of my favorite things about the show.

Kate - Terminator (3 and 4 specifically)

[medie]

(Bryce Dallas Howard's Kate pictured)



I have adored Kate pretty much from the moment she locked John Connor in a dog cage and snarked on him a little. Snarky, quick thinking redhead who, when faced with a crazy man babbling about the apocalypse and then two totally-impossible robot types showing up to prove him right, she panics but she keeps going. She totally owned me when, the first time she saw a hunter-killer, seconds after her father's death, she doesn't fall to pieces, she grabs a shotgun and fights back.

Fandom these days tends to ignore her for not being metal, but I think she's pretty much perfect the way she is. Strategist, military leader, doctor, wife, mother, friend and confidant to more than just her husband.

She's amazing.


eta to resize the image. *facepalm* didn't realize how big it was.

Re: Kate - Terminator (3 and 4 specifically)

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

I loved Kate, and she is seriously the only reason I'm ever going to bother watching the fourth movie.

Anastasia "Dee" Dualla -- BSG (new)

[fallingtowers.livejournal.com]

Because she didn't have any special destinies or grand role to play. Because she was that quiet, ordinary, professionally competent young woman caught in an apocalyptic clusterfrak. Because her calm, hopeful trust in the Fleet kept her strong most of the time. Because she wasn't afraid to give the Commander a piece of her mind or to resort to desperate measures to bring Baltar down. Because she really believed in Earth. And because she deserved so much better than she got.

Re: Anastasia "Dee" Dualla -- BSG (new)

[colls]

*bounces* THIS!!!!
I was shocked but not surprised with the way she ended (does that make sense)? You put it so eloquently. *sobs*

Riley Dawson, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

[fallingtowers.livejournal.com]

Because she came a very long way from home on her mission. Because she was afraid neither of time travel nor of facing down a T-800. Because she was struggling with PTSD and longing so much for a normal life. Becaused she lied and acted and pretended to save mankind. Because she either betrayed or was betrayed by the people she loved, all to take some metal down.

Re: Riley Dawson, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

I thought Riley was one of the most heartbreaking characters in the show. She tried so hard and got so little, and the way her life ended.. but she tried. She did what she could and she did it great.

Bela Talbot, Supernatural

[dotfic.livejournal.com]

Bela introduced something new into the world of Supernatural -- someone knowledgeable about hunters and the existence of monsters, yet not a hunter herself, and not a supernatural creature either. Unlike the Winchesters, she's in it purely for profit, stealing and selling magical objects. She's a thief, enjoys her job and is smart and capable, not entirely evil and not entirely good, and she was a terrific foil for the Winchesters (especially Dean). The reveal about her back story was compelling, and revealed intriguing layers to her character, without softening her too much, but the character got short-shrift and not enough time to play out her story.

Re: Bela Talbot, Supernatural

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

I am madly in love with Bela. She captured my attention every single second she was on screen and I loved every twist and turn of her character. (I want to rec, for others reading this thread, a truly amazing Bela vid (http://proofpudding.livejournal.com/128248.html) that just completely blew me away.)

Niki Sanders, Heroes

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

I loved Niki so, so much. From her very first moment she fascinated me and Ali Larter's performance was just so amazing--she never lost me, not for a second. I fell in love with her and Jessica and watching Niki grow stronger and stronger the more people tried to push her down, and finally grab hold of her power for herself. I never get tired of rewatching her scenes.

Re: Niki Sanders, Heroes

[cinnamon-sakaki.livejournal.com]

Niki/Jessica's storyline has become my main favourite storyline of Season 1. I think Ali Larter is terrific - it's amazing rewatching and seeing the subtle changes in her manner when she transforms for a second into Jessica. She's a mature woman with everything to lose, and I really enjoyed seeing her develop into someone who is no longer afraid.

Jo Harvelle, Supernatural

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

Jo just OWNED MY HEART from the second she showed up. She never got a fair chance but managed to be one of the most compelling characters on the show, which I chalk up to the character concept being amazing and Alona Tal being brilliant. I loved that her relationship with her mother was just as important as her daddy issues, that she demanded respect and took what she wanted.

Re: Jo Harvelle, Supernatural

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

Again, I'e seen very little of Jo thus far, but on the basis of those two episodes I adore her to tiny little pieces.

Cally - Battlestar Galactica reboot

[cinnamon-sakaki.livejournal.com]

I'm super fond of Cally. She's plucky, determined, kind and loving. She's not uber-special or with a big destiny, but an ordinary person with real fears and fragility. I think Nicki Clyne did a fantastic job putting her character across.

Re: Cally - Battlestar Galactica reboot

[nicole-anell.livejournal.com]

Nicki Clyne is awesome. I think Cally was a very real young woman in the midst of a horrible situation, sometimes easy to love and other times frustrating. She was often helpless against the forces around her, but remained fiercely opinionated and protective of herself and the people she loved.

Also, she bit a potential rapist's ear off. :D? :D?

Bonnie Bennett - The Vampire Diaries

[djkiwi2576.livejournal.com]

(http://photobucket.com/images/katerina%20graham)

Re: Bonnie Bennett - The Vampire Diaries

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

Bonnie is AMAZING. Anyone who doubts this should watch this vid (http://thuviaptarth.dreamwidth.org/127055.html) and see if you can keep from crying. Her storyline is one of the most compelling on the show and the episode where she became Emily is my all-time favorite of the season so far.

Anji Kapoor, Doctor Who

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

okay, so she's unpopular mostly due to NOBODY KNOWS WHO SHE IS, but you guys. Trust me. Anji is FREAKING AMAZING. She's a character from the Eighth Doctor series of books, which were published in the span between the TV movie and the 2005 reboot. She's a financial--okay, I'm not so well versed in what people do with money, but she's one of those people who works with money *g* and she's hard-headed and smart and solid, and thrust into a completely confusing world while dealing with the loss of her loved one and the possibility of never getting home, but she still manages to stand up to the Doctor and find her own way. She's also HILARIOUS, and the sections written from her POV are some of my favorite. Her eventual, growing relationship with the Doctor and Fitz (one of the other companions from these books) is the basis of my favorite TARDIS team ever.

Re: Anji Kapoor, Doctor Who

[dancesontrains.livejournal.com]

I've only read one of her books so far, but I'm looking forward to trying more. :D?

Relena Peacecraft/Darlian - Gundam Wing

[ingvild.livejournal.com]

(http://tinypic.com)

Because she learned, changed and grew. Because she was strong and compassionate and honest and brave and never lost her integrity. Because she fought as hard as everyone else, only with words rather than a battlesuit. Because she stumbled but found her feet again. Because her political opponents admired her. Because she forgave her father's killer. Because she wanted to be near a boy until she could find her own strength, and actually did find her own strength - at which point he began to depend on her. Because when she was kidnapped, she spent the entire time trying to talk sense into her captor.

Daughter, sister, friend, schoolgirl, sovereign, diplomat, Queen of the World and democratically elected minister. Relena was the lead lady (perhaps even lead character) of Gundam Wing, and she was awesome.

Re: Relena Peacecraft/Darlian - Gundam Wing

[anenko.livejournal.com]

♥

All this, yes.

Jennifer Keller, Stargate: Atlantis

[shinealightonme]

She once saved Carter & McKay, the genius twins of the SGC, using a trick she picked up in a bar. AND she's totally the sanest person on Atlantis, and all the stronger and more amazing for the fact that she's not some superhuman with half a death wish.

Re: Jennifer Keller, Stargate: Atlantis

[thingswithwings.livejournal.com]

I think she's lovely! She's a bit of a doofus but scarily competent at the same time, which is a combination always guaranteed to win me over. Here are a couple of recs:

Never Bend With the Rainfall (http://monanotlisa.livejournal.com/745959.html), by monanotlisa (Teyla/Jennifer)
It Builds Character (http://siegeofangels.livejournal.com/383539.html?thread=1015091#t1015091), by pentapus (Teyla/Jennifer)
A Denouement After Salamanders (http://pentapus.livejournal.com/252643.html), by pentapus, accompanying art by ileliberte (Teyla/Jennifer)
lovely Teyla/Jennifer art (http://steammmpunk.livejournal.com/17525.html) by steammmpunk
Double Dip (http://community.livejournal.com/non_mcsmooch/11511.html), by siriaeve (Jennifer/Ronon)

And, foregoing humility, I'll point to some of my own fic involving Jennifer as well:

History of Lovers (http://thingswithwings.livejournal.com/25234.html) (Jennifer/Ronon/Rodney)
inverse topography (http://thingswithwings.livejournal.com/25802.html), (many pairings, eventual Teyla/Jennifer)
Teyla/Jennifer promptfic (http://thingswithwings.livejournal.com/51233.html?thread=1810977#t1810977)
Jennifer/Laura promptfic (http://thingswithwings.livejournal.com/51233.html?thread=1830433#t1830433)

Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter

[dancesontrains.livejournal.com]

Because she had Tom Riddle inside her mind and survived to grow up into a confident teenage girl in control of her own sexuality. Because while the Trio were on the camping trip that never ended, she and her friends were covertly fighting again the Death Eaters in Hogwarts, and helped win the war.

Re: Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter

[savepureness.livejournal.com]

She's honestly the fiercest HBIC in HP, and no one can deny it!

Izumi Orimoto, Digimon Frontier

[acmeeoy.livejournal.com]

Not so much hated as her inner strength being ignored. She was the one who slapped malicious Digimon before she became one, broke out of Ranamon's spell all by herself, and fought to the bitter end with her friends against evil many times over. Izumi deserves to have her inner strength recognized!

Betty Draper, Mad Men

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Because with her everything is under the surface. Her emotions are buried so deep she doesn't even seem to understand them, yet she tries to. Because she's been held on pedestal so long that she has hard time operating out of it and thinking for herself, yet she knows there's more to life than that and she wants that more. Because she's learning to stand up for herself and to demand respect and love she deserves. She's flawed to the bone, but she's growing all the time and it's wonderful to watch. Betty is the main reason I watch Mad Men.

Re: Betty Draper, Mad Men

[heather.livejournal.com]

I love Betty so much! I don't think I could explain it better than you have here. Well-rounded as a character, deeply complex, and incredibly sad. I love how she doesn't even understand what she wants or how to get it but knows she wants more.

Chloe Payne - Mercy

[summerstorm.livejournal.com]

Unappreciated possibly just because the show she's on doesn't have a fandom to speak of, as far as I know, but unappreciated all the same.



Oh, Chloe. She's a nurse. She's young and idealistic, but she's not afraid to stand up for what she believes in when the world around her doesn't behave the way she'd like it to. She likes to feel wanted—"I just want to be with someone who laughs at my jokes and desperately wants to take my clothes off."—and she seems to love love, but she won't sacrifice her principles for it, and she's smart enough to let go of a guy when the relationship is unlikely to end well. She tries to be helpful, but she doesn't put up with crap, and she truly cares about doing her job well. And her friendship with Angel and not-quite-friendship-but-getting-there with Sonia (who is also a wonderful character) are two of my favorite things about the show.



And on a shallower note, she's gorgeous, isn't she? <333

Helen Cutter - Primeval

[bella-farfalla.livejournal.com]

Most of the fandom hates her, but I think she's fascinating. (Although I will admit that the writers could have done better with her, which is another reason why she deserves to be here!)

(http://s391.photobucket.com/albums/oo356/bella_farfalla_soph/Photos/?action=view&current=2stills37.jpg)

Re: Helen Cutter - Primeval

[fly-to-dawn.livejournal.com]

HELEN CUTTER IS FUCKING AMAZING. The end.

Nymphadora Tonks, Harry Potter

[magnetic-pole.livejournal.com]

Because when I first met her she was funny and irreverent and pink-haired and busy catching the bad guys, just the way I've always wanted to see my heroines. And then she then she fell in love with a man who didn't seem to appreciate her or deserve her, and all of the humor and irreverence and awesomeness disappeared. She just wilted there on the page, as I was reading. And just when I thought it couldn't get worse, she got married--despite the fact that her man still didn't seem to appreciate her--and dropped out of the hunt for the bad guys while she had a baby. It's not like I don't respect the desire for love or a family, but at what cost? Everything wonderful about her character had vanished. By the time she reappeared to fight in the final battles, I didn't really care whether she lived or died.

Nymphadora Tonks' story is not the story I want for myself. But it's the story we have for her, and I certainly have enough experience redeeming other characters (often men) who are not only human and flawed, but whose actions have hurt others and tested the limits of our abilities to understand and forgive. Can I do this for her, too?

I still love her. I wish it were easier to do so.

Amy March, Little Women

[nocowardsoul]

can't believe I'm doing this

She knew what she wanted, and she didn't let money or being a woman get in the way. She tried to have a good vocabulary. If she was spoiled as a little girl, well, the youngest almost always is, and she did take the cream and muffins. And as a woman, she was generous, composed, and realistic.

Re: Amy March, Little Women

[nicole-anell.livejournal.com]

Ha, I kinda love you for this! :D When I read "Little Women" as a kid, of course my mom told me I was a Beth... but I secretly identified with Amy a lot.

(And Kirsten Dunst was just precious in the '90s movie.)