The Unpopular Woman Love Post

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

It's pretty natural that some female characters do worse in fandom than others, right? And sometimes it's difficult, if not downright impossible, to find a place where you can fan these characters in peace, or fellow fans to fan them with. Not to mention trying to find fanworks about them. Experience says: It hard.

So, stealing the idea shamelessly from doyle_sb4's Women of Doctor Who celebration post, here is a love post for the unpopular female characters. Like in doyle_sb4's post, you start a thread with the character's name and their respective fandom in the subject line, after which people are free to share fic and vid recs, picspams, links to essays, defenses or simply thoughts of love about the character in question. Because unpopularity is a subjective thing most of the time, the character doesn't have to be somebody you know to be the fandom underdog for sure, but if the character also has a large number of fans it would be good to give some reasons about why they're hated and why it's wrong. Links to the character threads will be collected in this post.

Being a post for unpopular characters, this is a bashing free post. If you have any negative opinions about the characters discussed or the fandom rivals of the character of your choice, please keep them to yourself.

And now, knock yourselves out!

ETA: The character and the fandom should both be named in the subject line, I forgot to mention the fandom initially. Sorry about the inconvenience!

ETA 2: If you want to share you thoughts about a character who has a thread, please reply to the thread in question. General comments and threads for new characters go to the main post.

Threads:

Diana Fowley, X-Files (Vid rec, Fic Recs, Fic recs)
Jennifer Hailey, Stargate: SG1
Sakura, Naruto (Fic recs, Author rec)
Dawn Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Anastasia Dualla, Battlestar Galactica (Comic rec, Reasons why Dee is awesome)
Lana Lang, Smallville (Vid recs)
Maya Herrera, Heroes (Vid rec)
Relena Peacecraft, Gundam Wing (Fic recs)
Cally Henderson-Tyrol, Battlestar Galactica
Gwen Cooper, Torchwood
Jennifer Keller, Stargate: Atlantis (Community link, Fic recs, Fic recs)
Niki Sanders
Freya/Anise, Stargate: SG1 (Fic rec)
Maria Hill, Marvel Comics
Thirteen/Dr. Remy Hadley, House MD (Picspam links)
Bela Talbot, Supernatural (Fic rec, Fic)
Shiori Takatsuki, Revolutionary Girl Utena
Tifa Lockhart, Final Fantasy VII
Max Guevara, Dark Angel (Vid rec, Fic rec)
Elizabeth Swann, Pirates of the Caribbean (Author rec)
Cynthia Velasquez, Silent Hill 4
Allison Cameron, House MD (Meme rec)
Liz Sherman, Hellboy
Dr. Camille "Cam" Saroyan, Bones
Ruby, Supernatural
Chloe Sullivan, Smallville
Sakaki Ouka, Weiss Kreuz
Jo Harvelle, Supernatural
Inara Serra, Firefly (Fic Rec)
Lt. Colonel Hollis Mann, NCIS
Director Jenny Shepard, NCIS
Lilly Kane, Veronica Mars
Kate Austen, Lost
Buffy Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Teyla Emmagan, Stargate Atlantis (Link, vid rec)
Alex Drake, Ashes to Ashes
Anya Jenkins, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Fic recs)
Koriand'r, DC Comics
Sam Carter, Stargate SG-1/Atlantis
Ana Lucia, Lost
Padme Amidala, Star Wars
Arwen, The Lord of the Rings
Martha Jones, Doctor Who/Torchwood
Kennedy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Lois Lane, Smallville
Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter
Shmi Skywalker, Star Wars
Mai, Avatar: The Last Airbender (Fic links, Fic links & recs)
Keiko Yukimura, Yu Yu Hakusho
Orihime Inoue, Bleach
Yakumo Tatsuro, Shinzo
Sakuno Ryuzaki, The prince Of Tennis
Tenten, Naruto
Anzu Mazaki, Yu-Gi-Oh!
Temari, Naruto
Himawari, xxxHOLiC
Karen Kouzuki/Kallen Stadtfeld, Code Geass
Yuuki Miaka, Fushigi Yuugi
Meg Griffin, Family Guy
Elliot Reid, Scrubs
Princess Zelda, Legend of Zelda series/Brawl
Mizuki Kaho, Card Captor Sakura
Colette Brunel, Tales of Symphonia
Kaoru Kamiya AND Tomoe Yukishiro, Rurouni Kenshin
Ninian, Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken
Katara, Avatar: The Last Airbender (Vid rec)
Naomi Hunter, Metal Gear Solid
Scheris Adjani, Scryed
Silk Spectre II/Laurie Juspeczyk, Watchmen
Jun the Swan, Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
Hinata Hyuuga, Naruto
Momo Hinamori, Bleach
Miyako Inoue, Digimon 02
Misa Amane, Death Note
Juri Katou, Digimon Tamers
Asuka Tenjoin, Yu-Gi-Oh GX

Comments

Dr. Camille "Cam" Saroyan , Bones

[irony-rocks.livejournal.com]

Because I have never understood why people dislike her. She's smart, sexy, funny and she has a level head on her. She is a strong woman in charge that knows how to handle the squints with style. Classy, all the way.

Re: Dr. Camille "Cam" Saroyan , Bones

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

People don't like her? CAN I COME BEAT THEM UP? She more than anyone is the one I'd want to hang out with, I think. I love the way she keeps her team in line without being bitchy or uber-mom.

Ruby, Supernatural

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry I don't have an icon of her. BUT. She, especially in the first season we saw her, was smart, snarky and soulful, and even now she's saving Sam's ass as often as not.

Re: Ruby, Supernatural

[blacksquirrel.livejournal.com]

Word. If ever there were an argument for judging people on what they *do* rather than what they are/the categories they fit into. She hasn't deserved the constant litany of insults and invective hurled at her in nearly every episode - nor Sam's treatment of her as a dirty secret.

Chloe Sullivan, Smallville

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

In the early days of Smallville fandom, people complained about Chloe getting in the way of the Romance of Clark And Lana. (I am not sure if these people ever read the comics, but let's move on.) She was too pushy, too aggressive.

THIS IS BULLSHIT. Chloe is AWESOMESAUCE. She's the first person smart enough to start getting the connection between the meteors and superpowers, she's one of Clark's best friends and confidantes, she's kept his secret at the risk of her own life and her own mind, and she's smokin' hot. And she has chemistry with just about anyone. She deserves so much better than Jimmy Olsen omg

Re: Chloe Sullivan, Smallville

[irony-rocks.livejournal.com]

Chloe is an unloved character? Dude, I'm shocked. Everyone I know sets her up as their favorite character, and with good reason. She rocks. I was always under the impression that fandom loved her.

Sakaki Ouka, Weiss Kreuz

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

She had the balls to go after the guy she liked, and for this the fandom thinks she's a bitch. She was adorable and sweet, and she deserved better.

Re: Sakaki Ouka, Weiss Kreuz

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Damn, I loved Ouka. I loved all the women of that anime, but Ouka just rocked. She was confident and compassionate and as smart as anyone in that source was allowed to be.

Jo Harvelle, Supernatural

[some-stars.livejournal.com]

Oh my god, Jo. Jo whom I loved, loved loved and got kicked off the show because...fans didn't like her, pretty much. I have written SO MUCH about my love for her and I just don't even know where to start. In my mental SPN universe she has a much, much larger place than in the real one. I love her so much and she had SO MUCH POTENTIAL and Alona Tal was fucking BRILLIANT.

Re: Jo Harvelle, Supernatural

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I know. Jo was a time when they really, really shouldn't have listened to the fandom.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

How about Inara Serra, who is called boring by the fandom, yet has shown herself to have grace, style, strength and a sense of humor?

Inara

[phoenixdreaming.livejournal.com]

"And that's not incense." I'm very fond of beautiful, dignified Inara, and sorry we'll never learn more of her secrets. She has such poise, and knows how to handle herself in any situation.

Lt. Colonel Hollis Mann, NCIS

[waterdaughter.livejournal.com]

People hate Mann because she comes in between their Gibbs/Tony, Gibbs/Abby, Gibbs/Ziva, Gibbs/Jenny, or just Gibbs/whoever OTP. And I actually ship various people with Gibbs, but seriously, Hollis was cool. And she is treated horribly in the fandom.

Re: Lt. Colonel Hollis Mann, NCIS

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

sdfk.

I loved and adored Hollis (my mother didn't like her, but my mother is... less enlightened than I am). She was military through and through, just doing her job, and smart.

She was also a woman who sucked at relationships, but tried anyway.

And she and Gibbs had chemistry through the damned roof.

Director Jenny Shepard, NCIS

[waterdaughter.livejournal.com]

This is a generalization and I shouldn't do it, but I'll take some headslaps for it. Men seem to hate Jenny. There's another forum I frequent that's heavily male-dominated where I feel like the only person who actually liked Jenny. They were actually celebrating when she died, which, wtf. >:|

I loved Jenny, because she was driven, and yes, flawed, but she also brought a great human element to the directorship. She actually seemed to care about her people, and she stuck up for them and stuck her neck out for them. I think she was a great director and I miss her.

I see the Jenny-hate less on LJ and fanfic-focused websites, but there's still some of it from people jealous of her history with Gibbs.

Re: Director Jenny Shepard, NCIS

[vivien]

My husband is not in fandom and loves NCIS. He thinks Jenny is cooool.

(Abby's still his favorite, though. That's okay)

Lilly Kane (Veronica Mars)

[parallactic.livejournal.com]

VM fanfic generally portrays her as an evil slutty bitch in the way of LoVe (Logan/Veronica). Based on canon they're not wrong; but it's also not the whole story. To this day I'm convinced that she was a good friend, but the worst girlfriend in existence. I don't have much evidence for this since most of her scenes are done in flashback. The Lilly I remember is charismatic, exhibitionistic, fun, self-centered, poor impulse control, and goofy. Every scene she was in was electric.

Re: Lilly Kane (Veronica Mars)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

The Lilly I remember is charismatic, exhibitionistic, fun, self-centered, poor impulse control, and goofy. Every scene she was in was electric.

This is how I remember her too, and how I like her. She had such character in her that I had no trouble understanding how devastating it was for Veronica, Logan and everybody else in her life to lose her. She may not have been the best girlfriend in the world, but I never had any doubt that she loved Veronica more than anything. Even if I didn't like her otherwise, that only would make her awesome in my books.

Kate Austen, Lost

[lostinapapercup.livejournal.com]

I know Kate's liked in some corners, and although I've yet to meet someone in person who has a serious problem with her, the internet is a completely different story.

I like Kate because, like all of Lost's original crew of survivors, she's flawed. She's brave, she's protective, she's stubborn to a fault, and she's loyal to what attachments she has. I like her because her personal moral code, though imperfect, has reared its ugly head time and time again. I like her because she's genuinely attracted to two men but never once said I love you to either of them over the few months they were all together on the island. (I don't dismiss her I love him in season three by any means, but I do think Kate, Sawyer, and Jack were played like pawns in that arc and the admission was a forced one. And as I've said before, faced with Pickett's violence against someone I cared for, I probably would've given a dramatic recitation of One Hand In My Pocket if that's what he'd wanted.)

I like Kate for her self-preservation instinct and for not being able to shoot the dying marshal, for climbing trees like a monkey and for liking Patsy Cline, for her restlessness and for snatching up the Halliburton when Sawyer dropped it from a tree, for being unable to resist a chocolate bar the first time she saw the pantry in the hatch and even for being uncertain about both Sawyer and Jack.

I've always thought that with how overprotective and controlling Jack can be with her and with Sawyer's spilling her secret and later playing her for the gun con it wasn't too hard to get why she'd be unsure about where each of them stood with her and where she stood with them, regardless of her personal issues.

There are things I wish the writers would emphasize more or less in her storyline, sure, but I always fail to understand why there's quite so much vehement Kate hate out there.

Re: Kate Austen, Lost

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

The most common reason for hating Kate I've seen is her part in the Jack/Sawyer/Kate-love triangle, and while she might be frustrating at times, Jack and Sawyer are just as bad and often worse, and all of their personalities play a part in how the relationships between then work out. I do often have trouble getting what exactly makes Kate Kate, but I love that she is competent and out for herself, and that she isn't quite capable of staying still and yet holds onto the roots she has. I'm not sure if the writers always get her either, but she's fascinating.

Buffy Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Despite being one of the most iconic female characters, Buffy gets more than her fair share of hatred in fandom. Buffy from early seasons tends to be criticized for being whiny because being a Slayer didn't always make her happy, and often for lack of compassion as well, especially when it comes to Faith. (Despite the fact that she was more concerned about Faith than any of the other Scoobies were where.) In later seasons she became the Bitch Buffy in eyes of the fandom because of her treatment of Spike in S6 and her leadership in general in S7.

In the early seasons, we must remember that Buffy was quite young back then, and being stuck with Destiny is a rather reasonable cause for whine, not to mention being in love with a dead guy with happiness issues. In S6 she had the one great excuse of being resurrected against her will and suffering from massive PTSD as a result, and depression doesn't always make you very nice. Personally I found it almost painfully easy to identify with her during the sixth season, and the manifestation of her depression was closest thing to my own experience I've ever seen come up with fiction. I do think that the writers should have handled the aftermath of S6 a lot better than they did, but I don't think Buffy's behavior made her evil. (Not to mention that again, it's easy to see how differently male and female characters are dealt with in situations like these: PTSD is an acceptable excuse for Cloud Strife's post-game behavior Final Fantasy VII-fandom.)

Also, while Buffy's flaws can be massive and hard to deny, she is also a very compassionate and brave person at heart, and despite the physical and mental pummeling she gets, she always rises in the end. And although she isn't afraid of making the hard choices, she also has no problem searching for alternative ones, which I find very admirable. In my eyes, she more than deserves her iconic status.

Re: Buffy Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

[fallingtowers.livejournal.com]

Major WORD to all of that. Buffy is still my favourite BtVS character, for all these reasons.

Teyla Emmagan, Stargate Atlantis

[tielan]

The first four things I heard about Teyla from other people were:

"Oh, she's just Sheppard's 'yes' girl."
"She's the tits and ass - the eye candy. She doesn't have a purpose in the show beyond that."
"How can you possibly like her? She's got no personality!"
"Her people are primitives, what's interesting about that?"

And although people might have gotten a little quieter about it over the last couple of years, there's still a "well, there's no place for someone like her in my version of Atlantis" current that runs through the fandom (and, sadly, the show).

Me? I adore her. There's something to be said for an emotionally strong, physically capable, and intellectually sharp woman, who doesn't apologise for what she is and doesn't have to be snarky or 'feminist' to count herself worthy of notice.

Re: Teyla Emmagan, Stargate Atlantis

[ryf.livejournal.com]

I like Teyla :)

She's got her own culture and struggles like any human would with adjusting to the Atlantis way, yet she never gives up her identity.

And also, she kicks ass.

Teyla Emmagan, Stargate Atlantis

[azure-horizon.livejournal.com]

Five reasons why Teyla should be fanned

Season 1: She left her people, NOT to become Sheppard's 'yes girl' (so true, Tielan :() but to help fight the Wraith. She trusted in a people she had never even heard of before, let alone had any real experience with.
Season 2: She had enough humanity to empathise with a Wraith turned human. Even though she didn't want to, she tried to identify with him through the fact that she had some Wraith DNA too. Imagine Weir doing that...

Season 3: She controlled a Wraith Queen in Submersion. Seriously, the writers have her powerful when they want and this was just great. Her determination to prove to the people of Atlantis that she was just as good as them... Go Teyla.

Season 4: Her determination to find her people - even when pregnant she kicked that guy's ass in Kindred pt 1. Lorne conceded to her role of command, when Sheppard had kind of given up on her 'vision'. She also did't flip out when she saw Carson come to rescue her, lol.

Season 5: After five years, tptb let her near a computer. The 'dumb indigenous' Athosian was let loose on the ship *shock horror*. I say, it was about time she got to do something other than stand around watching Sheppard and Rodney work on the computers while she was the moral voice. She had a family, made the decision to keep her child on Atlantis, she kicked Michael's ass. From what we seen in season 5, it would not have been shocking to hear Teyla didn't go back to Earth in EATG but she was loyal enough to the people and the cause to, in a sense, not leave them behind.

If that's not enough reason to love her, there sure is plenty of others :D

Re: Teyla Emmagan, Stargate Atlantis

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Hi there! Just for your info, tielan started a Teyla-thread right before you. No need to delete this one, but you could post this as a reply to the earlier thread.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Alex Drake, Ashes to Ashes: she was hated before the show ever premiered, because of the very premise, which sounded like Life on Mars, Once More With Het in the papers, and because the premise also meant most LoM's fans slash OTP was permanently split up (what with one of them reported dead in the AtA pilot). Once Alex made it on to the screen, she was hated for not being emphatic enough, for having one night stands (with no negative aftermath) and thus being "a bad female role model", for having indeed UST with Gene Hunt, and still for merely existing.

As for me, I liked and soon loved her once I actually got around to watching Ashes to Ashes. I liked that she's NOT Sam (or a female version of same); she's her own person, somewhat messed up, but courageous in a realistic way, an adult, not a girl, who has relationships not just with the male co-lead but with other women - her daughter she wants to get back to, her mother whom she used to put on a pedestal and only know learns to relate to as a human being, her collegue, Shaz. I liked that she doesn't get punished by the narrative for being sexual. I liked that she keeps her sense of humour about the craziness that surrounds her. And in conclusion: I like Alex!

[vivien]

I'm looking forward to seeing this show on BBC America! I imagine I'll like Alex just fine.

Dawn Summers (BtVS)

[jerel.livejournal.com]

What I liked about her was that she was so real. Buffy wasn't some superheroine to be in awe of; she was the older sister, with all the baggage that entailed. I think the episodes that really drove this home were "The Body" and...um, the one where Dawn tries to resurrect their mother back. (Can't think of the title right now.)

Yes, Dawn was often bratty, obnoxious, self-centered and impulsive. In other words, a perfectly normal teenager. :)

Re: Dawn Summers (BtVS)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Hi! Dawn has a thread (http://community.livejournal.com/halfamoon/71356.html?thread=330428#t330428) on the first page, so you can join the discussion there.

[tigerlilyaj.livejournal.com]

I wish I had something more meaningful to say than ITA, esp when she integrated Jessica rather than eliminated her. The Niki-DL-Micah bit had personal significance for me, too, as someone who is black-white biracial. Their relationship was about as normal and not All About Race as any black-white interracial couple I've seen on TV or in a film.

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Hi! The next time you want to comment to a thread, could you leave it as a reply to the thread in question?

[monanotlisa.livejournal.com]

Whoa, I adore you! Too late today, but I shall return. ::uses Thirteen icon, with love::

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

That's a beautiful icon! I love her smile.

Anya Jenkins, BtVS

[liviapenn.livejournal.com]

Anya!

She didn't always understand how best to be a human, but she tried really hard.

Re: Anya Jenkins, BtVS

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

And she had all the best lines!

Koriand'r, DC Comics

[liviapenn.livejournal.com]

*points to my icon* On first glance you might think that Kory is the stereotypical Cuddly Alien Bikini Babe. But even when she was first introduced at the beginning of the '80s she had more depth than that. Kory is intensely loyal, unashamedly sexual, never insecure, always concerned about helping the oppressed and hurting, and she's also one of the Titans' major powerhouses. Go Kory!

Re: Koriand'r, DC Comics

[lady-ganesh.livejournal.com]

I read Teen Titans back in the 80's and I remember loving Kory and Raven both so much. She's so awesome!

Sam Carter, Stargate SG-1 / Atlantis

[liviapenn.livejournal.com]

JUST BECAUSE HER REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS ARE ON THE INSIDE INSTEAD OF TH-- No, that's terrible! Who would say that?? ;)

Sam Carter! Brave, tough, smart, persistent, self-sacrificing, and doesn't take sass from anybody. :) I am glad she exists.

Re: Sam Carter, Stargate SG-1 / Atlantis

[sandrine]

From the few SG-1 episodes I'd seen, I disliked Sam a lot. I was prepared to hate her when she came to Atlantis, because this was my show and, gah, did they have to bring my least favorite SG-1 character over?

And then Sam turned up on SGA and it took me hardly an episode to completely and utterly fall in love with her, because she was smart and reasonable and didn't take shit from the boys. In the end, the announcement that she'd leave at the end of the season upset me even more than the announcement than she'd come to SGA had done before.

[jeyla4ever.livejournal.com]

Well, lots of great comments here, so I'll just add this.

Of all the females that came through Atlantis, who graced the most cover pages in Magazines? I don't have the numbers or statistics, but I betcha it was Teyla. She did cover the TV Guide magazine....yes, with HUNKY gorgeous John/Joe Flanigan!

And after all was said and done, she did end up being the second one in the credits making her the female lead in the show, even if it didn't feel like it, at times.

Lastly, the girl has class! She's a warrior, a leader, a team player, a lover, and a mother. With her strengths and weakneses.

And although she is my favorite character, there are several things about Teyla that made her real and unique at the same time. Times when I dislike something that she did or said, and times when I could feel and understand her actions and motions.

I think the best thing about Teyla was that she said so much without actually saying one word!

[foxyinthecity.livejournal.com]

Maybe some of the initial dislikes/complaints may have something to do with the writing, but I believe these same dislikes/complaints may also stem from these people’s prejudices. But I am not going to get into that at the moment.

I so love Teyla. First and foremost, she is a woman. She is strong (physically and emotionally), intelligent, compassionate, serene, and more. There are so many scenes that I can point to why I love this woman. I do agree about the complaints about the writers. Some of the writers failed miserably in writing for this character. Teyla was written well enough in the first three seasons, but not enough when it came to character development and screen time, then season four, the writing suffer and then season five – frankly it seems at times, no writing at all.

So in the end, yes, she was never written to her full potential. What a waste indeed! But yet we do have fan fiction writers who seem to be able to write for this character where the so call professional writers for the show did not. Shame on the writers and the ptb.

Ana Lucia (Lost)

[slippery-fish.livejournal.com]

Stubborn, abrasive, flawed. But also interesting and strong and a heroine in her own right.

Re: Ana Lucia (Lost)

[lostinapapercup.livejournal.com]

I know I probably wouldn't have been her biggest fan if I'd actually been on the island myself, but I never disliked Ana as much as so many people seemed to. Her story was fascinating to watch.

And I loved her recent appearance. She was wonderfully no-nonsense.

Padme Amidala (Star Wars)

[ingridmatthews.livejournal.com]

I don't get the hate/apathy. She's kickass. I adore her.

Re: Padme Amidala (Star Wars)

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Padme is clearly where her daughter got her bravery, poise, compassion, and sense of justice.

Arwen (Lord of the Rings)

[ingridmatthews.livejournal.com]

Yet another mystery. She's amazing! That ride in the first movie was enough to make me adore her forever. Who flushes The Nine down the toilet with a glance? Um, Arwen, kthnx.

Come and claim him, indeed!

Sorry for two in a row, but I was just thinking about both of them today and how I wish they weren't hated so much.

Re: Arwen (Lord of the Rings)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

I absolutely loved that ride too, and it always amuses me to see people complain about it. Guys, it's only a good thing if female characters get a little more screen-time if they didn't have so much in the original text! I'm glad she got to have the presence in the movies that she did.