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

Diana Fowley (The X-Files)

[ryf.livejournal.com]

Oh, how some Mulder/Scully shippers hated her.

I thought she was great :)

Jennifer Hailey (Stargate: SG1)

[ryf.livejournal.com]

I have yet to meet more people who loved her on Stargate: SG1. Maybe some people here can stand her :)

Sakura (Naruto)

[anenko.livejournal.com]

Sakura is often accused of being weak and useless. Some fans are kind enough to allow that she's kind of cool after the timeskip, when she can punch holes into the ground.

I think Sakura has *always* been awesome, even she was petty and unthinkingly cruel in her obession over Sasuske. She grew up a lot faster than many fans give her credit for.

Dawn Summers (BtVS)

[ryf.livejournal.com]

Dawn grew on me, especially in the last season. I heard that the rold was originally written for a girl a few years youngerm which explains a lot of the season 5 annoyances. Even so, I always felt her story was interesting and in the last season she was just plain awesome.

Anastasia Dualla

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

Even people on my friendslist dislike her, and someone once challenged me to come up with reasons why I liked her. (that link, I'm gonna have to go searching for)

Scans of the BSG comic, wherein Dee is awesome (http://lyssie.livejournal.com/1213785.html) (spoilers for the comic, obviously)

Re: Jennifer Hailey (Stargate: SG1)

[amathela.livejournal.com]

I loved her - and everyone - in Proving Ground, which is absolutely my favourite episode of SG-1. And I ship Elliot/Hailey like burning, which makes it really disappointing that she doesn't have more fans. I need fic for my obscure OTPs!

Lana Lang (Smallville)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

Generally believed to be the cause of everything wrong in Smallville, Lana is severely disliked by fandom. She has suffered from some very uneven writing, but she is also a complicated person who struggles with her life and herself, and is a good, if not necessarily sympathetic, character by her core.

Re: Dawn Summers (BtVS)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

I also loved Dawn. She was a teenager with a lot of pain behind her, so of course she would get a little abrasive from time to time, but considering the life she lead, her behavior was perfectly normal. And she grew up just fine.

Re: Anastasia Dualla

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

That comic was fantastic! Seasons 3 and 4 are mostly mysteries to me, but Dee was very likable in the first two seasons, and I also liked Lee/Dee. It's been strange to see how fandom turned so fully on her.

Maya Herrera (Heroes)

[visiblemarket.livejournal.com]

She was never exactly my favorite character, and the direction they've taken her lately has really annoyed me, but I had a genuine fondness for her in S2.

Despite the weepiness, despite the lack of control, despite the complete and utter dependence on her brother and the fact that she completely played into Sylar's manipulations, I still felt for her. Maybe because of all that, actually, and maybe because of the fandom's reaction to all that.

Because Mohinder in S1 was just as easily duped by Sylar (more so, in my mind, because at least he knew about the existence of Sylar, and should've maybe been a little more suspicious earlier), and that whole adventure bred most popular pairing #1, Mylar. And Peter was just about as indecisive and ultimately dependent on his brother to keep him from killing tons of people, which brings us to most popular pairing #2, Petrellicest. Neither of those characters are quite as generally disliked as Maya, which automatically made me a little protective of her.

And while I might have been frustrated by a lot of aspects of her character, I didn't hate her. I actually found a lot of her most frustrating attitudes, towards her power and her brother, to be logical extensions of what she'd been through. There were hints enough of her past that made me think before it all got started, she'd been a pretty interesting and independent young woman, within the confines of a still very machismo-focused culture.

She spoke English even though her brother didn't, for one; I realize it was most likely for plot purposes, but I liked the idea of it, of her getting educated and wanting (in my mind at least) to improve her situation a little.

The depiction of her faith also interested me; Heroes treads lightly on questions of religion (or did, up to S3), but I think realistically certain characters would definitely embrace their faith to get through all the crazy stuff they're going through. And it didn't seem heavy handed with Maya; that good old standby for angst, Catholic Guilt, was a lot more better played with her than it ever was with Sylar, at least in my mind. Less drama, less creepy rooms, but a genuine crisis of doubt and attempt at forgiveness.

So I liked Maya. Hated her storyline, but not any more so than I hated most storylines in S2, but liked her. Of course S3 ditched just about anything interesting about her and turned her into sluttily-dressed and strangely-accented eye-candy, or Mohinder-bait, but I see that as more the fault of the writers than the character. And I'm frankly glad she was smart enough to get her power taken away from her, and got out when she could.

Relena (Gundam Wing)

[anenko.livejournal.com]

It's been years since I watched Gundam Wing, and I can't remember anything beyond the broad details of the plot (the very broad details). However, I remember how much I loved Relena. She began the series as a sheltered young woman, and ended up the ruler of a besieged country. She faced hard choices, and stood by her beliefs--as unpopular as they may have been.

There were no easy choices in the Gundam Wing universe, and I don't understand why Relena's pacifism was so much worse than the belief that destroying the world was the only way to achieve peace.

Re: Maya Herrera (Heroes)

[anenko.livejournal.com]

I see that as more the fault of the writers than the character.

I wish more people thought the same way in any number of fandoms.

Re: Maya Herrera (Heroes)

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

This is EXACTLY how I feel about Maya too. No, she may not have got the best stories, but there was nothing fundamentally wrong about the character herself, and I really hoped they would have given her the stories she deserved in S3. With the way things went eventually, I was glad she at least got to exit the series alive, though it's sad that was the least one could hope for.

I see that as more the fault of the writers than the character.

Like anenko, I wish this was a more common statement everywhere.

Re: Anastasia Dualla

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

huzzah. I have found the old list.

26 reasons Dee is more awesome than God (http://lyssie.livejournal.com/992031.html) (please note this was written waaaaay back in season three)

Re: Anastasia Dualla

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

I glommed onto Dee (ok, all the women of BSG, to be honest) from the get-go. And watching fandom continue to slam her, arrrgh.

It's not helped by the writers not having any idea what to do with her, after a while. (I like her with Lee, I like her with Billy, I like her with anyone, really.... that was so not meant to rhyme)

Re: Anastasia Dualla

[calapine.livejournal.com]

Oh, I think she's marvellous. She has sense and calm and a quiet, sensible sort of confidence.

Cally Henderson-Tyrol, Battlestar Galactica

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

Whether it's because they didn't like the 'girl next door' aspect, or because they hated her for marrying Chief Tyrol, one thing's clear: lots of people wanted her dead and gone.

Re: Diana Fowley (The X-Files)

[maidenjedi]

DITTO. I loved Diana; I thought she brought some depth to Mulder's history at first, and then I grew to love her for herself. She was complex, clearly believed in what she was doing (when we first met her) and who always believed that what she was doing would ultimately serve the greater good. That made her compelling and someone I always wished had been explored better in the course of the show - thank goodness for fanfic!

Re: Jennifer Hailey (Stargate: SG1)

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

It's been a while, but I distinctly remember loving that she was awesome. And tiny, and yet could still rip your spleen out if you crossed her.

Re: Anastasia Dualla

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

My S3-knowledge is patchy, but I still enjoyed the list! The point I is something I do all the time, too, and I've noticed that most of the time there really is more to see to the hated characters.

I love all the women from BSG too (which is why I hope to catch with the rest of the show ASAP!) and although Dee's personality and storylines may not as be as flashy as those of others, she's a solid character with depth, which are by no means bad traits for a character. But from what I've seen fans and writers are usually unaware it's possible to do wonders with characters like these.

And if you're worried about the unintentional rhyme, here's an intentional one to shadow it: Dee is Leet. There.

Vid recs

[bofoddity.livejournal.com]

There's some great Lana-fic around her, but I think she's been especially well-handled by vidders. Here are a couple of those I've enjoyed.

Sugar (http://keewick.livejournal.com/129249.html#cutid4) and Sorry (http://keewick.livejournal.com/199708.html) by keewick. One of the things that Lana is criticized is for is all the attention she gets from the various males thorough the series, and portraying her as a subject instead of an object was something the writers have trouble with too. These two vids go beneath the surface of Lana and show the how the woman herself is like.

Clark/Lana-relationship is also a frequent cause of frustration, but while the criticism is often valid, there is genuine emotional intensity in their relationship. bop_radar's Samson (http://bop-radar.livejournal.com/137090.html#cutid1) approaches the romance from Clark's POV and talitha78's Sundrenched World (http://talitha78.livejournal.com/163274.html) from Clark's, and they both do a great job of showing why the two of them love each other in the first place.

As far as femlash goes, Chloe/Lana is the pairing to go to, and talitha78's Faster Kill Pussycat (http://talitha78.livejournal.com/130620.html) is the vid to go to. It's fun, sexy and makes you wish their relationship would have got a little more screentime in the show.

Re: Lana Lang (Smallville)

[pervyficgirl.livejournal.com]

Generally believed to be the cause of everything wrong in Smallville,

How utterly, utterly true (the existence of the belief, not the belief itself of Lana being the root of all evil.)

There have been times that I have disliked the character of Lana Lang. But the number of times I have disliked her actions is equal in amount to the times I have disliked everyone else on the show, including the always martyred Lex.

Re: Maya Herrera (Heroes)

[pervyficgirl.livejournal.com]

I liked Maya as well, and the unsatisfying end of her story is one of the reasons that turned me off the show entirely.

Re: Vid recs

[http://users.livejournal.com/_la_mysterieuse/]

Seconding the rec for Sugar- that vid made me look at Lana in a completely different light!

And Faster Kill Pussycat is one of the hottest vids I've ever seen!

Re: Jennifer Hailey (Stargate: SG1)

[boosette.livejournal.com]

ME. I can't believe fandom doesn't like her more, especially considering (as goldjadeocean pointed out to me) she has rather a lot in common with Rodney McKay. (Save that Hailey is better-adjusted, entirely less smug and has her reproductive organs on the inside instead of the outside*.)

I liked her from the moment she walked on-camera, and loved her by the end of Prodigy; Hailey adjusts and yet remains, at least in part, a smartass. She knows exactly how intelligent she is and grows into knowing and what's more, accepting that she's not the Smartest Person Who Ever Lived. It's entirely refreshing.

And then in Proving Ground (my all-time favorite episode ever) she keeps growing, and keeps learning and I totally BFFship her with Saterfield because, well, the vast and storied amounts of :D there.


(Is this a good place to mention that I've signed up to write a novelfic about Hailey, Cam and zombies after the end of the world?

Because I have. And Hailey is also awesome with the kicking of undead butt.)


*No, I couldn't resist that.