As most of you know, I’m a huge fan of many different franchises. Books, TV Shows, movies, the list goes on and on. A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about my top ten favorite male characters and it simply wouldn’t be fair not to do a list of my top ten favorite female characters. Coincidentally, some of these characters are the “ships” or the “counterparts” to some of the male characters. Some of them aren’t. Without further ado, here are my Top Ten Favorite Female Characters from books, movies, and TV Shows (counting down from least to most, but they’re all fantastic characters)!
- Bonnie (from the latter seasons) from Vampire Diaries
So this was a hard decision (because I kept debating between her and Hera from Star Wars Rebels), but in the end, I chose Bonnie. In the first few seasons, I disliked her a lot because of her hatred toward vampires, but she grows as the show continues and eventually her and like the most evil vampire in the entire show, aka Damon Salvatore, become best friends. She’s tough, speaks her mind, and will never lie to her friends. She’ll do anything to protect her friends, but sometimes, she can be stubborn when she’s firm in the way she believes and that leads her to make some questionable choices. She goes through so much in the latter seasons and this really got me attached to her and the character development she did.
- Lana from Smallville
Ah, Lana. She’s one of those characters that in some seasons I loved her so much and in others I hated the way she was acting toward Clark. In her defense though, he lied to her A LOT. She starts off as a typical teenage girl who’s also a cheerleader but eventually finds out that things in life are far more important. Over eight seasons she grows so much and changes. The discovery of meteor-infected people really showed her a new side to life, and then one of her boyfriends in a particular season really changed the entire way she acted. She learned to lie and deceive others and that led to her hurting people that she loved and making mistakes. She’s hurt so many times, but comes through it as a strong hero that we weren’t expecting her to turn into.
- Daenarys Targaryan from Game of Thrones
I thought she would score higher, honestly. But she starts off as this frightened girl thrust into a terrible situation and only grows stronger and stronger as the seasons progress. Her development is such a journey, just like Bonnie’s and Lana’s are. She’s strong but not just because fire can’t hurt her and she has three dragons. No, she’s strong because she’s a queen who doesn’t take no for an answer. When she puts her mind to something, it happens, and when she’s determined to win, she wins. Naturally, she has setbacks like every character does, but she always comes out on top, thus far anyway. I think the last season forces her to face some challenges and obstacles that she wasn’t expecting, which forces her to rely on someone for the first time and that was so cool to watch her go through and I loved it so much.
- Claire from Outlander
She’s a nurse from World War Two, so what’s not to love about that? She can have a dirty mouth when she wants and she’s extremely stubborn and strong-willed and doesn’t back down. This clashes well with her main ship, Jamie Fraser. She goes back in time and has to learn and adjust to life back then but has trouble fitting in because she’s an Outlander. She paves her own way and forms a life that she wants in her own way and is a force to be reckoned with. She’ll fight to the death to save her loved ones and does well under pressure. She’s not only strongly developed but strong as well and her character arcs take her through so much along her journey and she overcomes so many obstacles.
- Snow White from Once Upon A Time
I absolutely LOVE Snow. The way they tweaked her character from the original fairy tale is intriguing but still stayed true to the compassionate woman who has a pure, good heart. She always tries to do the right thing and yes, even Snow White herself has made mistakes. Despite them, she always tries to make up for them and to be a good person. She teaches that good overcomes evil and to never give up or lose hope. It’s so encouraging and inspiring to watch and her actress is even more fantastic.
- Padme Amidala from Star Wars
She’s been a favorite of mine for longer than anyone on this list (Katara is the close second, and Clary is a third in terms of how long they’ve been my favorites). She’s outspoken and unafraid to speak her mind. She’ll stand up in front of thousands and stand up for the right thing. She’s a leader and a good thinker, able to get herself out of most situations on her own without help from anyone else. Despite this, she isn’t afraid to ask for help, or demand it if she must. She knows how to speak to others and will always try to seek a diplomatic solution to any situation and doesn’t want to resort to violence if she doesn’t have to. She’s well-developed and changes throughout the three movies she’s involved in and she’s one of those characters that we always want to see more of.
- Mary, Queen of Scots from Reign
Mary fights for her Kingdom and her people before anything else. Secondly, comes her friends which also includes the love of her life, Francis. Even though she loves him dearly, she’s put into a lot of situations that force her to choose her country over Francis and even over his country. It creates this amazing and entertaining dynamic and it leaves so much room for her character development. The woman at the end of the show is not the same as the one in the beginning and that’s how you know you have a good, fully developed character.
- Ahsoka from Star Wars the Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels
When she first appeared, like many fans, I was unhappy with it. “She’s Anakin Skywalker’s Padawan? What? He didn’t have one in the movies!” But when I watched the TV Show Clone Wars and each episode developed her further and expanded on her and so, so many other characters in the Star Wars galaxy, I fell in love with her. I found myself rooting for her character to win, to overcome and she did. She was reckless and made a lot of mistakes, but never failed to make things right. Then, at the end of the Clone Wars when she left the Jedi Order, even though that set things up for the movies perfectly, I missed her so much and my heart hurt. So when they brought her into Star Wars Rebels as an adult who’s wise I was SO excited. She leads and guides the Rebels and helps them as much as she can. Then the final face off with her and Vader brings it full circle back to Ahsoka and Anakin and she just – I love her. She’s such a strong character, like all the others on this list, and if anyone deserves a live action Star Wars film, it’s her.
- Katara from Avatar: the Last Airbender
Like Padme, Katara is an oldie that I will never tire from. She’s a waterbender who travels with Aang so he can master the other four elements. Each episode takes her and their little group on many adventures, most with obstacles for her to overcome. She isn’t very good at waterbending at first, but no one works harder than she does to train and get better. By the end of the entire show, she’s one of the most powerful waterbenders. She fights for what’s good and for her friends and will never stop trying to save people and stop evil. She sees good in others even after what they’ve done and she’s the first to trust them and wants to see the best in them, even if it come back to bite her later. She’s just such a fully developed character, probably the most fully developed, best arc, and so much change, than the others on this list.
- Clary Fairchild from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare and also the TV Show Shadowhunters
Clary is just a typical girl trying to make her way in the world when she learns that all the stories are true, of this secret world. Her best friend is wrapped into the circumstances too and she finds out her father is the most evil man in the world. She learns how to fight, discovers the powers she was gifted with, is able to invent runes, and these are only just the basics. She loves fiercely and will do anything to protect her friends, even sacrifice her own life and die for them if that’s what it takes. She falls in love and does what she can to keep that love alive, despite all the reasons why it won’t work. She’s strong in every aspect and what’s so cool is that she was totally normal at the start. She grows and becomes all of this and we get to watch her and change with her. She’s easily relatable and that makes her so much fun to read or watch on screen.
Well, these are my top ten favorite female characters. They’re all strong, fully and well developed, and entertaining to read. They have obstacles they’ve overcome and took me on journeys with them through their stories. Which ones of these are your favorites?
