It's a list
Because I'm feeling kind of spammy today and I could only get through 'Inside Out' on my TR LFN rewatch before I decided that I would forever live in S2 of LFN, I present to you my OTC's to steal a term from Internet Lingo Land.
Honorable Mentions
Paul Wolfe-La Femme Nikita- Even though we are not on speaking terms during parts of S4, pretty much all the romantic gestures that occur in TR are Paul's doing; and in a relationship as dysfunctional/unhealthy as TR, it was so nice to see Paul remember Madeline's birthday or buy her a gift. And honestly, if the romantic gestures had been left to Madeline, she would have just screwed him in the Perch all the while thinking about her efficiency numbers.
Laura Roslin- BSG- Really, Laura should get a spot in my top OTC's. It is not her fault that the writers spent 4.5 destroying her character. In the good times, she was my airlocking President who walked a line of democracy and dictatorship without ever truly giving into either side. In the bad times, she was Bill's girlfriend.
George Lass- Dead Like Me- If there was ever a character on tv that I could point to and say that is me, it would be George. I identified with her apathetic, misanthropic, and irreverent attitude towards everything. Perhaps, it was the fact that I watched Dead Like Me my senior year of high school that allowed me to connect so strongly with George. I think everyone goes through a postmodernism period in their life, and when I was going through mine, I had George to make fun of it all.
10. The Women of Farscape: Aeryn, Zhaan, and Chiana
I couldn't possibly choose a favorite between the three women so l cheated and listed them all. While their names are funky and Farscape can be off putting with its blurring of the lines of crack! and poignancy, these women make the show worthwhile. They are setup to look like stereotypes: Aeryn the bad ass warrior woman; Zhaan the new age priestess; Chiana the rebellious and troublesome young woman; but as soon as you think about buying into the trope, these women turn the stereotype on its ear and defy your expectations.
9. Janet Frasier: Stargate SG-1
Even though she was only a minor character in the show, she made SG-1 worthwhile. While she was a doctor, she was never super doc! with the ability to fix strange alien diseases. Janet did what she could, sometimes it was enough, sometimes it wasn't. She was a fresh breath of normalcy in a show where every other character was either super smart, super cunning, or super strong.
8. G'Kar: Babylon 5
What is this? A boy on my OTC list! Blasphemy, I say. Seriously, though, G'Kar, deserves a place on this list full of amazing women because he started the show as a villain who looked as though he would be the one who would bring the galaxy/universe to war and ended his run on the show as the man who worked to stop 'a war without end.'
7. C.J. Cregg: The West Wing
The West Wing was chocked full of people who you wanted to be real so that they could be the ones actually running the government, and at that top of that list would be CJ. Competent, quirky, smart, funny, strong, bold, loyal, I could go on all day and use all the adjectives in the dictionary and still not be satisfied. Throughout the show, every one of the West Wing characters had their wonky moments where you began to like them a little less than you did, I never had that moment with CJ.
6. The Wire
It is impossible to have an OTC on the Wire. Believe me, I have tried so hard to determine an OTC so I could just rewatch the show for his or her parts and I can't. Too many characters, too many character evolutions/revolutions, too many moments that make you smile, and too many moments that make you hurt.
The Wire, much like La Femme Nikita did with Section, manages to make the setting Baltimore as much as a character as Omar, Kima, Lester, Jimmy, Stringer, Avon etc. are. I have never been to Baltimore, but after watching the Wire, I care about what happens to that city like I care about what happens to the areas local to me.
5. Claudette Wyms: The Shield
A middle aged African American female detective who is normal sized and who kicks a whole lot of ass with her mind instead of her gun, um...Yes, Sign Me Up for More Please!!!!!!!!!!
The beauty of the Shield and Claudette is, after the first season when the Shield decided to use her as the foil to the main character, Vic Mackey, they didn't go the traditional route of demonizing her as the bitch administrator with little to no redeeming qualities. The Shield writers still kept her as a kick ass detective who was sick of Mackey's 'play by no rules attitude,' but understood that Mackey's methods got results and as long as he got results he would remain in play. She didn't try to undermined him or red tape him to death; no, she was logical about the situation and carefully set up his demise and in the end, she had the last laugh.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Claudette Wyms is how you write a female boss in a cop show.
4. Sarah Connor: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
I have wrote this before some where maybe in a comment, reply, or a post, but it still remains true, 'Sarah Connor is my favorite contradiction.' I could write so much more about Sarah, but most of it has already been said by people much more articulate than I.
3. Kahlan Amnell: Legend of the Seeker.
Before I had seen the last episode of S1 of LOTS, Kahlan was around number 5 or 6 on my OTC list. Mainly, because I was afraid that some of my enthusiasm was due to the newness of LOTS; but after watching the last episode of S1, Kahlan deserves to be number 3.
I must confess that I fell for this Confessor within the first few minutes of LOTS. Some of it was the way that Confessors remind me of the Bene Gesserit (an order of kick ass women who believe that they can control the universe) from Dune and some of it was her self-sacrificing nature.
Oh by the way, my true OTP on LOTS is not Richard/Kahlan even though they bring the pretty and the angst but it is Kahlan and her two daggers.
2. Juliet Burke: Lost
Even though in a week from now I will probably be cursing Lost and hating it worse than BSG and its pigeon of fail, my love for Juliet will remain.
She can kick your ass, but you can still break her heart. She will lie to you, but she will also be your most loyal ally. She will make the hard choices and gamble with your life, but she will also give up her own for you. She is a rock, but she still breaks.
She is her namesake, but she still plays the part of Rosaline.
1. Madeline: La Femme Nikita
Surprise, surprise. I think everyone knows that I can and have gone on for days and days about my love for Maddy, and I think everyone knows that even if I went on for days and days about her awesomeness, I still couldn't articulate it. So with that in mind, I will just show you.
Honorable Mentions
Paul Wolfe-La Femme Nikita- Even though we are not on speaking terms during parts of S4, pretty much all the romantic gestures that occur in TR are Paul's doing; and in a relationship as dysfunctional/unhealthy as TR, it was so nice to see Paul remember Madeline's birthday or buy her a gift. And honestly, if the romantic gestures had been left to Madeline, she would have just screwed him in the Perch all the while thinking about her efficiency numbers.
Laura Roslin- BSG- Really, Laura should get a spot in my top OTC's. It is not her fault that the writers spent 4.5 destroying her character. In the good times, she was my airlocking President who walked a line of democracy and dictatorship without ever truly giving into either side. In the bad times, she was Bill's girlfriend.
George Lass- Dead Like Me- If there was ever a character on tv that I could point to and say that is me, it would be George. I identified with her apathetic, misanthropic, and irreverent attitude towards everything. Perhaps, it was the fact that I watched Dead Like Me my senior year of high school that allowed me to connect so strongly with George. I think everyone goes through a postmodernism period in their life, and when I was going through mine, I had George to make fun of it all.
10. The Women of Farscape: Aeryn, Zhaan, and Chiana
I couldn't possibly choose a favorite between the three women so l cheated and listed them all. While their names are funky and Farscape can be off putting with its blurring of the lines of crack! and poignancy, these women make the show worthwhile. They are setup to look like stereotypes: Aeryn the bad ass warrior woman; Zhaan the new age priestess; Chiana the rebellious and troublesome young woman; but as soon as you think about buying into the trope, these women turn the stereotype on its ear and defy your expectations.
9. Janet Frasier: Stargate SG-1
Even though she was only a minor character in the show, she made SG-1 worthwhile. While she was a doctor, she was never super doc! with the ability to fix strange alien diseases. Janet did what she could, sometimes it was enough, sometimes it wasn't. She was a fresh breath of normalcy in a show where every other character was either super smart, super cunning, or super strong.
8. G'Kar: Babylon 5
What is this? A boy on my OTC list! Blasphemy, I say. Seriously, though, G'Kar, deserves a place on this list full of amazing women because he started the show as a villain who looked as though he would be the one who would bring the galaxy/universe to war and ended his run on the show as the man who worked to stop 'a war without end.'
7. C.J. Cregg: The West Wing
The West Wing was chocked full of people who you wanted to be real so that they could be the ones actually running the government, and at that top of that list would be CJ. Competent, quirky, smart, funny, strong, bold, loyal, I could go on all day and use all the adjectives in the dictionary and still not be satisfied. Throughout the show, every one of the West Wing characters had their wonky moments where you began to like them a little less than you did, I never had that moment with CJ.
6. The Wire
It is impossible to have an OTC on the Wire. Believe me, I have tried so hard to determine an OTC so I could just rewatch the show for his or her parts and I can't. Too many characters, too many character evolutions/revolutions, too many moments that make you smile, and too many moments that make you hurt.
The Wire, much like La Femme Nikita did with Section, manages to make the setting Baltimore as much as a character as Omar, Kima, Lester, Jimmy, Stringer, Avon etc. are. I have never been to Baltimore, but after watching the Wire, I care about what happens to that city like I care about what happens to the areas local to me.
5. Claudette Wyms: The Shield
A middle aged African American female detective who is normal sized and who kicks a whole lot of ass with her mind instead of her gun, um...Yes, Sign Me Up for More Please!!!!!!!!!!
The beauty of the Shield and Claudette is, after the first season when the Shield decided to use her as the foil to the main character, Vic Mackey, they didn't go the traditional route of demonizing her as the bitch administrator with little to no redeeming qualities. The Shield writers still kept her as a kick ass detective who was sick of Mackey's 'play by no rules attitude,' but understood that Mackey's methods got results and as long as he got results he would remain in play. She didn't try to undermined him or red tape him to death; no, she was logical about the situation and carefully set up his demise and in the end, she had the last laugh.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Claudette Wyms is how you write a female boss in a cop show.
4. Sarah Connor: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
I have wrote this before some where maybe in a comment, reply, or a post, but it still remains true, 'Sarah Connor is my favorite contradiction.' I could write so much more about Sarah, but most of it has already been said by people much more articulate than I.
3. Kahlan Amnell: Legend of the Seeker.
Before I had seen the last episode of S1 of LOTS, Kahlan was around number 5 or 6 on my OTC list. Mainly, because I was afraid that some of my enthusiasm was due to the newness of LOTS; but after watching the last episode of S1, Kahlan deserves to be number 3.
I must confess that I fell for this Confessor within the first few minutes of LOTS. Some of it was the way that Confessors remind me of the Bene Gesserit (an order of kick ass women who believe that they can control the universe) from Dune and some of it was her self-sacrificing nature.
Oh by the way, my true OTP on LOTS is not Richard/Kahlan even though they bring the pretty and the angst but it is Kahlan and her two daggers.
2. Juliet Burke: Lost
Even though in a week from now I will probably be cursing Lost and hating it worse than BSG and its pigeon of fail, my love for Juliet will remain.
She can kick your ass, but you can still break her heart. She will lie to you, but she will also be your most loyal ally. She will make the hard choices and gamble with your life, but she will also give up her own for you. She is a rock, but she still breaks.
She is her namesake, but she still plays the part of Rosaline.
1. Madeline: La Femme Nikita
Surprise, surprise. I think everyone knows that I can and have gone on for days and days about my love for Maddy, and I think everyone knows that even if I went on for days and days about her awesomeness, I still couldn't articulate it. So with that in mind, I will just show you.
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