Top Five TV Characters I Admire

The 20 Thing I Like list went down quite well. It was a fun one to write about as well though it took longer than I expected, in part because I really had to think about things that I do like rather than just passing 'flavour of the month' things. So, in keeping up with things that I like I am going for TV characters that I admire.

Kara Thrace/Starbuck - Battlestar Galactica (re-imaging)
I never really saw the original though I can understand the outcry about changing Starbuck from a man into a woman but I think it was a fraking brilliant move. Starbuck, especially in the first two seasons, was extremely kick-ass and awesome on so many levels. It is great to see a woman who can drink, swear and fight with the best of them. She was real and, as you know, I love my flawed heroes because I find I can relate to them more easily. Katee Sackhoff made Starbuck an icon of science fiction.

Angela Montenegro - Bones
I love all the characters on Bones. To me, the show is more about the characters and what drives them than the actual crime aspect of the show. In my mind, each of the characters are uniquely interesting but no more so than Angela. From her fashion sense to her intelligence, which is in no way overshadowed by the rest of the characters, she is a great role model and someone who I admire in terms of characterisation. I love the fact that, although she is technically a squint, she also has an open mind to the world - though not in the same way as Hodgins.

Dr. Spencer Reid/Penelope Garcia - Criminal Minds
From the first episode I was intrigued by all the characters but these two, above all, were really interesting to me. (I know I'm cheating by choosing two but I couldn't decide). Both are completely different in personality and, well everything, but they are both amazing. Reid dealing with his mother and the possible threat of schizophrenia and, not to mention his astounding intelligence, is an interesting character and somewhat complex. Whereas Garcia brings the heart to the team. Her quirks and quick thinking mind make for many of the laughs of the show. Plus, she is another of those characters with great fashion sense. (In my ever so humble opinion.)

Dean Winchester - Supernatural
I am neither a Sam-girl nor a Dean-girl but I think, out of the two of them, Dean is actually the more complex. ::*::hides as fans go all crazy like::*:: But I admire him more than Sam. I guess you could say that it is, in part, to my being the older sibling and constantly worrying about my younger sibling. Yet there is also the way that he can act serious in a moment's notice but is just at ease with being the goof ball. He is fine at playing dumb and doesn't really care what others think about him.

Buffy Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Buffy had to be on this list somewhere. She is strong, kooky, witty and just brilliant. She was a typical teenager, aside from the obvious...But, she actually grows and matures as the seasons go on. Plus, she is resourceful in a way that not many other characters are. She doesn't fit in with the norm and, as Joss Whedon has stated many times, she was his response to the horror stories of old where it was the blond girl running upstairs instead of out the front door. She is another kick-ass heroine who has her own challenges and problems.

So there we go. Just a quick list again. Leave me a comment if there are any characters that you admire.

My literary heroes...Day 2 BEdA

It has been well established how much I enjoy reading but I thought I would talk about those characters that have truly resonated with me throughout my life. The problem with this idea is that there are so many characters that have inspired me that I will have to limit myself to the top five that really stand out to me.

Jo March (Little Women - Louisa May Alcott)
Although I was more like Beth I always loved Jo. She was feisty, strong willed and the first 'tomboy' character that I read about. I was also glad that she didn't end up with Laurie. They were too much alike and would have indulged each others bad points more than their good qualities. The Professor was a better match. Anyway, Jo was a writer, a day dreamer and far too head strong for her own good. (Which kind of sounds like me now...) She faced adversity and was prone to jealously. In my mind she was a well rounded character with faults that I could easily identify with.

Ender Wiggin (Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card)
Ender was somewhat of an inspiration to me. He made it okay for kids to be intelligent. I know that this sounds rather strange but here was a young boy who is forced into a situation that he really doesn't want to be in and he makes the most of it. He had to grow up very quickly in a 'war time' scenario and, even though he doesn't sound like a kid he still has vulnerabilities that make him human. He appeared to be quick to adapt to situations but he was just a child. I could go on and on but I really cannot do him justice in trying to explain why he is a hero of mine.

Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins)
I just finished re-reading this series and, once again, found myself admiring this character. Similar to Ender, Katniss is a young girl who is thrown into a dangerous game where her life is at stake. What makes her stand out is a similar theme for me. She has doubts, she is not perfect. Occasionally she can be selfish or jealous or angry. She feels emotions and isn't perfect, which makes her real. Plus, like Jo March, she is fiercely independent and relies on herself to survive a lot of the time.

Matilda (Matilda - Roald Dahl)
There are so many great characters that Dahl created and it is hard for me to narrow them down so I pretty  much just chose the first one that popped into my mind. She is somewhat appropriate for this list as she is a reader, intelligent and, once again, plopped into an unfair situation from which she lets her true spirit shine through. Plus, she is funny. Because of how she was raised by her parents (and I use the term parents loosely) she develops an unique set of morals and ethics.

Shadow (American Gods - Neil Gaiman)
I have the feeling that Shadow is an odd addition to this list. He is the only 'adult' character in the list but there was something about the way he held himself and his entire journey that just seemed to stand out in my mind. He has attributes that I wished I had; namely the ability to stay quiet when needed. I have never been accused of being laconic although I wish I had. He appears to take everything in stride, which is something I wish I could do as well. Shadow is also a very complex character in my mind. He is difficult to describe and somewhat difficult to understand but he is a great character as well.

Now, this is a very short list and as I have been writing it I have a dozens of other characters demanding my attention in my head. It is amazing how writing about this great characters reminds me of many books that I haven't thought of in a long time.

I hope you have enjoyed this short list. (Maybe lists of five may be my theme...who knows.)

Peace and pancakes to everyone.

Seven days in and NaNoWriMo is...

Seven days in and I am finding myself wishing that I could move onto a different project. I won't because I am very stubborn and I will not let NaNoWriMo beat me. Yet, with so many other things happening I can't help but feel that I may be in over my head.

So far, my two main characters have just infiltrated a school posing as niece and uncle. They have already met with a golem of sorts and I just feel that there are more nasty things around the corner. It is a good thing I am not writing this to get published. I may use some of the ideas later on but this is just pure brain vomit onto the page.

Another thing I am finding is that some of the words begin to blur together and I find my characters acting out of sorts. I may not be overly invested in these characters as of yet but I still find them banging around with my other, more well rounded, characters. I don't know if other writers have the same uh...'problem'...You know, where you try to make your characters do something that is against character and they raise such a ruckus.

On a side note it turns out that one of the brake pad things* shattered while I was driving home yesterday. This explains why my brakes gave out. Thankfully I was just about home and managed to glide into my park. My dad, bless him, is going to get a new 'shoe', as he calls it, for my car tomorrow.

This is going to be another shortish, almost pointless, entry as I have to get cracking on this NaNoWriMo effort. Also, I had more sugar today than usual. Every so often I just crave chocolate even though I know that I shouldn't have it...

Also, I got three new books yesterday and I want to get cracking into them. Is it bad that I am inclined to read more at the moment. (So there, Laura Miller...I may be doing NaNoWriMo but I'm still reading...)

*Things - this word is right up there with stuff to explain random things that I don't know the technical terms for.

Word Count - 14 452
Tunes - NCIS on the telly in the background.