Women are awesome. They’re cool, interesting, powerful, and incredibly multifaceted. So it’s pretty amazing when awesome women are portrayed in the media, whether it’s through literature, television, or film. And just like real women, these fictional characters can inspire us, and even act as role models for some of us, whether it’s through fighting dragons (figuratively or literally—I know that’s what I do in my free time), or pursuing a dream, or just being the best version of themselves they can be. They’re important; they’re incredible; they’re powerful, and they make us feel powerful, too.
So, without further ado, below is a list of some of the fabulous fictional female characters found in books and on television screens:
1. Hermione Granger
The smartest witch of her age, Hermione Granger: Muggle-born and yet the best witch in her class, better even than the so called “Chosen One” himself, Harry Potter. Hermione shows us that being book smart isn’t a bad thing, and that being intelligent is something amazing and to be proud of! She deals with the prejudices of pure-blood wizards and emerges victorious, not letting their cruelty bring her down. Plus, she punched Draco Malfoy in the face, which is really really awesome.
2. Daenerys Targaryen
When we first meet Daenerys Targaryen, she’s a timid young girl under the abusive thumb of her brother. This lasts for only a couple of chapters (or episodes, if you’re into the show) before Dany’s character begins to grow, developing into a strong, assured queen, more than capable of claiming the Iron Throne. Her character is constantly being put through the gauntlet, but she continues to rise up, growing more and more into a powerful queen. She commands dragons, fights for the freedom of the enslaved, and doesn’t back down from battle. She is, truly, a queen.
3. Luna Lovegood
The quirkiest, and arguably most delightful character in the entire Harry Potter series, Luna Lovegood is an amazing woman in her own right. She forges her own path and refuses to let the bullying and the whispers of “crazy” that follow her around stop her from being herself. She is strange and she never tries to be anything else but strange. Luna never lets anything get in her way, and she fights for what she thinks is right and what she believes in. You know what that tells me? That she’s incredible.
4. Storm
Ororo Munroe, better known as the X-Man Storm, is a strong, powerful leader with the ability to control the elements, and one of the first black, female characters to feature in a major role in Marvel comics publishing. She was worshipped as a goddess for many years before being recruited by Charles Xavier to join the X-Men. She later becomes the leader of the X-Men and has remained so in many incarnations of the team. Being powerful, calm, and serene, paired with her strong morals, her desire to help others, and her strong leadership skills, sets Storm apart as one of the strongest characters in the X-Men storylines, and an amazing woman in her own right.
5. The Sailor Scouts
Sailor Moon kicked down the door of North American television, making a huge splash in the 90s. Cute girls in cute outfits fighting evil monsters? Moon princesses? Talking cats? Characters fighting against gender roles? Honestly, what isn’t to love? But what makes Sailor Moon and the Sailor Scouts so incredible is that they teach girls that it doesn’t matter if you want to dress girly or not, because you can still kick ass. And it teaches us all that everyone has their strengths and their weaknesses, and that being a girl with real, honest to goodness emotions isn’t a bad thing. Cry, stuff your face, chase after love. You’re still powerful and amazing and magical.
6. Moana
Moana, Disney’s latest success story, is an incredibly emotional and powerful story of a young woman embracing who she is, not what other people want her to be. What makes Moana such an incredible character is that she chases after what she loves. She doesn’t let fear or failure stand in her way. Even when all hope seems lost, she refuses to give up. And she cares for her people. Moana doesn’t disappear from her island, never to return. She travels to return the heart of Te Fiti, to save her people, and then she returns, ready to be the leader she was born to be, leading them across the ocean. Moana struggles throughout the movie with her own self-doubt and fears—and who doesn’t, really—but what makes her so amazing is that she faces those doubts and fears, and she embraces who she is.
7. Peggy Carter
Brave, powerful, incredible, feminine—the list of adjectives that can be used to describe Peggy Carter goes on and on. She can wreck a man with her pinky, and he’d probably say thank you. I know I would. Peggy was a pivotal member of the Strategic Science Reserve, which was responsible for the creation of the super soldier serum that created Captain America. And when the war was over, she helped to create S.H.I.E.L.D. to protect the world, remaining a prominent member for years. Peggy is smart, confident, and doesn’t let anything stop her. When no one is willing to help her, she helps herself. When the world turns against her, she fights back. Peggy is unapologetically feminine, and she could break a man in heels and a skirt. She is a fiercely loyal friend, and even though she mourned the loss of Steve, she refused to let it stop her. If you boil it all down, you get a character who is beyond incredible, and who inspires people (and me) everyday.
8. Leia Organa
Name a more iconic space princess. I dare you. But Leia Organa wasn’t only a princess, though. She was a staunch supporter of the rebellion, putting herself at risk time and time again to fight against the imperial rule of Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader. She was a take no crap kind of girl, who could shoot her own gun thank you very much, and wasn’t afraid to call someone out for being a coward. She commanded armies and grew to be the leader, the general, of the resistance. And that’s pretty freaking fabulous, if you ask me.
9. Elle Woods
Elle Woods is genuinely one of my favourite women to grace my television screen. She’s unapologetically herself: girly, loving, prone to owning more pink than most people will ever wear in their entire lifetimes, and smart. She’s not afraid to fight for something she sees as right and just, even if it means going against everyone else. And she proves that being smart and being pretty aren’t mutually exclusive. You can look like a princess and still absolutely destroy a man.
10. Imperator Furiosa
She’s a lean, mean, fighting machine. Imperator Furiosa debuted in Mad Max: Fury Road as a fierce war rig driver, trying to take the five wives of Immortan Joe to safety, far from the lives they had been previously leading. She’s smart, cunning, and one heck of a fighter. And not only that, she’s willing to save these women who are desperate for her aid, and protect them at all costs. She does what’s right, and, without a doubt, is the star of the show.
And if that isn’t enough to satisfy you, here’s a list of some more incredible female figures throughout fiction that you should definitely check out!
Literary Ladies
Literally every female character in the Throne of Glass series; Katniss Everdeen, Hunger Games; Minerva McGonagall, Harry Potter; Arya and Sansa Stark, Game of Thrones; Every lady in the Lunar Chronicles; Feyre Archeron and her sisters, A Court of Thorns and Roses series; Nina Zenik and Inej Ghafa, Six of Crows; Molly and Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter; Fleur Delacour, Harry Potter; Annabeth Chase, Percy Jackson; Lisbeth Salander, The Girl with rhe Dragon Tattoo; Clary Fray and Isabelle Lightwood, The Mortal Instruments; Jane Eyre, Jane Eyre; Elizabeth Bennet, Pride and Prejudice
Comic Ladies
Jean Grey, X-Men; Starfire, Teen Titans; Kamala Khan, Ms. Marvel; Kate Bishop, Hawkeye; Barbara Gordon, Batgirl; Lunella Lafayette, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur; Supergirl, Supergirl; America Chavez, America; Scarlet Witch, Avengers; Spider-Gwen, Spider-Gwen; Laura and Gabby Kinney, All-New Wolverine; Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman; Jessica Jones, Alias; Kitty Pryde, X-Men
Cartoon Ladies
Ahsoka Tano, Star Wars: The Clones Wars; Elsa, Frozen; Rapunzel, Tangled; Mulan, Mulan; Katara, Avatar: The Last Airbender; Toph, Avatar: The Last Airbender; Princess Allura, Voltron: Legendary Defender; Pidge, Voltron: Legendary Defender; Korra, Avatar: The Legend of Korra; The Powerpuff Girls, The Powerpuff Girls; Asami Sato, Avatar: The Legend of Korra; Captain Amelia, Treasure Planet; Nani and Lilo, Lilo and Stitch; Kiki, Kiki’s Delivery Service; Anastasia, Anastasia; Tiana, The Princess and the Frog; Crystal Gems, Steven Universe; Star Butterfly, Star vs. the Forces of Evil
Television Ladies
Lorelai Gilmore, Gilmore Girls; C. J. Cregg, The West Wing; Mindy, The Mindy Project; Betty Cooper, Riverdale; Veronica Lodge, Riverdale; Cheryl Blossom, Riverdale; Eleven, Stranger Things; Cristina Yang, Grey’s Anatomy; Joan Watson, Elementary; Trini and Kimberly, Power Rangers; Daisy Johnson and Jemma Simmons, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.; Detective Kate Beckett, Castle; Buffy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Felicity Smoak, Arrow; Caitlin Snow, The Flash; Olivia Pope, Scandal; Kaylee Frye, Zoë Washburne, and Inara Serra, Firefly; Colleen Wing, Iron Fist
Film Ladies
Rey, Star Wars; Padmé Amidala, Star Wars; Jyn Erso, Star Wars: Rogue One; Mary Poppins, Mary Poppins; Elizabeth Swann, Pirates of the Caribbean ; Éowyn and Arwen, Lord of the Rings; Lieutenant Uhura, Star Trek; Olive, Easy A; Belle, Beauty and the Beast ; Mia Thermopolis, The Princess Diaries; Queen Clarisse Renaldi, The Princess Diaries; Sarah Connor, Terminator; Matilda, Matilda; All of the women in Hidden Figures
While this list is by no means definitive, it lists off some pretty awesome fictional women. They’re smart, they’re tough, they’re kind, they’re powerful, and they’re just like the real women of this world: pretty dang awesome girl bosses.
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