It’s common knowledge that for a long time, women protagonists in Science Fiction were…kinda lame. Especially in fiction.
Cinema took a chance on creating and promoting badass heroines as early as before I was born. Growing up as a latchkey kid plopped in front of cable TV, it was only natural that I drew on cinematic inspiration more heavily than fiction when creating my own badass heroin for my sci fi trilogy, The Eaters.
The following is my top 5 sci fi chicks with…skills. 😉
- Ellen Ripley- Alien: I remember watching this when I was in first grade and thinking, “Damn.” Sure, Ripley was a little Jane Fonda-y with the hair and the high cut undies, but this was clearly not a woman to be trifled with. Her inner struggles and fears were never too obvious, but her actions showed a brilliant woman who had a tough exterior with lots of vulnerability beneath. I’d like to think Ellen Ripley and my trilogy’s character, Mina Brice, would enjoy a good chat over some intergalactic Starbucks.
- Sarah Connor- Terminator (1 and 2): Linda Hamilton pretty much decided my fate as a fitness freak. I remember standing in the kitchen with my sister, munching on Cap’n Crunch and listening to her talk about the midnight viewing of T2 she’d just seen. “Dude, Linda Hamilton was ripped and scarier than Arnold.” This was high praise coming from my sister, and after I saw the movie, I aspired to that image of a tortured woman who stops at nothing to try and save the planet from Skynet taking over and killing all the kids at the playground with nukes. Or, rather, I just wanted her arms.
- Dr. Ellie Arroway- Contact: Both the book and movie portrayal of Dr. Arroway were enthralling to me. I felt her frustration when she discovered undeniable proof of intelligent alien life and yet still encountered skepticism and slander. Carl Sagan was convinced of humanity’s potential, and his badass heroin was as well. There’s a word Ellie uses via Sagan- numinous- and that word has stuck in my brain for many years. The search for the “numinous” within my own heroin was (I hope) front and center in all her struggles.
- Princess Leia- Star Wars: Because duh. Leia was my idol before I could walk. I wore Leia hair buns to my first day of Kindergarten. Yeah, she still had to deal with misogyny, even in a future with intergalactic travel, but girlfriend had cojones. And she did it all while looking fabulous. That is no easy feat, boys. And PLEASE don’t reference the weird incestuous stuff- that was NOT her fault! As an aside, I would like to add that Carrie Fisher was/is a personal hero of mine, as well.
- Buffy Summers- Buffy the Vampire Slayer: So, I could have gone into fiction again to find a character to round out my top 5, but Buffy called to me. I freaking love Buffy. I mean, Joss Whedon is a god for creating Buffy, and I’m convinced he did that for nerdy girls like me who wanted very much to be hip, sexy, and in charge of determining the fate of the world. Seriously, though, if you watch the entire series, you’ll see the maturing and growth of her character into a resilient woman (interspersed with quippy dialogue and cheesy-but-still-awesome makeup effects.)
Ok, so I think it’s safe to assume that I have a thing for sci fi heroines that act AND look fierce. Check out The Eaters, Books One and Two, and let me know if you think I created a badass worthy of a list like this one.
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Corrie Brundage is a former model, opera singer, and personal trainer who, out of sheer boredom and personal relief from planetary insanity, completed five novels in the space of twelve months. She pumps iron, is a political junkie, and is a dedicated animal advocate.
www.theeaterstrilogy.com
