Kickbutt Heroines

If there are two types of protagonists that I love the most, they are tortured heroes and kickbutt heroines. I have posted previously on the first. Now let's discuss the second. First of all, what defines a kickbutt heroine?

Cool under pressure
Intelligent and strong-minded
A real problem solver
A survivor
Gutsy



Does she have to be able to actually fight? Not necessarily. It's certainly helps. However, buttkicking is a state of mind. Some of my favorites save the day without ever actually putting fist to face, shooting off a gun, or picking up a sword.

In the tv/movie world, I would list the following:

• Sydney Bristow from Alias
• Ellen Ripley from Aliens
• Elektra Natchios
• Storm
• Lara Croft (the comic book version, anyway)
• Jane Smith from Mr. and Mrs. Smith
• La Femme Nikita
• Selene from Underworld
• Alexa Woods from Alien Versus Predator
• Sarah Connor
• Buffy Summers
• Marguerite Creux from The Lost World
• Xena Warrior Princess
• Callisto from Xena Warrior Princess
• Milla Jovovich's roles in The Fifth Element (Leelo), Resident Evil Trilogy (Alice), and Ultraviolet (Violet)
• Trinity from The Matrix Movies
• Max from Dark Angel
• Michelle Yeoh in numerous roles
• Have you ever seen So Close or Naked Weapon? Enough said.
  

These women embody the traits that a kickbutt heroine has. How about in books?

• Anita Blake from Laurell K. Hamilton books (pre-male harem)
• Rachel Morgan from Kim Harrison novels
• Tinker by Wen Spencer
• Caledonia MacNeely from Born in Sin by Kinley MacGregor
• Jessica Trent from Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase
• Lydia Grenville from The Last Hellion
• Katra from Dark Hunter Series by Sherrilyn Kenyon
• Tabitha Deveraux from Seize the Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon
• Elena from Bitten by Kelley Armstrong
  
• Joanne Walker from Urban Shaman by CE Murphy
• Joanne Baldwin from Weather Warden series
• Damali Richards from the LA Banks Huntress Series
• Sookie Stackhouse from the Dead Series by Charlaine Harris
• Christabel Gaines from Lawless by Diana Palmer
• Mary Potter from Mackenzie's Mountain by Linda Howard
• Tallie Robinson from Tallie's Knight by Anne Gracie
• Brenna Carmahan from Fires of Winter by Johanna Lindsey
• Kristen Hardraad from Hearts Aflame by Johanna Lindsey
• Callie Green from The Soldier and the Baby by Anne Stuart
• Ghislaine de Lorgny from A Rose at Midnight by Anne Stuart
• Anne Wilder in All Through the Night by Connie Brockway
• Lady Alys from Lord of Danger by Anne Stuart
• Mary Fairchild from A Well-Pleasured Lady by Christina Dodd
• Bailee McKoy from The Texan's Wager by Jodi Thomas
  
• Honorable mention to Silhouette Bombshell heroines who only got a short time to shine. I subscribed to the line until it was discontinued.
  
• Lets not forget about the many intelligent strong women who inhabit the fairy tales and folklore that we have been nurtured on

Why is the world threatened by powerful women? Apparently action/sci-fi movies with strong female leads don't do well. Is it because the men stay away? Or is it that women don't want to see these kinds of movies? I'm willing to suggest that it is because they don't get the same marketing and support as their traditional, male-lead counterparts. Well I can't change the world, but I can do my part by supporting those movies and books that do show women in a strong and positive light. I fully expect that this list will continue to grow.