Zora's Hall of Animated Female Fame

Paprika and Atsuko Chiba, a beautiful combination of a powerful, cheerful, omnipotent fire that is Paprika and a cold, calculating, distant ice that is doctor Chiba.

Paprika can enter dreams and through them, in a way, control reality. After all, there is nothing more powerful, or for that matter, more honest, than dreams.
She can be considered a deity, and, really, can it get any more awesome than that?

Chiba, on the other hand, is her human self, a woman of fair intelligence and modest desires who is fascinatingly relateable despite her unusual affliction.



Only praise can go to Megumi Hayashibara, a voice actress who gave both of those clashing personalities a life of their own.

Paprika: Don't you think dreams and the Internet are similar? They are both areas where the repressed conscious mind vents.

Chiba: You guys really are alike. You and Himuro. You get preoccupied with what you want to do and ignore what you have to do. Don't you understand that your irresponsibility cost lives? Of course not. Nothing can get through all that fat. And now what? "Isn't it wonderful"? "A mind for science"? Don't make me laugh. How can a mad scientist know what a human mind is? If you want to be the king of geeks with your bloated ego, then just keep up all this and indulge in your freakish masturbation!

---Her ice "burns" too ;) like when your tongue gets stuck on something frozen.

:)

Edward Wong Hau Pepulu Tivruskii 4th(really though it's: Françoise Appledehli), frequently mistaken for a boy but is very much a girl, is to me, while not my favorite character of the series, certainly one of the most endearing ones. She is like a little ball of fluffy happiness and a true representative of what it means to be laid-back(although Spike is quite good at that too;P).
Absolutely every episode in which she is in has me laughing at some point.
What is also more than important to note is that Ed is a highly successful hacker(which is why she ended up on Bebop in the first place) and is also very intelligent, on par with an extremely old experienced chess player.



"Ai-ya, what are we going to do, Ein? *You* believe it’s a horrible alien, don’t you? (Ein Barks.) Spooooky!"

"If you see a stranger, follow him!"

"Bonsai, bakchoy, wiseguy, waterboy! Light shines bright in the old town tonight!"

"High socks are cool! Gotta wear 'em outside!"

Voice actress Melissa Fahn gives a truly memorable performance, most would agree, even outshines the Japanese voice actress Aoi Tada(still excellent, just a bit less memorable).

:)

There are no excuses for what this wonderful manga was turned into by adapting it into anime. Now, most of the characters got the short end of the otherwise fat and colorful stick while some weren't even shown.
Luckily, favorite character of mine, deserving of this place here, got fairly lucky in both versions, saved by being the main character.
Tohru Honda can be, if you really want to spoil my fun, called a mary-sue, simply because there is absolutely nothing wrong with her and most everybody loves her but she thinks she is not all that. Now, this premise for a character could have turned out horribly wrong but, see, Tohru is just as endearing as Edward and I think so because I truly believe in her innocence and good intentions. Even if a part of her is broken and twisted, at least she thinks so, what she projects on the outside is immeasurable kindness. Besides, she has practically no prejudice, has the ability to sympathize and care, has the ability to be independent and all that after she has gone through terrible things in her life. Lastly, she managed to save all of them by just being who she is, a kind-hearted, selfless person, who is truly good and that's that. Even if I'm generally
called a cynic, I still love her, how about that? ;)



Tohru Honda: [narrating] Hello, my name is Tohru Honda, I haven't always lived in a tent. Up until last May I lived with my mom, it was just the two of us. But then the accident... After I lost mom, I began secretly living here on my own. It's not exactly comfortable but it's alright. And it's what I have to do. It's like my motto says, never give up!

If you think of someone's good qualities as the umeboshi in an onigiri, it's as if their qualities are stuck to their back! People around the world are like onigiri. Everyone has an umeboshi with a different shape and color and flavor. But because it's stuck on their back, they might not be able to see their umeboshi. "There's nothing special about me. I'm just white rice." [in her head] That's not true. There is an umeboshi -- on your back. [aloud] Maybe the reason people get jealous of each other, is because they can see so clearly the umeboshi on other people's backs. I can see them, too. I can see them perfectly. There's an amazing umeboshi on your back, Kyo-kun.

Sometimes living can be hard, but it's only because we're alive that we can make each other...laugh, cry...be happy! [in her head In this world... [aloud] If that's not a reason for being born in this world...I don't know what is!

But... but... but from now on... I want to understand everything. From now on... just like you listened to my complaints, Kyo-kun... I want you to let me listen to yours. When things get tough... when you're scared, when you're weak... I want you to tell me. I want you to let me care about you. I want to be together. I want us to live... eat meals, study... share our troubles... like we did before... together. I want to stay together!

:)

Lilo is a one weird little girl. We definitely agree about The King;) but soaking cursed people spoons in a jar of pickles is also a good way to pass the time, especially when you're pissed off. Lilo can come of as a bit selfish towards her older sister who is trying desperately to make her life better and to keep them together but it's because she is awfully young still and rather, messed up. She has also been feeling lonely after the Disney, not quite family friendly, tragedy stroke.
Luckily, in a tale for children there will be fluff so fluff falls from the sky and she finally makes a friend with whom she will share her peculiar interests with.
She is a character with whom it is definitely easy to sympathize, whether you lost someone or are just lonely and in need of understanding(and a fluffy alien, can't really hurt, right?)



Daveigh Chase does a wonderful job of separating herself, if only vocally, from her signature role(helps that she didn't speak much...or at all...) and captures Lilo's character prefectly.

Lilo: Oh good! My dog found the chainsaw!

Lilo: 'Ohana means family, family means nobody gets left behind. Or forgotten.

Lilo: [explaining the death of her parents to Stitch] It was raining, and they went for a drive. What happened to yours? I hear you cry at night. Do you dream about them? I know that's why you wreck things, and push me.

Lilo: I'm sorry I bit you... and pulled your hair... and punched you in the face...

Lilo: [creating voodoo dolls of her playmates] My friends need to be punished.


:)

Chihiro or as she was renamed, Sen. She does not, however, deserve the name Sen and robbing someone of their name, as fiction will tell us, is a great big no-no.

Chihiro it is then. She is rather remarkable, if only for the fact that she managed to survive in a, what can surely be called, an effy slave factory! Her predicament can also be seen as somewhat of an entrance into adulthood, or even, ironically, into "real life". Since she has to work to survive, fight for herself, avoid making enemies and finally, stay true to who she is.
Commendable is the fact that she manages to do all that, along the way give back a favor to an old friend, make herself into a respectable human being who knows hardships and finally, save her parents.

Let us, for the sake of listing stuff, distinguish for a moment between Lucy and Nyuu and treat them as different people which they are...in a way.
I choose neither one of them because neither of those two personalities is complete without the other and when separated they are both, kind of, incomplete as characters.
The perfect combination of both, the one character you can sympathize with, provided you want to, is the young version of Lucy/Nyuu.
She is presented as an outcast, highly unstable because of her genes but also, because of the social environment which does not accept her. She does try to, you know, not hurt them or better yet, kill them. She is, in every way, innocent and maybe a bit naive of how the world works.
Then, the unforgivable happens. Her only friend ever is brutally murdered in front of her and that is when we meet Lucy. However, not yet in front of her childhood crush, whom she only later shows just how much she has deteriorated into insanity.
My main point about why I like this character is the ability to sympathize, at least a little bit, and accept her as wounded crazy rather than just evil. Besides, I do have a soft spot for wounded hearts, especially if they can kick ass.

Celty Sturluson is peculiar character to say the least. Didn't think much of her at the beginning of the series, having not even known her personality or even gender yet, but, in time she became rather likeable.
Her awesome factor certainly is that she is a supernatural being Dullahan, a headless rider no less. She rides an awesome horse turned into a motorcycle thing and, more than worth mentioning, can kick ass like no other.
Her likeability and instant recognition do not lie only in those facts but also in her personality which is, for the lack of a better word, again: endearing. She shows the most delightful fear, insecurity and is not prone to screaming(due to not having a head) which gives her an air of calmness and mystery. Also, she can be mightily determined and kind.

Chane Laforet is without a doubt, the most badass person on that whole damn train. Close to her is Rachel but Shane gives of that wonderful vibe of duality, being at the same time insecure and a bit naive while being also strong, determined, deadly and loyal. She is the silent character by choice but not many a times do we see a silent female character(seriously, those giggles and screams and...truly horrifying).
What gets me the most about her is that wounded heart yet again, she had not even been aware of it until the first time she heard a love confession(a really, really weird one at that) and had been shown some kindness rather than just being used.

Osaki Nana has caught my eye from the moment she first appeared. Since the manga starts of with Hachiko, if I had not known about Nana, I would never have read past a few opening pages.
She is, (oh, why the hell not) another wounded heart on this list on account of her mother(who I absolutely despise) abandoning her as a child, leaving her with her grandmother who tried to raise her to be a proper lady. Did not quite work.
Nana is generally kind hearted despite her snappy temper and is a loyal and caring friend, if she is honest about that or just afraid of being left alone is up to anyone's guess but I do lean towards both which only makes her that much more interesting to me. Other than that she is determined, independent and strives to succeed, no matter that one of the reasons behind such behavior is sort of...kind of..eh, lame(she is trying to beat her boyfriend's success with her own). But! On a positive side, at least she is opinionated, strong of will and incredibly...totally...unbearably...cute when drunk.
As of the latest chapters however, she has had a severe mental breakdown and has run away to England, changing her style completely around.
And that, yet again, makes her soooooo effy interesting.

Oh, Haruhi. The fandom is divided but I stand firmly on her side of an aloof, deadpan, geeky Haruhi who is thrust into a world of selfish, obnoxious, removed from reality club of rich people.
Fair enough, they do help her get out of her shell eventually, becoming friends and all that but...it's just her utter whatever attitude that I like, and which was very prominent in the anime and a part of the whole comic series. She does not feel all that particularly envious of the glamor surrounding her and is determined to make herself stay sane among her crazy companions. She is also brave and can and will stand up for herself but mostly for others. Haruhi is also sincere, kind and natural, natural also being her "type" as a host.
Basically, she stands firmly on the ground when it comes to her obligations and always tries hard. Her occasional oblivious moments are fun to watch too, mostly because they're related to stuff generic girls are supposed to understand...like love...and sweet things...

I really like to repeat myself. Okay, let's see: Hardworking, check. Hot-tempered, check. Wounded by a close family member, check. Striving for recognition, check. Fair sport? Sure. Wins but stays kind? Yes! Succeeds in her goals? Of course she does.
Eva Wei, or Molly, goes a long way as a person, from a sad, insecure, hot headed trespasser into a confident, happy and remarkable star racer...and daughter.

I have not read the book because I like pretty pictures better.

So, Disney's Esmeralda is so much more awesome than what you would expect judging by the name Disney alone. But enough about them, whoever made this, wrote this, whatever, the existence of the character is what's important now. So, she is independent, selfless, crafty, opinionated and strong.
The line she won me over with was this:
Frollo: You, Gypsy girl. Get down at once!
Esmeralda: Yes, Your Honor. Just as soon as I free this poor creature.
Frollo: I forbid it!
[Esmeralda cuts the ropes tying Quasimodo to the wheel]
Frollo: How dare you defy me?
Esmeralda: You mistreat this poor boy the same way you mistreat my people. You speak of justice, yet you are cruel to those most in need of your help!
Frollo: Silence!
Esmeralda: Justice!
Frollo: Mark my words, Gypsy, you will pay for this insolence.
Esmeralda: Then it appears we've crowned the wrong fool. The only fool I see is you!
[tosses King of Fools crown at Frollo's feet]

Few more awesome lines:

Phoebus: You fight almost as well as a man.
Esmeralda: Funny, I was going to say the same thing about you.

Esmeralda: Let's see. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine... So there's ten of you and one of me. What's a poor girl to do?
[Pretends to cry into a handkerchief, then blows on it and disappears in a cloud of smoke]

Esmeralda: [reading Quasimodo's palm] Hmm. Hmm, mmm, mmm. Well, that's funny.
Quasimodo: What?
Esmeralda: I don't see any...
Quasimodo: Any what?
Esmeralda: Monster lines. Not a single one.
Esmeralda: [holds out her hand] Now, you look at me. Do you think I'm evil?
Quasimodo: No! No-No. Y-You are kind and good and... and...
Esmeralda: And a Gypsy. And maybe Frollo's wrong about the both of us.