The Best Women of the Legion of Superheroes?

[El_Gato]

With 75 people having voted, the more popular ladies are:

* Saturn Girl (Imra Ardeen) = 41 votes
* Phantom Girl (Tinya Wazzo) = 34 votes
* Dawnstar = 33 votes
* Dream Girl (Nura Nal) = 32 votes
* Lightning Lass (Ayla Ranzz) = 27 votes
* Sensor Girl (Princess Projectra) = 25 votes
* Shadow Lass (Tasmia Mallor) = 25 votes
* Triplicate Girl (Lournu Durgo) = 24 votes
* White Witch (Mysa Nal) = 22 votes
* XS (Jenni Ognats) = 21 votes

Seems like the top 5 still haven’t changed, even with more votes

[MajorHoy]

With 79 people having voted,

* Saturn Girl (Imra Ardeen) = 43 votes (+ 2)
* Dawnstar = 36 votes (+ 3)
* Phantom Girl (Tinya Wazzo) = 35 votes (+ 1)
* Dream Girl (Nura Nal) = 35 votes (+ 3)
* Lightning Lass (Ayla Ranzz) = 27 votes
* Sensor Girl (Princess Projectra) = 27 votes (+ 2)
* Shadow Lass (Tasmia Mallor) = 27 votes (+ 2)
* Triplicate Girl (Lournu Durgo) = 25 votes (+ 1)
* White Witch (Mysa Nal) = 24 votes (+ 2)
* XS (Jenni Ognats) = 23 votes (+ 2)

All others have 20 votes or less.

[Sutekh]

I voted for like *eight* of the fifteen, or something crazy like that, and I still look at this poll and think "Why didn't I vote for X! She's great!" I just love so many of them!

(OTOH, the one I most wish I'd voted for, Saturn Girl, is handily winning even without my vote.)

[Uncanny X-Man]

A somewhat controversial opinion perhaps but I've never really read a story that made me fully appreciate Dawnstar. I really like her visually, both her OG look and even the most recent "energy wings" of the Bendisboot, but I never fell in love with her in the same way I did with Imra during the Universo Project (or Reboot Imra in Legion Lost) or Projectra in the Sensor Girl saga.

[Sutekh]

A somewhat controversial opinion perhaps but I've never really read a story that made me fully appreciate Dawnstar. I really like her visually, both her OG look and even the most recent "energy wings" of the Bendisboot, but I never fell in love with her in the same way I did with Imra during the Universo Project (or Reboot Imra in Legion Lost) or Projectra in the Sensor Girl saga.

She's a tough one, I don't think we're meant to 'like' her (she's certainly one of the Legionnaires few people would want to hang out with!), and while she's one of least favorite personalities to read, when I wrote Legion fanfic, I found her *wonderful* to write, and I wonder if she's similarly 'fun' for the various Legion writers who've used her well.

[j9ac9k]

She's a tough one, I don't think we're meant to 'like' her (she's certainly one of the Legionnaires few people would want to hang out with!), and while she's one of least favorite personalities to read, when I wrote Legion fanfic, I found her *wonderful* to write, and I wonder if she's similarly 'fun' for the various Legion writers who've used her well.

What about her did you find fun to write? She didn't really get many scenes that informed her character outside of her relationship with Wildfire, but she did get a couple stories that were just about her. More might have been done with her post Zero Hour, but I don't know.

[Frontier]

I liked Dawnstar in that JLA: Trapped in Time movie.

[Sutekh]

What about her did you find fun to write? She didn't really get many scenes that informed her character outside of her relationship with Wildfire, but she did get a couple stories that were just about her. More might have been done with her post Zero Hour, but I don't know.

I liked that she was prickly, and a loner by choice, tending to say what she thinks is important without the extraneous fluff or catty comments that might come from some others. She was kind of the opposite of Timber Wolf, who sometimes gave off that 'loner' vibe, but seemed much more emotionally tied to people (even to the point of maybe co-dependence...), either his relationship with Ayla or his friendship with Blok. She's confident, rarely questioned the value of her powers or her contribution to the team (and got downright pissy when her powers couldn't track someone!), which was nice after the previous decades occasional descents into characters fretting or fainting or being overwhelmed by a situation.

[j9ac9k]

^^ Well said. That's a more interesting and nuanced way of explaining what I took to be her main characteristic of being aloof.

[Sutekh]

^^ Well said. That's a more interesting and nuanced way of explaining what I took to be her main characteristic of being aloof.

There's something to be said for brevity, as well, and 'aloof' sums it up decently.

I like that her aloofness stems from her nature, as a person able to fly in space unaided for long periods of time, used to being all alone out there, in the endless darkness, where anybody else would feel lost and vulnerable, she's totally at ease.

[Zero Hunter]

I liked that she was prickly, and a loner by choice, tending to say what she thinks is important without the extraneous fluff or catty comments that might come from some others. She was kind of the opposite of Timber Wolf, who sometimes gave off that 'loner' vibe, but seemed much more emotionally tied to people (even to the point of maybe co-dependence...), either his relationship with Ayla or his friendship with Blok. She's confident, rarely questioned the value of her powers or her contribution to the team (and got downright pissy when her powers couldn't track someone!), which was nice after the previous decades occasional descents into characters fretting or fainting or being overwhelmed by a situation.

I always took her as being a telepath it is hard to be around a lot of people and block all the random thoughts out all the time. Sort of like constantly having noise in the background when you trying to think. Especially coming from a planet of telepaths were everyone is either good at masking their own thoughts or they speak telepathically most of the time. Being around a bunch of untrained loud minds must be very tiring.

[Timber Wolf-By-Night]

I always took her as being a telepath it is hard to be around a lot of people and block all the random thoughts out all the time. Sort of like constantly having noise in the background when you trying to think. Especially coming from a planet of telepaths were everyone is either good at masking their own thoughts or they speak telepathically most of the time. Being around a bunch of untrained loud minds must be very tiring.

They're talking about Dawnstar. You're talking about Saturn Girl.

[Sutekh]

I always took her as being a telepath it is hard to be around a lot of people and block all the random thoughts out all the time. Sort of like constantly having noise in the background when you trying to think. Especially coming from a planet of telepaths were everyone is either good at masking their own thoughts or they speak telepathically most of the time. Being around a bunch of untrained loud minds must be very tiring.

Yeah, I meant Dawnstar, but what you say about Imra can make her occasionally brusque and that's fun to write, too!

It is interesting how powers can inform characterization. Vi, the shrinking character, first seemed to be a shy underconfident sort, back in the 60s and 70s, and then got more aggressive after her ordeal at the hands of the Imskian separatists, but still kind of followed the trope of the little person having the biggest chip on their shoulder and being 'touchy.'

And yet that's not always the case. A 'Phantom Girl,' existing in another dimension and just being a tourist in this one, could easily be written as not taking this dimension really seriously, since she can go home at any time just by changing her viewpoint, and be 'disconnected,' and yet Tinya was one of the friendliest Legionnaires, in a consistent long-term relationship, and having an enduring friendship with one of these 'matter people.'

It's not just neat when the writers lean into 'tropes' like the gentle giant or the overcompensating small person, but also when they subvert them and sort of defy those expectations.

[kcekada]

Before Dawnstar, most of the female personalities were interchangeable. The one exception is Imra who was kinda bossy/pushy in the early Silver Age stories but softened over time. Dawnstar's popularity is probably largely based on her look. Whether it's PC or not, it was unique and the idea of a winged Native American (kinda) woman flying through space was kinda novel (though winged sci-fi characters existed before DS in Flash Gordon and Barbarella).

I wish Levtiz had played up more of the female's abilities in his runs, but he did some breakthrough stories for Dream Girl, Lightning Lass and Projectra. Shadow Lass's ancestors were shown being able to do more with the shadows than just create darkness -- and Tasmia should be able to do the same.

I thought Kinetix (who was basically Life Lass in a different form) and XS added some interesting abilities to the group. I wish Infectious Lass would have been used more, but unless they found a new way of utilizing her abilities -- can see why she was mostly just a Sub. Monstress was a kinda clever idea, but never felt she was very interesting. Was also not a fan of the new woman Levtiz introduced in his last run (Dragonwing and the elemental). Would have preferred him bringing in one the Reservists like Nightwind or Lamprey, but he never seemed to want to do much with them.

[Jim Kelly]

Surely Edmond Hamilton's Dream Girl from her very first appearance was an exceptional woman that stood out from the others. This was even more the case when Cary Bates and Dave Cockrum handled Nura Nal.

I guess, with others it's more what you read into the characters, based on their costumes, powers and how they're drawn. But I think one of the reasons Duo Damsel always stood out for me was because she did things that made me notice her. Like sacrificing one of her identities in the battle with Computo. Or falling in love with Superboy. Or, rather than going for the alpha male in the group, choosing Bouncing Boy for her mate--and they being the first married couple (trio? quartet?) in the Legion.