Nowadays, I mostly avoid having idols. I've found that, with a mindset like mine, having an idol can easily sway me from cultivating my individuality. But that doesn't stop me from having a few!

• Rei Hino / Sailor Mars
  • Ah, here we go again. I'd grown out of Sailor Moon by sometime in Grade 10, but my friend Teija brought me back to it. How? She assigned each of her best friends a Sailor Scout, and I was Mars. At first, I was really surprised by this choice - mainly because I'd focused for so long on Venus, and was starting to think of Neptune as "the ideal" for a guy I had feelings for (and was trying to be like her. Mistake!) But I'll never forget what Teija always tells me about my "Mars connection": "You're so committed to things, especially your friends. You are the most passionate person I know, you're enthusiastic, dedicated, fiery and unafraid of real challenges and risks, even if you blow off little ones. You're always there for your friends and you always love them, even though you're very reserved and afraid of closeness and intimacy." Seriously, I love Teija :P (And Sailor Mars).
    • Sailor Mars takes her spirituality very seriously (♥) and her spirituality is greatly concerned to nature. She's a bit conflicted when it comes to her closest relationships (probably, like me, she is very afraid of letting her guard down to those she loves most, and probably has some intimacy issues), but even *that* translates into passion (even if that passion presents itself as anger). She's mentally strong, which is something I seek for myself, and is able to move on from things. She's a badass, okay? A badass! She's got a fierce intuition which is rarely wrong. She may be a little arrogant, but she goes after what she wants. She isn't shy in love or anything else (which is something I am that I wish I weren't). She takes things very seriously. She's admirable. She's compassionate. She has dreams of her own. She encourages others to follow their hearts. Personally, I love her more in the manga than I do in the anime - in the manga, she's more reserved, wise, dedicated, serious and aloof, which is something I can identify with (save the "wise" part!) She also has real trouble in her relationship with men (both in the manga and anime) and gave a vow of chastity to Princess Serenity, opting to be a spiritual leader and protectress over having a life of her own. *That* is commitment! *That* is love!
• Roxane from the Inkworld Trilogy.
  • See: Childhood Heroines.
• Rapunzel from Tangled.
  • In a lot of ways, I feel like Rapunzel and I have too much in common for me to look up to her. I still love her, though, because she's basically "me" in animated form. She's a true ENFP who's just been cooped up for far too long :P While she doesn't share my tendency to get lazy and apathetic when I'm unchallenged or bored (after all, she IS the embodiment of the freakin' *sun*), she and I still have way more in common than I would have found possible in a fictional character. Even the same general taste in men and sidekicks! (Guys, it's a little lizard).
• Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
  • Damn, that passion! That design! That outspokenness and fearlessness! Esmeralda is very different from other Disney characters, and even from other fictional characters. Her song "God Help The Outcasts" proves it. She doesn't want anything (ANYTHING) other than the happiness of those who she cares for (which is everyone that she knows, which may leave her feeling somewhat conflicted - but that doesn't bring her down). She would never let anyone intimidate her, and she would never let anyone change who she is. There's something about her grace, something about her in general, that is truly magnetic and powerful. In the book, though she's overpoweringly naive, she seems to have something about her that people love (including me) She is a true Goddess to look up to!
• Paige Matthews from Charmed.
  • Like Rapunzel, this is a character (very ENFP) who I identify with more than I look up to, but that's part of why I love her. She's even a social worker, for God's sakes! :P (Not to mention the "Witch" part). She's enthusiastic and dedicated, but also irresponsible and a little rebellious. I loved her red hair in season five - if only it had been longer! (To be noted, even though Paige and I have the same personality, I have far more in common - like, with life events and stuff, not essential nature - with her sister, Phoebe.)
• Prue Halliwell from Charmed.
  • Here's the sister who I genuinely look up to more than I identify with. She's a bit of a workaholic, but I admire that and even identify with her slight tunnel vision. She's the strongest and toughest sister by far, and the most responsible. And she's damned unafraid of anything! She has a vulnerability that she hides very well, and might just be the most vulnerable of all four sisters. And she's a Witch. What's not to like about a Witch?
• Rose McGowan, by extension of Charmed...
  • When I get into the world of actresses and actors, I tend to be a bit obsessive about my favourites - mainly because I indulge in this side of me very infrequently, because honestly I just don't really care! But Rose McGowan truly caught my attention. She's had an incredible life (to the point that it's almost unbelievable), and has survived so much. She's an amazing example of a woman who seems very tragic and classic in one respect, but is truly tough and fiery in another. In a lot of ways, I view this woman as "perfect". I highly respect Rose, and though I'd probably be too intimidated to meet her, part of me will always love her.
• Liv Tyler
  • I'm not sure what it is with my love of Liv. Sure, she was Arwen, but at that time I didn't see her as very beautiful. But there's something very classic about this woman that came over me as time went by. She truly is beautiful, even if I didn't see it before. She is polite, gracious, respectful and bubbly. She's almost like "the black sheep" in this list of women that I have, because she's just so darned nice! But hey, once you read up on her, you can't not love her. She's very inspiring.
• Angie Bolen from Desperate Housewives
  • Oh my. I'm not really sure why I love this character so much. She's brassy, confident, and down-to-earth - she's witty. She's earthy and honest. But what exactly her true appeal is to me, I might never know. I just think she's a great character. By extension, I also like her actress: Drea de Matteo. She plays a lot of characters like Angie, though she doesn't seem to be too much like them (she's quite shy and nervous, in a good, cute way). I also find it funny that the Angie character is from Brooklyn...