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fannish5 :
Name 5 characters who you think are great parents, or who would be great parents.
I picked five characters who 'would be', because I've done great fictional parents already, and I love speculating on who would be good parental figures based on what we know.
1.) Hakkai. I don't have words to describe what an awesome dad I think he'd make. He'd love and (probably over) protect his kid(s), but he'd make sure they grew up smart and strong and awesome-tastic. With great eyes and pretty, platonic hair.
2.) Gojyo. Would be the male equivalent of Lorelai Gilmore. He would be possibly one of the funniest dads ever and he'd love his kids to death and when/if they got bullied he'd teach them how to fight back and sure, that may not be the best option, but his kids would grow up scrappy and loved and badass. Actually, they'd probably be the kids getting into fights with bullies who are picking on OTHER kids, 'cause I think Gojyo would raise empathic little spitfires like that.
3.) Katara. She'd be a great mix of loving and strict and would always raise her kids up and gently push them to be the best they could be.
4.) Charlie Crewes. Would drive his kid(s) crazy and it is only looking back that they'd realize what an awesome dad his is. This is partially inspired by the fact that I watched Life today, and Rachel and Charlie's interactions are made of sheerest win. (This is also how I think Kakashi would parent.)
5.) Iruka. Arguably the only teacher who has saved the world by buying a student ramen.
Honorable Mention: The Mayor. Yeah, he was evil, but he gave Faith the attention and love that she was thirsting for. If Giles had been her Watcher instead of Wesley... well. I think it would have worked out far, far differently.
(Note: I realize that four out of five of these answers are guys. This is partially a reflection of my own preferences/issues/dreams and partially because I didn't want to just point to a female character and go, 'she's got a womb, she's sane, smart and patience -she'll make a great mom', thereby making the assumption that she wants kids because all chicks want kids. Plus, I see Katara as a mother much more easily than characters like Maka, Sakura, and Veronica. They need a decade to get their wild oats sewn and to find the right guy to say, 'you know... babies have adorable little socks.' Whereas I would STRONGLY argue that Iruka, Gojyo and Hakkai want and should have kids. And yes, I realize that the men I listed are older than the women, which throws those dynamics off.... but now I'm just rambling.)
fannish5 :Name 5 characters who you think are great parents, or who would be great parents.
I picked five characters who 'would be', because I've done great fictional parents already, and I love speculating on who would be good parental figures based on what we know.
1.) Hakkai. I don't have words to describe what an awesome dad I think he'd make. He'd love and (probably over) protect his kid(s), but he'd make sure they grew up smart and strong and awesome-tastic. With great eyes and pretty, platonic hair.
2.) Gojyo. Would be the male equivalent of Lorelai Gilmore. He would be possibly one of the funniest dads ever and he'd love his kids to death and when/if they got bullied he'd teach them how to fight back and sure, that may not be the best option, but his kids would grow up scrappy and loved and badass. Actually, they'd probably be the kids getting into fights with bullies who are picking on OTHER kids, 'cause I think Gojyo would raise empathic little spitfires like that.
3.) Katara. She'd be a great mix of loving and strict and would always raise her kids up and gently push them to be the best they could be.
4.) Charlie Crewes. Would drive his kid(s) crazy and it is only looking back that they'd realize what an awesome dad his is. This is partially inspired by the fact that I watched Life today, and Rachel and Charlie's interactions are made of sheerest win. (This is also how I think Kakashi would parent.)
5.) Iruka. Arguably the only teacher who has saved the world by buying a student ramen.
Honorable Mention: The Mayor. Yeah, he was evil, but he gave Faith the attention and love that she was thirsting for. If Giles had been her Watcher instead of Wesley... well. I think it would have worked out far, far differently.
(Note: I realize that four out of five of these answers are guys. This is partially a reflection of my own preferences/issues/dreams and partially because I didn't want to just point to a female character and go, 'she's got a womb, she's sane, smart and patience -she'll make a great mom', thereby making the assumption that she wants kids because all chicks want kids. Plus, I see Katara as a mother much more easily than characters like Maka, Sakura, and Veronica. They need a decade to get their wild oats sewn and to find the right guy to say, 'you know... babies have adorable little socks.' Whereas I would STRONGLY argue that Iruka, Gojyo and Hakkai want and should have kids. And yes, I realize that the men I listed are older than the women, which throws those dynamics off.... but now I'm just rambling.)
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YES. THIS. THANK YOU. You've already heard my rants about that with the last Harry Potter so I'm not gonna repeat them, but just...UGH. I have NO problem with characters of either gender wanting and having kids; I don't have a problem with even *MOST* of the characters in a book/movie/etc. wanting that, because that's just a reflection of real-world demographics; folks who want to have 'em eventually are a larger group than the deliberately childfree, and that's fine by me. But it drives me nuts when it's just an unquestioned universal assumption, and assigned to characters whose own personalities and life stories make them seem like they might at THE VERY LEAST be expected to have second thoughts about reproduction rather than being totally gung-ho. And while that goes for both male and female characters, it's particularly vexing around women because there's already so much real-world stereotyping and pressure that of course ALL proper women love babies and want oodles of their own. A guy who isn't interested in becoming a father seems to be more likely to get sort of condescending chuckles of sure, a lot of guys feel that way but just you wait, someday the right girl will change your mind; but a woman with the same attitude, that condescenscion is very often tempered with flat-out disapproval. Men are allowed more leeway to be ambivalent on the subject, but a woman who's adamant about it must be a damaged, unnatural freak. *fumes*
And the thought of Gojyo as an adoptive dad really does make me grin. Sure, he'd probably complain insincerely all the way about kids being a hassle and cramping his style, and I bet he'd be secretly absolutely terrified of the responsibility...but you know that kid would NEVER lack for a sense of love and security.
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Word. Besides the double-standard that comes with a.) not wanting kids and b.) the expected amount of work that comes WITH kids, if you're a woman, it's screamingly unfair. So I realized that I was picking mostly men, and was like, 'you know what, that's totally okay.' Men can be singled out and held to parenting stadards just like women are ALL THE TIME.
And the thought of Gojyo as an adoptive dad really does make me grin. Sure, he'd probably complain insincerely all the way about kids being a hassle and cramping his style, and I bet he'd be secretly absolutely terrified of the responsibility...but you know that kid would NEVER lack for a sense of love and security.
Oh, he totally would, and then he'd be the best parent ever.