My Top 9 TV Show Crushes: Female Edition

Over a year later, I figure it's time for my female half of My Top 9 TV Show Crushes. My rules for choosing are that 1) the characters had to be show regulars, 2) I can have no more than one crush per show (in this case it's not so much crush as I really want to be them/be friends with them even though some of them are quite hot), 3)I had to be seriously attached to their character, and 4) they had to be female. I've included short clips of the shows the characters are on so you could see the ladies in action.

But first, I'd like to replace Henry from Ugly Betty on the first list (because his character became really lame) and replace him with...
Xander Harris (Nicholas Brendon) from Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Rewatching Buffy is so delightful, but I forgot how much I loved it--especially Xander. I remember him being funny, but he's hilarious. A fully formed character from the start, Xander's one liners are the highlight of every episode. Here's a short clip about the character of Xander (believe me when I say you never want to search for videos of Xander--all but 3 are terrible fanvids):




Now for the ladies, in no particular order:

1. Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) from Alias - Alias came on when I was 14 years old and I will never forget how awesome I found Sydney. Yeah, I already watched Buffy, but Buffy's character arcs and relationships started to get weird by season 4. I needed a new girl that was feisty, violent, and trying to balance separate lives. While the show started to wane in it's 5th season, I never lost love for Syd.



2. Maxine Gray (Tyne Daly) from Judging Amy - I know I just barely assaulted you with videos of Maxine Gray, but it should be done again. She's a confident and smart older lady that's not afraid to speak her mind. I can only dream to approach her awesomeness. Here she is chewing out a coworker:



3. Daria Morgendorffer (Tracy Grandstaff) from Daria - At one point in high school I had a friend nickname me Daria. The combination of monotone sarcasm and pre-calc brains earned the name, and it was one of the more flattering nicknames she gave me that year, so I went with it. The show came out in the late 90s during my "tween" years, and I watched it everyday after school. If only MTV would realize the power they have to influence girls to be smart and above the crowd to counteract any bland Disney channel idols. This isn't so much a clip as an entire episode, but it's one of my favorites: "It Happened One Nut."

Daria-peanut
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4. CJ Cregg (Allison Janney) from The West Wing - I am one of the least eloquent people I know which is only one of the many reasons I idolize CJ. She's passionate, thinks on her feet, and does her best at her job. The fact that she keeps things (mostly) together is a testament to her strength as a character. I can only hope that the people that actually work in the White House are as dedicated to their jobs as CJ. Here are some scenes from "Hartsfield's Landing" (S03E14) which show CJ's puckish side when she deals with Charlie:



5. Liz Lemon (Tina Faye) from 30 Rock - Even if I never achieve professional poise like CJ, I can at least aim to be pretty good at my job and likable like Liz Lemon. I think my favorite part about her is her mixture of basket case and cleverness. She tries and mostly fails, but with humor. Here is a conglomoration of Liz Lemon's random confessions:



6. Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) from The X-files - The other half of a great duo, Scully is just so smart. She's an contradicting mixture of smart, skeptical, and spiritual which I can relate to. She can also run in heels, which is impressive since I hate even walking in heels (although I can). Again, I'm going for levity here, but this clip is great and kind of flirtatious. Scully's showing her fun skeptical side:



7. Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders) from How I Met Your Mother - Speaking of contradicting character traits, Robin is always a surprise. I enjoy how cool/smooth she usually is, but ultimately is a goofball. This is the sweet "Let's Go to the Mall" song from season 2 which exemplifies how uncool she can be. Also, it's the only clip I could find that doesn't have Neil Patrick Harris stealing the scene:



8. Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner) from Northern Exposure - My favorite television feminist of all time. She's always trying to prove something--especially to Joel--and even if she's not completely right, she has a point. I also love Maggie's neurotic inability to quietly deal with things showing that she's tough, but vulnerable. Here she is with Joel from the episode "Spring Break" from season 2. A lovely scene rife with sexual tension (another great thing:



9. Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) from Gilmore Girls - My ultimate goal in life is to be Lorelai Gilmore. Yeah, she sucks at relationships for the most part, but she's smart, successful, and strong. Also, I envy her ability to slide in the perfect pop culture reference into every conversation. Here's a scene where she stands up against Christopher and even slides in some great references: