Power Rankings Triathlon - Best Female TV Characters

Day 2 of the Power Rankings Triathlon -- and as it should, the standard Thursday slot belongs to the Favorite Female TV Characters of All Time. Just like yesterday, we aren't going for the best performances necessarily (though that's a factor), but the characters I most enjoyed watching on screen.

I broke the Golden Rule of 1 character per show, because I simply couldn't omit 2 of my all-time favorites. But similarly to yesterday, we'll cover a lengthy list of Honorable Mentions before getting into the Top 10.

Giving a fair warning off the top -- I have lots and lots of blind-spots that may ruffle feathers. There are many others, but I haven't seen any of the following shows including characters I saw often in my research:

• Stranger Things

• Grey's Anatomy

• Orange is the New Black

• Gossip Girl

• Sex and the City

• The Crown

So take these rankings with a grain of salt, and let me know who I missed from the shows above/any show I don't mention below!

Honorable Mentions

Category 1: Haven't Seen the Whole Show

Moira Rose - Schitt's Creek

Beth Dutton - Yellowstone

Judy Gemstone - The Righteous Gemstones

Liz Lemon - 30 Rock

Peggy Olson - Mad Men

Rue Bennett - Euphoria

From the limited amount I've seen, all these characters are great in their own way. Moira, Judy, and Liz are all comedic standouts, while Beth, Peggy, and Rue are all vastly different archetypes in drama-heavy shows. All could be legit contenders (if I had finished their shows).

Category 2: Just Missed the Cut

Keeley Jones - Ted Lasso

Meadow Soprano - The Sopranos

Phoebe Buffay - Friends

Elaine Benes - Seinfeld

Tami Taylor - Friday Night Lights

Shiobhan Roy - Succession

Heavy-hitters on this list -- especially Elaine. Her being left off will make more sense in the Top 10, but I'd never argue her not being worthy of a spot. Phoebe's my favorite Friend, Meadow was a screen-crush in HS, Keeley makes me laugh, Tami is a TV staple, and Shiv is one of the best performances of the century (but not a favorite as a character).

Category 3: Game of Thrones Leftovers

Daenerys Targaryen

Ygritte

Margaery Tyrell

Lyanna Mormont

I broke the rules and included 2 GOT characters in the Top 10, but there's endless great female characters in this show. Daenerys is the most notable snub, but couldn't put her ahead of the 2 that made it.

Category 4: Personal Favorites

Toda Mariko - Shogun

Mon Mothma - Andor

Harper - Industry

Donna Paulsen - Suits

Helly R - Severance

Polly Gray - Peaky Blinders

Brooke Davis - One Tree Hill

Fleabag - Fleabag

Mixed bag and probably more unknowns here for my readers. Shogun, Industry, and Andor are show's I'll never shut-up about until more people watch them. Donna's my favorite lady in Suits, Helly R is a budding star, Aunt Pol is a queen (RIP Helen McCrory). Brooke Davis was one of the very 1st screen-crushes of mine, and Fleabag is hysterical and underappreciated.

The Top 10

#10 Tonya - The White Lotus

After 3 seasons of The White Lotus, we've seen a huge array of characters over it's short run. But there have only been a couple of characters who had the staying power to last more than one season, one of which was Jennifer Coolidge's Tonya in S1 and S2. Tonya is a very eccentric, naive, and over-the-top woman who we meet in Season 1. She's filthy rich, but what she's really desperate for in life is love and acceptance. Tonya is definitely one of the funniest characters in a more drama-than-comedy series, and she's probably the most beloved character by fans of the show. She's unintentionally hilarious -- often trying to be genuine but getting the biggest laughs. "These Gays are trying to murder me," comes to mind. Just a very well-developed character, catered perfectly to Jennifer Coolidge.

#9 Chef Sydney - The Bear

Chef Sydney has had a tumultuous journey in The Bear, coming in as a stage and becoming an integral part of the success of the restaurant. This was my introduction to Ayo Adebiri as an actress, and in the years following she's proven to be a standout talent. Sydney is the biggest outsider in the show, and her "death by fire" with the Berzatto family is entertaining to watch. My favorite parts of this show is when they let the characters cook -- figuratively and literally -- Syd especially (Syd cooking the Omelette -- her raw emotion in Season 4 scenes). Syd goes through the full spectrum of emotion throughout the 4 seasons, and while I wasn't a big fan early on, she's become one of my favorites on the show because of how genuine, ambitious, and compelling she is.

#8 Brienne of Tarth - Game of Thrones

The first of the 2 GOT characters to make my Top 10 -- and it was like pulling teeth deciding who to cut. Daenerys is a fantastic character (and isn't too hard to look at), but I can't let my judgement be clouded by the good looks of the dragon lady. It's the heart and honor of Brienne of Tarth that gives her the edge. In a show where so many of the characters are women, Brienne more than anyone else defies gender roles as a brave soldier. She's a fearless warrior and exceptionally skilled fighter -- Brienne may be the scariest foe in a fight of any non-dragons in GOT. But not only that, she is an honorable, loyal, compassionate person who takes her oaths and principles very seriously -- something you can't say about every GOT character.

#7 Deborah Vance - Hacks

Jean Smart is an acting legend who's been killing it on the big and small screens for decades. In a later chapter of her career, she's perhaps doing her finest work as Deborah Vance on HBO's Hacks. This very well may be the defining role of her career after 4 very strong seasons, and it works because of Vance's endearing-asshole personality. In the show, for those unfamiliar: Deborah is a famous stand-up comedian, but she's aging out -- leading to her getting paired up with a young, up-and-coming comedy writer Ava. But these partners turn foe often, and the sharp-tongued Vance always has a bag of insults at the ready. She's a complex character whose got some of the best one-liners in the game.

#6 Leslie Knope - Parks and Recreation

Yesterday I wrote about my favorite guy character from Parks and Rec in Ron Swanson. But when it comes to my favorite character in the whole show, it's gotta be Leslie Knope. Amy Poehler is a bona fide comedy legend from her SNL days, and Parks and Rec was her opportunity to step further into the spotlight. Similar to Michael Scott, Leslie is an even more optimistic and positive figure. She's hard-working to a fault, wanting nothing more than to be a positive impact on her community and to make life in Pawnee better for all. She's also a woman in a male-heavy field with all the confidence and work ethic in the world. Her chemistry with the other characters and her laundry list of funny moments make her one of the most likeable characters in any sitcom.

#5 Carmela Soprano - The Sopranos

Of my favorite shows of all time -- Breaking Bad, The Wire, Peaky Blinders, Sopranos -- there isn't a huge pool of female characters to choose from. (In some cases, they make the female character so unlikeable you find yourself rooting for their drug-dealing husband, cough Skyler White cough). But every so often, we get likeable, powerhouse character like Carmela Soprano. Wife to a mob boss husband, Carmela is a difficult character to pull off. She has to balance moral dilemmas that come with being a mob wife, as well the actions that the person she loves may commit. But Carmela is emotionally complex, and while she values the material things a lot, she also grapples with the moral conflict of her life. Edie Falco puts on the performance of a lifetime which helps, and the show is much better because of her character's success.

#4 Arya Stark - Game of Thrones

My #1 Game of Thrones character was a difficult choice, but in the end, I went with Arya Stark. As viewers, we get to grow up with Arya over the course of eight seasons, seeing her go from young girl to assassin. She goes through so much hardship at a young age -- losing family members, having to hide her identity, fend for herself to stay alive. We get to see Arya interact with characters from Tywin to The Hound to the Faceless Men to Brienne of Tarth. Her character is driven by vengeance -- against those who have wronged her and her family. She is fiercely independent, using her resiliency and cleverness to get her out of sticky situations. And I won't spoil the show (because I know Sean is grinding through now -- just hit the Red Wedding a couple nights ago. YIKES) but she's a major player in the Game of Thrones -- and an awesome character.

#3 Lucille Bluth - Arrested Development

RIP Jessica Walter, the woman that brought to life one of the funniest female characters in TV History. Lucille -- the matriarch of the Bluth family -- would not be described as the world's most loving mother. But what she lacks in affection, she makes up for in manipulation and sarcasm for her parenting techniques. This is a woman that will tell you exactly what is on her mind, and she'll do it in the funniest way possible. In a show of heavy-hitters, Lucille may have the best collection of quotes: "I'd rather be dead in California than alive in Arizona," "I don't understand the question, and I won't respond to it," "It's one banana Michael, what could it cost, $10?" Lucille makes me laugh as hard as anyone on this list and is someone you can't help but love.

#2 Kim Wexler - Better Call Saul

The top 2 characters on this list can flip flop depending on the day, but are head and shoulders above the rest for me for female TV characters. I think Kim is a case of Vince Gilligan (show runner of BCS and Breaking Bad) learning from his mistakes in BB and creating a layered, compelling female character. Kim Wexler is a driven lawyer when we meet her in Season 1 -- smart, emotionally guarded, and genuinely cares for her clients. She's by the book, and when she meets Jimmy McGill (Saul to BB fans), he shows her the thrills of pushing boundaries and bending rules. She chooses loyalty to him over all, which proves to be misplaced. We see her progress into a much more bold, ambitious, and morally ambiguous character over the show's run. Kim just hits emotional notes for me and resonates more so than any other female character -- and Rhea Seehorn is the actress doing her justice.

#1 Selina Meyer - Veep

Between Kim and Selina, it's really a matter of whether I'm favoring the comedy or the dramatic, because I think they are both the clear leaders in the clubhouse. Maybe it's from writing about the guys in comedy yesterday, but I'm leaning comedic performances, and there's never been a funnier female character in a show than Selina Meyer.

The reason I left Elaine Benes from Seinfeld off my Top 10 is because I knew Julia Louis-Dreyfus would make her appearance at #1 of this list. Selina Meyer is the star of Veep as the Vice President of the United States. She is ambitious, she's sharp-witted, and she can be quite charismatic. However, she is also deeply narcissistic, self-absorbed, morally bankrupt, emotionally volatile, and incapable of making governing decisions. So not exactly the perfect mix for a Political Leader.

The character was created with such thought to be an incredible satire of Political Figures. Someone who tells the cameras their only concern is the American people, but behind the lens is solely focused on personal status and power. But when you watch Veep, you don't think about it that way -- you just get lost in the chaos and insults. Like everyone in Veep, she has no shortage of memorable and hilarious lines. And just like yesterday, that's where I'd like to end this blog -- with some of her best insults and quotes. Selina Meyer is the Queen.

"That's like using a croissant, as a fucking dildo. No, no, no, let me be clear -- it doesn't do the job, and it makes a fucking MESS."

“If men got pregnant, you could get an abortion at an ATM.”

“You’re about as useful to me as a condom filled with walnuts.”

“Oh God, I need a Xanax the size of a beanbag chair.”

"Being Vice President is like being declawed, defanged, neutered, ball-gagged, and sealed in an abandoned coal mine under two miles of human shit. It is a fate worse than death. Besides, I’m not gonna die, ’cause I’ve got the heart and the twat of a high school cheerleader who’s only done anal”

“Why don’t you put on your running shoes and get to the fucking point?”

“OK, so they want me to go to a pig roast to meet a bunch of men who probably took turns to fuck the pig before they roasted it?”

If those quotes aren't enough to get you to start watching Veep, I'm not sure what more I can do. Come back tomorrow for the final day of the Power Rankings Triathlon -- Male Actors in TV Dramas tomorrow!