List your fictional role models!

[Padwolf]

Belle from Beauty and the Beast. I like Belle. She's tough, she's intelligent, she's kind, she's inquisitive, and even if a first impression is bad, she'll take the time to go past that. Plus I've always got my nose stuck in a book too. Growing up, Belle was the kind of person I wanted to be. I couldn't get along with some of the other disney princess's at the time, they didn't seem to do much else than be rescued or have a fairy godmother.

My character in Final Fantasy XIV. She helped saved the world. She didn't have to. But she did. "Oh look, Leviathan has risen from the depths" Right, time to go risk drowning then.

 

[happyninja42]

Sir Samuel Vimes.

*high fives* Excellent choice! I love his character in those books. His growth from something of a drunken, pathetic sod, to a truly good person is an awesome thing to watch in those books.

Just remembered a new one!!

G'Kar from Babylon 5! Starts out as a devious bastard, but has a massive transformation as his eyes are opened to the scale of the conflict in front of him. He becomes a very devout ally to the forces of good. Plus, he jumps in to help King Arthur fight thugs in the bowels of a space station. How can you not love that!!


Not to mention the late, great Andreas Katsulas breathed such life into him.

 

[Chris Moses]

Spock and Data FTW! (except that it turns out that suppressing your emotions is a bad thing for HUMANS to do)

 

[happyninja42]

Spock and Data FTW! (except that it turns out that suppressing your emotions is a bad thing for HUMANS to do)

I always found the thing with Spock being half human to be kind of funny, given the whole "Vulcan Logic" thing. Their logic thing isn't genetic, it's a cultural/mental training thing. Specifically because they are more emotionally unstable than humans. So wouldn't being half human mean that Spock is less emotionally unstable than a regular Vulcan? xD

I love both of those characters, especially Data's quest to embrace humanity. It was so much fun watching him explore what that meant to be human, as it provided us a good lens into how we ourselves behave.

 

[DrownedAmmet]

I always looked up to Dean Winchester from Supernatural. Mainly because he's a badass demon hunter, but also because of his relationship with his Dad. I could really relate to his struggle trying to be a good son and continue the "family business" but eventually having to become his own man.
I watched the series for the first time in my early twenties but I really think teenaged me would have learned a few valuable lessons if I had watched the show then

 

[Trunkage]

Perrin from the Wheel of Time. He made enemies staunch allies through sheer force of will

Coltaine from Deadhouse Gates and Moridin from Mass Effect. Place themselves beyond most people's friendship circles but always knew what is best for all the races.

The same goes for Roy Mustang. He goes in to an unwinnable fight to die so that everyone else can be free.

 

[Mikeybb]

*snipped*, I think all the characters from Discworld have been my role model in one way or another so I'm going to be greedy and say all of them.

That's a good point.
You can learn something from everyone in those stories.
The heroes and the villains, though the latter often as cautionary tales.
Even right down the line to the c.m.o.t. dibblers and nobbys.
There really was a lot to love about that strange little wonderful world.

 

[sageoftruth]

Tyrion Lannister. He embodies so many things I admire. I have a deep admiration for the clever, educated, composed gentleman who always knows exactly what to say in any situation.

 

[Megalodon]

Hmmmm. People in fiction that I admire? Well, let's see.

First off, I'll go with Teal'c from SG!. He was someone who had their entire worldview completely wrecked and destroyed, but who had the mental and emotional fortitude to take what honorable and good things he could from the wreckage and carry on. I found that very admirable.

Was it completely wrecked, though? Master Bra'tac had long before planted the seed of doubt into Teal'c about the godhood of the Goa'uld. True, he probably learned a great deal more while spending time with the Tau'ri and had to adjust his way of thinking, but before meeting them it seemed more like he was just playing along the "loyal jaffa" role he'd done most of his life. He only stopped the act once O'Neill convinced that he could save the prisoners.

Still, Stargate probably has the best good guys in any scifi-show.

True, but then there's what he sacrificed with that decision. Wife, son, everything that ever meant anything to him. Just to do the right thing this one time, and the hope (at the time pretty vain), that there might be a better future for his people. Was that selfish/deluded, given he knows about the Goa'uld and what will happen to Dray'auc and Rya'c, or the ultimate testament to the strength of Teal'c's character? Honestly I don't really know.

 

[Asita]

1) George Bailey from It's a Wonderful Life. The man is as much a paragon of self-sacrifice as one can be without giving up his own life. He lost his hearing in his ear when he was a kid because he saved his brother from drowning. College? Deferred it to keep the Building and Loan alive so that other people could improve their quality of life, and used the funding for it to send his little brother to college. And then he gave up that dream entirely because he refused to deprive his brother of the standing offer to do much better. Honeymoon trip? Gave up the funding for that to keep everyone else from making a terrible mistake when the Great Depression hit. Then he refused an absurdly lucrative job offer[footnote]Potter offered him $20,000 a year...that was in 1945. The effective 2016 equivalent to that is around $265,000[/footnote] because he realized that it was a ploy to put the Building and Loan under (see again the reason that he took that job in the first place). And then when it looked like his uncle had misplaced the bank deposit for the B&L...he shouldered the blame himself and was even contemplating suicide as a way of funding a replacement for that lost funding...and you know what snaps him out of that? Seeing how much worse everyone else's lives would have been without him.

2) Yoda from Star Wars and Mr. Miyagi from the Karate Kid, for roughly the same reason, summed up by their respective lines "Great warrior? Wars not make one great!" and "Fighting not good. Someone always get hurt"[footnote]For Miyagi, see also Daniel's epiphany that Miyagi didn't train to fight but trained so that he wouldn't have to fight[/footnote]. To me this has always been the supplemental lesson for heroes in fiction. You fight when it's required of you, particularly for the sake of protecting others, but if you have power you also have a responsibility to treat the use of it as a last resort to be avoided whenever possible.

3) I'm also going to say Undyne from Undertale. Just because I can.

Spoiler: In case anyone doesn't get the joke

 

[StormShaun]

I don't know if this is egotistic, but characters I created in DnD campaigns or in video games (like Mass Effect) inspire me the most. I think it is because I make them as a more idealised version of myself like they represent what I could be if I tried more or cared less about what others think about me.

No, you're not egotistical there.
I think it's completely valid to say that. After all, you can be <Insert hero/villain/class> who does . Basically, the "you" that you want to (or can) be.

After all, it's the allure of those kinds of games. Especially when I think of such characters like The Lone Wanderer. I mean, fucking ay', I blew up an enemy HQ by making a presidential computer commit suicide, and then I slaughter everything in my way while being a hero.

OT:
Straying away from the characters I create wholly create.

Geralt from The Witcher series. Or more specifically, Witcher 3 Geralt.
By the end, and depending on your choices and ending on quests, Geralt can be a real hero. Sure, he wouldn't say such a thing, he'd just think "I'm a professional that's good at his job." But he does some really courageous and virtuous things. From forgiving people that wronged him in the past, to not killing a beast, but curing it.

Honestly, Geralt is a character you mold. You can get the best endings or the worst. Still, even though I control what he says, it's still him. (Another example is John Marston, he talks, but you direct if he's merciful or vengeful.)

 

[Kolby Jack]

Wally West, Grand Master Oogway, Sonic the Hedgehog, Jake the Dog, Mugen.

Kindness, Enlightenment, Freedom, Friendliness, Independence, and all sort of don't take anything too seriously. I may lack in most of those areas but those are typically the things I strive to improve about myself. I could probably name more, or name other characters who embody those traits, but those five are probably the biggest in my mind.

Vader for his unrelenting dedication.

He betrayed the Jedi Order and killed his wife on the IDEA that she was seeing someone else. Not very dedicated. His relentless nature as Darth Vader was more because he was practically suicidal at that point over guilt, and had literally nothing left to lose (until Luke).

 

[balladbird]

Stannis Baratheon, first of his name. Lord of Dragonstone and true king of westeros. Seriously, any character who remains absolutely devoted to his own sense of right and wrong in a crapsack world like ASoIaF deserves mad respect. He's not a guy who actually wants to be king. He seeks to be king because it's his duty to be king. Men do their duty, good deeds are rewarded, bad deeds are punished, and the good and bad don't wash each other out.

Putting the needs of the realm above yourself. you do you, Stannis!

 

[MetalDooley]

Optimus Prime: The old cartoon Optimus, from the original series. He was an optimistic, noble guy. Who genuinely believed in the idea that humans and robots could live together peacefully. He was super powerful, but used that power to defend those around him. And he never let his personal goal (Killing Megatron) get in the way of what he felt was his duty to protect. While it was a cliche plot device, every time Megatron would toss some civilians into danger to make his escape, Optimus would stop his attack, and save them. Every time (as best as I can remember anyway). He taught lessons of acceptance, tolerance, helping each other, and fighting for those who can't fight for themselves. This really heavily shaped my outlook on the world as a kid, to this day in a lot of ways.

And when they killed him in the Transformers movie, I was one of the multitude of kids weeping openly in utter shock at the death of one of my heroes. When he holds out the Matrix of Leadership and gasps out "Until All, are One...." and then drops it. Gah, I lost it, totally lost it.

Another vote for Optimus Prime here

His death in the movie didn't have quite the same impact on me though mainly because I didn't get to see the movie for a good while.I think it didn't get released in Ireland until about a year after it's original release and I'm not even sure if it got a theatrical release.I saw it on VHS and I sure as hell would have pestered my parents into bringing me to the cinema to see it.Thing is by the time I saw the movie Prime had already died and come back in the comics and because his death in the comic was pretty fucking dumb it kinda lessened the impact of his death in the movie

 

[Zen Bard]

Tricksters, liars and thieves...all of them. Anyone who's used wit and humor to challenge the status quo has been a big influence in my life (including most of the Tricksters figures from mythology...Coyote, Raven, Anansi, Iktomi, etc...). But four stand out here:

-Smith from Alan Sillitoe's "Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner" - Read this story in high school and it changed my life. It showed me that the best way to beat the system is to become part of it...and then walk away when it needs you most.

-Sam from Roger Zelazny's Lord of Light - Aside from a great sci fi story, it's a fantastic guide on how to con your way to a revolution.

-John Constantine - Who needs super powers when you got street smarts, a sharp wit and little magic, eh squire?

-Spider Jerusalem - Being a bastard works. (I mean...look at my avatar!)