Some final thoughts on my series about fictional role models.

I had a lot of fun delving into my childhood memories, thinking about which characters made an impact on me. Most I discovered as a child, but there were some I came to later in life. We're never too old to learn from good examples. I discovered Wonder Woman comics in the 90s and that's when I 'met' Etta Candy. You may have noticed that her write-up was a bit different than the others (talking about girlhood role models and bondage in the same breath? Who is this weird blogger?). That's because I'd written that piece a couple of years ago for another publication but decided against sending it in. Rather than let it gather dust on the hard drive, I figured I'd pop it into this series because bondage aside, Etta is an extremely cool character and would be an excellent role model for a little girl with low self-esteem about weight or height or other societal constructs where one is deemed "lesser than" because of appearance.

Most of these highlighted characters had elements of fundamental archetypes. These enduring, almost mythical characters become part of our shared psyche. As mridu said in her comment on Mary Poppins, "These really are timeless and borderless role models." Two people on opposite sides of the globe and we share a love and admiration for these wonderful female characters who helped shape our lives.

There were a lot of names on my list that I didn't get to. I didn't want to wear out my welcome with this series. I figured one week's worth was enough. Everyone from the Bionic Woman (I'm old school and prefer the Jamie Summers of the 70s, but I'm giving the new series a chance) to Scarlett O'Hara (she had an impact on me as an teenager, but this series was about pre-teen heroes) to Cassie Sandsmark (for the modern pre-teen).

Don't know who Cassie Sandsmark is? You probably can see the similarity between our last names. Cassie is a character in the DC Universe who became Wonder Girl. Wonder Girl has a long and storied history, but she's always been associated with Wonder Woman. Sometimes it's difficult to explain the relationship (especially since Wonder Girl began as simply Wonder Woman in her youth). Cassie is the daughter of Helena Sandsmark and the neice of... well, me.

When John Byrne took over the Wonder Woman comic book, he created the Sandsmark family as supporting players. Originally, he had an Italian name in mind. I was talking to him on IM and joked, "Where are all the Scandinavian characters in comics? We get Thor and that's it?" I was just playing with him, but he decided on the spot to name Cassie and Helena after me. "You'll be Cassie's aunt," he said. The comic fangirl in me went a bit giddy at the thought of my name being a part of comics history, especially when Cassie became Wonder Girl. In one of those bizarre life coincidences, I had the nickname "Channa, the Wonder Girl" decades before Cassie was created. It, too, was just a joke. If you say "Joanna" in a fast, plaintive voice, it sort of sounds like "Channa". My friends tagged me with 'Wonder Girl' because it seemed to fit the name. Had nothing to do with the towel pinned around my neck, I promise.

Funny how sometimes life goes full circle, isn't it? I started reading comic books and Nancy Drew books, and watching amazing movies like The Wizard of Oz and Mary Poppins when I was very young. They spoke to me then and they still speak to me now. I have a deep and abiding love for these fictional characters and I hope I have lived my life in a way that would make them proud (if, in fact, they were real. I do understand the difference, I promise). There are hosts of real role models, living or passed, that deserve all the plaudits we can give them. For me, the person who holds the title at the top of that list is my mother. If I am half the person she is, I'll be more than happy. But for a book, movie and TV lover, well, there's nothing quite like finding that special character who shows us our own potential.

I hope you enjoyed the series.

Fictional Role Models, Part Three: DOROTHY from THE WIZARD OF OZ

Continuing my series on fictional role models for little girls, it's time to look at movies. The Wizard of Oz is a time-tested classic because it has great characters, music, performances, sets, and a little dog, too. For me, as a child, Dorothy was the best thing in the movie. It used to bother me that she was so sad in the beginning and had the horrifying Miss Gulch trying to steal her dog. I couldn't think of a worse thing than someone destroying your dog (especially since I didn't know the word "destroy" when I was little and thought she'd said "de-straw", as in take the stuffing out of him. It was a confusing time).

For me, the most frightening sequence of the entire film was the twister. I thought Dorothy was uncommonly brave as she tried to find shelter. She didn't panic – even when the cellar door wouldn't open. Tornados scared me to death as a kid and I forever saw them in my mind's eye looking exactly like the one in the Wizard of Oz. I remember running home from school, imagining being chased by Dorothy's twister. No lollygagging or dawdling on those days – I made record time.

One of the things I loved about Dorothy was that she embodied all the qualities her friends were seeking. She was smart, loving, and courageous. She didn't need the Wizard to give her any gifts to improve herself. All she wanted was to go home to her family. I understood that message clearly as losing my family was far more frightening than even a tornado.

Judy Garland did an amazing job portraying Dorothy. Because Judy had that sad vulnerability, even at a young age, I believed her performance from sepia to color and back again. Her portrayal of Dorothy was the anchor on which the other characters clung, always the one they turned to, always the focus, whether in munchkin land, on the yellow brick road, the Emerald City or the Witch's Castle. As a child, Dorothy showed me what it was like to be a leader. She didn't have to bully anyone into following her. Everyone did so willingly. My eager little eyes adored seeing a film where a young girl was stronger and more level-headed than all of the adults around her.

I used to have the soundtrack album to The Wizard of Oz and I would sing along with it, do all the dialogue (it had snippets of scenes as well as songs), and imagine myself as Dorothy. There were two skips on the record – one for the line "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog, too!" It kept saying, "...and your little do—, and your little do—, and your little do—." The other was "You're more trouble than you're worth, one way or another." That one said, "You're more trouble than you're wor—, You're more trouble than you're wor—, You're more trouble than you're wor—." Naturally, when I talked along with the record, I always imitated the skips. To this day, those lines are stuck in my head, skips and all. But I digress.

The Wizard of Oz has made a strong impression on so many kids over the years. It's a part of our collective pop culture history and ties generations together in the shared experience of watching Dorothy long for a place over the rainbow until she understands there's no place like home. The film was made in 1939, long before most of us were born. Yet it endures, as fresh, imaginative, and meaningful today as it ever was. A big reason for that is the pivotal role young Dorothy plays. As a character, she's worth our admiration, which is why she's one of my fictional role models.