Favorite Characters: Gwen Stacy (The Amazing Spider-Man)

All right, so I’ve sung her praises often enough in everything else I’ve written about The Amazing Spider-Man; let’s just make it official.  I heart Gwen Stacy.  I wouldn’t have expected that, since, in the cartoons I watched as a kid, I always preferred MJ, but this version of the character won me over hard.

As I’ve said, Gwen has become one of my favorite superhero’s girlfriends ever, and honestly probably one of my top five female characters in any superhero movie I’ve seen (there’s a list worth thinking about.)  She gives Peter what for – not in a “domineering” or “bitchy” way, but in a way that says, “Hey, we’re both in this, so let’s act like it.”  She’s not down with anyone making her decisions for her, and she sometimes needs to talk some sense into Peter when he thinks he can sideline her for her protection.  (Notice I said “talk” and not “smack,” because Gwen and Peter talk about their issues like people who, for teenagers, are pretty reasonable when they want to be.)

Peter’s lucky that she doesn’t take kindly to being sent away for her own good, because she’s supremely helpful.  Gwen isn’t just Peter’s cheerleader or his damsel or his oblivious lover from whom he comically hides his secret identity.  She’s extremely smart and knows it, and she applies to her keen understanding of science and technology to help Peter get what he needs to save the day while he’s keeping the bad guys busy.  (That makes it sound like Peter is the brawn to Gwen’s brain, which isn’t true.  Although she reminds him that her grades are better than his, he’s plenty brainy, too.  It’s just that, in the big showdown situations, his particular spider-skillset is greatly needed, since there’s no one else who can go head-to-head with superpowered persons.  They both know that nonpowered Gwen can’t fight like Peter can, so she plays to her own strengths and does the science stuff while his hands are full.)  This puts her dangerously close to the front lines, but her desire to help keep people safe wins out over any fear she feels for her safety. 

Because she is afraid sometimes; she’s not Super-Girl.  She feels afraid, she makes reckless decisions, and she gets upset over a guy.  In short, she’s a person, albeit an awesome one.  She doesn’t let fear, rashness, or personal hardships hold her back.  She pushes through her fear to do what needs to be done.  She has big ambitions and goes after what she wants.  She cares about people and gives of herself to protect them.  She believes in science’s ability to solve problems and save lives.  And honestly, she’s just so much fun.  She’s hugely sarcastic – not mean-spirited, just wry, and she can snark with Peter in the most serious of situations.  Even while hiding from people who are after them, when Peter points out that a maintenance closet is too obvious a choice, Gwen ironically apologizes for not taking them “to the Bahamas of hiding places.”  I love it so much. 

It’s sad that part of my love for Gwen is down to how unique she is within her genre.  I’ll watch Iron Man or Thor and think about how Pepper and Jane are pretty good, and then I’ll see Gwen and be reminded that they could be so much better.  I mean, in my book, she’s cooler than a lot of the women in the X-Men films, and they’re mutants with superpowers.  She outshines women who are older than her, more educated than her, and more powerful than her, and I think she does it by a fairly wide margin.  Why aren’t great characters like her more the norm?