Since today is Mother’s Day, I started looking for examples of great mothers throughout science fiction, fantasy, and comic books. I was able to put together a list of 10 great mothers.
There are not a bunch of great mothers in geek fiction. Most of the mothers are either dead or the characters have major issues with their mothers. Freud would have been pleased with the mother issues.
10 Best Geeky KOOL Fictional Mothers
10) Mary (E.T. -kids Mother)
Mary is the mother of Elliott, Michael, and Gertie and is recently separated from her husband. She is mostly oblivious to the fact an alien is living in her home with her childrens’ support. But we know she loves her family dearly and would do anything for them. She is compassionate towards the dying Alien who has been living with her this whole time.
9) Amanda Grayson (Star Trek – Spock’s Mother)
Spock’s human mother, Amanda, raised the one of the most famous Vulcans (actually half Vulcan and half human). She taught him how to appropriately deal with his emotions from his human side while yet embracing both his humanity and Vulcan heritage. She often has reminded Spock of his humanity when he is in self denial.
8) Jackie Tyler (Doctor Who– Rose’s Mother)
Jackie is the imperfect widowed single mother of Rose. She is in her late thirties when we first meet her. She has many of her own issues including her love life, being a bit scatterbrained, and lack of financial stability. Yet Jackie became one of my favorite recurring characters. She proves when a mother is pushed too hard, she can do anything to save her daughter and the world.
7) Helen Magnus (Sanctuary)
Helen is a strong female character who happens to be a mother and runs a Sanctuary for Abnormal creatures. She was injected with vampire blood and is over 160 years old. Her daughter, Ashley, was an expert monster hunter. Helen often provided the balance to Ashley’s desire to shoot first and ask questions later. Unfortunately, Ashley tragically died. Helen is still driven by the death of her daughter and the slight possibility that Ashley might not really be dead.
6) Helen Parr (The Incredibles/ AKA Elastigirl)
Pixar’s Incredibles was a great superhero family movie. Elastigirl is the core of the family and the glue holds it together. She may not be the most powerful character but she is smart, a good pilot, and a fierce protector of her family. She knows when to get onto her children and know when to encourage them. She continually sacrifices for her family.
5) Sue Richards (Fantastic Four/ Invisible Woman)
Talking about superhero mothers who are the glue to the team, Sue Richards is the definitely that to the Fantastic Four and is still a great mother. Mr. Fantastic may be brilliant but he is not really there for the kids most of the time. Ben Grimm and the hot head (yes I said that) Johnny Storm may be great uncles and fun to be around but don’t look to them to keep the family or team together. Sue has to be the busiest super mom around since they added a ton of other kids with different abilities and gifts in the Freedom Foundation. She is never invisible when it comes to being a mother to her own or the other kids in her protection.
4) Martha Kent (Superman/Clark Kent)
You would have to be a brave woman to agree to adopted an alien child that crash landed in your field. Even though Superman is one of the most powerful creatures in the galaxy, his mother raised him to be humble, courteous, and to have midwest sensibilities. If Martha had not raised him correctly, Superman could have ruled the Earth with an iron fist. Instead forcing the world to bow before Kal El, he selflessly serves the common good.
3) Molly Weasley (Harry Potter)
The Weasleys may not have much money but they know that their mother, Molly Weasley, loves them dearly. She has a soft heart and is willing to take in strays to their already overpacked home. But don’t think she is soft. She is very willing to yell at you either in person or by a screamer (letter). She is not afraid to go toe to toe with any Death Eater that might threaten her family.
2) Sarah Connors (Terminator series)
Being the Mother of the Leader of the Resistance for All Humanity would give you points no matter what. Sarah started off as a 19 year old waitress who was changed forever when a killing machine from the future attempts to terminate her and she is impregnated by her future son’s best friend with her son, John. Most women would have found a hole to hide in and prayed that the whole end of the world thing would not happen but not Sarah. She began training John at a young age to be a warrior. All the while, she looked for a way to prevent Skynet from taking over. It all depends on the timeline you believe if it worked or if she just delayed it (End of T2, T4, or the Sarah Connor Chronicles) but she is one great and tough mother any way you slice it.
1) Aunt May (Spider-Man)
Yes I realize Aunt May was not Peter Parker’s natural mother. But when Pete’s parents left him with Uncle Ben and Aunt May, she became Pete’s mom. It did not matter if she gave birth to him or not, she loved him as her own. The Parkers never had much money but May would often sacrifice what little she had for Pete. There were times she would forgo paying the bills such as the mortgage to help Peter. She would even push herself into bad health when she was concerned about poor Peter. Peter might always remember Uncle Ben’s famous words but he can never forget the love that Aunt May continues to show him. Plus her Wheat Cakes are supposed to be out of this world good.
