Ah, yes, one of my favorite questions because I have such a simple answer: Minerva McGonagall. While there are other intricate and intriguing females in HP (Luna and Hermione pop into mind, naturally), McGonagall just stands out as being consistently kick ass at all times, from the opening pages of Sorcerer’s Stone to the final battle in Deathly Hallows.
Think about it: she’s the very first witch or wizard that we meet (albeit in cat form) in the series. How cool is that?! But it’s far more than that – Minerva McGonagall plays such a unique but important role in HP, and it’s one that I admire. She’s that ideal mentor, the professor that is strict and stern and makes you work your ass off for a respectable grade. But you know why she does it? It’s because she knows that you have the potential inside of you, and she’s adamant that she be able to drag that ability out into the open. At the end of the day, though, she cares deeply and she’ll defend you to the end. Look at what the scene in which McGonagall and Harry are having their interview about Harry’s potential career options… when Umbridge snidely interrupts, McGonagall just goes off and dishes it right back to her tenfold. McGonagall is not someone you want to piss off, despite her relatively elderly age – it took what, like five full-grown wizards to stun her when she went to defend Hagrid in Order of the Phoenix?
That brings me to my last point: McGonagall is cool, calm, and collected at nearly all times, but she’s terrifyingly determined and daring. When Harry – the most wanted wizard in the world at the time – just pops into Hogwarts at random and tells her that Voldemort’s on his way, does she freak out? No she does not. She straightens her back, sends the alarm to the other heads of houses, organizes an evacuation of students, and forms a full-out battle plan like a legit military commander. I doubt her confidence ever waivered for a second. She’s a total softie inside, but McGonagall is like iron armor on the exterior – she does what she has to in order to defend what she believes in, and she does it without once second-guessing herself or those she trusts, or even pausing to be concerned for her own safety.
I think the thing that pushes me over the edge into McGonagall fandom completely is that she’s just cool sometimes, beneath her façade of a tight hair bun and pursed lips. She whispered instructions to Peeves to loosen the chandelier in the Entrance Hall, and she was commander of a fleet of stampeding desks during the final battle. Sorry, but that’s pretty baller.
