This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Nottingham chapter.

In honour of last Sunday’s Mother’s Day, we want to salute to some of the most underrated characters out there: the mothers. This list revolves around the best maternal characters that grace our literature, television and movies. After all, mums shouldn’t just be celebrated on once a year.

1. Cersei Lannister, Game of Thrones

Cersei is a horrible, horrible person – but she’s a good mother. She tries her best, even if she thinks that teaching her children to isolate themselves from anyone that isn’t a Lannister is a ‘good’ thing. In Game of Thrones, nobody is perfect and Cersei doesn’t even come close. At the very least, she protects her kids with everything she has, even if she kills them. Thanks Cersei, to appreciate our mothers aren’t verging on crazy.

2. Sarah Connor, The Terminator Series

Sarah Connor is the pinnacle of what a maternal character is. Being the mother of the leader isn’t an easy job, but Sarah is an iconic character because she makes being a mother kick butt. Not only is she a pivotal character in one of the best sequels of all time, she also teaches John Connor everything he knows to beat the terminators.

3. Bren MacGuff, Juno

Stepmothers often get a bad rap in fiction (we can thank Cinderella for that), but Bren MacGuff is probably one of the coolest step-mums to grace our screens in ‘Juno’. She’s calm, collected and is ready to snap at any bitch that criticizes her stepdaughter. Often a really underrated character, Bren is portrayed honestly and is a realistic imitation of how mothers usually have to carry the brunt of the emotional package.

4. Helen Parr, The Incredibles

‘The Incredibles’ is a film that centers on family and Helen is at the middle of it. Throughout the movie, she uses her body as a shield to protect her children from an explosion, transports them from the middle of the ocean to land and wipes out an entire security base – all in one day! Some serious appreciation is needed right there!

5. Marge Simpson, The Simpsons

What top mother character list would be complete without this yellow and blue character that holds all the Simpsons together? Easily one of the most iconic characters in the list, Marge is a symbol of what all mothers should be: caring, compassionate and loving. For being on our screens for over 25 years, Marge serves as the calm counterpart to Homer’s chaotic mess, and we love her for it.

6. Lucille Bluth, Arrested Development

To truly honour good mothers, we also need to look at bad mothers – and a name that springs to mind is ‘Lucille Bluth.’ She’s manipulative, coddling and materialistic. A list of her accomplishments: adopting a Korean son just to spite her others, not caring for ‘Gob’ and for not knowing a price of a banana. Easily one of the most horrible mothers to have, she makes us appreciate our own that little more.

7. Mrs. Bennett, Pride and Prejudice

Ah Mrs. Bennett, while she might be no Elizabeth, it’s obvious that she cares for her daughters. I mean, the whole book revolves around her matchmaking and awful reputation! She was a good mother for her time and always tried her best to make her daughters happy, even if she was incessant, rude and quite blunt. But at the end, she got what she wanted: most of her daughters happily married and her fortune secured. You go, Mrs. Bennett!

8. Lorelai Gilmore, Gilmore Girls

If you’ve ever watched Gilmore Girls (or just the revival), there are two things that you agree with: Lorelei is a good mother and you’re secretly jealous of her relationship with her daughter, Rory. She’s a cool and trendy mum but also gives really good advice and always puts Rory first. 10/10 mother material, even if she was a bit too vague about how (spoiler!) adultery is wrong.

9. Lois, Malcolm in the Middle

When you were a kid and watched ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ you thought she was evil. But now that you’re a bit older, it’s clear that Lois was always, always in the right. She just had terribly-behaved kids and a husband that didn’t really do anything. Think the more extreme version of Marge Simpson, and you’ve got Lois. Although she took away Christmas, we’ve given her a spot on our list.

10. Narcissa Malfoy

Question: what stopped the Great Second Wizarding War? Narcissa Malfoy, for lying to Voldermort about whether Harry was alive or not, and getting away with it. She deceived the Dark Lord, put her life in danger, and betrayed her family, just to know that her son was alive. This edges her above the likes of Lily Potter and Molly Weasley for the top spot here, she didn’t do it because it was the right thing to do, she did it only because she loved her son, and we love her for it.

Edited by Jenine Tudtud

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