L

How can you determine who is and isn’t a leader?

What follows is my very unscientific way of critiquing characters like Buffy Summers or Olivia Pope.

There is a composite score for scenes, episodes, seasons, and series for female protagonists using the following attributes: 

Initiative - does she actively solve problems and resolve to improve situations before others?

Bravery - does she act courageously?

Independence - is she able to determine the path of her own life on her own?

Creativity - does she use her imagination?

Influence - does she affect the people around her?

Maximum: ten points per attribute, total score is out of 50. 

Keep in mind, just because a character gets a lower score for a certain attribute, doesn’t make them any less of a leader. It just means that they are, as a fictional character, somewhat human and entirely relatable. To me, leadership can be a spectrum of a number of things, and can and will mean different things to different people, from running a school to fighting for equality to managing a business.