Musings of a Christian Geek about the Word, Geek Culture, Science, Music, Movies, and anything that is deemed noteworthy.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

My Top 10 Science Fiction and Fantasy Characters: #6



6. Henry Jones, Jr. (Indiana Jones)

We go from the superspy, James Bond to a character who was partly inspired by one director’s (Spielberg) desire to direct James Bond. Number six was probably my most contested spot on the list. Which character did I like enough to place before some great characters listed so far, yet is not worthy of my top five? Well, I came to a conclusion which settled on Indiana Jones. Indiana Jones is just a character that exudes coolness and one thing I have always admired about him is that he is actually an academic travelling on these quests. His profession is not as adventurer but as professor of Archaeology. 

Indiana Jones, as with any great character in Sci-Fi or Fantasy, is not just relegated only to the movies everyone has seen, but he has appeared in many books, video games, and television series. I will admit, though I have only seen the movies with Harrison Ford and The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles with Sean Patrick Flanery as a young Indy, these portrayals of the character were a good enough sample to make Indy my number six character on the list because both the show and the movies were just so enjoyable and fun.

Another reason why I love the character and the movies so much is the type of artifacts he searches for in both Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In Lost Ark, Indy attempts to beat the Nazis to the Ark of the Covenant which is of particular interest to me because of my Biblical research. However, for the record, the Bible never speaks of the Ark “leveling mountains and laying waste to entire regions” as Brody says. In the Last Crusade, it is a fitting continuation of stories of Arthurian legend concerning the Cup of Jesus Christ.
     
Best portrayal: Raiders of the Lost Ark

Favorite moment(s): Through knowledge of how the Ark of the Covenant has worked in the Bible, Indiana Jones realizes the best course of action is to keep his eyes shut when the Nazis decide to open the Ark.  

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