I have the best mom in the world. She has been an amazing mother since I was born. So while there is no competition for my mom, these are ten of the best pop culture moms that almost stack up to my own mother. Whether twisted, comedic, or loving, these mothers are some of the most memorable and iconic, and they’re examples of forgiveness, strength, courage, and love. Here are ten of our favorite pop culture moms. Happy mother’s day to all the mom’s out there including my own.
Marge Simpson
The Simpsons
Marge Simpson is the ultimate forgiving and optimistic mother. To a fault. Even when Bart has been at his nastiest, she’s never given up hope that he’s still a good child looking for a positive outlet. And she’s absorbed every misdeed of his with a groan and an unpleasant bout of decision making, including medicine, and military school, among many other mishaps.
She’s confronted the evolution of her children, including Lisa from vegetarian, to Buddhist, and even tried her best to convince Lisa there is a God. Even though Lisa rebelled, Marge mainly did it out of love, in the end. Marge is one of the loveliest of animated moms, who never really gives up on her children, and always has the best of intentions at heart. Even when she’s making a decision that could lead to disaster of comedic proportions.
Edith Bunker
All in the Family
Edith is often overbearing and never quite knows verbal restraint, but she’s beyond all of those minor flaws, one of the most unique and loving television moms ever created. She’s open minded, and optimistic, and finds hope in the smallest things around her. In one episode, she celebrated the birthday of the singer of one of her favorite songs, and is one of the few people to accept the African American family, The Jeffersons, when they first moved next to the Bunkers.
She is everything Christians should strive to be. Loving, accepting, open minded, adventurous, and good spirited. She believes in humanity, even when experiencing the worst of it. Including the episode where her best friend Beverly is murdered for being gay. No matter what, Edith knows what we don’t
Ma Joad
The Grapes of Wrath
Ma Joad is one of the strongest and most courageous women ever created in American literature. In spite of all the misery and misfortune the Joads experience, she can’t help but keep her head up and power through because, hey, someone has to keep going. Ma Joad is a woman filled with tough decisions through “The Grapes of Wrath” and can barely turn away starving children when cooking a stew that’s barely enough to feed her own family.
Ma Joad is a bonafide cinema heroine, and one that deserves respect and admiration. She heroine for us lower class poor bastards to revere. “Rich fellas come up an’ they die, an’ their kids ain’t no good, an’ they die out. But we keep a-comin’. We’re the people that live. Can’t nobody wipe us out. Can’t nobody lick us. We’ll go on forever, Pa.”
Dee Wallace’s Mom Roles
ET, Cujo, Critters, The Hills Have Eyes
Dee Wallace has been the ultimate mother figure throughout the eighties. She helped her family fight off inbred mutants. She was Elliot’s mom helping him foster his friendship with an alien. She was the mom protecting her child from a rabid dog and scorching heat.
And she also spent most of “Critters” protecting her children from intergalactic porcupines with an infinite appetite for everything and anything. Dee Wallace is a genuine and entertaining actress who played some of the finest roles. She’s the type of mom you want for your heroes in a story.
Mary Cooper
The Big Bang Theory
Mary Cooper may be eccentric and set in her ways, but she is much smarter than Sheldon Cooper. He brands himself a genius, but Cooper is a creature of habit, and his mother Mary Cooper has his number down to where she can manipulate and play him to her desire. Though she is committed to her religion, and is an old fashioned Southerner, she is also an independent and fierce woman, who knows what’s best for her son. Sheldon is an unusual man most people either endure or hate.
Mary loves Sheldon in spite of his eccentricities and alienating behavior, and uses her calm demeanor, and relentless ability to forgive as a way of dealing with Sheldon and solving whatever ailment he’s introduced to his own life. Mary Cooper is a sly woman who you can’t help but enjoy every time she’s around. She may not be the most liberal woman, but she knows she’s done well with Sheldon, so she doesn’t need anyone’s approval but her own, and her God’s.
Helen Parr
The Incredibles
Through all of her turmoils, Helen Parr was able to give up being a superheroine once she had three children, and decided to live the family life. When pushed in to the extraordinary situation to save her husband, and discover the secret lair of Syndrome, Helen maintains her cool, giving her children the fuel to fight the bad guys and survive on the island.
Even in the middle of the ocean, she keeps her cool and shows her children how to use your talents to give you the upper hand. In the end, she’s a wise and loving mother, who just wants to raise her children to be law abiding people. Super powers or no super powers. With her wide hips and wrinkles, Helen is a real woman who manages to outwit a slew of thugs, aiming to kill her entire family, and she is the victor.
Roseanne Conner
Roseanne
Like every mother, Roseanne Conner makes her mistakes. But deep down, Roseanne Conner is a loving and protective mother, who accepts her children in spite of their inherent flaws. She recognizes what great people they can be, thus is quick to defend them whenever anyone bad mouths them. Sure, they didn’t turn in to first class citizens when the show came to a close, but they turned in to people she could respect.
Roseanne is a hard working and struggling mother, who multi-tasks despite her utter exhaustion, and tries her damndest to do right by her family. She sacrificed her health and her dreams to raise her children right. Though brought up in a dysfunctional and destructive household as a child, she did her very beat to raise her children in the opposite arena, and arguably pulled it off. Roseanne is a fine mother.
Mrs. Parker
A Christmas Story
Ralphie Parker’s mother is a very humble and sacrificing woman who spends most of her time doting after her two sons, and showing off her surprising intellect and foresight to her husband Mr. Parker, when he least expects it. Though he shows unconditional love to his wife throughout “A Christmas Story,” her knack for witty comments and keen observations is striking. Especially her decision making, which can often make or break a day for her sons.
As is displayed when Ralphie beats up the local bully in anger and rage. She knows his fighting was justified and warranted, thus she spares him the punishment from his strict father, and keeps the encounter between her and her two sons. Mr. Parker is never the wiser. She means well, and nurtures her children as best as she can, and in the end she absorbs her family’s eccentricities and quirks with a groan and a nervous chuckle. She knows when to swoop in and help, but is wise enough to pull back at the right times.
Sarah Conner
Terminator 2
Sarah Conner is tasked with protecting and guiding the savior of humanity against the robot apocalypse, so I’d say she ranks as one of the greatest moms ever created. Filled with a fierceness, and courage, Sarah Conner takes on all forms of menace to protect her son John.
She battles the evil T-1000, whose efforts to assassinate John fall by the wayside when confronted by the resourceful and relentless urge to keep her son safe. Though he’s been deprived of certain advantages, his upbringing will mean hope for mankind, and she’s tasked with nurturing that model until the very end.
Rochelle
Everybody Hates Chris
Rochelle is definitely a woman who is rough around the edges. Like every mother she has her flaws, but in the end she is a wise and intelligent woman who has immense foresight and knows how to rear her children. Her introduction to the series “Everybody Hates Chris” gives the impression of an angry, violent, and no nonsense woman, but she uses that attitude to keep her children in line. Especially when they’re prone to getting themselves in to endless mishaps.
The family lives in a bad neighborhood and barely get by, so her form of child rearing is necessary, and will make or break her children. Rochelle her some keen insight during the show about her children, and her confidence they’ll find their own paths. But she’s never above smacking them on the head to keep them in line.