**tl;dr – Not all Mary Sues are terrible characters. In fact, some of our most famous and beloved characters of all time are Mary Sues.** First, a definition: "Mary Sue" is a character archetype in which a character is written without any flaws, or is always incredibly good at something/everything they do. I get *so tired* of hearing people complain about Mary Sues. It seems that every time a movie with a strong female lead comes out, I almost immediately hear someone cry about the main character being a Mary Sue. Most of the time, the word is misused (e.g. Rey from Star Wars is not a Mary Sue because she *is* flawed, and *isn't* always perfect at everything she does). But even when the term is used correctly to identify a character's archetype, it's always used in such a *negative* fashion. There are plenty of beloved characters that fall under the "Mary Sue" category. Mary Poppins, Luke Skywalker, and James Bond are some famous examples. What makes these characters so timeless and loveable? Mary Poppins is nurturing and whimsical – a stern disciplinarian, but also kind and fun. Luke Skywalker is the "zero to hero" archetype we all love, because he gives us hope for a better future. James Bond is just plain cool, and represents an unattainable-but-hey-we-can-dream lifestyle of action, adventure, and always winning the love-interest's heart. I think people tire of Mary Sues because there are so many that are poorly-written. At worst, Mary Sues can be uninteresting. Maybe they lack flaws that would otherwise round a character out, or maybe everything always goes their way and nothing bad ever happens to them. Maybe they have no personality and are just a tool to drive the plot along. Bland characters make for bland stories, and there is no worse kind of a story than a *boring* one. But for those Mary Sues in our most beloved tales, they tend to be interesting, engaging, and charming. They *enhance* a story, not just push it along. Heck, they *are* the story. And we love them for a reason.