This week’s post is sort of silly, and inspired by Chronically Vintage’s post featuring some helpful blog post ideas. Since I was stuck for an idea this week, I’ll roll with this idea. This list could potentially go on waaaaaay past five, so for my readers’ sanity, I’ll keep it just to five.

Thorn – from the Bone graphic novel series by Jeff Smith. She’s the fun-loving country girl who discovers that she’s the crown princess, and saves her land from the Rat Creatures and the evil Hooded One. Of course, if I invited Thorn, I’d have to invite her guardian Gran’ma Ben, and her best friend Fone Bone, so now I’m up to three people invited to this picnic already…

Susan Ivanova – from the TV show Babylon 5. (If you know what a geek I am, then you’d know I’d have to include Babylon 5 in here somehow.) There are a lot of characters from that show that I’d love to hang out with at a picnic (and a lot of characters I would NOT want to meet in real life). But snarky, somewhat anti-social Ivanova is actually a warm and funny person when she’s relaxed, so a fictional summer picnic might just be the thing for her.

Data – from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Because who wouldn’t want to have everyone’s favorite android Starfleet officer at a picnic? Also, conversations between Data and Ivanova could potentially be very entertaining (for me, at any rate).

Glinda – from the Oz books. I might also include the Wizard (hey, if Thorn can come with an entourage, then Glinda certainly can). I must emphasize, though, that this is the Glinda (and the Wizard) from Baum’s original books (in the classic movie, and in Wicked, Glinda is portrayed as more of an airhead, and the Wizard is a jerk). In the original tales, they’re both kind and wise people – not to mention both powerful magicians. Who’d love a good magic show at a picnic?

Gandalf – from The Lord of the Rings. And on the subject of magic, why not invite the great wizard of Middle-Earth? (I thought about inviting some hobbits, but then there’d be no food left). This would take summertime picnic games to a whole new level: pitting Thorn’s magic against Glinda and the Wizard’s magic, against Gandalf’s magic. Who will win? (My money’s on Gandalf). Meanwhile, Data stands off to the side trying to analyze all the magical stuff, and Ivanova is so stunned that she can manage only a few snarky remarks.

My fictional picnic is sure shaping up to be entertaining!

So please share – which fictional characters would you invite to a summer picnic?