The women of Whedon

By Jevon Phillips and Todd Martens, Times Staff Writers

He's completely cool with male vampires, but Joss Whedon has long been a writer who crafts strong female leads. No slouch herself, Eliza Dushku, Faith from his "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" series, dubbed Whedon the "ultimate feminist male writer."

As he continues to craft the adventures of "Dollhouse," we asked Whedon to quickly rundown some his favorite female creations. Check out the top five women of Whedon, and some honorable mentions that we threw in ourselves.