Who is the Greatest Action Hero?

The idea came to me at work, which means that today wasn't a total loss. I spend a good deal of my free time at work, when I have any, talking about movies. I love to quote movies, often randomly, so perhaps this topic should have come to mind a bit sooner. Who is the greatest action hero? Does this question even have an answer?

While smacking the idea around at work a couple of names sprang to mind. Now we aren't talking actors but rather the characters. We have Rambo, John McClane, Indiana Jones, James Bond and Jason Bourne. Now those are just a few that came to mind. For sake of sanity I've decided to omit superheroes because that would just devolve into a who can beat who in a fight type discussion and that isn't what this is about.

What makes this interesting is doing it by character, because there are some really great action movie actors but how memorable or kick-ass of a character have they played where they can crack the short completely incomplete list above? Jason Statham has made a name for himself with his action movies but is Frank Martin of The Transporter the greatest action hero ever? I'm going to have to say no.

I've had two people cast their vote for Indiana Jones and I must admit it is hard not to agree. Indiana Jones spent his time kicking the shit out of Nazis, breaking hearts and finding the lost treasures of the world. He was such a sustainable character that he has appeared in four movies, yes four, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull happened. Does he lose points for a disappointing movie or gain points for being so beloved that they brought him back in his fifties?

James Bond spent most of his time not really kicking ass all that much, but his latest incarnation certainly does. Can we really award him the honor for only two Bond movies that can really be called action packed? Rambo is a man against any army you name, where the first one was really a commentary regarding the treatment of Vietnam war vets that devolved into a brutal action packed ass kicking, the rest were merely excuses to get him to shoot the shit out of people.

Jason Bourne was based off Robert Ludlum books and in the movie he does beat a man with a newspaper if I'm not mistaken, that is pretty bad ass. They are recent movies so they haven't yet gotten that nostalgia factor but he is a very good candidate nonetheless.

I've been rambling so much I haven't even mentioned my vote. I give the nod to John McClane, the New York City cop who just continues to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some people complain about the over the top shit from the fourth movie, but I feel it was solid enough that it didn't take too much away from it, yes he took out a helicopter with a cop car but that was awesome! The guy spent an entire movie in an office building offing terrorists...barefoot! He stabbed a guy in the eye with an icicle in the second movie and he survives in Harlem wearing a sign that I can't even write here, not to mention offing Hans Gruber's brother.

So there you have it, hopefully this will spark some friendly debate. Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker!