So, yes. Women in media. Who are also main characters.
I guess I'll start this off by relating my childhood in watching TV: I have spent that time grabbing for some girl character to relate to, but from what I've seen the girls in TV shows don't do much if anything. Actually I think I wanted them to go on the same adventures as the main guys. Because seriously, why should they sit around while the boys had all the fun?
There were a few that I remember that actually did some things. Alex Mack, though she turned into a liquid as a power. Emily from Little Bear (who Goldilocks wouldn't hold a candle to. I mean she hangs out with BEARS!!) But thankfully the rest of my childhood was filled up by more better girls like the Powerpuff Girls and Mandy from Billy and Mandy.
But let's face it; a major problem is that there isn't a variety of girl characters that do things. I don't mean ones that fight but ultimately do nothing else (articles about this being in here, here and here), but I mean ones that bring something of value to the plot.
(And neither am I referring to slice-of-lifeish series either.)
I guess I'll start this off by relating my childhood in watching TV: I have spent that time grabbing for some girl character to relate to, but from what I've seen the girls in TV shows don't do much if anything. Actually I think I wanted them to go on the same adventures as the main guys. Because seriously, why should they sit around while the boys had all the fun?
There were a few that I remember that actually did some things. Alex Mack, though she turned into a liquid as a power. Emily from Little Bear (who Goldilocks wouldn't hold a candle to. I mean she hangs out with BEARS!!) But thankfully the rest of my childhood was filled up by more better girls like the Powerpuff Girls and Mandy from Billy and Mandy.
But let's face it; a major problem is that there isn't a variety of girl characters that do things. I don't mean ones that fight but ultimately do nothing else (articles about this being in here, here and here), but I mean ones that bring something of value to the plot.
(And neither am I referring to slice-of-lifeish series either.)
I watched an anime recently called Gatchaman Crowds, and for one reason: The protagonist Hajime. I have found her easy to like since I read an article about the show. Mainly because her perceptiveness has let her push and even break rules that were established about the Gatchaman MO at the start of the series, and also because she takes on a non-violent stance that, in the end, helps save people and keeps horrible situations from getting worse. There were also some other bits to like about her, but you'd have to watch it for yourself on Crunchyroll.
Above: Hajime reaches an isolated platform. On it sits JJ, a being who until this point had been considered god-like, and who couldn't be reached at 'nigh' risk of death. Take this how you will.
Before Gatchaman Crowds came along though, there was another popular series from long ago called Slayers*. In it starred a young lady named Lina Inverse. Lina was a sorcerous monster/treasure hunter, and was skilled at what she did. At the same time though, she was greedy and prideful, both traits which got her into trouble. But much like Hajime, she could carry her own weight and get things of importance done.
Which leaves the massive amount of time between both anime series. There were series such as Revolutionary Girl Utena, but it seemed a vast majority of women in anime had been taken up by girls who do various... less main-character based things: Such as pine for the main hero, fight tooth and nail with other women over the main hero, be really determined to do something and then not do it for whatever reason, not do something until an excruciating amount of time later (even then see the previous), not do something until something HORRIBLE happens to her or a loved one, or the classic "sit around and do nothing while guys do the more important stuff."
Hell, let's expand further into other media. Mainly, we've got women who pretend to do something, women who do something at first until she gets into trouble (and stays in trouble until the very end), and those who just sit around until something horrific happens to her. Even then in the case of the latter, the horrific things continue to happen just for the sake of the director's fetish for shock value.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with characters who spend time sitting around, but when a woman character is billed as important, as someone who plays a role in carrying the plot, she needs to carry the plot. A main woman should have things of importance happen, not just because she exists but because she caused some of the things to happen. In short...
Which leaves the massive amount of time between both anime series. There were series such as Revolutionary Girl Utena, but it seemed a vast majority of women in anime had been taken up by girls who do various... less main-character based things: Such as pine for the main hero, fight tooth and nail with other women over the main hero, be really determined to do something and then not do it for whatever reason, not do something until an excruciating amount of time later (even then see the previous), not do something until something HORRIBLE happens to her or a loved one, or the classic "sit around and do nothing while guys do the more important stuff."
Hell, let's expand further into other media. Mainly, we've got women who pretend to do something, women who do something at first until she gets into trouble (and stays in trouble until the very end), and those who just sit around until something horrific happens to her. Even then in the case of the latter, the horrific things continue to happen just for the sake of the director's fetish for shock value.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with characters who spend time sitting around, but when a woman character is billed as important, as someone who plays a role in carrying the plot, she needs to carry the plot. A main woman should have things of importance happen, not just because she exists but because she caused some of the things to happen. In short...
A main woman should not be an accessory for the piece of media.
She shouldn't be just a damsel in distress. She shouldn't fight just to showcase her fighting prowess without some value that her prowess would add to the plot. She shouldn't complain about not being able to do anything if she hadn't tried anything first.
In short: If she does something, it should have meaning.
The same could be implied for how she expresses herself. If she gets mad at someone, it shouldn't be dismissed as some lady-anger or jealousy. If she cries, it shouldn't be dismissed as weakness. If she's laughing, it shouldn't mean she is ignorant of the horrors of the world. And if she explodes, it shouldn't just mean that she has gone hysterical.
It shouldn't get any simpler than that.
In short: If she does something, it should have meaning.
The same could be implied for how she expresses herself. If she gets mad at someone, it shouldn't be dismissed as some lady-anger or jealousy. If she cries, it shouldn't be dismissed as weakness. If she's laughing, it shouldn't mean she is ignorant of the horrors of the world. And if she explodes, it shouldn't just mean that she has gone hysterical.
It shouldn't get any simpler than that.
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