| So i've been watching this "Akatsuki no Yona" anime. It's about a princess spoiled girl that gets some lesson about hard life and becomes stronger in the process etc(no that she shakes the earth or anything, many times she's still a crybaby but you get the point). Anyway, while watching this series and in the late episode where the little princes started showing some guts, i saw lots of comments in the discussions like this: Deskachan said: Oh, I love this! Yona is becoming so badass! It's rare to see strong females in series D: I hope they make another season Q_Q Chibirosie471 said: Can we just say that yona bravery in this episode is amazinggggg!!! like the fire in her eyes ahhh i got so excited to see. like u dont get to see alot of brave female protagonist in anime. but yona totally steals it here!!! ahhhh cant wait for the new eps!! asdlolxd_ said: nice too see a girl with balls. etc. You got the point. This is not the only series that such comments are made. This was just a current example. Many times you see such comments. So. My question here is. What the hell have this people been watching? Why is there such a perception? Just from the few anime i have seen i can think of tones: Ghost in shell Black Lagoon Medaka Box Kill la kill Ga-Rei: Zero Blood+ Shingeki no Kyojin Busou Renkin Jormungand Evangelion Uchouten Kazoku Kakumeiki Valvrave Terra Formars Cross Ange Deadman Wonderland Hataraku Maou-sama! Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu Claymore Vandread Hellsing Umineko no Naku Koro ni Code Geass Magi Witchblade Mardock Scramble Shingeki no Bahamut Baccano! Pandora Hearts Yumekui Merry Chrno Crusade Fairy Tail Toaru Kagaku no Railgun Blue Gender Murder Princess Akame ga Kill! High School DxD Gunslinger Girl Durarara! Zetsuen no Tempest Nobunagun Angel Beats! Muv-Luv Alternative Noir Rinne no Lagrange Mai-HiME Strike Witches Bakuretsu Tenshi Soul Eater Mirai Nikki Freezing Madan no Ou to Vanadis, Highschool of the Dead Blood-C Fate series Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom Psycho-Pass Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Elfen Lied Canaan Ookami to Koushinryou Ergo Proxy Shakugan no Shana Seirei no Moribito Kara no Kyoukai Mnemosyne Shikabane Hime And this are just the ones that came to my mind where there is a female MAIN character that not only is brave but can kick ass in terms of action too(there are non violent or non action oriented anime where strong females kick ass in other ways, like Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 or Chihayafuru, or Steins;Gate etc) . If i was to put every anime i have checked that has ether brave or badass female even if they ain't a main character, i may have as well copy pasted pretty much my whole damn list!! So really what gives? Why are people saying such things? Why is there such a perception by some? |
MonadMar 26, 2015 1:04 AM
| I've watched/watching/plan to most of your listed anime :) So i come across women more in line with the stereotype your describing (independent, attractive, smart, successful and badass). |
| Yeah, I don't understand those comments either. It's like those people don't watch contemporary anime at all and believe in some preconceptions about outdated gender roles. No...it's no longer refreshing to see a strong female character who doesn't take crap from anyone. It's become pretty much the norm nowadays. If anything, anime nowadays needs more strong (both physically, but especially mentally) male heroes, because there is a shortage of them. |
| they didn't watch the right shows, it seems. |
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| My exact sentiment. I always roll my eyes at thr notion that strong female character are a rarity. Darklord_bg said: If anything, anime nowadays needs more strong (both physically, but especially mentally) male heroes, because there is a shortage of them. This ironically has some truth to it. |
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| Claymore has enough strong women to go around. |
| Best Couple of All Time Kamille x Four (Zeta Gundam) |
| They just don't watch the right shows then. Cross Ange has a strong female lead too(if you can call Yona really strong to begin with...),but everyone calls this show sexist somehow. |
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| Because we can't go one day without proclaiming how poor and oppressed m'ladies are, and how they need a nice guy like me to save them all. |
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| From what I've seen so far I've honestly only come across a few good interesting female characters. For me this is not only limited to female characters but males as well. Take the anime OP's listed, from the ones I've seen I can only pick about six which actually had good female characters in my opinion. |
FoxfireMar 26, 2015 3:50 AM
| There are talking about reverse harem leads. Girls like Heroine from Amnesia, Yui from Diabolik Lovers, Haruka from Uta no Prince Sama, and Ema from Brothers Conflict. The fandom hates these girls because they are extremely passive and weak. Yona is different from the usual reverse harem lead. |
PoeticJustice said: nigga i am black, do you think my ass would fit in? "Oh look it is negro kun." Hell no. |
DejWo said: 1. They have not seen that much 2. They want to think that they are watching something better due to girl having some courage and they are willfully ignoring the rest to suit it. Bolded the important part. |
Okashi_sama said: DejWo said: 1. They have not seen that much 2. They want to think that they are watching something better due to girl having some courage and they are willfully ignoring the rest to suit it. Bolded the important part. Okashi_sama said: DejWo said: 1. They have not seen that much 2. They want to think that they are watching something better due to girl having some courage and they are willfully ignoring the rest to suit it. Bolded the important part. Couldn't agree more |
| It's also pretty lame when female characters who have growth potential get a strong lashback just for not being perfect beings. As if being completely untouchable is some great empowerement. |
mecharobot said: It's also pretty lame when female characters who have growth potential get a strong lashback just for not being perfect beings. As if being completely untouchable is some great empowerement. This. I honestly like the girls who are more 'realistic' to reality unlike 'RE-L' or 'Revy' or any of the other 'badass' girls on the other anime you mentioned (which I've seen a lot of those but don't recall character names). It's just what people like. You can't blame them for rooting for the 'underdog'. You shouldn't blame them for liking 'coming of age stories' where people grow. So yeah, I like the badass characters, but they don't triumph the characters 'adapt and overcome' from being weak to being strong. Not just somehow, miraculously being really strong. Of course, I haven't actually seen the show you're mentioning, but i'm guessing this is open to most with an opinion. --- Also, to actually, ANSWER your topic question, They are because it's just how culture is. You don't see girls being 'heros' because we tend to be 'passive' and that's why there hasn't been a female president. It's just gender roles, and japan is far more 'strict' in their gender roles. |
dakotasapphireMar 26, 2015 12:16 PM
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| It's not that strong/brave females are rare in modern Anime, but they are not charismatic, like the strong/brave girls in 70s/80s/early 90s Anime. |
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| It's because everyone cries sexism whenever a weak willed and submissive female character is on screen (though it's no problem if a guy is like that) And therefore, since not all women are strong and brave, anime is obviously sexist. Because not all females are Major Kusaragi or Utena. The very existence of characters like Belldandy makes feminists blood boil. And even though characters like her are actually kind of a minority, it doesn't matter You see... atleast 85% of all female characters must be storng, brave, progressive portrays of women, such as Kino from Kino's Journey. Otherwise, armchair feminist theorists will never be satisfied. It's like hating SAO for the wrong reasons. There are plenty of good reasons to hate SAO, but a lot of people have stupid reasons like this... "Asuna is kicking ass, she's so awesome" "Asuna got captured, therefore, she's no longer brave, strong or badass anymore. She's just a weak, dainty maiden for kirito to save" |
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| No they aren't rare, you're just watching the wrong shows... |
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| OP,I think you forgot mentioning about Spice and Wolf |
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chat77 said: OP,I think you forgot mentioning about Spice and Wolf Nope. Just look really hard. Is in disguise. ^_^ Milk_is_Special said: No they aren't rare, you're just watching the wrong shows... I get that you can be a "i only read title thread" fag but to fail to even detect the question marks in such title is just....? |
| Well, if you look at the amount of anime that exist, the amount of anime that actually have female heroes is relatively small. Also most strong females are highly sexualized and/or irrelelevant for the plot though. |
| Ryougi shiki |
 Anime is good, fucking deal with it. |
| When I think about badass anime/manga female characters, I only think about one. |
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| People who think strong or brave female characters in anime are rare are delusional. |
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| Lucy from Fairy Tale She sure is strong, brave, and independent |
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Darklord_bg said: If anything, anime nowadays needs more strong (both physically, but especially mentally) male heroes, because there is a shortage of them. it's so true.... |
silversongwriter said: Lucy is a shitty, pathetic butt monkey character.Lucy from Fairy Tale She sure is strong, brave, and independent |
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| I think you should include Skip Beat. |
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| Well, what you aren't going to find is a morally questionable female guile hero like Yagami Light. Or if you do tip me off. |
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| From what I have seen of AnY, the interesting thing about Yona is that she has to become brave and strong. She is not born that way. This sure is more interesting than a female who has 0 depth beyond being strong, like Lightning from FFXIII to quote the biggest example. |
| at least half of the characters in the shows you listed are also used as fanservice. tsunderes/cliche psychotic characters dont count as good female characters. and every character in elfen lied was trash. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes theyre 'rare' |
marriage said: at least half of the characters in the shows you listed are also used as fanservice. tsunderes/cliche psychotic characters don't count as good female characters. and every character in elfen lied was trash. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes they're 'rare'  |
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| All of them? All main heroines can kick some ass, otherwise they wouldn't be as popular. They may be used for fanservice and stuff, but most harems are fantasy. Fantasy has strong, brave MCs becase of the world they live in. |
The sun is a deadly laser |
DrGeroCreation said: silversongwriter said: Lucy is a shitty, pathetic butt monkey character.Lucy from Fairy Tale She sure is strong, brave, and independent I know |
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sullynathan said: marriage said: at least half of the characters in the shows you listed are also used as fanservice. tsunderes/cliche psychotic characters don't count as good female characters. and every character in elfen lied was trash. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes they're 'rare' Im only talking about anime, not manga |
marriage said: sullynathan said: Im only talking about anime, not manga it has an anime though |
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sullynathan said: marriage said: Im only talking about anime, not manga it has an anime though What is it? |
marriage said: http://myanimelist.net/anime/1016/Gunnmsullynathan said: it has an anime though What is it? |
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Working_Designs said: It's not that strong/brave females are rare in modern Anime, but they are not charismatic, like the strong/brave girls in 70s/80s/early 90s Anime. Are you serious? Teresa from claymore would shit all over any female from the 80/90s anime, hell she is prob hands down the most badass and charismatic female character ever. |
| Best Couple of All Time Kamille x Four (Zeta Gundam) |
marriage said: at least half of the characters in the shows you listed are also used as fanservice. tsunderes/cliche psychotic characters dont count as good female characters. and every character in elfen lied was trash. So do the male characters. Fanservice is not limited to sexual overtones. For example, there are many fanservice scenes with Killua. I guess Vegeta doesn't count as a good strong male character, because he was a tsundere. Asserting that characters are not good, simply because they are part of an archetype is incomprehensible, most characters follow certain tropes and archetypes, no matter how original you think they are, it's all about the execution of said tropes/archetypes. Physical strength is a factual trait, it's not up to discussion, so the female characters you are referring to, are considered strong female characters. When talking about strong mentally, here is where opinions come in. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes theyre 'rare' That does not make them rare, it just means they are less, and for obvious reasons. As most action type anime are geared towards male viewers. With as many anime in the OP listed, they are certainly not a foreign concept to anime. |
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Malicre said: Working_Designs said: It's not that strong/brave females are rare in modern Anime, but they are not charismatic, like the strong/brave girls in 70s/80s/early 90s Anime. Are you serious? Teresa from claymore would shit all over any female from the 80/90s anime, hell she is prob hands down the most badass and charismatic female character ever. Not close. Alita and Motoko are more badass than Teresa is. |
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marriage said: at least half of the characters in the shows you listed are also used as fanservice. tsunderes/cliche psychotic characters dont count as good female characters. and every character in elfen lied was trash. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes theyre 'rare' Considering the number of shows i put up there(and take notice this is shows i saw and just by memory not every show out there) even if half of them are what you consider appropriate then is still plenty enough. BUT i still find you full of shit because first you completed 106 anime. So how many of those shows to you even know? I doubt you know much of those so how can you claim half of them are what you claim they are? Actually not many are what you say which shows how little you know. Last i don't get why a sexy female isn't allowed etc. Well she's badass but she wears a sexy outfit or she behaves in a certain way so NO? That makes no sense. Ether she's badass or she isn't? Her nature in terms of being shy or not, or liking being sexually provocative isn't exactly relevant here. I do not care if you don't want to count sexy females or females with certain character because you have a thing about approving certain views on how a woman should behave or you are just jealous of their ass or hate the idea that guys like their sexual nature. We are not discussing on whether certain female characters pass you feminist filter of approval. We talk about whether brave and badass females are rare in anime. |
| The thing about Yona's character is that she is physically weak. She is fragile, girly, and doesn't possess most of the qualities those listed "bad ass heroines" do. But in the face of all of this, she is courageous. She faces her weaknesses head on with the determination to bear responsibility for her decisions. She has an incredibly gentle charisma that draws in the strong, but is always determined to stand in front of them and shoulder their burdens long before it reaches them. One of my favorite moments in Akatsuki no Yona is when (assume full series spoilers) - Strength comes in all sorts of forms. For example, I consider Kaori from Shigatsu to be stronger than some of those hardcore female warriors because of how she is able to confront her problems with incredible optimism and determination. |
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tsudecimo said: So do the male characters. Fanservice is limited to sexual overtones. For example, there are many fanservice scenes with Killua. I guess Vegeta doesn't count as a good strong male character, because he was a tsundere. Asserting that characters are not good, simply because they are part of an archetype is illogical, most characters follow certain tropes, no matter how original you think they are. Physical strength is a factual trait, it's not up to discussion, so the female characters you are referring to, are considered strong female characters. When talking about strong mentally, here is where opinions come in. anime does not have as many MAIN female characters for action type series as there are male characters so yes theyre 'rare' That does not make them rare, it just means they are less, and for obvious reasons. As most action type anime are geared towards male viewers. The killua/hisoka 'fanservice' scenes were laughable IMO. I dont think they were meant to be very serious in the anime. I cant think of any other anime that Ive seen with male MC's that were also used as fanservice apart from obvious fujoshi baiting Free!. my idea of strong/brave female characters are like, Celty from DRRR, Kino from Kino's Journey, or Re-L from Ergo Proxy. It doesnt have anything to do with physical strength for me. No sexual exploitation whatsoever, they werent sidekick girlfriend characters, and were as important as any male characters. Even Mikasa from SNK counts. I dont mean that character tropes are bad, but Yuno from Mirai Nikki & Lucy from Elfen Lied are just embarrassing 100% fanservice characters with no depth whatsoever, yet are considered strong female characters by some people |
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