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Old 2011-07-21, 22:35   Link #3335
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Originally Posted by IkuzeMinna View Post
lol I know this isn't what you mean but the way you put it makes it sound like girls only watch Gundam for the "hot guys".
Oh crap. Yeah, you're right. Saying it like that sounded pretty bad. Sorry, ladies, my bad. I never intended it to sound like I'm assuming all female fans are shallow. I was simply trying to be short (because we all know how lengthy my posts can get ). It was merely an example, you know, one of the many reasons why I think producers do know girls like to watch shounen/seinen as much as guys. Forgive me, it's just that... well, it was the easiest example to cite at the time.

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Ah, c'mon, are you really blaming a guy who gets treated by his army of sisters like this?

...

Really, Quatre grabbing Relena's hand was harmless. If we had him actually act according to his person, he'd have to greet people with kisses; a kiss on the back of a lady's hand because he's a gentleman and a kiss on a man's cheek because he's Arab. I'm pretty sure that would've weirded a lot of people out. xD
I think you misunderstood my point of citing those examples lol. It has nothing to do with Quatre or his personality/habits or anyone else's for that matter. I was simply trying to load ammo to your comment:

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Or maybe it's just Relena?
You know, seconding the motion and also adding that I noticed Relena has the most number of scenes where sweet nothings were played. I have no doubt Quatre's nice to everybody and has a soft spot for women in general. It simply wasn't lampshaded so we didn't get to see it. It was off-screen.

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No, the saddest part is that it didn't backfire. For some reason, Japanese love Destiny, as evidenced by how well it sold.

As far as strong female characters go, I don't think they're popular in Japan (and as we all know, only Japan matters )...

So Nishiio's question if the creators just have trouble writing female characters can be partly answered with yes, they do but that damsels-in-distress types are also what sells. To women, that is. Proof? The girls mentioned above. And if we go worldwide, Twilight. Women love that crap.

I don't think guys have that much trouble with strong women, either. There are just too many that have admitted to liking a girl with spunk. But I think that a lot of girls in general can't identify with them. Otherwise...

And let's not forget that a damsel-in-distress also serves one very important purpose in a story: make the guy look better by rescuing her.
THIS. This is what I was trying to say, really. Hence, these posts:

*She derailed the latter so that the former (which she happens to be a big fangirl of) could have all the limelight for herself when they're supposed to share (like the two leading men, Kira and Athrun). Seriously, what the heck?! And what's worse? It backfired a hundredfold. For me, at least.

Both chicks got derailed.
;

*Majority wins. A lot of producers will still keep on making their shounen/seinen series lead by admirable male characters and... brainless eyecandy female characters who are nothing but the males' sidekicks. Simply because, it's what the majority of the fans want.

~

Anyhow, congrats. You did a heck of a lot better job to get the point across than I did and ever will. High five!

I think it's the Japanese culture and ethics, too.
It seems to me, both their men and women... simply like seeing their women very "attached" and giving as much "assistance" as they possibly can to their men (partners, at least). You know, that women should be the subservient gender. Which is why pop female figures such as Belldandy, Chii and, yes, Lacus, most recently, top the female characters charts all the time. The thing is, Belldandy and Chii were intentionally portrayed that way. They were supposed to be exactly THAT. Lacus, however, was not. She was supposed to be the lead male's equal. Not just in terms of importance, but also in terms of function. Her function. She was supposed to be the Relena to Kira's Heero, the Hime Utsumiya to his Yuu Isami. But no. She was the (laying off Pokemon now) Yumi to his Shishio, albeit worshipped by the other characters as if she was the Kaoru to his Kenshin. What the eff. She was okay in SEED but in SEED Destiny, all I could see was a Kira Yamato subordinate. SUBORDINATE.
I am not hating on Lacus or the Japanese culture or anything, just criticising Morosawa and how she wrote the character who had A LOT of potential to be truly and unquestionably great. A female character of power and dominance. Yeah, okay, DUUHH, it's the producers' right to make their shows Japanese-friendly because, well, they're Japanese, too so it's what they themselves WANT to see and they also prioritise the preferences of their own people.

BUT it wouldn't hurt to be a little flexible, especially nowadays. They are well aware their anime (and anything related thereto) produce hit the Western market.

Thank goodness CLAMP (despite the fact that their stuff is shoujo anyway. But Chobits is an exception), Keiko Nobumoto of BONES and Hayao Miyazaki exist.

To those who think this is straying away from the topic, please bear with me. It's necessary to compare things and reference other shows and writers to illustrate a point.

All that blurb boils down to my attempt to explain why I am too critical of Sumizawa's writing--at least, this particular one at hand. I am EXTREMELY dreading for his female characters in FT. I don't want him to take the same approach in FT that Morosawa did for SEED's sequel. But looks to me, he's heading in the exact same direction that woman did. Just because that approach was what sold SEED Destiny, it doesn't mean it's what will sell Frozen Teardrop... (or maybe, it will? )

I'm almost too sure the popularity of Wing in the West... actually, no, the international popularity of Wing is one of the main reasons why he and/or Sunrise decided to resurrect the masterpiece. If not, he/they could've just made a completely new anime/manga/novel/whatever full of all the angst, drama, kissing, fanservice and female character submissive-ness that popularised SEED, Destiny, 00 and/or Geass in Japan, instead. Rather than put it in Wing's FT. Hello, it's Gundam Wing we're talking about here. The name itself guarantees them there are already audience/readers to milk money from. Outside Japan, even. Whereas making a new one with the same elements (angst, drama, fanservice, angst, angst, angst) would require promotion and advertisement.

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Relena's character wouldn't be so horribly off in fanfics (blushing and stuttering around Heero, yeah right).
For the love of...! THIS. Hallelujah!! Thank goodness someone said that. *hug*
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