Monday, October 20, 2014

This is how you write a strong female character

The new version of Sailor Moon in the updated version of the show Sailor Moon crystal continues to impress me. I will always love the old anime but it had a lot of flaws. It was so repetitive. Sailor Moon always had to be told when to transform, when to attack, and after a couple of seasons it got a bit old because you would think she would have matured and gotten a little braver. But at the same time it was her cry-baby-ness that made her so loveable and realistic because if I was in her shoes I might burst into tears if someone attacked me with magic powers too.

A couple of years back when they announced the new anime they said it would follow the manga and be more for adults and they were not kidding. Sailor Moon feels and acts more mature and it's great. Instead of wailing and waiting to be rescued she acts like a real leader and charges into battle and tells Tuxedo Mask who has no powers to stay out of the way so he does not get hurt. She doesn't always make all the right decisions and still needs recusing every now and then but that's okay. It wouldn't be Sailor Moon if Tuxedo Mask did not make an entrance at least once an episode.

Just because Sailor Moon does need to be rescued sometimes doesn't make her a strong female character. It would be unrealistic if she never got into trouble. But for the most part she is a thousand times more capable than she was in the old anime. Tuxedo Mask gives her emotional (and sometimes physical) support. He is happy to stand on the sidelines and let her take charge most of the time. When he does jump in it is a big moment because he has no powers. He is troubled by that. He feels like he should be able to do more but knows that the girls are more powerful than him so it would be better to let them lead. This is what makes Sailor Moon such a good show for little girls and Sailor Moon such a good role model. She charges into battle (but) will also accept help when she needs it. Tuxedo Mask is a good role model too. He doesn't try to take charge because he is a man. He lets the girls lead and only steps in when the situation gets desperate. It's brave of him to do that as a man without any powers.

The thing I liked the most about the last episode was when Sailor Moon kissed Tuxedo Mask. Yes she kissed him. The old Usagi wouldn't have done that. She would have been too shy and too nervous. When Sailor Moon kissed Tuxedo Mask it was an amazing moment to see her be so bold, she went in and took that kiss, and then ran off to fight and told him to stay out of harm. Gender stereotypes were reversed. In that moment she was acting like the traditional male and Tuxedo was the female.

It was an awesome moment that was ruined by her immediately needing help. LOL. Poor Sailor Moon. Points for effort. I'm not sure if your old self would've been that ballsy in season one. Maybe season five.

No comments:

Post a Comment