17177 réponses à ce sujet

[Dave of Canada]

XX55XX wrote...

Because virginity connotes a sense of innocence. Characters who lack a knowledge of evil in the world tend to have a certain charm - much like how children have a charm that is rarely seen in adults. It's cute.

Though I don't demand that Merrill be a virgin though - as long as she conveys a sense of youthfulness and innocence. I do hope to see her mature and grow in the game, though, and eventually outgrow this "innocence".

Though shouldn't all female elves look similar to Merrill (assuming they all share the same body model which is most likely to happen)? She's an adult like everybody else, there's just something about her that makes some people (not naming names) seek her ot be perfectly innocent and cutesey and that if anything challenges it then it's bad.

Like finding out that Merrill used blood magic, I remember quite a few posters that were against the idea because it didn't fit with their idea of Merrill being this innocent little flower. The posters more often than not the same ones that argue that she has to be a virgin.

Modifié par Dave of Canada, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:32 .

[Maria Caliban]

Upsettingshorts wrote...

Singling out any particular thread would not only be unfair, it would be inaccurate - and just because I happen to be posting in this one now does not mean the message is only meant for this thread. I'm not gonna speak for Dave or anyone else, but I'd enjoy this forum in general a lot more without the thinly veiled sex fantasies and innuendo around fictional characters.

My sexual fantasies about Dragon Age characters aren't thinly veiled. In fact, they're easily accessible on da kinkmeme. My first Isabela/ Lady Hawke story should be going up soon.

You don't like that people get off on these characters. Got it.
You think it's creepy. Got it.
You'd rather people not talk about it. I understand, but that's not going to happen.

The majority of this thread is not about people wanting to have sex or make-out with Merrill. However, that is and will always be part of that thread. I'm sorry if that makes you uncomfortable.

My only suggestion is to skip it and join in the non-romantic/sexual conversation.

Modifié par Maria Caliban, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:32 .

[Russalka]

A constant presence of reason could cure the fan threads of all their plights.

[Quinnzel]

Russalka wrote...

A constant presence of reason could cure the fan threads of all their plights.

Wheres the fun in that?

[Russalka]

Quinnzel wrote...

Wheres the fun in that?

I know! But there is a thin line between fun and annoyance!

[upsettingshorts]

CoS Sarah Jinstar wrote...

Why not just stay out of the character fan threads if that kinda thing bugs you though. Seems kinda counter intuitive.

Did you genuinely just type this post without thinking how it applies to you and the BSN at large?

Modifié par Upsettingshorts, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:36 .

[Maria Caliban]

Russalka wrote...

Quinnzel wrote...

Wheres the fun in that?

I know! But there is a thin line between fun and annoyance!

I'm sorry if this thread annoys you, Ressalka.

What would make it less annoying for you?

[Addai]

Upsettingshorts wrote...

Singling out any particular thread would not only be unfair, it would be inaccurate - and just because I happen to be posting in this one now does not mean the message is only meant for this thread. I'm not gonna speak for Dave or anyone else, but I'd enjoy this forum in general a lot more without the thinly veiled sex fantasies and innuendo around fictional characters.

That being said, the Varric thread is so overtly tongue-in-cheek in character that it boggles my mind whenever it's brought up as a counter-example in these discussions.

All in all, this thread hasn't been any more fetish-ridden than Fenris'.  Can't say about Isabela's, don't lurk there.  When we were talking about Dalish stuff, someone came in to thread-nanny that we weren't talking about Merrill enough.  Everyone's a critic.

It's the forums and you have to expect a bit of giddy nonsense.  No reason to take it too seriously.

[Russalka]

Maria Caliban wrote...

I'm sorry if this thread annoys you, Ressalka.

What would make it less annoying for you?

I am far too delighted by your attention to actually be bothered by anything right now.

[Tiax Rules All]

Dave: I dont recall anybody saying "she HAS to be a virgin"

I wonder if that word was never thrown out by Hepler what you people would think about the people who think she is cute and are interested in a LI..



I dont care wether she is a virgin or not.. but the "virginal" implies a certain type of character.. which i find intriging. Its talks just as much about her character then it does about her actual sexual status.. I like a innocent elf character.. seems fun. Already had almost enough of Isabellas sex all up in your face attitudes

[XX55XX]

Dave of Canada wrote...

XX55XX wrote...

Because virginity connotes a sense of innocence. Characters who lack a knowledge of evil in the world tend to have a certain charm - much like how children have a charm that is rarely seen in adults. It's cute.

Though I don't demand that Merrill be a virgin though - as long as she conveys a sense of youthfulness and innocence. I do hope to see her mature and grow in the game, though, and eventually outgrow this "innocence".

Though shouldn't all female elves look similar to Merrill (assuming they all share the same body model which is most likely to happen)? She's an adult like everybody else, there's just something about her that makes some people (not naming names) seek her ot be perfectly innocent and cutesey and that if anything challenges it then it's bad.

Like finding out that Merrill used blood magic, I remember quite a few posters that were against the idea because it didn't fit with their idea of Merrill being this innocent little flower. The posters more often than not the same ones that argue that she has to be a virgin.

If she uses blood magic, so be it. I know there are a lot of posters who want Merrill to be innocent and cutesy (and I do duly confess that I feel the same), but granted, there isn't much we can go by, so we have to form a mental model in our heads with what Merrill might be like. Those screenshots convey a sense of innocence and youth, so why can't we have this model in our heads?

Most likely, we will be proven wrong by the game (perhaps Merrill will be evil and sadistic, as her fondness for blood magic connotes), or perhaps our mental models will be validated by the game. I don't know. But, with a cute face suggesting youth, beauty, and innocence, it's hard not to go along that mental model suggesting the very same about her character.

I would love Merrill to be that cutesy, innocent character that my Hawke will fall in love with, but if she turns out not be, it won't bother me at all. We don't know enough about her to render a firm judgement on her character.

But, at minimum, she is cute (physically). We can be certain about that much.

I would like a BioWare writer to comment on this.

Modifié par XX55XX, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:41 .

[upsettingshorts]

Oh it's in Isabela's too, and in character fan threads for other games as well. I'm not quite sure how much clearer I could have been on the whole "this is a common thing" point. But Maria's got a damn good point, and as the only way I could respond would be to go into detail about which posts by whom bug me the most (veering into territory that would benefit no-one) I don't have much else to say.

[Dave of Canada]

Tiax Rules All wrote...

Dave: I dont recall anybody saying "she HAS to be a virgin"

Way back when we were discussing about her sleeping with an elf to bear an elf child, somebody brought it up.

I dont care wether she is a virgin or not.. but the "virginal" implies a
certain type of character.. which i find intriging. Its talks just as
much about her character then it does about her actual sexual status.. I
like a innocent elf character.. seems fun. Already had almost enough of
Isabellas sex all up in your face attitudes

I don't believe that was targeted to Merrill but more in general.

Modifié par Dave of Canada, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:44 .

[Big Blue Car]

Maria Caliban wrote...
My only suggestion is to skip it and join in the non-romantic/sexual conversation.

That's kind of hard for DA2. I mean, there is almost no info available about the game compared to DA:O at this point and yet we have been pressured into pre-ordering without enough information to make an informed decision due to making exclusive 'extra' content. "Think like a general, fight like a spartan," doesn't compute with 'no friendly fire'  or 'button mashing with AI partners can win the game on normal'. We keep hearing how the Bioware epic adventures we love are being 'streamlined' and choices about player character are being removed without being told what that means for the product, as surely there must be negative implications as well. I have absolutely no idea what DA2 will be like, and I say that from the perspective of someone who is an obsessive fan and seen all the pre-release info.

What we DO know is that damn, we can totally bang that pirate chick and the virginal-elf-next-door, not Varric sadly but the bishie elf for sure! It seems harsh to have a go at someone and say 'just ignore the sex stuff' when the sex stuff is such a huge amount of the info we've received so far.

Modifié par Big Blue Car, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:49 .

[slimgrin]

Tiax Rules All wrote...

Dave: I dont recall anybody saying "she HAS to be a virgin"
I wonder if that word was never thrown out by Hepler what you people would think about the people who think she is cute and are interested in a LI..

I dont care wether she is a virgin or not.. but the "virginal" implies a certain type of character.. which i find intriging. Its talks just as much about her character then it does about her actual sexual status.. I like a innocent elf character.. seems fun. Already had almost enough of Isabellas sex all up in your face attitudes

I think they have something up their sleeve with Merril. She may look the virginal part...

[SteamPunks]

Dave of Canada wrote...
Though shouldn't all female elves look similar to Merrill (assuming they all share the same body model which is most likely to happen)?

This doesn't really affect your point at all, but I thought David said that Merrill is just tiny.
But I do not think that the "virginal girl next door" voice over helped at all.

I wonder if she will be anything like her character in DA:O. I found her to be very serious and "scholarly" in the sense that she knew the history of everything.

[XX55XX]

slimgrin wrote...

Tiax Rules All wrote...

Dave: I dont recall anybody saying "she HAS to be a virgin"
I wonder if that word was never thrown out by Hepler what you people would think about the people who think she is cute and are interested in a LI..

I dont care wether she is a virgin or not.. but the "virginal" implies a certain type of character.. which i find intriging. Its talks just as much about her character then it does about her actual sexual status.. I like a innocent elf character.. seems fun. Already had almost enough of Isabellas sex all up in your face attitudes

I think they have something up their sleeve with Merril. She may look the virginal part...

Good observation. They might be trying to fool us. She is not as innocent as she looks.

Which makes for an interesting character...

[XX55XX]

Big Blue Car wrote...

Maria Caliban wrote...
My only suggestion is to skip it and join in the non-romantic/sexual conversation.

That's kind of hard for DA2. I mean, there is almost no info available about the game compared to DA:O at this point and yet we have been pressured into pre-ordering without enough information to make an informed decision due to making exclusive 'extra' content. "Think like a general, fight like a spartan," doesn't compute with 'no friendly fire'  or 'button mashing with AI partners can win the game on normal'. We keep hearing how the Bioware epic adventures we love are being 'streamlined' and choices about player character are being removed without being told what that means for the product, as surely there must be negative implications as well. I have absolutely no idea what DA2 will be like, and I say that from the perspective of someone who is an obsessive fan and seen all the pre-release info.

What we DO know is that damn, we can totally bang that pirate chick and the virginal-elf-next-door, not Varric sadly but the bishie elf for sure! It seems harsh to have a go at someone and say 'just ignore the sex stuff' when the sex stuff is such a huge amount of the info we've received so far.

Precisely my thoughts. Thank you for that.

[HiroVoid]

stephen1493 wrote...

So if our dalish warden didn't have the tattoo's on his face, he wasn't seen as an adult among the Dalish?

It'll probably just be assumed he had a tattoo.  Having one or not is simply an aesthetic choice.  It's the same with having a Dwarf Commoner not having a mark under their eye.

[Maria Caliban]

Okay, when I started this thread, I wanted it to be a friendly place where people could talk about the character (and the Dalish, the elf design, shoes, magic, etc) whether they were just interested in her as a friend or not.

I love Dragon Age and what I loved most about Origins was the characters. I dislike that sometimes the fan threads can be very hostile to new posters or anyone who's critical of the character.

At the same time, people who think the character is sexy and want to talk about romancing them often make up the 'core' of the group. And yes, you certainly do see this on the Varric thread. There's nothing wrong with it!

I think there's a balance and we've managed to hit it in this thread. If someone feels excluded or if their thoughts will be ignored, speak up (or PM me, if you think people are scary) and I think people will try to accommodate you.

[Maria Caliban]

Russalka wrote...

I am far too delighted by your attention to actually be bothered by anything right now.

....oh.

Thank you!

[Tiax Rules All]

Tiax Rules All wrote...

I dont care wether she is a virgin or not.. but the "virginal" implies a
certain type of character.. which i find intriging. Its talks just as
much about her character then it does about her actual sexual status.. I
like a innocent elf character.. seems fun. Already had almost enough of
Isabellas sex all up in your face attitudes

I don't believe that was targeted to Merrill but more in general.

If you say so..looked pretty cut and dry to me with the Merrill/Isabella contrast shots in the video with coveniently matching dialog. Merrill looking cute and Isabella raping Hawke but SURE... it could have been meant for other people

Modifié par Tiax Rules All, 31 janvier 2011 - 12:55 .

[Pseudo the Mustachioed]

[Inigo Montoya voice] 'Virginal girl next door'... I do not think it means what you* think it does. Especially given the writers.

I think the 'purest' and most 'innocent' you'll get out of this series is Alistair.

*the general 'you'

Modifié par Pseudocognition, 31 janvier 2011 - 01:00 .

[Maria Caliban]

Big Blue Car wrote...

What we DO know is that damn, we can totally bang that pirate chick and the virginal-elf-next-door, not Varric sadly but the bishie elf for sure! It seems harsh to have a go at someone and say 'just ignore the sex stuff' when the sex stuff is such a huge amount of the info we've received so far.

I agree that it's difficult when all you know is that they're cute, elven, and cast blood magic. Oh, and they appeared for one second in a video while Jennifer was chatting about virginal love interests.

[tmp7704]

XX55XX wrote...

slimgrin wrote...

I think they have something up their sleeve with Merril. She may look the virginal part...

Good observation. They might be trying to fool us. She is not as innocent as she looks.

Which makes for an interesting character...

That's what Leliana was like, though. For Merrill the "gotcha" could very well be she actually is played straight. Not sure how common a character like that is in these times cynical and bored times.