x0hn0th3r4nc0rx wrote...
Eromenos wrote...
x0hn0th3r4nc0rx wrote...
Eromenos wrote...
With the way the colors are arrayed on her in this picture, do we ever see male combat outfits being depicted in this way that emphasizes the sexuality of their bodies above all else?
I seem to remember Thane's "loyal" outfit had a white shield-shaped outline around his unmentionables.
It may not happen often, but it does happen.
I can't recall. Did you mean this? http://fc07.devianta...er_Midnight.jpg
It was all I could find. I see what you're getting at, but that still does not come close to reaching the level of exploitation on Liara's red-labcoat. We can't forget that his own coat obscures his figure in a way that Liara's does not, and this one particular point of titillation on his anatomy is far less than the effect of the overall color scheme in her appearance.
I have to disagree with you as well about the possibility that his painted bawls were the selling point of his appearance. Every element of the exploitative female outfits goes toward that goal, yet he has but one and in-game I believe it's "blended" into his appearance just like the coloring of his scales with his outfits. Lest we also forget, the shape of his outfit makes him a "pimp" whereas the shape given by the coloring of Liara's red labcoat suggests a "ho." Still a very disproportionate presentation that is gratifying for men by being much less favorable to women.
Oh man, that...is kind of creeping me out.
But yes. That is what I meant. And honestly, I think you're getting too worked up about this.
There is nothing about Liara's outfit that screams "ho" in my eyes. It is her regular white outfit which you are okay with, but recolored. I really don't know what makes her white outfit fine in your eyes and not this one. I gather that you are very against the coloring because it somehow sexes Liara up. And really, I think part of it may be that this is a very poor picture. Her pose is weird and the lighting is pretty horrible.
Just to be clear in case anyone's wondering, I'm not against the idea of "sexing up." I am against the idea of "sexing up only the women in an unbelievably ridiculous way because it singles them out as jokes in combat, which is what BioWare is doing to them."
I'm not a man so I can't say what looks sexy to men. But honestly, Liara's outfit just looks ridiculous to me. There is nothing sexy about it; it's just silly-looking. And from what I've read of the responses, most people agree. In fact, I cannot recall one comment in which someone said "mmm liara looks damn fine...i'd hit that like a train". People were fine with it because Samara does not have a monopoly on the color red or said it looked stupid and moved on.
I'm a gay man therefore supposedly I shouldn't be able to tell what qualifies as sexy to dudebros, but the fact is I can tell. We can all decipher exactly what they want, even when we try claiming that we can't. For dudebros specifically, pornified faces and hourglass T&A are home-run. Obviously there are str8 men who do not cave to this, but BioWare's track record with ME2 and most asari in general speaks of their commitment to the dudebros.
Liara's red labcoat may be a turn-off to both you and I, but that doesn't change the fact BioWare positioned its colors this way to appeal to dudebros at the cost of trying to make Liara into Samara out of misogynistic pandering. They're overselling her femininity in a way that skates dangerously close to catsuit were it not for the fact that her white labcoat tells me it is the same outfit, albeit redone in poor taste to make her into a joke that keeps the dudebros happier.
Sian pointedly brought up in the last thread that all 4 appearances were made this way to pander for new audiences, not for those of us who appreciated the characters as people who are far less likely to draw in dudebros. Kaidan in mech-armor and a shotgun will attract dudebros. Ashley in a catsuit with wedge-heels and loose-hair will attract dudebros. Both these changes were made for contemptible reasons but the change to Ashley is far worse.
And Thane's appearance did not suggest "pimp" to me, either. It suggested he was a sexy man who wore sexy things, but that does not immediately equate pimp. I did not look at his outfit and think "he must really get it on with all the drell ladies". I looked at it and thought, "I guess he is confident with his (rather attractive) body."
I will go on and even say that I think Thane is more sexed up in ME 2 than Liara is in this picture here. I do not generally notice the lower half of characters' bodies as I tend to look at their faces for the most part. I did, however, pick up on Thane's crotch target pretty quickly. Because it was flagrantly obvious. It was a white drawing on black leather.
Just because he happens to be male doesn't mean he can't be sexed up as much as women can.
Can you please link a screenshot of Thane's alternate appearance in-game?
We might have to agree to disagree about their intentions with Liara's red labcoat. So far we haven't been using the same methods of critique. You've mentioned you can't tell what guys think. Maybe you think it's not worth trying, but I think it is. Both these characters were slated for dudebros first and foremost. Business as usual involves forcing women characters to be blatantly pornified while refusing to go even half as far with the males, lest the male audiences raise a stink about being forced to see male strippers or male catsuits. That's the disparity between the female and male depictions in ME2, and now ME3 judging by the screenshot. That's why many guys are able to appreciate Thane as a pimp. Same with TIM. Same with Jacob's attitude. Same with Zaeed. Same with Garrus, even. "Badass" bravado coupled with BioWare's refusal to let the male characters demonstrate physical or emotional vulnerabilities. And yes, I do include Thane the terminally ill widower and estranged dad. Like all of them, he is not allowed to be needy. Miranda and Jack were ultimately forced to be needy, in addition to their exploited appearances.
I take it that you're resisting the concept that all the characters, especially the ones you bonded with, were not meant for you but rather you were simply "allowed" to come for the ride and you were even encouraged to lend credit to BioWare's exploited women-characters. As in, because you're female your feelings were no priority in BioWare's view. At most they threw female gamers a tiny bone with the way they presented Thane and Jacob. But those 2 did not come anywhere close to making a dent against the imbalance of female-exploitation.
Modifié par Eromenos, 06 juillet 2011 - 02:07 .
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