9318 réponses à ce sujet

[Gwydden]

I still think that the Kossith in question would absolutely be incapable, or at least severely hindered, of doing her job (if she's a rogue) while dressed that way.  Performing acrobatic maneuvers in that costume would be painful and difficult.  Standing in that way for a prolonged period of time would also cause muscle fatigue and pain, and, in severe cases, joint misalignment and warped posture.  I did not mean to imply that a person who dresses all sexi-fied when off the job is anything less than competent while on the job because of his or her choice of civilian attire.  However, yes, I do think that if you wear that outfit into combat, you are likely to be both ridiculously unaware of your own mortality and to display a fiar amount of incompetence at your job.

As I said, the outfit could use some improvements, but I'm not against the concept per se.

 

Why not be generous? She's standing right in front of a castle with the banner of the Inquisition, so probably she is either coming or going from battle. Also, that she's standing like that now doesn't mean she does it all the time. Actually, I would say now is quite a special occasion given Bull's familiarity and the way they are looking at each other 

 

Plus Varric facepalming 

 

Finally, I am confused.  You don't think the straps or extremely low cut battle leggings (or whatever they are) are appropriate, then what is your point?  The only other thing she is wearing is a short jacket.  Pretty sure noone has a beef with that, including me.

The absence of chest armor in spite of the shoulder pats, gauntlets, and steel leggings. As I said, though indicative of a reckless personality, they are not a sign of incompetence in and of itself, or incompatible with a skilled warrior.

[Blue Gloves]

The absence of chest armor in spite of the shoulder pats, gauntlets, and steel leggings. As I said, though indicative of a reckless personality, they are not a sign of incompetence in and of itself, or incompatible with a skilled warrior.

 

You know what, you're right.  I still dislike the outfit, and I sill think that the female protagonist in the picture is being unnecessarily sexualized, but I grant you that the choice to armor the arms and shoulders, but not the chest is not necessarily indicative of incompetence in battle, just recklessness bordering on stupidity.

Point granted, serah.  It was a pleasure sparring with you.

[AkiKishi]

The absence of chest armor in spite of the shoulder pats, gauntlets, and steel leggings. As I said, though indicative of a reckless personality, they are not a sign of incompetence in and of itself, or incompatible with a skilled warrior.

 

Someone without  armour can run rings around someone in full armour, or a slow bulky creature. At the same time having your arm armoured is a way to deflect light blows. The only real defence against something like a dragon is not to be in the way of it , armour really won't help at all in real terms. Its like having a boulder hit you, armoured or not , your screwed.

[Ser Pounce A Lot_]

This image brought up the Qunari body discussion backto mind. So you who want them more robust, is this what you mean?

 

mmm

 

If I can get a design like that I wouldn't mind playing as the female Qunari.

 

Heh I'm way past justifying outfits in video games of all places. I just want something that looks cool and sexy, and that definitely fits the bill.

 

And the nerve of people complaining about this when just about every male Qunari in DA2 was completely shirtless. 

[Gwydden]

You know what would be nice? A good selection of varied casual clothing for both genders to wear when in Skyhold. Going around in your dirty, heavy, uncomfortable battle attire all the time is exhausting. Hawke's wardrobe was lacking. Shepard's outfits were horrible, except for the N7 jacket, and only male characters got that. So here's to hoping DAI does better 

[Trikormadenadon]

You know what would be nice? A good selection of varied casual clothing for both genders to wear when in Skyhold. Going around in your dirty, heavy, uncomfortable battle attire all the time is exhausting. Hawke's wardrobe was lacking. Shepard's outfits were horrible, except for the N7 jacket, and only male characters got that. So here's to hoping DAI does better 

I had no issue with Shep's casual attire for the most part. In fact, the N7 jacket was the only one I never used. I hate hoodies.

[Pasquale1234]

Also (this is said with absolutely no snark or sarcasm intended; I want to know, so I can correct the problem) where, in any post I have made, does it appear to you that I have equated sexy with weak?  I certainly have my laundry list of faults and biases, but I never imagined that that was one of them.  If it is, I need to do some serious self-examination on the issue, b/c I 100% do not believe that sexy=weak.

I think this brings up a related issue: the fact that a lot of the clothing designs intended to make a woman appear sexy do so because they make her appear vulnerable. A common practice across cultures and across centuries is for women to elicit men's protective instincts by appearing to be vulnerable, defenseless, perhaps even helpless and in need of his protection. What I'm suggesting is that, to a large extent, some clothing styles make women unprotected and vulnerable to make them sexy.

Consider some of our more recent media images of women in tight skirts and 4-inch heels as easy prey. They can't run away or fight back in such clothing, and movies have used that trope repeatedly. There were a couple of scenes in "Xena, Warrior Princess" where Xena was wearing a dress when a fight broke out; she quickly ripped the skirt so she could fight effectively.  Offhand, I can't think of any equivalent situations where men have to deal with impractical, restrictive clothing before they can defend themselves.
 

[Gwydden]

I had no issue with Shep's casual attire for the most part. In fact, the N7 jacket was the only one I never used. I hate hoodies.

 I don't recall his jacket being a hoodie?

 

I guess I'm just not a fan of uniforms. Or that other weird outfit that made him look like a gangster 

[Hanako Ikezawa]

You know what would be nice? A good selection of varied casual clothing for both genders to wear when in Skyhold. Going around in your dirty, heavy, uncomfortable battle attire all the time is exhausting. Hawke's wardrobe was lacking. Shepard's outfits were horrible, except for the N7 jacket, and only male characters got that. So here's to hoping DAI does better 

I believe Bioware said in a recent interview there will be casual attire. 

[Hanako Ikezawa]

 I don't recall his jacket being a hoodie?

 

I guess I'm just not a fan of uniforms. Or that other weird outfit that made him look like a gangster 

They are thinking of the Hoodie that came with the Collector's Edition. 

[Gwydden]

I think this brings up a related issue: the fact that a lot of the clothing designs intended to make a woman appear sexy do so because they make her appear vulnerable. A common practice across cultures and across centuries is for women to elicit men's protective instincts by appearing to be vulnerable, defenseless, perhaps even helpless and in need of his protection. What I'm suggesting is that, to a large extent, some clothing styles make women unprotected and vulnerable to make them sexy.

Consider some of our more recent media images of women in tight skirts and 4-inch heels as easy prey. They can't run away or fight back in such clothing, and movies have used that trope repeatedly. There were a couple of scenes in "Xena, Warrior Princess" where Xena was wearing a dress when a fight broke out; she quickly ripped the skirt so she could fight effectively.  Offhand, I can't think of any equivalent situations where men have to deal with impractical, restrictive clothing before they can defend themselves.
 

You know that, if I find a woman alluring because of her tight skirts and high heels (unlikely, just looking at the things makes me wince) my approach would be trying to talk to her and ask her out? In that scenario, who is in a "vulnerable position"? I already showed my interest, she's the one who can turn me down.

 

And that's another way to look at it, that sex appeal empowers people. Hell, ancient Greeks were a bunch of misogynistic jerks who were terrified of their goddess Aphrodite for this very reason. Monotheistic religions encourage conservative clothing for the same thing.

 

When, in RL, I see an attractive woman in suggestive clothing, I don't think she's appealing because she looks vulnerable, or because she is "easy". That already suggests a few things about her: she's confident, not a prude, and comfortable with her body and sexuality. And those are all good things. There is more than one way to look at everything.

[Trikormadenadon]

 I don't recall his jacket being a hoodie?

 

I guess I'm just not a fan of uniforms. Or that other weird outfit that made him look like a gangster 

If I recall correctly there is a hood on the back. As for uniforms I am a fan of them if it fits. Shep is a soldier, wearing a casual version of his/her uniform when off on the ship is not far fetched. Now if you saw him/her vacationing on earth somewhere and still had his/her uniform on I would begin to wonder...

[Hanako Ikezawa]

You know that, if I find a woman alluring because of her tight skirts and high heels (unlikely, just looking at the things makes me wince) my approach would be trying to talk to her and ask her out? In that scenario, who is in a "vulnerable position"? I already showed my interest, she's the one who can turn me down.

 

And that's another way to look at it, that sex appeal empowers people. Hell, ancient Greeks were a bunch of misogynistic jerks who were terrified of their goddess Aphrodite for this very reason. Monotheistic religions encourage conservative clothing for the same thing.

 

When, in RL, I see an attractive woman in suggestive clothing, I don't think she's appealing because she looks vulnerable, or because she is "easy". That already suggests a few things about her: she's confident, not a prude, and comfortable with her body and sexuality. And those are all good things. There is more than one way to look at everything.

Cortana in the Halo franchise also does this. She chose the appearance of a nude(yet no naughty bits) woman so that anyone will hesitate for even a fraction of a second when taking to her, given her plenty of time to get the edge in the conversations. 

[AkiKishi]

You know that, if I find a woman alluring because of her tight skirts and high heels (unlikely, just looking at the things makes me wince) my approach would be trying to talk to her and ask her out? In that scenario, who is in a "vulnerable position"? I already showed my interest, she's the one who can turn me down.

 

And that's another way to look at it, that sex appeal empowers people. Hell, ancient Greeks were a bunch of misogynistic jerks who were terrified of their goddess Aphrodite for this very reason. Monotheistic religions encourage conservative clothing for the same thing.

 

When, in RL, I see an attractive woman in suggestive clothing, I don't think she's appealing because she looks vulnerable, or because she is "easy". That already suggests a few things about her: she's confident, not a prude, and comfortable with her body and sexuality. And those are all good things. There is more than one way to look at everything.

 

One of the few duels I lost at the club was against a woman is a provacative outfit. I just could not handle her and things were occuring that made fighting difficult and somewhat painful. Maybe if it was to the death rather than sport, it would have a different outcome but you never know. 

[Ser Pounce A Lot_]

You know that, if I find a woman alluring because of her tight skirts and high heels (unlikely, just looking at the things makes me wince) my approach would be trying to talk to her and ask her out? In that scenario, who is in a "vulnerable position"? I already showed my interest, she's the one who can turn me down.

 

And that's another way to look at it, that sex appeal empowers people. Hell, ancient Greeks were a bunch of misogynistic jerks who were terrified of their goddess Aphrodite for this very reason. Monotheistic religions encourage conservative clothing for the same thing.

 

When, in RL, I see an attractive woman in suggestive clothing, I don't think she's appealing because she looks vulnerable, or because she is "easy". That already suggests a few things about her: she's confident, not a prude, and comfortable with her body and sexuality. And those are all good things. There is more than one way to look at everything.

 

This is one of the problems I have with these "oversexualized/objectification" topics

 

Why does showing skin and wearing skimpy clothes make someone undignified? How do these people feel about strippers, women in music videos and ads, cheerleaders, or women who just plain like dressing a certain way because of cosplay or in public just because how cool the outfits look?

 

A lot of women wear the outfits because they're "cute" or is part of the profession they've chosen to be in. They're confident in who they are and what they're doing, and that happens to come with attraction from the opposite sex well so be it.

 

It's their bodies and they're free to dress (within reason) however they want to w/o other people calling them bimbos, skanks, whores, sluts, hussy, tramps, and or "undignified".  

 

Dressing a certain way shouldn't be the end all/be all in defining a person IRL, just as it shouldn't be with characters (specifically women) in video games.

 

Art designers for games (pretty sure quite a few of them are female) should be able to dress women how they want w/o people criticizing the designs for showing too much skin or lack of more clothing. Especially with games in set in fantasy worlds. 

 

Seriously it's always "male gaze this" and "realism that" never "it just looks cool to wear"

 

 No one wants every character covered head to toe w/o nothing but bulky armor ala Aveline.   

[HuldraDancer]

This is one of the problems I have with these "oversexualized/objectification" topics

 

Why does showing skin and wearing skimpy clothes make someone undignified? How do these people feel about strippers, women in music videos and ads, cheerleaders, or women who just plain like dressing a certain way because of cosplay or in public just because how cool the outfits look?

 

A lot of women wear the outfits because they're "cute" or is part of the profession they've chosen to be in. They're confident in who they are and what they're doing, and that happens to come with attraction from the opposite sex well so be it.

 

It's their bodies and they're free to dress (within reason) however they want to w/o other people calling them bimbos, skanks, whores, sluts, hussy, tramps, and or "undignified".  

 

Dressing a certain way shouldn't be the end all/be all in defining a person IRL, just as it shouldn't be with characters (specifically women) in video games.

 

Art designers for games (pretty sure quite a few of them are female) should be able to dress women how they want w/o people criticizing the designs for showing too much skin or lack of more clothing. Especially with games in set in fantasy worlds. 

 

Seriously it's always "male gaze this" and "realism that" never "it just looks cool to wear"

 

 No one wants every character covered head to toe w/o nothing but bulky armor ala Aveline.   

I don't recall seeing anyone in this thread calling a character a wh*re or sl*t or hussy or tramp where are you seeing that? Also as far as I know strippers and models, and women in music videos aren't going into battle to fight either so comparison seems a little bizarre. It's not wrong or 'sl*t shaming' to ask that the women in games be as well protect as the men. Armors can look cool and protective at the same time as well and no one was asking for bulky cover them up head to toe armor just for armor that makes sense and protects them. Like the qunari female in the fan drawn picture probably wouldn't last long in an actual battle unless their skin is very thick then I guess maybe but still some light armor over the exposed vitals like her heart wouldn't be asking for much. There are some armors that don't cover everything but still make since and have male parts to match mostly light armor. From what I noticed most bring up the male gaze thing when its only the women that looks like that and not the men.  If I see someone who is meant to be a fighter who does close combat and they barely have anything to cover the important and vital spots on them then yeah I'd question how many fights they've been in and if they know what they're doing and it wouldn't be wrong of me to question most people would.

[Pasquale1234]

You know that, if I find a woman alluring because of her tight skirts and high heels (unlikely, just looking at the things makes me wince) my approach would be trying to talk to her and ask her out? In that scenario, who is in a "vulnerable position"? I already showed my interest, she's the one who can turn me down.

Yet she's the one who made the initial overture by casting that net, so to speak, not knowing who might respond or how. And she did it in a way that makes her not only emotionally vulnerable, but physically vulnerable, too.
 

And that's another way to look at it, that sex appeal empowers people. Hell, ancient Greeks were a bunch of misogynistic jerks who were terrified of their goddess Aphrodite for this very reason. Monotheistic religions encourage conservative clothing for the same thing.

Indeed - though I will say that different people have very different ideas about what is sexy and appealing in terms of clothing choices.
 

When, in RL, I see an attractive woman in suggestive clothing, I don't think she's appealing because she looks vulnerable, or because she is "easy". That already suggests a few things about her: she's confident, not a prude, and comfortable with her body and sexuality.

Not necessarily. It could mean that she thinks her sexuality is her greatest (or her only) asset, so that is what she presents. It could mean that she's acquiescing to social pressure. It could mean that she's rebelling against some ultra-conservative influences in her life. It could mean that she has trouble finding non-suggestive clothing in her size and price range. It could also mean that she buys and wears whatever is on the rack, giving little thought to how others might react to her wardrobe choices. There are many other possibilities.

[Ser Pounce A Lot_]

I don't recall seeing anyone in this thread calling a character a wh*re or sl*t or hussy or tramp where are you seeing that? Also as far as I know strippers and models, and women in music videos aren't going into battle to fight either so comparison seems a little bizarre. It's not wrong or 'sl*t shaming' to ask that the women in games be as well protect as the men. Armors can look cool and protective at the same time as well and no one was asking for bulky cover them up head to toe armor just for armor that makes sense and protects them. Like the qunari female in the fan drawn picture probably wouldn't last long in an actual battle unless their skin is very thick then I guess maybe but still some light armor over the exposed vitals like her heart wouldn't be asking for much. There are some armors that don't cover everything but still make since and have male parts to match mostly light armor. From what I noticed most bring up the male gaze thing when its only the women that looks like that and not the men.  If I see someone who is meant to be a fighter who does close combat and they barely have anything to cover the important and vital spots on them then yeah I'd question how many fights they've been in and if they know what they're doing and it wouldn't be wrong of me to question most people would.

 

I've repeatedly heard people refer to female characters dressed a certain way as bimbos and undignified among other things, not just in this thread or even just on this forum.. BTW for this point I'm going to focus on the Qunari if you don't mind.

 

Why don't I hear these complaints about the males? Just about all of them are bare chested with war paint and little to no armor. How realistic or sensible is that? Especially the ones that are CC fighters?

 

It seems people only bring up the "realism" point when it suits their argument.

[HuldraDancer]

I've repeatedly heard people refer to female characters dressed a certain way as bimbos and undignified. BTW for this point I'm going to focus on the Qunari if you don't mind.

 

Why don't I hear these complaints about the males? Just about all of them are bare chested with war paint and little to no armor. How realistic or sensible is that? Especially the ones that are CC fighters?

 

It seems people only bring up the "realism" point when it suits their argument.

On this thread? Again I haven't seen it but I haven't gone through and combed over every single page either.

 

I've seen people complain about how the male qunari are under dress though, I've complained about it myself actually. Armor that hardly covers anything is usually female armor than it is male armor though. Usually.

 

Everyone's suspension of disbelief is different.

[Lady Nuggins]

This is one of the problems I have with these "oversexualized/objectification" topics

 

Why does showing skin and wearing skimpy clothes make someone undignified? How do these people feel about strippers, women in music videos and ads, cheerleaders, or women who just plain like dressing a certain way because of cosplay or in public just because how cool the outfits look?

 

A lot of women wear the outfits because they're "cute" or is part of the profession they've chosen to be in. They're confident in who they are and what they're doing, and that happens to come with attraction from the opposite sex well so be it.

 

It's their bodies and they're free to dress (within reason) however they want to w/o other people calling them bimbos, skanks, whores, sluts, hussy, tramps, and or "undignified".  

 

Dressing a certain way shouldn't be the end all/be all in defining a person IRL, just as it shouldn't be with characters (specifically women) in video games.

 

Art designers for games (pretty sure quite a few of them are female) should be able to dress women how they want w/o people criticizing the designs for showing too much skin or lack of more clothing. Especially with games in set in fantasy worlds. 

 

Seriously it's always "male gaze this" and "realism that" never "it just looks cool to wear"

 

 No one wants every character covered head to toe w/o nothing but bulky armor ala Aveline.   

 

This is a complicated topic.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with skimpy clothes.  Women can and should wear whatever they like--whether they bare skin or cover themselves from head to toe.  There is also nothing wrong with being sexy or liking sexy things. 

 

It comes down to who is putting that female character in a skimpy outfit and why are they doing it?  Are female characters dressed skimpily while male characters are not?  Does her attire make sense for her personality, the setting, the things she has to do, the movements she has to make?  The characters are not choosing to put themselves in these outfits, somebody else is. 

 

Most female video game characters have absolutely no reason to be put in bikinis and heels.  They are called upon to perform tasks that probably require sensible shoes and reasonable coverage.  Usually there is no explanation for why they would ever choose to dress themselves in the clothes they are drawn in.  So what reason could they possibly have to wear those clothes?  In the absence of any other explanation, the likely answer is, almost always, to please the male viewer. 

 

As I've said before, I'd be 100% okay with the female qunari being as underdressed as the male qunari if their chests were bound.  The half-naked woman with the bound chest actually creates a powerful silhouette and would be more equal to the bulky warrior appearance of the males.  As it is, the males look like they have freedom of movement with their lack of clothes, while the females look like every step would hurt, and they would be constantly fixing their flimsy strips of cloth to keep a nipple from hanging out.

 

And I disagree that art designers should not face criticism.  All art is subject to criticism.  Including on the basis of social issues.  If you are a professional artist, you have to be prepared to answer to criticism. 

 

I do not want every female character to be dressed like Aveline, no.  But I would certainly like to see more who are.  The fact that female characters like Aveline are so rare is part of the problem, here.  Female characters are far more likely to be underdressed than not. 

[Bugsie]

Oh come on Bugsie- I'm a biomedical scientist myself, I know earthworms are not nematodes- it was a joke.  You try finding a picture of a roundworm with a wizard's hat and wand!

I was just going to rib you! Honestly! What's a few barbs between scientists now?

I wouldn't mind seeing my femquis wearing the same armor that Flemeth wore in DA2.

I quite like this...

. Whilst I won't quibble about the boob window, her stance and demeanour are befitting a warrior race.

A lot of people don't like the facial tatts, personally I do.

[oceanicsurvivor]

Dressing a certain way shouldn't be the end all/be all in defining a person IRL, just as it shouldn't be with characters (specifically women) in video games.

 

Art designers for games (pretty sure quite a few of them are female) should be able to dress women how they want w/o people criticizing the designs for showing too much skin or lack of more clothing. Especially with games in set in fantasy worlds. 

 

Seriously it's always "male gaze this" and "realism that" never "it just looks cool to wear"

 

 No one wants every character covered head to toe w/o nothing but bulky armor ala Aveline.   

 

I mean...the problem with the 'it just looks cool to wear' is it looks cool to who? Who are you appealing to? And more often then not that part comes back to the male gaze stuff. So the frustrating thing for women often times then becomes seeing themselves not represented for themselves but for the benefit of being attractive to men, real or fictional. As many women in this thread have said, they would not even consider going into battle without their breast properly bound.

 

It doesn't bother me that she has her stomach exposed because yeah, male Qunari do that too. Being shirtless is not inherently sexual for men, and it shouldn't be for women. The itty bitty straps trying to hold her rather large breast in place however does irk me. It comes down to form meeting function. Qunari male warriors don't wear shirts b/c 1)intimidation factor 2) heat in their homelands made it more useful not to waste time on cumbersome armor that wouldn't really protect you anyway if the Iron Bull decided to club you in the head.   That's all fine. And if the same exact rules apply to female Qunari thats cool, HOWEVER, in that form vs. function equation, having your breast exposed or poorly bound like that doesn't come across as having a functional purpose and that serves to sexualize the outfit to a degree. (Also the very uncomfortable looking V of her pants   which is kind of ridiculous and again not something I've seen on male Qunari).

 

And frankly, artists designing outfits are not just hoping to make something 'look cool'. They are servicing the story with the stylistic choices they make. Aveline and Isabelas outfits spoke to who they were in a sense. And if you have ever read MattRhodes (DA concept artist) blog/ tumblr, youll see that that philosophy is being applied all over DA: Inquisition.

[Blue Gloves]

I was just going to rib you! Honestly! What's a few barbs between scientists now?
 

 

Oh , I know, I was just teasing back... besides, we really should be focusing all our ribbing on the social "scientists" .  (Just a joke- my little brother is a History professor, and we have quite a lot fun picking on each other's chosen professions, not least that I was an Army linguist once upon a time, and he considers me a traitor to the world of academia)

[Blue Gloves]

I quite like this...

"snip"

 Whilst I won't quibble about the boob window, her stance and demeanour are befitting a warrior race.

A lot of people don't like the facial tatts, personally I do.

I rather do as well, though I still have a bit of skepticism over how effective the boob straps would be, and of course the long chain mail skirt has the same problem as capes

 

I like the facial tats though, the jewelry is cool, if a little impractical,- overall the images put me in mind of Mauri warriors, and I'm always excited to see more Polynesians in the media.  The stature and width of the female's shoulders is great.  Overall, I think I like the image because of the way both characters are posed and the clear intent on their faces.  They look like warriors, strong and martial.  It can be so hard to put your finger on why something feels "wrong" or "overly sexualized" but I think Lady N has the right of it when she talks about intent.  Whether or not the first artist's intent was to make a "sex-ah" but not particularly functional female protagonist, many of us felt that it came off that way (though the drawing and coloring was beautiful, especially compared to the stick creations that represent the sum total of my artistic ability ) but the work from the second artist does not strike me the same way.  It simply seems (and I certainly do not speak for everyone, nor do I claim any special insight when it comes to artistic renderings) that the Kossith in the second drawing is a no nonsense, kick ass warrior with battle on her mind (same for the male, incidentally) and in the first, well, we've already discussed that.

[Gwydden]

Not necessarily. It could mean that she thinks her sexuality is her greatest (or her only) asset, so that is what she presents. It could mean that she's acquiescing to social pressure. It could mean that she's rebelling against some ultra-conservative influences in her life. It could mean that she has trouble finding non-suggestive clothing in her size and price range. It could also mean that she buys and wears whatever is on the rack, giving little thought to how others might react to her wardrobe choices. There are many other possibilities.

I forgot everyone around these parts deconstructs stuff as much as I do  Of course, it can potentially mean a lot of things (notice I said suggests, as opposed to means. Still, I admit it was a lazy word choice ). What I was trying to say is that I, personally, would be more likely to feel interested in someone dressed daringly than in someone covered from head to toe, and that it has nothing to do with their perceived vulnerability, which is something I don't get from that kind of clothing choices.

Yet she's the one who made the initial overture by casting that net, so to speak, not knowing who might respond or how. And she did it in a way that makes her not only emotionally vulnerable, but physically vulnerable, too.

Then why is it that I'm the one who feels like a stuttering idiot in that scenario? 

 

I get so defensive about this topic because I do this myself. When I go out I wear a low cut shirt with short sleeves and tight pants set relatively low. Because I like to dress that way, because I find it comfortable and fashionable, because I like to show off, and because where I live is a blistering hell. There is far more to it than just attracting attention. The chances of me actually liking someone who approaches me are really, really low, but I can always say no. They did approach me, after all. That suggests that I already caused a decent first impression. Wouldn't it be on them to actually make one themselves?

 

Moreover, I do this with some of my (all male) characters. I like to sexualize the party boy, because he would go around half naked and stand languidly against walls... then bite the face off anyone who made the big mistake of assuming he was just a pretty face.