Is the Fandom sexist?

[Kittenz 4,281]

I make this topic to discuss it here, on a forum. I was inspired by heijikoudo, the same user who leaks KHII manga scans to the net.

 

This was their post:

 

''I make this post in fear of hate, however the comments on the above graphics are inno way my opinions on these lovely characters. However being part of this fandom for a long time has made me notice some flaws and this is one of them. This fandom, and I don’t mean just on Tumblr, treats its lady characters badly sometimes and it’s so saddening. I only had to make few Google searches to find comments like the ones above and it makes me so sad. I felt that it was important to make a point to address this problem because I think it’s so desperately sad that the ladies of the fandom are treated so badly. It seems that the male characters of Kingdom Hearts receive a lot of love but when it comes to the ladies they are either attacked for being ‘weak’ or ‘too attractive.’

I mostly wanted to make this post to start a conversation about this. I won’t respond to any hateful messages but if anyone would like to talk to me about my thoughts on the representation of women in Kingdom Hearts I will talk to them with ease.''

 

 

 

 

It got me thinking. To say the least. 

 

I honestly believe....that people treat Namine, Aqua and Kairi...in the following way:

 

Sexual objectification is the act of treating a person merely as an instrument of sexual pleasure, making them a "sex object." Objectification more broadly means treating a person as a commodity or an object, without regard to their personality or dignity. 

 

Why would I think this?

Nobody seems to care about Aqua or Kairi's personality or goals in the series, especially Aqua, instead there is post upon post about Aqua's boobs. Now don't get me wrong, those kind of jokes can be funny, but it isn't always a joke. I've seem people talk only about Aqua's body on serious topics about her. Really?

 

Now, I'm not saying every guy that like Kingdom Hearts does this.. Hell no. There are some awesomely nice dudes out there. But I'd be lying if I said that there were no guys in this fandom that treat the female characters and or female fans badly.

 

I should probably find a cave to hide, but honestly this needs talking about or it will never get better

Edited October 15, 2014 by KittensOnFire

[KHUndertaleFan25 2,858]

I like Kairi, Namine, Xion, and Aqua...

[Demyx. 10,064]

Kairi annoying to me. Not because she is a girl.

Namine is cool because she is interesting. Not because she is a girl.

Xion is just annoying as hell. Like soooo annoying. But that is not because she is a girl. I feel the same way about Roxas.

Aqua and I have a love hate relationship. I like her but she can be a jerk. Not because she is a girl. But she is hot though. Because she is a girl.

 

But yeah. That is just how I feel about it. Not sure about everyone else.

[Kittenz 4,281]

I like Kairi, Namine, Xion, and Aqua...

I know. I mean the fans that only see Aqua as something to fap to and nothing else

[hatok 6,413]

There are a set of very strange standards set up around what a 'good' female character is. nThey can't be feminine, they can't be masculine, they can't be sexy, they can't be incapable of freeing themselves from any dangerous situation, and don't even think about having them interact with a man unless it's so save him

 

That said... Kingdom Hearts doesn't really have a good track record with female characters. Namine destroys EVERYTHING because she wants Sora to like her, Xion is meaningless, and Kairi has like 30 seconds of dialog in the entire franchise. Aqua I wouldn't argue is too sexy, but she's still not really fleshed out. She's basically jsut 'the mom' who goes around fixing everything after everyone else is through

[KHUndertaleFan25 2,858]

Kairi annoying to me. Not because she is a girl.

Namine is cool because she is interesting. Not because she is a girl.

Xion is just annoying as hell. Like soooo annoying. But that is not because she is a girl. I feel the same way about Roxas.

Aqua and I have a love hate relationship. I like her but she can be a jerk. Not because she is a girl. But she is hot though. Because she is a girl.

 

But yeah. That is just how I feel about it. Not sure about everyone else.

 

I know. I mean the fans that only see Aqua as something to fap to and nothing else

I know. Edited October 15, 2014 by PrincessHearts25

[Demyx. 10,064]

There are a set of very strange standards set up around what a 'good' female character is. nThey can't be feminine, they can't be masculine, they can't be sexy, they can't be incapable of freeing themselves from any dangerous situation, and don't even think about having them interact with a man unless it's so save him

 

That said... Kingdom Hearts doesn't really have a good track record with female characters. Namine destroys EVERYTHING because she wants Sora to like her, Xion is meaningless, and Kairi has like 30 seconds of dialog in the entire franchise. Aqua I wouldn't argue is too sexy, but she's still not really fleshed out. She's basically jsut 'the mom' who goes around fixing everything after everyone else is through

Larxene is cool though. She is pretty much the only strong, independant woman in the series.

[Aru Akise 2,540]

I can't believe people actually think that about poor Aqua.

 

I'm in love and pity her since the day she had to face herself, her master and her friends being all lost to Darkness...

 

Larxene is cool though. She is pretty much the only strong, independant woman in the series.

C'mon, Aqua?

Edited October 15, 2014 by SkyKeybladeHero

[Ceriraye 485]

I've noticed, sadly it's the world we live in. Women in everything and in real life always get reduced to objects of some sort. I hardly see anyone treat any woman with respect. Shitty really.

But anyway, most of the girls in the series (kairi most of all) hasnt been repected by the writers and creators themselves. As I stand on what you call "a kairi hater" I'll do what do best. Kairi hadn't had much screen time. Yeah she does do some stuff, but shes hardly ever on screen and it kinda over shadows it the stuff she has done. You have to look deep and read the manga and shit to find an actual character it's not just right in your face like the other three girls.

 

Now with xion, tbh the only hate I see about her is that she's a Mary Sue and gets in the way of the fandoms most popular ship, akuroku. And that's bull. Last time I checked Mary Sue ment someone who perfect all around, someone who everyone likes, someone who's beyond pretty. Trust me xion is not perf. In canon she had many flaws. I'm not gonna touch that because I don't feel like doing all that. But xion is not useless, I can make a list but I'm lazy.

 

Namine, yeah namine is kinda selfish. But she was forced. Most things I seen that shits on namineis the things she has done in com and not after. Ppl remember the bad she's done an not the good.

 

Aqua. Now I don't even get it, yeah aqua is a babysitter the mom yeah. But no one says nothing about that from what I see. It's always about her boobs and body and shit. And tbh I hate it so much. I love aqua with the life of me. I hate hate hate when people reduce her to like....that. Aqua has done a lot and will do a lot. In my eyes with aqua it's just people making her their fap shit. Which I'll say again I firetruckING HATE.

 

Excuse any grammer and spelling, my brain isn't awake yet.

Edited October 15, 2014 by Ceriraye

[Kittenz 4,281]

There are a set of very strange standards set up around what a 'good' female character is. nThey can't be feminine, they can't be masculine, they can't be sexy, they can't be incapable of freeing themselves from any dangerous situation, and don't even think about having them interact with a man unless it's so save him

 

That said... Kingdom Hearts doesn't really have a good track record with female characters. Namine destroys EVERYTHING because she wants Sora to like her, Xion is meaningless, and Kairi has like 30 seconds of dialog in the entire franchise. Aqua I wouldn't argue is too sexy, but she's still not really fleshed out. She's basically jsut 'the mom' who goes around fixing everything after everyone else is through

Namine was ordered to do that

 

Xion wasn't meaningless, or she owuldn't have been created

 

Kairi has wayyy more than 30 seconds. 

 

Aqua is a strong independent woman. Kairi is a sweet, brave, independent young teenage girl. 

Larxene is cool though. She is pretty much the only strong, independant woman in the series.

Strong? Independent? I'm sorry, but as a girl myself, I know women alot better than you and Larxene is just a horrible person.

[Demyx. 10,064]

 

I can't believe people actually think that about poor Aqua.

 

I'm in love and pity her since the day she had to face herself, her master and her friends being all lost to Darkness...

 

C'mon, Aqua?

 

She realies on men though.

[Aru Akise 2,540]

She realies on men though.

I think she didn't, fighting Terra-nort and struggling alone in the RoD for 10 years.

[Kittenz 4,281]

She realies on men though.

She relies on her friends

 

Kairi and Aqua could have had their friends be female and they would of relied on them the same way because guess what

 

That's what friends do for each other

[Demyx. 10,064]

Sorry guys. I forget people don't get my jokes.

 

But Larxene is best female though. That wasn't a joke. 

[Decimo 243]

Larxene is cool though. She is pretty much the only strong, independant woman in the series.

 

It's kind of hilarious how Larxene is probably the most well written female character in the series.

I like her as a character but hate her as a person.

[hatok 6,413]

Namine was ordered to do that

 

Xion wasn't meaningless, or she owuldn't have been created

 

Kairi has wayyy more than 30 seconds. 

 

Aqua is a strong independent woman. Kairi is a sweet, brave, independent young teenage girl. 

Strong? Independent? I'm sorry, but as a girl myself, I know women alot better than you and Larxene is just a horrible person.

Namine said she did it because she was lonely

Xion is pointless, didn't need to exist

1:30 

Aqua is strong and independent... and?

[Dracozombie 4,554]

So the only well-written female character in the franchise is a total bitch who winds up getting offed by a dude in the end? Nope, not even Larxene helps the track record.

 

That said, I don't hate any character, even the ones everyone seems to enjoy pissing on. I think all of this is only noticeable because the ratio between (non-Disney non-FF) characters is like 5:1.

[Shana09 5,769]

• Kairi in KH1 was good, since she had a good role to play as. She wasn't useless at the time, she is the Princess of Heart at the time. In KH2, her getting captured was a little bland since it was repetitive. I'm extremely glad that any uselessness she has is gone because she is going to become important in KH3.
• Namine is amazing. She isn't selfish, she was under terrible circumstances. Also she is so understandable, for someone so lonely. Nobody (I mean the characters) care about her so its obvious why she does what she does, even if its unethical.
• Xion is a mixed bag for me. Overly emotional is annoying, but then again Roxas and Xion were both similar as hell but for some reason I hoped Xion would have more of a personality despite her being a puppet. Her voice didn't do her justice too.
• Aqua is amazing in every which way. I don't think anyone can hate her if you like the games UNLESS you just hate how she let Terra-Xehanort free and started the whole issue but that isn't that justifiable to begin with. I love her the most.

[FerroAxel7 237]

       I've always liked Aqua. She's my favorite female KH character. I think there's a lot more about her than people realize. She's so skilled in the art of magic she trumps Sora or even Donald in the field. There's a reason she became a Master and not Terra. Her heart is always in the right place and she always tries to save her friends, even by sacrificing herself to the Realm of Darkness for a decade. I believe she's the glue that kept the original BBS cast together (as much as possible, anyway). 

       But she never stops trying, even in ROD. And never gives up hope. 

[Aros 670]

aqua and xion are both one of my favourtite character and i like kairi too, namine i don't really like her.... but neither i dislike her

what i see in a character is not only the look, but for the personallity and the story they have too.

now i metion this four 'cause are the topic, but even larxene, axel/lea, roxas, sora, vanitas and others are character that i like.

[Nero Kunivas 3,046]

Hmm...this whole situation kinda makes me sad...

 

To me: Kairi isn't that interesting of a character. But not because she's a Girl, because I don't like her. Personal preference.

To me: Namine is tragic, sweet and interesting. In many ways, she's more of a character than a lot of the cast in general. Not because of her gender.

To me: Xion was a wasted opportunity but, she is easily redeemable and could be an interesting character if she's brought back.

To me: Aqua is one of the greats. She's up there with Roxas and Riku to me, strong-willed, protective, willing to go to many lengths for her friends and she has survived alone in the Realm of Darkness for 10/12 Years now. She just needs her character fleshed out some more and her Voice Actress needs work then we're golden.

 

And to think that people say filth like this about them...it hurts me inside....

 

Sorry guys. I forget people don't get my jokes.

 

But Larxene is best female though. That wasn't a joke. 

I think the problem is that your Jokes are kinda ill-timed and have a Mean Tone to them.

 

And Larxene? Really? I don't hate her but...what?

[Dio Brando 5,810]

I make this topic to discuss it here, on a forum. I was inspired by heijikoudo, the same user who leaks KHII manga scans to the net.

 

This was their post:

 

''I make this post in fear of hate, however the comments on the above graphics are inno way my opinions on these lovely characters. However being part of this fandom for a long time has made me notice some flaws and this is one of them. This fandom, and I don’t mean just on Tumblr, treats its lady characters badly sometimes and it’s so saddening. I only had to make few Google searches to find comments like the ones above and it makes me so sad. I felt that it was important to make a point to address this problem because I think it’s so desperately sad that the ladies of the fandom are treated so badly. It seems that the male characters of Kingdom Hearts receive a lot of love but when it comes to the ladies they are either attacked for being ‘weak’ or ‘too attractive.’

I mostly wanted to make this post to start a conversation about this. I won’t respond to any hateful messages but if anyone would like to talk to me about my thoughts on the representation of women in Kingdom Hearts I will talk to them with ease.''

 

 

 

 

It got me thinking. To say the least. 

 

I honestly believe....that people treat Namine, Aqua and Kairi...in the following way:

 

Sexual objectification is the act of treating a person merely as an instrument of sexual pleasure, making them a "sex object." Objectification more broadly means treating a person as a commodity or an object, without regard to their personality or dignity. 

 

Why would I think this?

Nobody seems to care about Aqua or Kairi's personality or goals in the series, especially Aqua, instead there is post upon post about Aqua's boobs. Now don't get me wrong, those kind of jokes can be funny, but it isn't always a joke. I've seem people talk only about Aqua's body on serious topics about her. Really?

 

Now, I'm not saying every guy that like Kingdom Hearts does this.. Hell no. There are some awesomely nice dudes out there. But I'd be lying if I said that there were no guys in this fandom that treat the female characters and or female fans badly.

 

I should probably find a cave to hide, but honestly this needs talking about or it will never get better

Ummm I would've said something to support you if I didn't see those weird threads in the random section

[Kittenz 4,281]

Namine said she did it because she was lonely

Xion is pointless, didn't need to exist

1:30 

Aqua is strong and independent... and?

That's only her lines in the first game. In english. She had more lines in KH1 in the Japanese version. Plus, that's hardly the whole franchise

 

BBS, KH:Com to Riku, KHII...

Edited October 15, 2014 by KittensOnFire

[Demyx. 10,064]

Hmm...this whole situation kinda makes me sad...

 

To me: Kairi isn't that interesting of a character. But not because she's a Girl, because I don't like her. Personal preference.

To me: Namine is tragic, sweet and interesting. In many ways, she's more of a character than a lot of the cast in general. Not because of her gender.

To me: Xion was a wasted opportunity but, she is easily redeemable and could be an interesting character if she's brought back.

To me: Aqua is one of the greats. She's up there with Roxas and Riku to me, strong-willed, protective, willing to go to many lengths for her friends and she has survived alone in the Realm of Darkness for 10/12 Years now. She just needs her character fleshed out some more and her Voice Actress needs work then we're golden.

 

And to think that people say filth like this about them...it hurts me inside....

 

I think the problem is that your Jokes are kinda ill-timed and have a Mean Tone to them.

 

And Larxene? Really? I don't hate her but...what?

That's what I do best.

 

Yeah Larxene. She is a badassssss!

[hatok 6,413]

That's only her lines in the first game. In english. She had more lines in KH1 in the Japanese version. Plus, that's hardly the whole franchise

 

BBS, KH:Com to Riku, KHII...

in CoM that's Namine anyways, in BBS she barely has any lines

KH2 is her biggest role, and she's still barely in that