Damsel in Distress: Part 1
Well, here’s the momentyou’ve all been waiting for: Anita Sarkeesian’s firstTropes vs. Women in Video Gameshas been released, and I’m pleased to say, it’s a much better effort than the factually inaccurateBayonettavideo.
Anita takes a journey through media, showing examples of Damsels in Distress throughout history, including old films, cartoons, and television. This episode heavily focuses on Princess Peach, explaining the history of the character, and her role in theMariofranchise, as well as Princess Zelda.
She posits that Zelda is sometimes stronger than Princess Peach, and doesn’t always play the damsel role — using the phrase “the helpful damsel” and calls her key role inWind Waker‘s final boss fight a “refreshing change.”
It’s nice to see Anita show at least one positive example of females in gaming, also explaining that the original version ofStar Fox Adventuresfeatured a strong positive role model before being converted into a damsel in distress in the final game.
Comments have been disabled, most likely due tothe abuseAnita has gotten in the past. It’s a shame though, as it completely closes on the door onactual meaningful discourse.
Here in the open comments, what did you think of the video?
