Soo, okay, I'm going to have to ask the question. How is Gothic Lolita "over sexualized" as opposed to a spray painted on bodysuit? No offense, but I think that's one of the most narrow minded thing I've heard in a while.
Harley Quinn's costume always seemed more like a Robin situation to me, sexualized, but not in an overly conscious way. It makes sense for a character who's mostly a tumbler and gymnast to wear a tight leotard. It just seems like the major intent of the designers is "Let's make her sexy" more than "Let's make her interesting". I guess it applies to the male half of the equation with "Let's make them as hulking and menacing as we possibly can" but it seems like the designers have opted out on redesigning a costume that really fits the theme of the character in favor of titillating fashion trends. She doesn't look like a harlequin. And for a character that's supposed to be nimble and acrobatic, I'd have hoped they went with something a little less busty and a little more lithe. Then again, it's a video game, so I'm not really going to let it bother me.
skotti-chan said:
Yes, I'm annoyed because I dress gothic, and on occasionally dress gothic lolita.
You sure do get annoyed easy, don't you skotti? It's like "narrow-minded" is a synonym for "everything I disagree with". Or are you just seriously convinced I'm a misogynist? I'm pretty sure I'm not, but hell, maybe you're right.
I don't have a problem with the style. In fact, I love girls who dress like that. There's nothing wrong with looking good and dressing in a way that appeals to you. But that's not the point. I'm not making a knock at your choice in fashion. I'm making a point about going to the same old well despite it not making very much sense in the situation. But yeah. I think the thick grease paint, goofy pixie boots, and lacy frills are less sexualized than the new costume. There's something kiddish in her old costume, which makes sense considering the (wrong-headed) characterization of her as a sort of youthful, Joker counterpoint to Robin.
skotti said:
Personally, I think she's cute, her voice is what annoys me, but it always has. It's one of the reasons why I never liked B:tAS, all the voices are horrible caricatures of 1940's Noir characters.
I think she's cute too. I think she's cute in both incarnations, but that's not what bugs me. In fact, it's completely irrelevant. Harley is irritating from the root of her character out. She's supposed to be a brilliant psychiatrist who had the express honor of analyzing the Joker, right? Instead we have a ditzy girl with enormous, abuse-based dependencies. The Harley/Ivy relationship is a step in the right direction, but it's rarely played up seriously. From what I've read, the relationship between the two has always been over the top and comic. I recognize that
all of Batman's villains suffer from crippling psychological issues, but when it comes to his female rogues, it seems to always come across as their modus operandi being dependent on approval (or a backlash against approval) by their male peers. Even Ivy's eco-terrorism is regularly filtered as a reactionary disgust against men. They're characters who let themselves be defined by men.
I like Talia though. I think, comparatively, she's a pretty strong character in her own right.
Haven't we had this argument before? Like, in this very thread?
Incidentally, I also hate the idea of film Harley being a co-dependent, self-scarred psychotic lackey for the Joker. I find the idea disgusting and derivative.
