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shamanicshayminMetroid: Other M - The Elephant in the Room
I suspect the unfortunate truth is that the glorification of abusive relationships and disempowered female characters has become prevalent in modern pop culture. Look at books like Twilight or Hush, Hush. Female characters, completely in the thrall of emotionally abusive (and sometimes physically abusive or even murderous) men whose domination of them is painted as romantic. On the Internet, Twilight is often mocked, but that doesn’t change the fact that these books are popular, with a devoted fanbase of millions. When this cultural trend was only visible in trashy romance novels, and then melodramatic young adult fiction, it was easier to laugh at. What Other M demonstrates is that the trend is present in other forms of media as well, and that we, the consumers of said media, are mostly lapping it up — because it’s already part of our broader cultural landscape. As the old saying goes, fish tend not to notice the water they’re swimming in.
It's one thing if it was your usual stupid game or eye-rolling fanservice. But Samus? Samus Aran? I've heard bad things about Other M, but I never imagined the unfortunate implications would be so horrific.
Get your creepy abusive relationships and blatant sexism and character rape of a historical video game heroine out of my games.
I suspect the unfortunate truth is that the glorification of abusive relationships and disempowered female characters has become prevalent in modern pop culture. Look at books like Twilight or Hush, Hush. Female characters, completely in the thrall of emotionally abusive (and sometimes physically abusive or even murderous) men whose domination of them is painted as romantic. On the Internet, Twilight is often mocked, but that doesn’t change the fact that these books are popular, with a devoted fanbase of millions. When this cultural trend was only visible in trashy romance novels, and then melodramatic young adult fiction, it was easier to laugh at. What Other M demonstrates is that the trend is present in other forms of media as well, and that we, the consumers of said media, are mostly lapping it up — because it’s already part of our broader cultural landscape. As the old saying goes, fish tend not to notice the water they’re swimming in.
It's one thing if it was your usual stupid game or eye-rolling fanservice. But Samus? Samus Aran? I've heard bad things about Other M, but I never imagined the unfortunate implications would be so horrific.
Get your creepy abusive relationships and blatant sexism and character rape of a historical video game heroine out of my games.
