Wednesday, August 27, 2003

(nicked from Joule's blog:)

Johnny Depp as the definitely... um... eccentric's not quite the right word... Captain Jack Sparrow [proof that males can be shiny and sparkly, Lutra!].

<eyebrow> I remain sceptical as to how a non-anime male can be sparkly but if anyone can manage it it'd be Mr. Depp. <g> He gives good face...

I really like melted cheese but I hate azaleas (no, there's no connection between those two statements, don't bend your brain over it : ) I loathe those plants - their leaves are little and mean, their flowers fleshy and bruised, and no matter how well-cared for the plant is it always manages to look less than wholesome. Ick.

I think the cubs and I are going to see 'Finding Nemo' this weekend. <happy grin> and Okapi found a lost and abandoned Golden Arches of Doom toy by the side of the road yesterday, one of the clown-fish ones, and she thought of me... : )

Speaking of Okapi we were talking yesterday and it transpires that waaaay back in the days of our carefree youth we both regularly made ourselves late for work by stopping to watch 'He-Man - and the Masters of the Universe' in the morning.. isn't that interesting?

I've been pondering over cartoons lately (western animation), specifically about how women/girls are portrayed. I grew up with early Warner Bros and Hanna Barbera <shudder> and The Holy Rodent Empire. What did they have to offer? Granny? The occasional plot-device female who was sometimes vampish but was more often someone's wife? Wilma & Betty? Jane & Judy? Daphne and Velma? (Beauty and brains but not in the same package, you'll note) Bugs in drag? And then we have the movie heroines of the HRE, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty etc, victims all. But these things were all products of their time, weren't they, when women's roles weren't promoted as anything more than being an adjunct to the men. Things have changed haven't they?
There's more and stronger female characters around now, true, and I hate to admit it but the HRE seems to be leading the charge though HB has certainly picked up it's game. (At this point I have to admit I don't remember who owns who at the moment, is Warner's a HRE company now? Or HB? Is HB owned by Cartoon Network?) Of the new wave my favourite female characters would have to be the PowerPuff Girls and Kim Possible but there's also the X-men girls, some of those wonderful villainesses in both the Batman animated series and Sarah Bellum from the PPG.
There's others as well - Dee Dee from Dexter's lab - I love the way that girl views the world : ), and the Totally Spies trio. You're more likely to see the females actively contributing to the plot now rather than just needing to be rescued. It's a good thing, I think, and been a long time coming, now we just have to get past the notion that fat or ugly women are a: a nuisance, or b: comic relief...

No comments: