In honor of one of my favorite curmudgeons hitting the big Seven-Oh this past Saturday (and with thanks to ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
filkertom for the reminder):
101 of George Carlin's Best Quotes
filkertom for the reminder):101 of George Carlin's Best Quotes
May. 14th, 2007
What is it about those bad girls?
May. 14th, 2007 01:33 pmThere's been plenty of discussion about the appeal of "bad boys" in fiction, and science fiction/fantasy is no exception: Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, originally intended as a one-off villain but whose not-entirely-unrequited love for a certain blonde from Sunnydale, CA led him back to the side of the angels; Londo Mollari, Michael Garibaldi and even Alfred "Psi Cop" Bester on Babylon 5; Autolycus (Bruce Campbell) in the Hercules and Xena syndicated shows; and on and on.
Call me wrong, but I don't think there's been nearly as much meaningful analysis of the distaff side of that equation: the femmes fatale, the man-eaters, the Queens of Mean. You know who I mean: Xena herself, whose whole series was about her redemption; Faith Lehane in the Buffy/Angelverse (Joss Whedon gave her the last name for a role-playing game, says Wikipedia, but it's never been used on air), also on a path back to the light as of the latter series' end; Illyria in that same series, the eons-old über-goddess who ate out the insides of poor Winifred "Fred" Burkle to regain an Earthly foothold (both played to perfection by the luminous Amy Acker); Shego, the onetime brains of Team Go turned villainness and chief henchwoman to Drew "Dr. Drakken" Lipsky in the Disney's Kim Possible TV toon show; the slinky, devious, debauched Intendant Kira in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's mirror universe; Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager, a sweet human child turned cold, ruthless Borg and then brought gradually back to the side of humanity; and likewise on and on, though maybe not quite so many. Even The Wizard of Oz's Wicked Witch of the West has gotten a makeover (and a real name: Elphaba), courtesy of the novel and subsequent hit Broadway musical Wicked.
What is it that fascinates so many male readers/viewers (and even a few female ones, I feel certain) about women characters whose job it is to be un-likable? Especially ones who show even a teensy hint of not being quite all bad? Is it just that they get away with saying and doing all the stuff we'd love to and the hero/heroine isn't allowed? Or the potential, in some cases at least, for even a truly heinous female baddie to be reformed, given a complex enough characterization by the writers and/or the actress involved? Is it all just the male analogue of what so many female fans seem to think about the bad boys: "I bet I could sweeten her up, if I just got half a shot at her!"
Or if you don't wanna go that deep, just tell me who your favorite wicked, nasty, oh-no-she-didn't bitch-on-wheels in fiction is, and why. Doesn't have to be TV or film, either; Maxima is a great example from the Superman comic books, as is Rogue of the X-Men, who, you may recall, was a certified baddie in her early appearances; and there are ample quantities of same in prose fiction.
Call me wrong, but I don't think there's been nearly as much meaningful analysis of the distaff side of that equation: the femmes fatale, the man-eaters, the Queens of Mean. You know who I mean: Xena herself, whose whole series was about her redemption; Faith Lehane in the Buffy/Angelverse (Joss Whedon gave her the last name for a role-playing game, says Wikipedia, but it's never been used on air), also on a path back to the light as of the latter series' end; Illyria in that same series, the eons-old über-goddess who ate out the insides of poor Winifred "Fred" Burkle to regain an Earthly foothold (both played to perfection by the luminous Amy Acker); Shego, the onetime brains of Team Go turned villainness and chief henchwoman to Drew "Dr. Drakken" Lipsky in the Disney's Kim Possible TV toon show; the slinky, devious, debauched Intendant Kira in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's mirror universe; Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager, a sweet human child turned cold, ruthless Borg and then brought gradually back to the side of humanity; and likewise on and on, though maybe not quite so many. Even The Wizard of Oz's Wicked Witch of the West has gotten a makeover (and a real name: Elphaba), courtesy of the novel and subsequent hit Broadway musical Wicked.
What is it that fascinates so many male readers/viewers (and even a few female ones, I feel certain) about women characters whose job it is to be un-likable? Especially ones who show even a teensy hint of not being quite all bad? Is it just that they get away with saying and doing all the stuff we'd love to and the hero/heroine isn't allowed? Or the potential, in some cases at least, for even a truly heinous female baddie to be reformed, given a complex enough characterization by the writers and/or the actress involved? Is it all just the male analogue of what so many female fans seem to think about the bad boys: "I bet I could sweeten her up, if I just got half a shot at her!"
Or if you don't wanna go that deep, just tell me who your favorite wicked, nasty, oh-no-she-didn't bitch-on-wheels in fiction is, and why. Doesn't have to be TV or film, either; Maxima is a great example from the Superman comic books, as is Rogue of the X-Men, who, you may recall, was a certified baddie in her early appearances; and there are ample quantities of same in prose fiction.
