Female Action Heroes: A Guide to Women in Comics, Video Games, Film, and Television

374 Pages·2010·1.99 MB·English

by  Gladys L. Knight

FEMALE ACTION HEROES
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FEMALE ACTION HEROES
A Guide to Women
in Comics, Video Games,
Film, and Television
Gladys L. Knight
Copyright2010byGladysL.Knight
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,
storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyformorbyany
means,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise,
exceptfortheinclusionofbriefquotationsinareview,withoutprior
permissioninwritingfromthepublisher.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Knight,GladysL.,1974–
Femaleactionheroes:aguidetowomenincomics,videogames,film,and
television/GladysL.Knight.
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-313-37612-2(hardcover:alk.paper)—ISBN978-0-313-37613-9(eBook)
1.Womenheroesinmassmedia.I.Title.
P94.5.W65K56 2010
791.4082—dc22 2010004509
ISBN:978-0-313-37612-2
EISBN:978-0-313-37613-9
14 13 12 11 10 1 2 3 4 5
ThisbookisalsoavailableontheWorldWideWebasaneBook.
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ManufacturedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Contents
Preface vii
Introduction xiii
Timeline xxiii
TheBionicWoman 1
BuffytheVampireSlayer 15
Catwoman 29
Charlie’sAngels 43
ChunLi 57
Chyna 71
Ellenaka‘‘TheLady’’ 83
EllenRipley 97
EmmaPeel 109
FoxyBrown 123
G.I.Jane 137
Helen 149
JenYu 161
JoanofArc 173
KathrynJaneway 185
LaraCroft 201
MaggieFitzgerald 215
vi Contents
ThePowerpuffGirls 227
PrincessLeia 239
SarahConnor 251
Selene 265
Storm 277
ThelmaandLouise 291
WonderWoman 303
Xena:WarriorPrincess 317
Glossary 329
SelectedBibliography 333
Index 335
Preface
At a cinema near the University of Chicago in 1999, audiences went wild
when, in the spectacular opening scene of The Matrix (1999), Trinity (Carrie-
Ann Moss) duked it out single-handedly with villains. Trinity astonished
moviegoers with her meteoric martial arts moves and slow-motion leg kicks,
skintight black leather attire, and short, slicked-back hairdo. When Trinity
tumbled downstairs while running from pursuers and then bolted upright
from a prone position with two guns pointed and poised at the ready, the
crowd’s ecstatic shouts flooded the theater. In a more recent film, Untrace-
able (2008), Jennifer Marsh (Diane Lane) plays a smart cop, widow, and
mother of a young daughter, who tracks down Internet predators. She is
captured by a serial killer (who records his murders in real time for online
viewing) and taken to a hidden location, where she is bound and gagged,
hung upside down and slowly lowered toward a moving rotary tiller. Her
male colleagues watch powerlessly from a conference room. After several
suspenseful minutes, Marsh unfastens her restraints and prevails over the
young, male killer. Her colleagues cheer her on with all the exuberance of a
film audience.
These examples of female toughness epitomize the current trend wherein
women are depicted as tough as nails and able to stand front and center in
the action, but it is important to understand that this portrayal has been
materializing over a long period of time in film, television, comic books,
and video games. The modern depiction is significant, because it illustrates
that toughness and action are not exclusive to men and that women who
punch, kick, and drive fast cars can be just as cool as men who do those
things. The popularity of female action heroes in the new millennium is
undeniable: soaring box office receipts, fast-selling merchandise, and
increasing numbers of films starring strong women speak loudly that they
are accepted and in demand.
viii Preface
Female Action Heroes: A Guide to Women in Comics, Video Games,
Film, and Television takes a look at 25 incredible female protagonists. These
women and girls have appeared as vampire slayers, captains, villainesses,
sharp shooters, martial arts experts, muscle-bound wrestlers, secret agents,
athletes, martyrs, plucky archeologists, superheroes, vigilantes, warriors,
outlaws, and more. They represent some of the most iconic heroes to have
appeared since the turn of the 20th century to the present. Many of these
women have had a deep impact on society. Emma Peel of the 1960s British
television series, The Avengers, struck a chord with many young women
who idolized Peel’s strength, intelligence, composure, beauty, and fighting
skills. The Bionic Woman of the hit 1970s series was independent, career
oriented, and equipped with superpowers that made her stronger than any-
one else except for her predecessor, the Six Million Dollar Man. Foxy
Brown, from the eponymous 1974 film, was considered a breakout role for
African American women and the first female action hero in a full feature
film. Characters like Wonder Woman, Ellen Ripley, Sarah Connor, and
Thelma and Louise had fan clubs that ranged from ordinary viewers to ar-
dent feminists. Lara Croft changed the face of video game playing. She
became a role model for young girls and the star of one of the most popular
video games for both males and females.
This book examines a number of facets characteristic of female action
heroes. Each chapter includes sections on her origins, her power suit, weap-
ons, and abilities, the villains she grapples with, an analysis of her story,
and her impact on popular culture. Discussion of recurring themes, sidebars,
a glossary, bibliography, and index are also included.
ORIGINS
The origins section summarizes how each hero came to be. It features pro-
files on the directors and writers who developed her and the actresses who
portrayed her. For example, Wonder Woman, who first appeared in comic
books in 1941, was the invention of a man named William Moulton Mar-
ston, a psychologist, who believed women would one day rule the world
and wanted to influence the way young boys perceived women. Joss Whe-
don, a director and producer, created Buffy Summers, who appeared in the
film and television versions of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in the 1990s, to
challenge the conventional portrayal of female victims. Ellen Ripley, the
protagonist of the Alien film series (1979, 1986, 1992, 1997), was originally
written as a man and emerged as one of America’s favorite action heroes.
POWER SUIT, WEAPONS, ABILITIES, AND VILLAINS
The power suit, weapons, and abilities section identifies each female action
hero’s strengths. Power suit, a term popularized in the 1980s, was
Preface ix
associated with the attire worn by business men and women to project con-
fidence and authority. The term is especially appropriate for action heroes,
for costumes were an integral part of the classic comic book superheroes.
The flapping capes, latex costumes, and emblems (Superman’s ‘‘S’’ or Spider-
Man’s black spider), which they wore on expansive chests, helped to denote
the powerthat isassociatedwith those whotranscendedthe ordinary.
A number of the women featured in this book wore power suits, like the
one-piece, stars-and-stripes costume worn by Wonder Woman and the black
leather catsuits of Catwoman and Emma Peel. Black leather is also worn by
Foxy Brown and Selene. In other examples, the power suit is not so obvious,
but is nonetheless significant. Jen Yu in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
(2000) prefers ordinary, toned-down robes to the fancy, delicate, and restric-
tive clothing typical of her high station as a privileged governor’s daughter.
Other women dress like men: Joan of Arc, a 14th-century warrior, gears up
like a soldier in battle; Jordan O’Neil shaves her head and dons military
fatigues; Thelma and Louise go without makeup and wear jeans and
T-shirts, and Xena wears classic warrior vestments. Still other women prefer
a feminine look, like Helen of the early 20th-century The Hazards of Helen,
or a combination of feminine and masculine, like Chun Li, a character in
the video game Street Fighter, who favors ox horns (a Chinese hairstyle
wherein hair is worn in double buns), pantyhose, and combat boots, and
The Powerpuff Girls, who fight in pastel-colored costumes.
The abilities of the female action heroes and villains vary considerably.
Captain Kathryn Janeway makes tough decisions aboard the Voyager; Buffy
has superpowered martial arts skills that she uses against vampires, mon-
sters, and demons. Jen Yu, a fantastical wuxia warrior, uses her powers
against anyone—good or bad—who stands in her way. The Bionic Woman
can run 60 miles per hour, jump to and from soaring heights, and lift cars.
She contends with an assortment of everyday male and female villains as
well as science fiction creations. Selene, the vampire from the Underworld
film series (2003, 2006) can also jump and heals rapidly. She wields a large
arsenal of weaponry, such as guns, pistols, bow and arrows, and goes to
battle against hulking werewolves called Lycans. Maggie Fitzgerald has the
true-life drive, guts, and physical strength to compete as a boxer in Million
Dollar Baby (2004). The Powerpuff Girls can shoot lasers from their eyes,
run at lightning speed, and soar in the sky in the animated cartoon series
that ran from 1998 to 2005. Storm is a comic book hero who can control
the weather. Ellen has shooting skills to rival any cowboy as she confronts
gunfighters in the film The Quick and the Dead (1995).
ANALYSIS
The analysis section explores how female action heroes are depicted. Histor-
ically, women have appeared in film, television, comic books, and video