Maybe Hina doesn't get mentioned because when we're looking for strong female marines, we always think of Tsuru first. She's a higher rank and she hasn't failed yet.
Although I can't wait to see Hina kicking some more asses.
Maybe Hina doesn't get mentioned because when we're looking for strong female marines, we always think of Tsuru first. She's a higher rank and she hasn't failed yet.
Although I can't wait to see Hina kicking some more asses.
One Piece is written by Oda to entertain a mainly male audience! If you like it or not, that is the way it is. The whole pirate and adventure thing is what boys and men want to read..
So giving a lot of strength to male characters and pointing out the feminine side of a lot of female characters is perfectly natural for an artist.
I am not that into Manga but I think there are a few mangas that wrap around a very very girly story and I think a lot of the boys in those storys are portrayed in a way that you could also call a bit sexist!
I think it's disappointing that such a great manga is so fatally flawed when it comes to females. There's a reason that it's difficult for girls to get interested in One Piece; all of the women are either bombshells or grotesque. This isn't realistic and really caters only to a male understanding of females. Nami and Robin are supermodels who have a very cliched role in the series. They're either nonplussed by the boys' silliness, damsels in distress, or straight-up eye candy. The other women are either monsters or unimportant side characters. The story is told through male eyes and there's not a ton for most girls to look for each week. That's not even addressing the "character designs" which are generally: head, enormous chest, no waist, enormous hips, long legs. All of the relatable women in the series have this body type…the rest are monsters or Lola (who's the butt of constant jokes).
As a guy, I love One Piece. But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
Is there a reason why no one ever mentions Hina when it comes to strong women in OP? I think she is badass and her DF has the potential to be extremely broken.
And just to add some fuel to the fire…
! http://img3.imagebanana.com/img/hwglg2ut/smoker.png "The cage of marriage"
I actually really like Hina. I don't know why she's so underrated; she's freaking badass, and among others, she singlehandedly defeated Mr. 2, and we know that's no joke. I know that's far from being top tier, as she showed during the war during her only (failed) atempt to face Luffy (let's not forget Luffy didn't even hesitate one second to go Gear Second and get the fuck out of Hina's cage), but again, Mr. 2 is quite a formidable fighter, on par with Alabasta's Sanji.
With the massive amount of characters Oda has in store to use in future fights or conflicts (like ALL the Vice-Admirals. . .and there are a LOT of them. . .), I don't think Hina will ever be relevant, but I think we'll see her again someday, if only because where there's Hina, there's also Jango and Fullbody, and I think Oda loves Jango as much as we do.
That could be a great chance to give Hina a higher rank; not Vice-Admiral, but maybe Commodore or, who knows, Rear-Admiral. . .
I think it's disappointing that such a great manga is so fatally flawed when it comes to females. There's a reason that it's difficult for girls to get interested in One Piece; all of the women are either bombshells or grotesque. This isn't realistic and really caters only to a male understanding of females. Nami and Robin are supermodels who have a very cliched role in the series. They're either nonplussed by the boys' silliness, damsels in distress, or straight-up eye candy. The other women are either monsters or unimportant side characters. The story is told through male eyes and there's not a ton for most girls to look for each week. That's not even addressing the "character designs" which are generally: head, enormous chest, no waist, enormous hips, long legs. All of the relatable women in the series have this body type…the rest are monsters or Lola (who's the butt of constant jokes).
As a guy, I love One Piece. But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
From reading some of his interviews it's pretty clear that Oda intends to focus pretty much exclusively on young boys and that girls/older readers are just extras.
So he doesn't care much about female readers, which is why he has a strict no romance policy. (Also I suspect this is the reason behind Sanji's increasing goofiness)
I don't see why being nonplussed by the men's craziness is a bad or predictable character trait for one (and Nami clearly isn't)
Also I think the whole "Oda can't draw varied normal female characters!" thing is (if only slightly) subverted by the Amazon Lilly arc.
This isn't realistic
Yeah, while I agree with most of what you're saying, this where I tilt my head. Because I thought it was already established that OP , for the most part, isn't a realistic series.
And I think it's a little unfair to lump characters like Kokoro or Lola as monsters when they're both overall pretty nice characters.
Yeah, while I agree with most of what you're saying, this where I tilt my head. Because I thought it was already established that OP , for the most part, isn't a realistic series.
And I think it's a little unfair to lump characters like Kokoro or Lola as monsters when they're both overall pretty nice characters.
Please let me be clear. I don't see characters like Lola as monsters. But I think it's clear that they're intended to be gross to the average viewer of this manga. Obviously the ultra-hot women aren't realistic either. That's exactly my point. Oda seems only able to make female characters that are eye candy or jokingly-ugly. There's very little room for real-looking (even by One Piece standard) women in the manga. I don't condemn him for it, but I understand why females can't relate to the manga sometimes.
Again I think you should look at Amazon Lilly for examples of women who aren't hideously ugly nor super models.
But you're right in that it doesn't happen very often.
Agree that you should take Amazon Lilly for example. There are many types of women there, maybe he just wanna make some women with more screen time hotter, while some other insignificant characters uglier, fatter or something. Oda can really draw women. ;) Not all of them are big boobs, eg. pre-timeskip Tashigi
Ummm.. Queen Otohime anyone? She doesn't have huge boobs and acts like a refined woman who fights for what she believes in. How come no one mentions her? :-/
Ummm.. Queen Otohime anyone? She doesn't have huge boobs and acts like a refined woman who fights for what she believes in. How come no one mentions her? :-/
Because she's dead.
Kaya had the same thing going for her when we first saw her. It's probably Oda's way of showing how frail she was.
Ummm.. Queen Otohime anyone? She doesn't have huge boobs and acts like a refined woman who fights for what she believes in. How come no one mentions her? :-/
Good point. As was Bellemere.
I don't think Oda's treatment of women is as dire as people think. Over-sexualizing of them is a fault, but failing to create strong-willed and independent women isn't.
But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
I'm a girl and when I think about it, I can't see that big of a problem with how women are portrayed by Oda. Of course I'd be more than happy to see Hina, Tsuru or any other female kicking ass, but I understand they can't all the time, so I greatly value those rare moments when Oda choose to make them look awesome.
The main thing people have to understand, is that we, women can't be as good in some things as men. The important thing is, as I said before, that every group has it's strong female characters (Marines - Hina, Tsuru; Warlords - Hancock; pirates - let say for example Whitey Bay, or Robin/Nami etc.). That in itself shows that Oda created a world where women are allowed by men to do "jobs" normally a man would do. Tsuru is very respected even though she's just a weak-looking, small old lady and probably never was a big fighter (although it's just me speculating), yet, she's a Vice-Admiral for a reason. Of course she may had got so far more difficult than a man, but she's there.
The main thing a want to say is: Oda could've just tossed the non-main female characters into being housewifes and such, but instead, he choose to make some of them be outstanding and strong. They may be not as strong as men, but that's fine by me.
That's just my overall opinion as a female reader of the series.
I think it's disappointing that such a great manga is so fatally flawed when it comes to females. There's a reason that it's difficult for girls to get interested in One Piece; all of the women are either bombshells or grotesque. This isn't realistic and really caters only to a male understanding of females. Nami and Robin are supermodels who have a very cliched role in the series. They're either nonplussed by the boys' silliness, damsels in distress, or straight-up eye candy. The other women are either monsters or unimportant side characters. The story is told through male eyes and there's not a ton for most girls to look for each week. That's not even addressing the "character designs" which are generally: head, enormous chest, no waist, enormous hips, long legs. All of the relatable women in the series have this body type…the rest are monsters or Lola (who's the butt of constant jokes).
As a guy, I love One Piece. But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
Many people seeing how One Piece is drawn think it's ugly, and don't see the reason to read it, but that goes to male part of society as well and is also about how male characters are drawn.
Being female I see plenty reasons to read One Piece and can't wait every week for new chapter to came out, I also have other female acquaintance who are the same as I. One Piece is also one of very few stories that have female characters I can actually relate to (mostly Robin). I, and probably most people, relate to characters based on their personalities, value systems (axiology), interests, quirks, history and likability, it's not about how they look or even about their gender. I may not be always 100% happy with the way Oda shows the women visually (he sometimes lack harmony of proportions when it comes to picturing beautiful women it makes them less aesthetic, than they could be) , but he makes it up in therms of chara-designs, diversity, relationships and relevance.
I don't agree with you statement about them having only stereotypical roles. People already pointed it out, it would be only multiplying examples.
When Oda stated that he writes for young teenage boys and boys don't like romance, he probably was making excuse for not including romance (mushy stuff, not actual romance or so calles "man's romance" - One Piece is radiating with those two), I think Oda himself just don't like writing mushy stuff, plenty of teenage boys like romance (mushy one) if it's comedic and adventurous, on the other hand plenty older people and girl don't like or don't care for romance (lavu-lavu). One Piece is not for teenage boys, One Piece is for everyone, who loves true romance of adventure (and good laugh), be it boy, girl, gay or grandma. Oda just thought most of those people would be teenage boys, so he stated he writes for them. That does not mean audience of One Piece consist mostly of boys in their early teens.
As a guy, I love One Piece. But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
I'm female and personally when I read stories look more for interesting character personalities, I know it's sometimes really hard for guys to draw girls and vice-versa, so I'm not annoyed with the designs. I disagree that most of them are stereotypical or even only there to be eye-candy for guys. I also disagree on you with Nami and Robin because a navigator or historian isn't exactly usually associated with women, rather can be both genders if you ask me. Nami is also arguably one of the more important members of the crew because without her guidance they would be pretty screwed seeing how crazy the Grand Line's weather can be. Robin is smart and her backstory is probably one of the best ones in the series, but she's not the strongest fighter. Hancock might be a bitch, but she balances it out by being a strong fighter. Even if Perona is obnoxious and spoiled, she isn't stupid or weak. Dadan might be ugly, but as a mountain bandit she can kick ass when needed and grows to care for Ace and Luffy. Shirahoshi might be naive, weak and cowardly, but she is a nice person, who wants the best for everyone and wishes to become stronger etc..
tl; dr most of the female characters are characters first and foremost(and very well balanced, too!) despite their occasional stereotypical powers or looks and that's what is important to me.
This is a nice discussion! I think the new clothing just crossed the threshold of tolerance for some people. I'm male and I find it annoying because the characters are already rich with personality that showing skin isn't really necessary. I'm trying to tell my girlfriend (who isn't familiar with manga) how awesome op is but she just gets distracted by her first impression of the characters. In this way, I think the less clothing is taking away from the manga.
I agree that the female characters are diverse and have good personality that isn't stereotypical. But I also get this underlying feeling that the female characters mainly support the main actors (male). There doesn't seem to be a female character influencing the world in a major way (the only one I can think of is big mum). It could be that the guy to girl ratio in this manga is just 3:1 though. Just my two cents on a new forum =)
I think it's disappointing that such a great manga is so fatally flawed when it comes to females. There's a reason that it's difficult for girls to get interested in One Piece; all of the women are either bombshells or grotesque. This isn't realistic and really caters only to a male understanding of females. Nami and Robin are supermodels who have a very cliched role in the series. They're either nonplussed by the boys' silliness, damsels in distress, or straight-up eye candy. The other women are either monsters or unimportant side characters. The story is told through male eyes and there's not a ton for most girls to look for each week. That's not even addressing the "character designs" which are generally: head, enormous chest, no waist, enormous hips, long legs. All of the relatable women in the series have this body type…the rest are monsters or Lola (who's the butt of constant jokes).
As a guy, I love One Piece. But I completely understand why many girls wouldn't see a reason to read it.
I'm a girl and when I think about it, I can't see that big of a problem with how women are portrayed by Oda. Of course I'd be more than happy to see Hina, Tsuru or any other female kicking ass, but I understand they can't all the time, so I greatly value those rare moments when Oda choose to make them look awesome.
The main thing people have to understand, is that we, women can't be as good in some things as men. The important thing is, as I said before, that every group has it's strong female characters (Marines - Hina, Tsuru; Warlords - Hancock; pirates - let say for example Whitey Bay, or Robin/Nami etc.). That in itself shows that Oda created a world where women are allowed by men to do "jobs" normally a man would do. Tsuru is very respected even though she's just a weak-looking, small old lady and probably never was a big fighter (although it's just me speculating), yet, she's a Vice-Admiral for a reason. Of course she may had got so far more difficult than a man, but she's there.
The main thing a want to say is: Oda could've just tossed the non-main female characters into being housewifes and such, but instead, he choose to make some of them be outstanding and strong. They may be not as strong as men, but that's fine by me.
That's just my overall opinion as a female reader of the series.
Many people seeing how One Piece is drawn think it's ugly, and don't see the reason to read it, but that goes to male part of society as well and is also about how male characters are drawn.
Being female I see plenty reasons to read One Piece and can't wait every week for new chapter to came out, I also have other female acquaintance who are the same as I. One Piece is also one of very few stories that have female characters I can actually relate to (mostly Robin). I, and probably most people, relate to characters based on their personalities, value systems (axiology), interests, quirks, history and likability, it's not about how they look or even about their gender. I may not be always 100% happy with the way Oda shows the women visually (he sometimes lack harmony of proportions when it comes to picturing beautiful women it makes them less aesthetic, than they could be) , but he makes it up in therms of chara-designs, diversity, relationships and relevance.
I don't agree with you statement about them having only stereotypical roles. People already pointed it out, it would be only multiplying examples.When Oda stated that he writes for young teenage boys and boys don't like romance, he probably was making excuse for not including romance (mushy stuff, not actual romance or so calles "man's romance" - One Piece is radiating with those two), I think Oda himself just don't like writing mushy stuff, plenty of teenage boys like romance (mushy one) if it's comedic and adventurous, on the other hand plenty older people and girl don't like or don't care for romance (lavu-lavu). One Piece is not for teenage boys, One Piece is for everyone, who loves true romance of adventure (and good laugh), be it boy, girl, gay or grandma. Oda just thought most of those people would be teenage boys, so he stated he writes for them. That does not mean audience of One Piece consist mostly of boys in their early teens.
@ Adams: I was going to tell you to stop white knighting but maybe you should just read a few of the female response after your post and in this thread. The Females, seemingly at large, are fine with how women are portrayed in this manga and wait ecstatically like the rest of us each week for more.
Recently, I thought Tashigi's reintroduction was insanely badass(even more than Zoro). I am really excited to see her eventual fight with Zoro. 90 percent of the fans think Zoro will win by a landslide, I don't think that will happen because she is as spirited and stuborn as Zoro.
I think in a lot of ways the amount of skin shown (which is steadily increasing throughout the series), is a detractor to One Piece. Just look at the beginning of the series (Buggy and AP arcs), and tell me that Nami's design is better now than it was then…I think most people would prefer the "old" Nami from way back. Elfin Lied is an anime series where this was a problem, it is an excellent series with a great story and really pulls at your heartstrings at times, but because there is so much nudity, it is hard to take it seriously.
Personally I like when Nami is wearing the bikini top, she looks good in it, especially she wears really cute one right now, on the other hand when all she is wearing is bikini top it gets boring eventually. I'm not bothered with reviling clothes on females, but it also ads nothing to the series. But it's only mu opinion. And for Nami's current design, she is pretty with long hair.
I'm female and personally when I read stories look more for interesting character personalities, I know it's sometimes really hard for guys to draw girls and vice-versa, so I'm not annoyed with the designs. I disagree that most of them are stereotypical or even only there to be eye-candy for guys. I also disagree on you with Nami and Robin because a navigator or historian isn't exactly usually associated with women, rather can be both genders if you ask me. Nami is also arguably one of the more important members of the crew because without her guidance they would be pretty screwed seeing how crazy the Grand Line's weather can be. Robin is smart and her backstory is probably one of the best ones in the series, but she's not the strongest fighter. Hancock might be a bitch, but she balances it out by being a strong fighter. Even if Perona is obnoxious and spoiled, she isn't stupid or weak. Dadan might be ugly, but as a mountain bandit she can kick ass when needed and grows to care for Ace and Luffy. Shirahoshi might be naive, weak and cowardly, but she is a nice person, who wants the best for everyone and wishes to become stronger etc..
tl; dr most of the female characters are characters first and foremost(and very well balanced, too!) despite their occasional stereotypical powers or looks and that's what is important to me.
I think your input is highly underrated.
There really isn't anything to argue against, but I will agree with almost every point you have said.
The thread seems to focus too much on female empowerment, rather than feminism or female equality. It's clear that Oda isn't exactly a feminist, although he's seems to be cool with feminism. Females are still vastly under-represented, and the manga in general focuses on masculine dreams. Robin and Nami may be atypical female characters in what they do, but they are still fan-service/eye-candy. Hancock is definitely not feminist, since she personifies female supremacy, rather than equality. If a woman is not stereotypical eye-candy, Oda tends to draw the woman as deformed (gonky), although there are rare exceptions. That kind of puts a all-or-nothing standard on the perception of women. I can see that men could be interpreted the same way, except it isn't because men have more variation in body figure. In addition, all the variation of female figures belong only to background characters, rather than main, supporting, or "famous" characters.
It's questionable, however, to have feminist idealism take hold in the manga, since Oda clearly wants to model global culture in One Piece after current international culture (or maybe just Tokyo culture). Deviant cultures seem to just be modeled after Japanese and American film and television, or from more traditional Japanese culture, so that Japanese readers can easily relate to the manga. The target audience is adolescent boys and young men afterall.
It's questionable, however, to have feminist idealism take hold in the manga, since Oda clearly wants to model global culture in One Piece after current international culture (or maybe just Tokyo culture). Deviant cultures seem to just be modeled after Japanese and American film and television, or from more traditional Japanese culture, so that Japanese readers can easily relate to the manga. The target audience is adolescent boys and young men afterall.
I honestly don't think Oda thinks about these things so much, not just about how women are treated, but themes in general. He just wants to tell an adventure story. In the back of Color Walk 2 he says he doesn't want to send messages, but rather puts themes in the manga and tries his best to find awnsers that are suitable to the questions he sets up. He also repeated that in a recent interview about the heavy themes of Fishman Island. Man, I really love stuff that gives insight to any story like that, haha. You don't get that with many manga, from what I've noticed.
I think in a lot of ways the amount of skin shown (which is steadily increasing throughout the series), is a detractor to One Piece. Just look at the beginning of the series (Buggy and AP arcs), and tell me that Nami's design is better now than it was then…I think most people would prefer the "old" Nami from way back. Elfin Lied is an anime series where this was a problem, it is an excellent series with a great story and really pulls at your heartstrings at times, but because there is so much nudity, it is hard to take it seriously.
I thought that it was in one of those Oda interviews that Nami started dressing the way she did specifically after Arlong's defeat because she felt could be around people she trusted and didn't necessarily have to be on the run. Which was I believe the explanation from her closed toed boots to open toed sandals.
I surprisingly don't mind Nami's skimpy attire, I don't know if it's because the body types are so cartoony I can't really equate it to something vulgar lol. She knows she's cute and much like Boa she uses that to get what she wants. And well the use of fan service with her isn't constantly in your face or always out of place unlike scenes in Fairy Tail and Kenichi, I feel.
At any rate the guys can have their Nami and Robin fan service. I get my Zoro lol. :ninja:
I honestly don't know how or what Oda thinks about (other than porn, penis jokes, poop jokes, eating meat, Morning Musume, Manzai performances, Rock music, Rap, Quinton Tarantino, the Great Mazinger, defeating Pretty Cure, his wife, his daughter, his friends, video games), but I probably think too much about how he thinks. A habit that I wish to keep, since I am a science student.
Edit: Oh, and apparently Oda actually likes vocal talents like singing, so I should have just listed music in general.
Women in OP?
We've got all types, all sorts all tastes; from Alvida's reshape to Big MUM. As Kizuchan said before, is the character what matters, I thought we got that message after the Fishman Island arc.
@sag:
Women in OP?
We've got all types, all sorts all tastes; from Alvida's reshape to Big MUM. As Kizuchan said before, is the character what matters, I thought we got that message after the Fishman Island arc.
yeah but people will still argue over sexism for eternity.
yeah but people will still argue over sexism for eternity.
half of those people don't know how sexism works any way.
I think fan service comes from Women and Men in One Piece equally. All the guys in One Piece are ripped and show off that fact constantly.
I appreciate Oda’s crazy drawing style and i don’t really mind his fondness with gigantic boobs and such.
On the serious side i would really like to see a well developed female character, this manga needs a serious badass woman the kind of beautiful dangerous…mysterious female character, i mean Robin & Hancock is cool but well their just not enough (AT ALL), and we just found out that Big Mom is fat huge ugly man-eating monster which is fine but we still need the classic dark obscure pretty lady.
I think fan service comes from Women and Men in One Piece equally. All the guys in One Piece are ripped and show off that fact constantly.
LOL–not all women think of guys that are "ripped" as the epitome of manhood, which by definition makes them not really fan-servicey for the majority of women. Fan-servisey girls seem to be primarily about their huge boobs and waspy waists--which does in fact seem to be attractive for a large percentage of male readers, on the other hand. Just sayin'. I've read the argument, somewhere, that even the "ripped" males could be more for the male readers, in that they tend to reflect more of a male fantasy of male perfection and what they think women want, as opposed to what many women (NOT all women) would ask for if they were ever asked, and I sorta think there's at least a modicum of truth there...
It seems that what counts as fanservice for women seems to vary far more wildly than it does for men.
Honestly I don't know what women want.
It seems that what counts as fanservice for women seems to vary far more wildly than it does for men.
Honestly I don't know what women want.
Scientifically proved, that what females like depends on what part of cycle they are in.
Most girls, especially the ones in anime fandoms, like bishies, though, there are no classical examples of this category of characters in One Piece.
@I:
LOL–not all women think of guys that are "ripped" as the epitome of manhood, which by definition makes them not really fan-servicey for the majority of women. Fan-servisey girls seem to be primarily about their huge boobs and waspy waists--which does in fact seem to be attractive for a large percentage of male readers, on the other hand. Just sayin'. I've read the argument, somewhere, that even the "ripped" males could be more for the male readers, in that they tend to reflect more of a male fantasy of male perfection and what they think women want, as opposed to what many women (NOT all women) would ask for if they were ever asked, and I sorta think there's at least a modicum of truth there...
Yes, yes. 16 chars.
Is this the appropriate use for "16 chars?"
I agree that women don't think the same way about male bodies as men think about female bodies. It's just how the hormones work.
The most female "fan service" I've seen out of One Piece may be Chopper and all the cute critter side characters, including humongous ones like Megalo, Surume and Wadatsumi. I can't really speak for women however because I'm not one.
Anyway, I think Oda's work would be acceptable as gender unbiased when Oda's own daughter becomes eager to watch through a marathon of One Piece episodes. There's a good reason why Pretty Cure has that edge.
Since I started reading manga back in the day. It seems that if a manga writer wants fan service to appeal to girls, the male character is either super feminine in the face and a tall willowly body with some muscle tone, silent, a bit of a jerk or just flat out dangerous, or they look down right helpless, short, large eyes, very awkward around women, but can try to fight for his dream, love interest, whatever. And if these two types wind up in the same show…that's a whole other can of worms.
One Piece doesn't seem to have the super pretty male or the adorable (human) male. I don't think of the animals as a female fan service thing...I dunno maybe some girls want them as a stuffed animal version, but I find a lot of Oda's animals to be too ridiculous or just unappealing.
The muscular, rough, manly men seem to be there to draw in the guys. A "Hey, is this guy cool? You wanna be like him, right?"
Since I started reading manga back in the day. It seems that if a manga writer wants fan service to appeal to girls, the male character is either super feminine in the face and a tall willowly body with some muscle tone, silent, a bit of a jerk or just flat out dangerous, or they look down right helpless, short, large eyes, very awkward around women, but can try to fight for his dream, love interest, whatever. And if these two types wind up in the same show…that's a whole other can of worms.
One Piece doesn't seem to have the super pretty male or the adorable (human) male. I don't think of the animals as a female fan service thing...I dunno maybe some girls want them as a stuffed animal version, but I find a lot of Oda's animals to be too ridiculous or just unappealing.
The muscular, rough, manly men seem to be there to draw in the guys. A "Hey, is this guy cool? You wanna be like him, right?"
I think Luffy when he's just being himself would be main fan service, due to him being not very muscular looking and he normally is hopeless by himself which he states when fighting Arlong.
But how did this topic change into a fan-service discussion haha?
I think Luffy when he's just being himself would be main fan service, due to him being not very muscular looking and he normally is hopeless by himself which he states when fighting Arlong.
But how did this topic change into a fan-service discussion haha?
Because when you bring up how women are portayed they tend to fall into a fan service category every now and then lol. I was mostly talking about if there were any characters to be used to draw in a female demographic. I feel Luffy doesn't count in that regard. But Luffy's personality would place him more in the "rough or comedic" category. And he's very asexual. >_< It's weird to explain. But the Anime how to draw books has a section on personalities and the face types that typically go with the style. He'd be the innocent ruffian or whatever lol. Large round eyed, messy hair, scar or bandage.
He's a good main though definitely. I remember that this was pretty much the first anime where I liked pretty much all the main cast. I think Oda came up with a fairly good mix. I'm even warming up to Brook. It took me a long time to get used to Franky too. Nami I never really liked. She had a few moments that I thought were funny or what have you, but I didn't loathe her or anything. Greedy characters just bugged me. Robin I think I liked from the get go cause of her dark humor.
in terms of design id say that women in one piece are generic for the most part…... and this highly obvious if u compare most of the females you see in the background: their faces and body types are almost the same
unique female characters almost always stray from the norm, by this ill take kokoro - baasan..... and mole DF user from alabasta , both are completely unique and similar because of their purpose in the story: comedy
____we could argue that thats not their purpose(molewoman is fodder who looks like a mole w/o transforming and kokoro was a kindly, wish-i-dint-know-what-u-are guide)... but enough of that later.......
even hancock looks very similar to most attractive background females who sanji chases around..... only the flowery backgrounds and other characters convince us she's a special beauty case......
the kuja pirates island was the first major improvement on female character portrayal in my opinion based solely on variation in looks
in terms of personality...... OP is a-ok in my book coz we get to see all kinds
*in case anything i said was rude or offensive to anyone.....
I think with regards costumes, people should read this -
http://zaewen.wordpress.com/2011/12/01/when-is-it-sexist-a-chart-that-doesnt-get-it-quite-right/
having chests on display doesn't make men "equally sexualised". To do so they'd have to be in a seductive pose with their balls half hanging out. It sounds ridiculous, but we're used to it with women.
That said One Piece is above average for Shonen from a feminist perspective as a shonen. Traditionally unattractive women are displayed in positive roles. I was fairly impressed with Dadan as while she was masculine she wasn't depicted as being quite as "ugly" as the other fat or physically strong female characters. I thought Lola would have been pretty cute if it wasn't for her ridiculously large lips as well, though she seemed kind of weak especially for a New World pirate. Nami & Robin seem to be in control of their sexuality to some degree and there aren't many moeblob characters.
However there are too few female characters in general, I Guess that's an audience thing but still, Fairy Tail manages a fairly even spread, and it doesn't use the traditional wimpy spellcaster trope to get away with it.
I often wonder if the tiny waist, large breasts was actually a parody of anime/manga females rather than fully intentional. Or Oda is just bad at drawing women.
–- Update From New Post Merge ---
Also, I liked that the Kuja tribe weren't shown as "feminazis" or something ridiculous. They were just following traditions, they didn't necessarily agree with them.
However I'm concerned with Hancock. To be honest, I really want Hancock and Luffy to end up together, but not like they are now. I'd like them to be on an equal footing. I think Hancock is still very scared from her childhood and sees Luffy as a reprise from that because of how openly he defies the Celestial Dragons.
However there are too few female characters in general, I Guess that's an audience thing but still, Fairy Tail manages a fairly even spread, and it doesn't use the traditional wimpy spellcaster trope to get away with it.
Yeah, well, at least Oda doesn't bombard us with the female equivalent of, as you put it "[..] seductive pose with their balls half hanging out". Some people like that sort of thing, I guess, but I'm glad it's not in One Piece to that extent.
I get the feeling though that Fairy Tail's cheesecake may simply come from the sheer number of female characters in it, and that if One Piece had that many it may go down that road. It's a shame, because on one hand you have great characters like Erza, Mirajane, then you have Lucy.
I've never really liked fanservice unless it hits all the right "Carry On" Notes(I'm a bit of a Cutie Honey fan for some reason).
I'm sure mcuh of this has been said over and over, but I'll put in my two cents.
The fanservice has become very obnoxious: Robin's is tolerable I suppose, but Nami's is…....retarded. She's already the least likeable crewmember(Brook is close don't worry), now she's least likeable with an absurd body shape. Well at least she doesn't have Kalifa's personality...
That said, Oda has does an excellent job with OP, I cant think of a series that's done better(maybe Claymore lol) the main women aren't often defenseless or infatuated or anything.
I am looking forward to BM though. Even though, we kind of already saw her face, she is probably a very repulsive character. So far, women are not seen getting hit by men in OP very often(Robin-Spandam exception for dramatic effect) otherwise, they are gross or odd like original Alvida or Boa's sisters.
Its a very touchy subject for men to be hitting women regardless and its been used at a minimum throughout OP and most other series as well.
I think Boa's sisters are kind of cute…
I don't think there's a problem with men hitting women if they're both warriors. The problem is that men hitting women tends to have quite a different context.
I don't think Oda means for the women to be generic…one thing I notice throughout One Piece is the emphasis on curves. You don't see huge curves in other anime, and aside from the wrist-sized waists, I think he does a good job in not implying that extremely skinny= beautiful.
The way I see it, if Robin were a real life person, she's be very curvey, and her breasts would probably be naturally proportioned with her body size. Meaning she's what the modelling buisness would call "+ Models", which just means she's around a size 9 or 10.
Nami's just annoyingly fanservicy, but I wouldn't agree that this makes her an unlike able character at all, she's a lot less annoying since the time skip.
As for the rest of them, I really don't take Oda's drawings too seriously to care...most of the proportions aren't physically possible anyway.
I am looking forward to BM though. Even though, we kind of already saw her face, she is probably a very repulsive character. So far, women are not seen getting hit by men in OP very often(Robin-Spandam exception for dramatic effect) otherwise, they are gross or odd like original Alvida or Boa's sisters.
I am sorry to say that Big Mom will probably continue the trend of "men who aren't bad guys, can only hit UGLY women".
Which is uncomfortable to say the least. Did you notice that the only two "attractive" femme fatales were taken out by Nami?
Oh wait Perona. But I guess Usopp never actually hit her.
Hey! You shouldn't exclude Perona when talking about attractive females!
Just wanted to say a big thank you for developing this beard!
This is something ive been looking for such a long time.
Great Job!
That was a confusing post. And stop trying to scam people with trying to sell online game items… go do it in a gaming forum.
Hey! You shouldn't exclude Perona when talking about attractive females!
LOL, sorry. I forgot about her for a second.