Oh boy! Here we go. So I realize that this is a conversation topic that’s been done a lot in the past and usually the arguments get pretty toxic in a matter of minutes. Usually these types of conversations go along the lines of this:
- Person A: OMG! BOobz r everywhere!!!!! THE FRANCHISE HAS BEEN RUINED! BEWBS R EVIL!
- Person B: Stop being such a prood dood! Totally rood! Ur such an SJW! This ain’t Tumblr bro!
This conversation (like so many other controversial topics on the Internet) never evolves past the mindless talking points phase and it gets old really fast. I realize that this is a topic that’s become more relevant in the video-game industry due to a certain “pop culture critic” so a lot of people have had this discussion before and it’s a topic that’s been on a lot of people’s minds. I hope that I can bring something new to the table and hopefully add a little bit of nuance to a discussion that sorely needs it.
When preparing for this topic I asked myself something: Why do some people take issue with characters like Tharja or Camila but not Sonia? Another character that came to mind was Lust from Fullmetal Alchemist / Brotherhood. Why do Lust and Sonia not get any flack about “objectification” or fanservice while characters like Tharja and Camila get the accusation of being fanservicey? Sonia’s official artwork looks sexualized (to some degree) and one of her roles in the plot of Blazing Sword is to marry Brendan Reed and manipulate him into doing Nergal’s will. Lust in Brotherhood dates Jean Havoc under a false alias in order to get information on Roy Mustang’s activities.
So what’s the difference here? I think the reason why is the idea that there’s more to Lust and Sonia than their looks. They both play a role in each of their stories and there’s a context to why they both look the way they do. Sonia’s looks are designed so that she can woo Brendan Reed while Lust is designed to be the embodiment of Father’s lust. It makes sense for a character called Lust to look sexy. They’re also given more to do than just be eye candy. Sonia has a fleshed out backstory with Nino that’s considered one of her major character defining moments and she’s also known for being extremely arrogant and for her false belief that she is human. Lust likewise exists in FMA:Brotherhood to further the main villain’s plans as she manipulates people like chess pieces across a board. To quote the FMA wiki “She [Lust] functions more as an object of lust for others than being lustful herself.” Lust is pretty intelligent, hates humans, is completely devoted to Father’s plan (Father is the name of the main villain in Brotherhood) and is arguably a sadist. Despite being the embodiment of the sin Lust, Lust herself does not act slutty which makes it easier to take her character seriously.
So maybe it’s Tharja and Camila’s designs and outfits that are the reason why people give them so much crap. By that logic though the dancers in Fire Emblem 4 would be fanservicey and we should be giving Fire Emblem 4 grief, but we don’t. Why is that? Well, the normal defense here is that it’s a dancer’s job to look sexual so it makes sense that they would look that way.
Some people have tried to argue that Mia and Heather’s outfits in Radiant Dawn are fanservicey and that because of that we should shut up about the fanservice in Awakening and Fates. Now I ask you are their outfits really all that bad? Does anyone get titillated by either of those outfits? I sure don’t. Apparently Lyn does a boob jiggle when she’s wielding the Sol Katti. I’ve beaten Blazing Sword a bunch of times and I have yet to see this. If nobody told me about the boob jiggle I would have never noticed and frankly I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything. Also, does anyone find Mia or Heather’s outfits titillating? I sure don’t. If nobody brought that up to me I would have never suspected it. Not only do I disagree with the concept that Mia and Heather’s outfits are bad and fanservicey but I also think it’s pretty disingenuous to say that Mia and Heather’s Radiant Dawn outfits are anywhere near Tharja and Camila’s. This argument fails to take into account the fact that people have different tastes about what outfits are considered appropriate. As far as I’m aware most other people don’t take issue with Mia and Heather’s outfits and I still don’t see anything wrong with them. 
This ultimately leads to another point of mine. The fanservice in other games was kept to a minimum and wasn’t as blatant and in your face like it is in Fates and Awakening. I seriously doubt that the summer dlc picture of Tharja in a bikini is there to develop her character. It looks like Fates already has its equivalent of the summer dlc. It also really doesn’t help that there’s a scene in Fates where the camera zooms in on Camila’s butt, boobs and other “assets”. I’m just curious, what if you’re a straight woman or a gay man and you see that part of the game? Is that awkward for you? Do you roll your eyes? Heck, I’m a straight guy, the supposed target demographic that’s supposed to find that sexy, and I cringe at that scene. Once again I ask you: Is there a valid reason why we need to see Camila’s exaggerated proportions up, front and center? I can remain oblivious to Lyn’s boob jiggle, I can’t remain oblivious to a camera that zooms in on Camila.
So this entire post has been a long winded way of saying that the ultimate issue with fanservice is the intent behind it. When a character is designed to appeal to a specific audience or target demographic then people take issue with it. That’s the underlying root of the problem with the summer dlc and the terrible designs: They’re only there to get certain people horny enough to buy the games. They don’t serve the story, they don’t help the characterization at all and it also risks alienating potential customers who don’t like stuff like that.
Something I like to do is go to other Fire Emblem forums in order to learn more about the series. It’s interesting to see the perspective of a different part of the fanbase and frankly I find it enlightening. I recently came across a forum topic called “What is your least favorite aspect of the Fire Emblem series?” While the forum members gave their various opinions the most common response was fanservice and from what I could tell it blew all the other ones out of the water with how many times it got brought up by multiple different people. It wasn’t even close. Needless to say, this is a common complaint that many other Fire Emblem fans are raising and I think Nintendo needs to pay attention to this. While fanservice may bring new fans into the series it runs the risk of alienating the old ones, and I don’t know about you but I’m the hopelessly optimistic guy who still believes that you can create quality content while also making a lot of money. They aren’t mutually exclusive. I think there’s a better way of bringing in new fans and Nintendo should explore those other ways. The more blatant and over the top the fanservice becomes, the more likely they are to push their loyal fans away from the series and that is not good for business.
Notice how some of the more weak/unlikable characters are given the fanservice treatment, what they can't provide in the character apartment they make up for in sex appeal.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like that's all they need to do to rake in the money, it explains why these characters are so popular. Tits and Ass grab attention faster.