[Essay] In Defence of Relena and Dorothy

[evocates]

I was so pissed today. You see, I was reading this rather okay 1x2 fic, it doesn't have most of the 'regular problems' at all. Grammar's fine, punctuation's fine, spelling's a little weird at times... Then I found out that the author mangled Relena and Dorothy's characters. And I sent them a little Constructive Criticism to tell them that, no, they're not like that. And I got flamed. I hate fanbrats...

Anyway, so I decided to write something that actually shows my appreciation for them. And this is the result:



Relena is not a pink-wearing stalker who is obsessed with Heero. Dorothy is not a stupid, idiotic warmongering bitch. So please, dear fanbrats, stop painting them as such!

Relena loves pink, have friends who practically worships her, and is in love with Heero from the first time she saw him and when he tears up her birthday invitation. This is because Relena, unlike most people of the series, is a normal, teenage girl. She is worshipped by her classmates because of her adopted father and her wealth. Heero was the only person who did not fawn over her and fell over himself to please her. Heero Yuy is the first person who treated her as if she is normal. Of course the girl is going to fall in love with him!

Relena matured throughout the series. She stopped following Heero around, she matured from a girl to a young woman who caused Romafeller to split into two, one supporting her, the other supporting Dermail. Relena became the Queen of the World as a figurehead at first, but gain real power just before she was abdicated by Treize Khushrenada. She is not an airhead, she is not an idiot, she can hold her own in a diplomatic battle of words very well. So, please stop portraying her as a stalker or anything like that. Yes, I'm talking to you, 1x2 fanbrats.

Dorothy loves war, and is the granddaughter of Duke Dermail, and joined up with Zechs at the end just to watch the war and take part in it. Dorothy also happened to poke a hole in Quatre's stomach and went against the Gundams with Mobile Dolls controlled by Zero. I believe that Dorothy is rather immature in the series. She loved war partly because of her upbringing, and also because of Treize. She was brought up to see war through rose-coloured glasses, and yet was able to appreciate the beauty of it.

Dorothy is cynical and sarcastic. She is a mean bitch, in a good way. The reason she always argued with Relena was that she doesn't believe in her way of thinking, and being naturally cynical, she wanted to be proven wrong. Dorothy is not stupid, not a slut, and not a war-lover that knows nothing else. She is an intelligent, cynical and sarcastic young women who isn't afraid to step on toes just to get something done. Remember Libra?

So please, stop using stereotypes for the characters. Dorothy and Relena are both complicated young women, and I love them both.

x-posted to hated_character

Comments

[arabianprincess.livejournal.com]

Excellent! Yes, Relena is like most (female) fans at the beginning of the series, but she matures, and most people fail to realize she changes the most. She grows and becomes her own woman. Dorothy has never been one of my favorite characters (but I find her so interesting as a character). She's not quite a major character, so many people assume they know her. However, She's not a psycho bitch.

I enjoy your essay, and I agree. Good job! ^_^

Also, not sure if you've come across it, but there is an excellent online essay which brings up many of your points (about Relena at least). Gundam Wing is a Victim of Fan Rape (http://www.croik.com/essays/gundamwing/)

[evocates.livejournal.com]

Nope, it's the first time I've seen that. Fanbrats usually bash Relena in the same way, no matter the type of fanfic. Bah.

By the way, have you noticed how, in 2x5x2/2x4x2 fanbrat fics, Heero is usually heavily bastardised? As in abusive, emotionless bastard while Duo is majorly uke and angsty?

[arabianprincess.livejournal.com]

Yes, I have noticed that.... Though I don't see why people spend so much time on something/someone they hate. Why not put a lot of effort into something you like?

I haven't read a lot of those fics (not a huge yaoi fan, but I don't flame it and I do read some). However, Heero is usually made that way in het fics, too. He and Wufei are. Fans watched the series when they were young teenagers, and they never dug any deeper than their understanding of things then. If they rewatched the series and gave each character a chance, I believe fanfics would be better.

Also, I usually see Duo as the super-hyper, super-stupid babbling...guy. They seem to forget/ignore most facts.

[evocates.livejournal.com]

Heero as the emotionless bastard. Duo as the hyper, stupid joker. Trowa as the emotionally deficient. Quatre as the weak, girly boy. Wufei as the misognist.

I hate stereotypes. HATE HATE HATE

[arabianprincess.livejournal.com]

I do, too. People can be so lazy sometimes.