In the wake of #GamerGate, dozens (hundreds?) of people involved in the gaming industry have signed an open letter to the gaming community, embracing diversity and asking for members to put a stop to discrimination when they see it. [Medium]
MAC is launching a Rocky Horror-themed makeup collection, if that’s the sort of thing you’re into. (It is absolutely the sort of thing I’m into.) [Bustle]
Jezebel visited BronyCon, and discussed a few interesting things other conventions might want to pay attention to, particularly the diversity of attendees and dealing with their different comfort levels.
A woman allegedly got fired from her comic store job for complaining about a storage room called the “rape room.” I can’t even with this bullshit. Stop. [Bleeding Cool]
Jenny Trout, also known as paranormal romance writer Jennifer Armintrout, recapped the first one and a half seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on her blog, paying particular attention to some reoccurring problems, including “Xander is a textbook Nice Guy” and “Sex is the real villain of the Buffy The Vampire Slayer universe.” She brings all the wit I remember from her epic takedown of 50 Shades of Grey.
The Mary Sue has an intense piece on why it can sometimes take until adulthood to fully embrace nerdy interests (hint: it is sexism). It’s a topic I will definitely be revisiting myself, and it’s worth a look.
Researchers at Ohio State University used Second Life to see if less racial diversity in MMOs correlates to players choosing whiter-looking avatars for themselves. Unsurprisingly, it does. [The Mary Sue]
Margaret Atwood’s just been named the first contributor to the Future Library project, so we won’t be able to read what she’s working on until our consciousnesses have been uploaded into mechanical bodies, living on forever. [The Guardian]
Dark Willow would find the bastards to attacked two trans* women in the subway, beating them and stripping them, along with all the people who watched and did nothing (and cheered), and recreate the scene exactly for them, because it’s horrifying enough on its own.
Dark Willow would start a reverse Spanish inquisition, complete with terrified members of the Catholic church and sadistic lesbian satanists.
Dark Willow would drown asshole Texas judges in a sea of placenta and birth certificates.
Dark Willow would make Straight Conversion Therapy a thing.
Dark Willow would make Rick Perry addicted to all the things.
“Sex sells” is an idea propagated particularly furiously in games, but recent titles like Shadowrun Returns and Pathfinder are showing that inclusiveness and success are not mutually exclusive. (And it’s making me really excited for my future Pathfinder forays.) [Feministing]
Comic Book Resources also has an amazing twopart interview with Marvel and DC writer and artist Phil Jimenez, in which he discusses Wonder Woman’s sexuality, the creation of Trevor Barnes, Jimenez’s own role as a gay, Latino creator, and comic book depictions of the Harlem Renaissance.
The Mary Sue has a two part interview with Dark Horse Comics’ Scott Allie. In part one they discuss Buffy, Tomb Raider, and keeping fans happy, and part two takes on women in comics more specifically, Hellboy, Veil, and more!
Also from the Mary Sue, the Centre for the Study of Women in Television and Film released a report on gender representation in 2013, and the results are pretty dismal. Among many disheartening statistics is the fact that only thirty per cent of speaking roles last year went to women. Oh and only three percent of women on screen are Asian. Also at three per cent? Female aliens and other fantasy races.
Ever looked at female armour and seen exactly the same things done wrong again and again? What you need is Female Armour Bingo! [Bikini Armor Battle Damage]
Geekosystem has a followup to the Toronto Comic Con “cuddle a cosplayer” debacle. It’s weird.
Jezebel has a really beautiful piece about the endemic levels of rape, and how deeply infuriating it is that personal safety is a daily concern for women.
If you happen to speak French, here’s a great interview with illustrator Élise Gravel. [Camp Ouareau]
I stumbled across this perfect response to your typical “why don’t men/white people/straight people have their special clubs/scholarships/history months” whining, and had to share.
Last night I got to see the new Veronica Mars movie, and it was stupendous. Go see it! And in the meantime, here’s the trailer.
Everybody loves Tove Jansson these days, and for good reason! BBC News talks about the Moomins, and the influence WWII and Jansson’s relationship with Vivicka Bandler had on the adorable trolls/hippos we all know and care for.
There’s going to be a new Cree superhero joining Justice League United, based on Attawapiskat activist Shannen Koostachin. She looks pretty great so here’s hoping everything works out well! [DC Women Kicking Ass]
The Toast also writes a love letter to Twin Peak‘s Audrey Horne, and I cosign it.
What happens when you combine Beyoncé lyrics with fighting the undead? Magical things. Art project Beyoncé vs. Zombies is a treasure.
The New Yorker has a new biography of Tove Jansson (of Moomin fame) that really showcases how delightful and incisive the writer/illustrator really was.
HBO’s about to release their Catch the Throne mixtape, featuring Big Boi’s “Mother of Dragons.” Despite some weird comments about reaching “multicultural audiences,” it’s pretty great. [Slate]
The new trailer for Oculus looks wonderful and scary, but I’m mostly focusing on how much I love that Starbuck is Amy Pond’s mom.
Toronto Comic Con is happening this weekend, and the ridiculous “Cuddle a Cosplayer” advertising, as well as their subsequent cluelessness when dealing with people concerned with issues of consent at conventions, is putting a damper on things. [The Mary Sue]
Dark Willow would make Arizona legislators sit in a dark room, watching the same Leave it to Beaver episode on loop for all eternity, Clockwork Orange-style, since they like the 1950s so much.
Dark Willow would put all claustrophobic bigots in closets for years, see how they like it.
Aromaleigh Mineral Cosmetics has a new line of eye shadow inspired by women in antiquity. Give it a look, if only to read the great descriptions of badass women we don’t hear nearly enough about.
2013 brought about the end of the 11th Doctor, and The Atlantic discusses how the show’s writing, by not allowing the Doctor any growth, did a disservice to Matt Smith. They call it the Captain Kirk Problem.
Always a sucker for beautiful design, I really enjoyed this infographic that clearly shows that movies passing the Bechdel Test earned more than those that fail. [Vocativ]
This is a defence of Susan Pevensie, and an imagining of what her post-Narnia life is like. It made me cry a little. I feel no shame. [Hark, the Empty Highways Calling]
Tumblr watched the Sherlock season three premiere, and the reactions are almost better than the actual episode. (Almost.) [Buzzfeed]
MariNaomi got harassed by a fellow panel member at a convention, and wrote about the experience over at XOJane. It’s pretty horrifying. The perpetrator has since identified himself and apologized but, as The Mary Sue puts it, your mileage may vary. (Pro tip: If you harass a woman, don’t apologize to her husband.)
What does Buffy (the movie, not the show) have to teach us about media representations of women? According to Anna Leventhal, Buffy’s desire to “be like other girls,” to not be Special, flips an established narrative of female competition on its head and supports some really great solidarity. [The Eagle & the Weasel]
One of the most important things to do to encourage diversity in a place like the tech industry is to give space to marginalized peoples to express themselves. Letting people speak is crucial, and there are some very tangible ways in which to do so. [Medium]
It was really hard to pick someone for the second BAMFile, but Buffy the Vampire Slayer seemed like an excellent place to choose from. There are, of course, a lot of great characters on that show (and many will likely be included in this series), but I thought I’d use this opportunity to spotlight someone who never really got enough credit: Tara Maclay.
Tara was an amazing, though underrated, character. She was good, honest, and intensely in love with Willow (so much so that we unfortunately never really got a fully fleshed-out Tara-centric storyline). Though I mostly love Tara and Willow as a unit (#tallow4ever), and I am obsessed with the very 90s witchcraft-as-a-metaphor-for-lesbianism thing that they were a part of, Tara stood out individually. She somehow managed to deal with adversity, in the form of extreme shyness and a manipulative, abusive family, while never doubting herself, her sexuality, or her magical abilities, and was instrumental in starting Willow down the path of witchcraft (for better or for worse).
Tara is the group’s conscience, and there’s a reason that when Buffy has prophetic dreams, they manifest as a warning from Tara. Tara’s also the only one who truly notices how badly Buffy is readjusting to the world after her second death. She’s so incorruptible that, in season seven, when The First Evil was taking the shape of the gang’s dead loved ones, actress Amber Benson wouldn’t reprise her role. She’s the only member of the group who never flirted with evil, and she showed that strength could be a quiet, compassionate thing, in a nice contrast to Buffy’s beat-em-up style.
Of course, it wouldn’t be possible to talk about Tara without mentioning her importance as one half of the first lead lesbian couple on television. Though she and Willow didn’t kiss until the show’s fifth season (and were only shown in sexual situations after the show had switched networks), the effect of having two well-adjusted women in love with each other was unmistakably positive. In Benson’s own words:
“I thought I was on some science fiction show. I had no clue I was going to have some sort of impact on a whole group of people… Alyson and I would get letters, and you don’t realize the impact you’re making until you really start thinking about it. When kids come up and say, ‘I didn’t kill myself because of Buffy and your relationship,’ it blows your mind. It wasn’t about two women making out. It was about two women who fell in love with each other and happened, just happened, to have the same genitalia.”
Say it with me now: “Awwwwwwwwww.”
Basically, this whole post is one big excuse for listening to this on repeat:
unfridged 