When I was younger, I was brilliant at waking up early. Every single day I would be up at 5am, no alarms necessary. It was the best because I could just relax for a few hours as school started at nine and was only five minutes away. In this free time, I would grab a bowl of cereal, set up my tiny table in the dark and watch TV really quietly so as not to get caught. Obviously at that time it was slim pickings for shows. I mean, Sexcetera was still on at 5.30am. It was risky! But I always found something to watch. At first, I was a Berenstein Bears fan but when I got a bit older I discovered a new love: Xena.
Xena was amazing.
As a ten-year-old, she became my life hero. Xena was strong and independent. She had a mind of her own. In Xena's world, men were not in charge. She was. She had adventure and excitement and a hella lot of leg on show for a warrior princess. But I was ten. I hardly noticed these issues.
I hadn't watched it for years but found Xena playing on the Horror Channel (bit extreme, I thought) earlier today and began watching. It was the Caligula suicide episode and all I could think of was how much I wish a designer would use the show as inspiration for their collection. I mean, look at this breastplate! I really want this to be a dress that I can purchase...
Alas, the world is not quite at my level yet. So I will have to make do with nothing.
*sadface*
And also I thought of how Aphrodite was an absolute hot mess. She looked like a nineties' David Lynch character. Or Drew Barrymore in that Never Been Kissed scene.
But mostly my thoughts were that of misplaced faith. It depressed me to realise how sexualised this girl, who had been my first feminist hero, was. Xena wore battle armour with legs and arms blatantly exposed. And Lucy Lawless was clearly considered quite conventionally attractive. Why do we do this? As a society, why do we demean the strength of women that we pretend to empower?
It's a huge question and not one that can be answered simply. There are examples everywhere, from the impracticality of Wonder Woman's strapless suit for crime-fighting (girl must have some serious fashion tape going on!) to the shock of accomplished journalist Josie Geller's friends when they realise that at 25 *shock horror* she's never been kissed!
I commend this new wave of writers taking a leaf from Joss Whedon's book. Those writing characters such as New Girl's Jess, Game of Thrones' Arya and American Horror Story's Lana are truly starting a great new movement that has the potential to inspire a generation of young women. One day I hope to contribute to the change beginning in the entertainment industry at present. I want to create characters that pass the Bechdel test without trying, characters who are as complex as I am. I want to show women as they are, as human beings and nothing less.
