Poll: Bayonetta Sexist?

[Moonlight Butterfly]

As a straight woman when I look at that pic of Bayonetta lying down I think 4 things mostly in this order.
1. Those guns look kind of steampunk that's pretty cool.
2. Where can I get shoes made out of guns...
3. I think I would like to play that game she looks badass.
4. Lol hipster kitty/Sarah Palin
I'm kind of a feminist. The last thing on my mind is to enrage. However, I am used to gaming advertisement a 'normal' woman might be put off by that billboard I guess

 

[0thello]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

Behold, sexism.

What Bayonetta is isn't really sexist.
Though personally I just think its pandering to the pocket-mining demographic.

Maybe you need to EDUCATE yourself about SEXISM before you try to IDENTIFY it little guy.

 

[Casual Shinji]

I'm impressed you were able to make this much sense of that clusterfuck of a story to begin with. *thumbs up*

OT: Is it sexist? Yes and no.

I guess Bayonetta is a prime example of how feminism killed itself.

I know you're being sarcastic, but if you weren't, I'd be thankful for you agreeing with me.

No, I'm serious. My brain would've turned to mush trying to make even a sliver of sense of Bayonetta's story. Then again, I gave up on trying to follow the story the minute that annoying Joe Pesci look-a-like appeared on screen.

 

[AmrasCalmacil]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

Behold, sexism.

What Bayonetta is isn't really sexist.
Though personally I just think its pandering to the pocket-mining demographic.

Maybe you need to EDUCATE yourself about SEXISM before you try to IDENTIFY it little guy.

Behold, someone trying to be a big man on the interwebz.
Scary shit.

 

[0thello]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

Behold, sexism.

What Bayonetta is isn't really sexist.
Though personally I just think its pandering to the pocket-mining demographic.

Maybe you need to EDUCATE yourself about SEXISM before you try to IDENTIFY it little guy.

Behold, someone trying to be a big man on the interwebz.
Scary shit.

I'm not trying to scare you, little guy. Neither am I trying to prove anything.

 

[Bara_no_Hime]

Empowering

She's a sexual fetish parody. ^^ You just gotta love her.

Edit: Also, didn't vote because poll makes no sense.

 

[bushwhacker2k]

Whatever option fits for "shallow and fanservicey"

Okay, I'm hoping I'm not going to get called down by fanboys, as I have not played the game, but what I have seen from videos and the demo, she doesn't really seem deep enough for any analyzation. So, yes, "shallow and fanservice-y" is fairly appropriate.

 

[scorptatious]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

Behold, sexism.

What Bayonetta is isn't really sexist.
Though personally I just think its pandering to the pocket-mining demographic.

Maybe you need to EDUCATE yourself about SEXISM before you try to IDENTIFY it little guy.

Behold, someone trying to be a big man on the interwebz.
Scary shit.

I'm not trying to scare you, little guy. Neither am I trying to prove anything.

I like how you keep calling him "little guy" when clearly he has a higher post count than you.

 

[Zaik]

You should probably explain why you feel it is or isn't so that most people have any clue what you are talking about.

 

[aPod]

Is Bayonetta sexist? No.
Is Bayonetta sexy? Yes.
Is sexy sexist? No.

 

[Dense_Electric]

No more so than something like God of War is sexist in its depiction of men, which I don't consider it to be. So no, Bayonetta is not sexist. It's not as if it's saying ALL WOMEN MUST BE THIS WAY, in the same way that God of War doesn't say ALL MEN MUST BE THIS WAY. Pandering, yes, but sexist, no.

 

[OptimisticPessimist]

Can't decide. Too distracted by bouncy leatherclad digital ass.

 

[Raistlinhawke]

Pandering, sure.

Sexist, not really.

 

[Mikeyfell]

Bayonetta is strongly characterized, and not just "for a videogame character."

Being sexy doesn't automatically negate everything else about a person.

I wouldn't go so far to say she's empowering to women. She's strong and independent and caring and blah blah blah... but she's too obviously fictional to be a real roll model.

Why can't she be neither?

 

[Dense_Electric]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

That would be sexism. Everyone is entitled to their opinion even if they disagree with yours. And that's a pretty big generalization make about nearly three and a half billion people, you know?

 

[Terminal Blue]

Sexist is the wrong word.

"Women are only good for housework and breeding" is sexist.

"I know, let's make a game about a strong, fantastic female character whose clothes fly off every minute so that sexually frustrated manchildren can get off on it" is exploitation (in several senses). It uses a fantasy of liberated and available female sexuality to sell a product.

The former is outright harmful. The latter represents a pretty cynical attitude to selling a product, but the actual content is only really as bad as its effects. If the fantasy shapes how people view the real world, then it can be extremely harmful. We've all met guys who treat women as objects or consider themselves to have a right to behave voyeuristically or inappropriately because they're used to achieving sexual gratification with images or objects.

It's very easy nowadays to have 'sexual' experiences without having to negotiate consent with a real person, and thus it's hardly surprising that you end up with a whole load of guys (and it is largely guys, sadly) who can't adequately distinguish between interaction with fantasy and interaction with real people.

In this case, I don't know. While I find any game which panders to its viewers (assumed) male heterosexuality slightly irritating, I don't think it intrinsically harms anyone. At the same time people view reality very much through their fantasies, and to a certain extent controlling those fantasies means controlling people's real behaviour. So yeah.. jury out, I guess.

 

[Samechiel]

I'm not trying to scare you, little guy. Neither am I trying to prove anything.

You may not be trying to prove anything, but you certainly have proven your douchebaggery. Women are perfectly capable of defending themselves, we don't need "help" from people like you.

She's in-love with Luka Redgrave

You know, I never once got the impression that she held any romantic feelings for Luka. Taking the time-manipulation aspect into account, the extent of Bayonetta's feelings for Luka seem to be mild bemusement mixed with Platonic Big Brother Syndrome.

Which, honestly, I found terribly refreshing. When was the last time there was a primary female character that wasn't chained to a male protagonist as a love interest? Samus Aran pre Other M, Maya from Septerra Core?

 

[0thello]

I do not think this is a question MALES should be answering. Even in the height of misogyny males usually deny everything.

Behold, sexism.

What Bayonetta is isn't really sexist.
Though personally I just think its pandering to the pocket-mining demographic.

Maybe you need to EDUCATE yourself about SEXISM before you try to IDENTIFY it little guy.

Behold, someone trying to be a big man on the interwebz.
Scary shit.

I'm not trying to scare you, little guy. Neither am I trying to prove anything.

I like how you keep calling him "little guy" when clearly he has a higher post count than you.

Ok.

 

[mireko]

Sexist is the wrong word.

"Women are only good for housework and breeding" is sexist.

"I know, let's make a game about a strong, fantastic female character whose clothes fly off every minute so that sexually frustrated manchildren can get off on it" is exploitation (in several senses). It uses a fantasy of liberated and available female sexuality to sell a product.

The former is outright harmful. The latter is questionable in and of itself and represents a pretty cynical attitude to selling a product, but the actual content is only really as bad as its effects. If the fantasy shapes how people view the real world, then it can be extremely harmful. We've all met guys who treat women as objects or consider themselves to have a right to behave voyeuristically or inappropriately because they're used to achieving sexual gratification without having to negotiate consent with a real person.

The whole game is intentionally absurd (as I've mentioned before, it's Hideki Kamiya), so I felt the fanservice was going for laughs rather than erections. I suspect that taking the partial nudity and weird close-ups out of the context of the game is what makes it seem cynical and questionable, because every single aspect of the game is so over-the-top and deranged that it only makes sense that the fanservice would follow suit.

In a game like this, it would probably be more questionable if it were less intrusive, since it's been taken to such an extreme that it doesn't really register as titillation anymore. This is the kind of game that steals the motorcycle of fanservice, jump-starts it by flipping it off and rides it into space to go kill God.


If you have the time (and if you're reading this, I'm guessing you do), you should read Shimazaki's posts on the character designs too. Interesting stuff.


Part 1 - Bayonetta
Part 2 - Jeanne
Part 3 - Rodin and Enzo
Part 4 - Luka

[sub]Why yes, I am a fan of Bayonetta. Surprising, huh?[/sub]