Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="trickybus, post: 262296, member: 239542"] I'm of the mind to believe that the protag I mentioned is exactly this. He [B]is[/B] shown training and working hard but that work never actually amounts to anything because what saves his ass in a fight is his Author-given power of asspull. "Here's my super-special bloodline ability that no one else has access to and I never trained to unlock." It's like an intentionally sneaky way for the author to slip Mary Sue traits onto an established archetype in order to deflect accusations later down the line. I hate it. I'm not a fan of Rey's character but I never had the right words to describe why I dislike her so much; unfortunately, I also fell into that trap as a result. I think 'girlboss' is more appropriate, though I'm unsure about that term as well since it seems fairly new and the definition can be nebulous. That describes shōnen anime to a T. Probably why the Mary Sue trope is flourishing there. As an aside, I do want to point out that "Mary Sue" was originally used as a gender-neutral term (even though it's based on a female character), so that's how I tend to use it. Note that the shōnen protag I mentioned in my initial post is male. I know "Marty Stu" and "Gary Stu" exist but I tend to stick to one for simplicity's sake. My usage is not intended to condemn or demean female characters. [/QUOTE]

Totals may include hidden visitors.