Lunch break thoughts
Jun. 27th, 2006 12:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teddogSo. Yeah. Royai.
I likes Roy/Riza. A lot of people in the Fullmetal Alchemist seem to. And heck, I love Riza as a character.
But, why does a lot of fandom degrade Riza to a quaint, submissive little Mary Sue that Roy controls at his whim?
It's kinda funny, because the end of fandom that hates Riza does so because they see her as perfect, flawless character. Uh. RIGHT.
Yes, she has this "I'm on a mission to protect someone" deal going on in her head. Most people assume that to be Roy, but I don't think that's been confirmed (unless I missed something in the flashback chapters). Personally, I want to know who and why she's doing this before passing judgement.
However, has anyone else noticed that the creator has been hinting that Riza has issues controlling her emotions? At times she seems to need anger managment class.
- When Black Hayate pees on the office wall, she fires several bullets around the dog to punish him.
- In the original version of the observation log story, the one shipped with the manga and not the retelling in the anime, she seems "off" on night when Roy is on a date with another woman, takes a weapon to the firing range and destroys a fair bit of range while "practicing".
- She yells and screams at Roy after he rescues her and Fury from Gluttony.
- She empties three handgun clips into Lust and then suffers an emotional and mental break down after being told that Roy is dead.
The first two could be for humour's sake, but the last two seem more like the surface of a much more complex emotional problem. At the least, Riza is a bottler, hiding any emotions until they boil over. It should be noted that Riza haters use that last example on why Riza is a submissive character with no backbone that doesn't deserve to be that close to Roy. Then again, these are the same fans that call Winry a bitch, so my guess is the hate is because Winry and Riza keep Ed and Roy away from Mary Sues and each other.
On the other hand, I find this hinted at side of the character fascinating. While the anime played down Riza in general, in the manga it was very clear that her role on the battlefield was a sniper and it's hinted that she might be one of the top sharpshooters in the series, if not the best. Yes, a sniper with emotional outbursts. That's a LOT of room to explore with a character.
Oh. Yes. And this submissive deal, especially when suggested or flat out used in fic? In the case of Royai, didn't anyone else catch the "discipline" speech? ::coughs:: Yeah. In the case of non-con (which seems to float around a fair amount) I can't see her giving in so easy. The attacker would be full of holes and missing limbs if she had an outburst.
I likes Roy/Riza. A lot of people in the Fullmetal Alchemist seem to. And heck, I love Riza as a character.
But, why does a lot of fandom degrade Riza to a quaint, submissive little Mary Sue that Roy controls at his whim?
It's kinda funny, because the end of fandom that hates Riza does so because they see her as perfect, flawless character. Uh. RIGHT.
Yes, she has this "I'm on a mission to protect someone" deal going on in her head. Most people assume that to be Roy, but I don't think that's been confirmed (unless I missed something in the flashback chapters). Personally, I want to know who and why she's doing this before passing judgement.
However, has anyone else noticed that the creator has been hinting that Riza has issues controlling her emotions? At times she seems to need anger managment class.
- When Black Hayate pees on the office wall, she fires several bullets around the dog to punish him.
- In the original version of the observation log story, the one shipped with the manga and not the retelling in the anime, she seems "off" on night when Roy is on a date with another woman, takes a weapon to the firing range and destroys a fair bit of range while "practicing".
- She yells and screams at Roy after he rescues her and Fury from Gluttony.
- She empties three handgun clips into Lust and then suffers an emotional and mental break down after being told that Roy is dead.
The first two could be for humour's sake, but the last two seem more like the surface of a much more complex emotional problem. At the least, Riza is a bottler, hiding any emotions until they boil over. It should be noted that Riza haters use that last example on why Riza is a submissive character with no backbone that doesn't deserve to be that close to Roy. Then again, these are the same fans that call Winry a bitch, so my guess is the hate is because Winry and Riza keep Ed and Roy away from Mary Sues and each other.
On the other hand, I find this hinted at side of the character fascinating. While the anime played down Riza in general, in the manga it was very clear that her role on the battlefield was a sniper and it's hinted that she might be one of the top sharpshooters in the series, if not the best. Yes, a sniper with emotional outbursts. That's a LOT of room to explore with a character.
Oh. Yes. And this submissive deal, especially when suggested or flat out used in fic? In the case of Royai, didn't anyone else catch the "discipline" speech? ::coughs:: Yeah. In the case of non-con (which seems to float around a fair amount) I can't see her giving in so easy. The attacker would be full of holes and missing limbs if she had an outburst.
