Decoding Dragons

[TW] Way to miss the point, Geek Chic Cosmetics (updated)

Approximately 8 hours after I post this article originally, and following lengthy discussions on twitter, Geek Chic Cosmetics have posted this apology. Hopefully they will continue to learn from this experience!

On the continued theme of make-up and geeks, a few of my friends on twitter noticed that Geek Chic Cosmetics had a lip gloss with a ‘charming’ name, and emailed in to protest about the propagation of rape culture. Some engaged with the company over twitter, and then also sent emails in. They decided to respond in a very snide and dismissive manner. I am even less impressed with this response than I was with finding out the original name. I’ve not ordered anything from the company, as me wearing makeup is a pretty rare event.

Plus I don’t really see the point in wearing make-up that is pretty much the same as any other vegan make up out there, just with some ‘geek’ names and themes and extra costs through customs. However I am a talkative geek who happens to be a woman on the internets, and is otherwise relatively feminine in my tastes so seeing a company that aligns itself with ‘geek’ and ‘women’ behave this way is very much a facepalm moment.

Trying to please everyone

So what is a tiny 3 person operation to do? The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to please as many people as we can, as often as we can. It’s entirely possible that we have lost more potential happy customers to this accidental offense. While we don’t share the displeasure reported over the name of the item, we don’t have to in order to be sensitive and adjust, if it’s called for.

I’d like to point out that removing references to ‘joke rape’ from products marketed mainly to women is not about ‘pleasing everyone’. Leaving the reference in is hurtful to women. In some cases it might be an out and out trigger (which is not the same as finding a topic distasteful, so please don’t accuse people of pearl clutching.) Taking the bad pun out hurts no one. Leaving it in is somewhat alienating and dismissive. Disappointing a few customers who like a pun is not the same as being respectful of your customer base at large and the issues that face women everywhere.

Understanding rape culture

Finally, like we have to say it, the assertion that we condone rape or belong to the “rape culture” is absolutely untrue. We can’t address an issue that you don’t voice. Geek Chic Cosmetics is not a faceless, nameless, corporate entity. It’s a small business run by those three very human beings above. To reiterate our open door policy, email us first, give us a day before you unleash the hounds on us. We’re here for you.

You’re not faceless, but you’re reacting in a way that completely misunderstands the criticisms and issues surrounding rape culture.  By keeping such a name in the product line, Geek Chic Cosmetics is participating in rape culture – even though of course the individuals involved wouldn’t condone the trivialisation of rape. That casual parody and normalisation of rape is exactly what ‘rape culture’ is, just as beauty standards in the media make idealised bodies the new ‘normal’.

A lot of this stuff is internalised. I really wish companies would not underestimate this.

The privilege of politeness and professionalism

As a professional I am not obliged to put up with abuse from companies, but when a customer (potential or otherwise) is legitimately angry about something I’d probably be expected to suck it up and handle it as professional as possible at my end of things. If a contact is that angry about something, I’m not allow to be snarky or anything back.  We’d all appreciate it if all contact with us was civil manner, but asking for professionalism from non-professionals is a bit snide in a retail environment.

In an ideal world we wouldn’t react to things that matter to us with strong emotions. Oh wait. Rape and discussion of rape culture is likely to invoke strong emotions. Think about how it feels to be ‘accused’ of participating in rape culture; it shouldn’t be hard to extrapolate a little empathy for the feelings of your critics from that, should it? Casting a customer (potential or otherwise) who has a strong reaction to the marketing of one of your products as the straw-woman Angry Feminist Mob is a silencing tactic, plain and simple.

Plus, when it’s only one tweet, and not from the original tweeter/person who raised the query, it looks a little facetious ask for professionalism as part of a general public post that is supposedly addressing the concerns raised. You’re trivialising those who are made uncomfortable by the product name from the outset.

Don’t patronise your customers

Explaining the source of hentai and the original pun to your geek customers is just going to make you look like you’re patronising. If you want to engage with your customers, a little more research than a quote from cosplaydeviants would be good for starters. While I completely agree that equating the virtual and the real is not right, saying that the virtual exists in a vacuum is a little naive.

I’m well aware what the pun refers to, of the historical context. The context doesn’t obscure or render it neutral and harmless. Removing the name hurts no one – it’s not like the Geek Chic website will lose it’s multitude of fun, geeky, snarky comments that help to give the brand it’s personality by removing one name. And if it makes even 1 woman less uncomfortable, then that’s a good thing.

In conclusion

Marketing your geek products should be as much about managing your brand as ‘pleasing’ individual customers. Right now the picture is of an independent company that lacks sensitivity when dealing with complaints that touch on issues important to a core customer base. Reacting defensively to angry customers is inevitably a misstep, and kinda, yanno, looks like you’re defending your participation in rape culture out of ignorance. It is possible to respond better.

And inviting a vote with unmoderated comments? Oh dear. Some of the casual misogyny going on in that thread, in a space condoned by Geek Chic Cosmetics, is just as bad. So. Um. Trigger warning for the comments there. Internalised misogyny, how does it work.

Related links

Update

As of the evening of 9th April, GCC added the following edit to their original public response.

Edit: Hey guys! I just wanted to thank you all for your input. We are taking this issue very seriously, and considering all feedback. We’ve made mistakes, and we will learn from this in the future. We’re an ever-evolving company that deeply cares about the opinion of our customer. There is no way to please all people, but we’re taking it all in and figuring out where to go from here. Just remember – be excellent to each other. Lots of differing opinions on this subject, we welcome all views. We are listening.

 

 

[TW] Way to miss the point, Geek Chic Cosmetics (updated) was published on April 10th, 2012, with the tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , under the Analysis, Geek Life, Social Activism category. There are currently 12 comments on this article so far.

World of Warcraft Fanart Profiles: Sylvanas Windrunner

This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series World of Warcraft Fanart Profiles

This is part of an ongoing series that reviews and attempts to deconstruct common tropes in the Blizzard Fanart Gallery. This is not a critique of the choices of individual artists, but a look at the choices Blizzard and those artists have made. For reasons of time/expendiency I am limiting this series to what is currently in the Blizzard Fan Art Gallery, but please feel free to share your favourites from elsewhere in the comments. Just please try to make sure they are credited properly and on the theme of the post.

Cataclysm by chang yawei 14/10/09

Sylvanas runs. In the background there is a red sky, and she looks at the crow landing on her right hand.

Sylvanas is an amazing character. She is both a protagonist for the Undead, and sly antagonist for the living. In Cataclysm she will make some unpopular decisions, and she is one of the few major lore characters to undergo multiple redesigns in World of Warcraft (as well as between games.) She is a heroine and villainess, depending on your faction, and is characterised as a military genius, in contrast to Tyrande’s spiritual (and practical) leadership, and Jaina’s arcane power. She was both the first of the Banshees, and the originator of the Dark Rangers, a class that meshes necromatic and hunter powers.

There are a lot of ‘night elf hunters‘ that share some of her costuming as well, but I am trying to be somewhat selective as Sylvanas wasn’t a Kaldorei. Also there is some amazing Sylvanas art out there that isn’t in the US Gallery, as ever PLEASE share those links in the comments.

The Fanart

Barely Rotting

The Banshee Queen by Ann Siri Skrolsvik 04/12/08

Sylvanas holds the necklace in her right hand.

Now, the artists get a bit of a pass on this, as Sylvanas isn’t an ordinary undead. When she was initially ‘raised’ she was a non-corporeal Banshee. Plus, Blizzard themselves have depicted her in-game as a rather smooth and sinuous elf, so I can’t blame the artists for continuing that theme. It does annoy me somewhat, as Sylvanas was brutally murdered and tortured even before her soul was subjugated. There are a few pieces that pick up on her status as a former corpse – Sylvanas Sings (Carlos) and Champion of the Undercity (Forlenza), but many many more that focus on her smooth skin and her strangely perky boobs. I wasn’t aware that being interred in a tomb maintained the integrity of the water within one’s boobs. Or resulted in one walking around with a vacant (dead, hah) stare and lips slightly parted all the time. Silly me.

Passive

Sylvanas is surrounded by a chorus of 4 Banshee.

Sylvanas is mainly presented as a figure to be looked at, rather than a character actively emoting or acting. In some ways this makes the Eduardo Caria Mosena piece all the more stunning. She is wearing the modern Sylvanas costume, and while the womanly curves are ‘there’, they aren’t the focus of this action shot. For all that her face is impassive, my eye is drawn to it by the actions of the rest of her body. Stunning piece of work. However most of the Sylvanas art has her passively standing and staring at the audience, or sticking her bum and boobs out. For example, Dark Lady has her supposedly marching at the head of an army, but her clothing is skimpier than usual and the pose she is in emphasises her hips. In Battle for the Undercity, her whole spose is just plain weird.

Many poses seem to centre around one urm being held up, either to present the iconic necklace, or just…erm…just because.

I will note, however, that ‘passive poses’ are a mainstay of Fanart in general, perhaps because static bodies are easier to draw well than active ones. There are a great many passive male characters as well, but the proportions of passive/active are less telling than that of the women.

The Makeover

As you can see, the amount of Sylvanas art increased exponentially after she was madeover in game, with both a more curvacious body, and a more revealing outfit. Previously she had been depicted in the full coverage of a black robe. Unsurprisingly, artists like to draw pretty things, and they also like to have a firm idea of what Blizzard wants the character to look like. (Although oddly enough there is more Abomination art than there is art of Jaina Proudmoore.) The change in the makeover also changes the colour scheme of Sylvanas art, from blues and blacks to reds, purples and even pinks.

Popularity

‘Character’ art is less popular in the Fanart Gallery in general, and an observation I had was that generally Arthas, Illidan and Kael’thas lead the way in general character art, with Sylvanas the only woman receiving a significant number of  published submissions. I’ve even found some art that may be of her before she was killed (showing the ranger gear and the crow). The makeover cannot be the only factor in this significant difference – Sylvanas is the only prominent woman leadership with no real male ‘rival. Tyrande is opposite Fandrel and Malfurion, and Jaina Proudmoore is overshadowed somewhat by Varian. Sylvanas is also the only significant woman in the Horde leadership at this time, and her character is now divorced from ideas of sex and romantic relationships. Where Jaina and Tyrande are associated romantically with a number of men (both in lore and in fandom), Sylvanas is pretty much ‘free’ from all that by virtue of being dead AND a military genius.

Below is a sketch by Metzen, which is very telling when you consider the evolution of Sylvanas’ appearance in the game. Below we see her with a Kaldorei facial tattoo, even though I believe she was highborn. Her face shows marks of obvious repairs in the original conception of her character. In the name of expediency they use an un-scarred model for her now, which they are able to ‘port’ to other major female lore characters that they can get away with showing in a bikini. She goes from physically damaged to physically on show.

Sylvanas by Metzen

Sylvanas looks at the viewer. Her face is covered in stitches where her corpse was repaired.

Conclusion

She’s a warrior, a leader, and above all she is World of Warcraft’s survivor. I won’t reveal any Cataclysm stuff, but her story continues in that theme. I don’t see much of the power of her character or her past in much of the fan art, which is what makes Sylvanas Sings and and the Mosena piece so damn powerful. If you want to do something different with her, show her as a leader, as woman of violence and drive. Show her in action, either with her magic or her abilities as a Dark Ranger.

World of Warcraft Fanart Profiles: Sylvanas Windrunner was published on August 31st, 2010, with the tags , , , , , , , , under the Analysis, Fandom, Warcraft category. There are currently 10 comments on this article so far.

Games & Demographics

In lieu of a full post, I’d like to offer up two slide shows for contemplation.  Whenever someone objects to an over-sexualised character, commenters inevitably come out to cry “but that’s the demographic and that’s fine!” For me, however, that only carries us so far, and is only an answer if the gaming market remains static. Time and time again, for the last 2 years, I have seen articles highlighting that this is changing. It may well be 50 years before the social gaming of the facebook populations meets in the middle with the ‘social games for boys’ such as TERA. Obviously the companies are going to market to their historical and consistent player base, but when the market is changing it isn’t a moral imperative to replace the general image of woman-as-object-to-be-looked-at.

A list of x-box live games played by Gender, top 15

Taken from the Shifting Demographics Slideshow by the CEO of GamerDNA

There are always going to be games that cross the line from mere sexualisation into out and out objectification. There’s a whole world of ‘adult’ games out there that I’m not going to touch with a barge pole, because they aren’t mass marketed, and they aren’t pushed in my Sci-fi magazines, my film magazines, or the general mainstream media space that men and women share. They are niche. Now looking at the above list of x-box live games (the list is taken from a presentation made by the GamerDNA CEO in 2009) I wish I knew more about how these games were marketed. GTA IV (which I hear involves getting benefits from scamming or hurting prostitute NPCs) is the most problematic game, something that strikes me about the above games is that (Fable II and Oblivion aside) women are mostly absent from these games. I’m not going to dissect those games individually, but for the most part it is possible to play them without being slapped in the face with deliberate ‘male gaze fan service’ – invisibility is, for me personally, easier to swallow than objectification.  They aren’t lacking in problematic elements, but then very little media is free from some element of objectification, gender essentialism, or the idea that the only audience worth designing for is a white, male one. This doesn’t cover the point that as women part of our ‘fantasy’ is being sexually alluring and having the ability to look good without risking insults/slurs about our real bodies, but that’s a post for another time (and another place.)

I don’t think women are afraid of ‘gritty realism’,  and I don’t think every game should depict a utopian ideal of how we would like women and gender to be, but I don’t think calls for more nuanced characters that don’t fit into the ‘white, macho, male’ template need to be stopped just because women have made more headway than ever into the Gaming world. Media shouldn’t, in my opinion, shy away from difficult topics – it should make an effort to tackle them in ways that don’t romanticise them.

Also please note that the above data is from 2009, I don’t know what the ‘top’ 15 games by gender are in 2010. I’d have to be a soothsayer, for 2010 isn’t over yet. The following two presentations I found extremely interesting. The first takes a wide range of statistics and analysis from many sources, and I find many of the implications extremely encouraging for gamer/geek culture in general, and women in particular. I have no special conclusions of my own to offer right now, because I’m rather busy IRL, but I’d be interested in hearing from my readers!

Gamer Demographics, Stats, Health Stats

View more presentations from Ben Sawyer.
Shifting Demographics in Online Game Play

View more presentations from Jon Radoff.

Games & Demographics was published on August 25th, 2010, with the tags , , , , , under the Analysis, Games, Geek Life category. There are currently 8 comments on this article so far.