Star Wars Rogue One MASSIVE SPOILERS BY BERKUT

[The Brain]

I don't get why "no romance plot!" is such a litmus test. Most protagonists in commercial Western flicks will get a romance plot no matter their gender. It's tired but that's how Hollywood rolls, for females AND males. The issue is whether being the object of the romance plot is the character's sole reason for existence, which is never going to be the case if the female in question is the protagonist.

So, the question you can point at Rogue One is not why Jyn and Cassian look lovingly at each other when they die, but why there's not a single female besides Jyn in the Rogue One team.

Women typically don't like romance movies or novels.

[Monoriu]

I just watch the story.  I don't understand why people care about which races or genders are represented in the cast. 

[The Brain]

I just watch the story.  I don't understand why people care about which races or genders are represented in the cast.

OK Brokeback.

[garbon]

The issue is whether being the object of the romance plot is the character's sole reason for existence, which is never going to be the case if the female in question is the protagonist.

[celedhring]

Haven't seen a single Twilight flick, so I can't possibly comment on what Stewart's character does (or rather does not) do in them. Romance flicks of course exist, and the main characters in them will obviously exist to be part of a romance plot. But the idea is that the protagonist is the subject of the romance, not the object. Otherwise the protagonist isn't the protagonist at all.

[garbon]

Haven't seen a single Twilight flick, so I can't possibly comment on what Stewart's character does (or rather does not) do in them. Romance flicks of course exist, and the main characters in them will exist only to be part of a romance plot. But the idea is that the protagonist is the subject of the romance, not the object. Otherwise the protagonist isn't the protagonist at all.

She's the protagonist but also very passive. The vampire she loves is clearly the 'love interest' but he's also a more active character than she is. He's still not the protagonist though.

[celedhring]

That sounds like a pretty bad movie. Anyhow, I would really have to watch it in order to comment on it, and I certainly won't.

Anyway, the main point I want to make is that there's no escaping a romance plot if you're the protagonist of a Hollywood movie, regardless of whether you have a dick or not. There are outliers, and you'll find many more male-led outliers than female-led outliers, just because there's so many more male protagonists around. That's the issue.

[Syt]

just because there's so many more male protagonists around. That's the issue.

Not just limited to movies.

[Tonitrus]

Make up your fucking minds if you're talking about Aliens or Alien. I love Aliens from a woman-perspective: you have Ripley and Vasquez and the Queen (and Gingrich), and the men are competent if unspectacular (Hicks), big-mouths (Hudson) or automatons (Bishop). BUT you have feels between Ripley and Hicks so DISQUALIFIED.

I was talking Aliens.  And there are no sexy feels between Ripley and Hicks. 

(though not impossible in the future...if you didn't have Alien 3 and they went back home to Earth as they should have)

[The Brain]

Make up your fucking minds if you're talking about Aliens or Alien. I love Aliens from a woman-perspective: you have Ripley and Vasquez and the Queen (and Gingrich), and the men are competent if unspectacular (Hicks), big-mouths (Hudson) or automatons (Bishop). BUT you have feels between Ripley and Hicks so DISQUALIFIED.

I was talking Aliens.  And there are no sexy feels between Ripley and Hicks. 

Love doesn't have to be sexy. Am I right, every girlfriend katmai's ever had?

[Tonitrus]

I'd have let the dropship pilot chick be my facehugger.

[The Brain]

I'd have let the dropship pilot chick be my facehugger.

Yeah.

[Liep]

JJ Abrams is a hack.

Rian Johnson will save us all.

This is my hope as well.

[Habbaku]

It's to pass the Mako Mori Test.

The "Mako Mori test", formulated by a Tumblr user and named after the only significant female character of Pacific Rim, asks whether a female character has a narrative arc that is not about supporting a man's story.

Why did the name of that test change to something from Pacific Rim?

[celedhring]

What is up with platonic relationships and Star Wars? First Rey weirdly friendzones Finn in The Force Awakens and then after there was this tension between Jyn and Cassian (congrats on being a new Star Wars hero with more than on syllable in your name btw) they hold hands and hug chastely while dying? What is this? It seems like a conscious choice I just don't understand why.

Though considering how having children usually goes for Star Wars characters maybe it is just a self-preserving instinct.

It's to pass the Mako Mori Test.

The "Mako Mori test", formulated by a Tumblr user and named after the only significant female character of Pacific Rim, asks whether a female character has a narrative arc that is not about supporting a man's story.

Jyn's narrative arc is about regaining idealism and sacrificing herself for it. Even if they had fleshed out the romantic arc between her and Cassian, it would have passed the test - it would have never been her main arc.

She still supports Cassian's story, anyway. She gives him a venue for redemption, which is Cassian's story arc. And that's ok, that's what good writing does. IMHO, sexist writing is when the only support female characters give to male characters is romantic/sexual in nature.

Regarding Rey and Finn, I think they're saving up the romantic arc for the upcoming Eps, and they just wanted to establish the foundations in TFA. Which probably was the best choice.