A variety of cute female characters in different functional armors? Is that even allowed?
Granted, one seems to sport a boobplate, but 4 of 5 seems like a good score.
Here’s a good example of how “fully armored” doesn’t mean a thing if said armor is still sexualized: this is Shard, Sideshow Collectible’s original character from their ongoing series “Court of the Dead”. The series already has plenty of questionable designs, but Shard here really stands out due to her backstory: she’s a mortal knight Templar that somehow wound up in the Underworld, whose inhabitants then made her armor for her. Highlights include the absolutely bizarre crotch plate (hard to tell if it’s a thong as the cape blocks the back view,) the insignia on her chest that just winds up looking like a literal “stab here” sign, and interesting footwear. It’s a shame, too, because her backstory sounds really interesting and the Court of the Dead series has some prettybeautifuldolls, but also has a metal bony groping hands bra because reasons.
Oh goodie, Sideshow Toysfigures, we meet again! ? And this time you guys don’t even have the excuse of adapting someone else’s sexist design – it’s your own all original creation!
Obviously the bingo score isn’t very high, and I stretched definition of “male equivalent” to “all male-presenting characters in the series”. However, while not bikini-shaped or skimpy, impossibly skin-tight armor is still a staple of BABD content. The fact that metal gives no additional girth to any part of her body made me confident in marking off the “No padding, just bare skin.” square, despite no bare skin at display. And no, the “fine bone filaments of this protective encasement were woven around her form by the osteomancers and artisans of the dead”Thermian argument doesn’t excuse the sexualized design one bit.
I really hate the female Nergigante armor in MHW, so I decided to try my hand at a really quick redesign. Tried to keep it mostly close to the original, but also using the male version as the main source of changes.
The funny thing is- the skin showing isn’t even the part I hate the most. I don’t like how miss-mash the armor is. Most of the major parts of the armor look like they came from different clothing. And Nergigante is supposed to be a ferocious beast. The armor from the female set doesn’t look fierce at ALL.
While I’m usually not for overly stabby armor, this is a very fine redesign done with the original’s over the top aesthetic in mind, just without all that sexism.
I really like how you retained the original’s silhouette and detailing while inserting actual armor in place of a generic bikini. And even though the armoring is based on the male version, it still has unique features, like the toothy helmet. Very good job at shape breaking and contrasts, too!
Amazingly, a female costume design doesn’t have to be sexualized to be stylized. Who knew? ?
Knowing how my friends feel about dresses with pockets I can only imagine how incredible this is!
Art by Benjamin Steamroller
I genuinely love this for SO MANY reasons, but one of them has to be the fact that now that we’ve all agreed that terrible skimpy armor that objectifies women is OUT, we can finally focus on what should be IN
Two big problems of both fictional armor (boobplate) and real feminine clothing (lack of pockets) resolved in a single one-panel comic! Yay!
This knight looks super adorable and so happy about her attire, I love it! Also love the costume design thought put by the artist into incorporating cloth or leather pockets onto plate armor.
