This was great, I agree wholeheartedly, especially with the Buffy comparison.
I enjoyed Dr. Horrible a lot, but it failed on some levels for me, especially in how it relates to women. I understand that the particular focus of it was on male characters, but it still bugged me.
So much of Whedon's work plays on subverting stereotypes, and I feel like Penny never escaped hers- that of being the "nice girl"/love interest. It wouldn't have bothered me so much if there had been other important women characters in the series.
I think that what you point out- that she is treated as an object by the other characters- is intentional, but since Whedon didn't give her much of a personality, it sort of feels like he did the same.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2011-09-25 01:11 am (UTC)I enjoyed Dr. Horrible a lot, but it failed on some levels for me, especially in how it relates to women. I understand that the particular focus of it was on male characters, but it still bugged me.
So much of Whedon's work plays on subverting stereotypes, and I feel like Penny never escaped hers- that of being the "nice girl"/love interest. It wouldn't have bothered me so much if there had been other important women characters in the series.
I think that what you point out- that she is treated as an object by the other characters- is intentional, but since Whedon didn't give her much of a personality, it sort of feels like he did the same.