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By David Futrelle
Angry gamers are somehow still up in arms about the body of the character Abby in The Last of Us 2. You may recall, back in April the angriest gamers — the perpetual Gamergaters — were outraged after a studio leak revealed that the character Abby would be returning in the sequel as a newly-buff fighter with notably jacked arms.
At first the angry gamers assumed that any woman that buff had to be trans, so they accused the game studio, Naughty Dog, of pushing an LGBT+ agenda on innocent gamers. Then, when it turned out that Abby was not trans, the angry gamers got mad at Abby for a whole other reason — declaring that her body was “unrealistic” because where would she be getting enough food to bulk up like that in a postapocalyptic world and did she even lift, bro?
The game has been out for some time now and they’re still mad.
But now the angry gamers think they have found DEFINITIVE PROOF that Abby’s body is too good to be true — in the form of a workout schedule for Abby they discovered somewhere in the games assets that reveals, well, that she doesn’t lift enough to have arms like THAT.
“[A]bby is more muscular Than 90% of the Guys in the gym where i was workout,” complains another gamer on Twitter. “No girl in the gym looks as ugly as Abby.”
Other, er, critics make much of the fact that food is rationed in the dire dystopian world of the game.
“Her food is rationed,” insists one of Abby’s critics. “They SHOW that in game. She’d never be able to get the lean protein required to get that big.”
“Abby … has a muscular physique … in an environment where proper diet is so rare that food is rationed out,” another Abby non-fan grumbles. “You can say you don’t care but you can’t claim that this all about hating women.”
Like hell I can’t.
In case you’re wondering just how jacked this woman is, here’s what she looks like.
This is the body that these guys are declaring so “unrealistic”that it destroys any feelings of immersion in the game — a game that also features, yes, ZOMBIES. You know, creatures that DON’T ACTUALLY EXIST IN REAL LIFE
Come to think of it, has anyone found the zombies’ workout schedule?
More to the point, has anyone even gone looking for the workout schedules for any of the far-more-improbably buff bodies of assorted male video game heroes — say, the top-heavy soldiers in Gears of War, Batman in the Arkham series, Zangief in Street Fighter — or any of the other imaginary video game men on this handy list?
Of course not. It’s almost as if there’s a double standard. It’s almost as if Abby’s critics just can’t stand the thought of a strong women, or something. “It’s such a weird, ultra-specific way to be misogynistic while claiming to appeal to logic,” notes podcaster Jubel Brosseau on Twitter. That it is.
@skimmingway
No, I don’t because I’m awesome and literally worshipped as a living goddess by some.
(It being performance art doesn’t make the sincerity of my worshippers’ beliefs any less real so and it’s entirely consistent with accepted neopagan spirituality so, no, I’m not in need of psychiatric help.)
@Mog
Thank you for citing the mighty Jane Austen. Though if the choice were between skimmingway and Mr. Collins, I could put up with the latter. As his dear Charlotte observed, “I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins’s character, connections, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast on entering the marriage state.” Sad portrait of a lady who could only marry for security. I’m glad I got to marry for love instead.
I welcome any excuse to post this.
@Victorious Parasol
The way you talk about him and your relationship in your comments is beautiful and inspiring.
My favorite thing about otters is how they like to eat while floating on their backs. They look so chill.
@Stacey
I think Skimmingway is probably jealous of you. He thinks he should be worshipped because he thinks he’s the greatest person ever to live, but nobody’s worshipping him because he’s just an annoying guy online.
About the arms, I seen more ‘buff’ women every time I go to the pool. I dream of having toned shoulders like that. She seems fairly realistic for a woman in a manual lifestyle, with a low fat diet. I don’t do restricted diets because it’s bad for my mental health and it’s not healthy anyway, so I’ll probably never have that body. Someone suggested a leg float to me today at the pool, to improve my arm and shoulder strength and toning. I might give it a try.
About Michelle Obama; she’s an intelligent, independent woman, of course insecure men are scared of her. I’m not sure why people are so obsessed with her appearance, surely it’s how good at her job she is/was? I didn’t agree with her push to weigh and measure children, in an effort to ‘combat obesity’. It does no good and causes serious body and eating issues, exacerbating the pain caused by diet culture but now with state backing. Education about healthy diets and enjoyable exercise is a good thing, but it often becomes restrictive and punishing. A lot of kids end up believing exercise is something you do to allow yourself to eat, as opposed to something that is fun and enjoyable. Same with food.
@VP I am jealous of your career, but in a good way. I should have studied English rather than Chemistry.
I always felt sorry for Charlotte, but she did her best in a bad situation. I also had a thought the other day, if Jane and Bingley had a son before Mr Bennett died, wouldn’t their son inherit the Bennett property, rather than the Collins’? I want someone to write a sequel where Jane has a bouncing baby boy a few weeks before Mr B dies, and the Collins’ try to take them to court for Mr Bennett’s estate. Of course, lady Catherine would support the Collins’ but the Darcys would support the Bingleys. A big legal drama.
@Skimmingway, you sound like Mr Collins on steroids. He was a joke in 1820, you are most certainly a joke in 2020. Now bugger off, you obnoxious tit.
I wonder if he is litteral when talking about fucking time. Like, maybe he have a condition that mean he need to fuck exactly one hour per day on pain of death ? With all the problem that it cause when his significant other is horny or not horny, or when he is on travel. Imagine having to plan a travel from New York to Singapour with that kind of restriction.
Then, his complain of us being a waste of his fucking time would be something we could get behind.
What’s the book on the troll sticking its flounce?
@ naglfar
And they juggle.
@C.A. Collins
This is flounce #2.
@StaceySmartyPantsTwiceRemoved
Thank you. One of our wedding vows is “to create with you a living example of the beauty of a relationship between a man and a woman” so I’m always pleased to hear that we have succeeded. I confess I’m more partial to another vow we made: “to believe in you even when you doubt yourself.”
@North Sea Sparkly Dragon
Aw, thank you! Chemistry (specifically o-chem) was a major stumbling block for me in college, but I don’t regret switching majors. The English faculty was most welcoming.
@Naglfar
I think he was also jealous of you. He knew you are a musician and so are a creative person. I understand that a person who is creative whether in music or writing or art wants to see their work appreciated and enjoyed but you don’t get to go around telling people they’re stupid if they don’t like what you create. That’s his entitlement making him do that. I think his obsession with you was from envy of you.
I love being a living goddess but because as a human I’m an artist it takes a lot of energy and effort to create the scenes we create. I love being literally worshipped and having the power I have but I didn’t get to just snap my fingers and make it happen.
Incels complain that I have it easy just because I have almost every guy I see interested in me but most are unattractive to me physically and “interested” means “would like to harass me” creepily. And of the guys who are handsome and have the body I want and are tall enough only a few have the inner sense of spirit to make it possible for them to like what I like. So there aren’t many guys I really have to choose from which means the patience and hard work on my part is still something I have to do. Sometimes I think about maybe letting guys I’m less attracted to at least have some type of limited worshiper-goddess relationship with me but for them because I’m not attracted to them there wouldn’t be the sexual part of the relationship for them so I would probably just be back to NiceGuy complainer bullshit x 10. So I haven’t pursued that so far even though it might potentially help with funding. It doesn’t seem worth it right now.
I love L’Otters. Allons les loutres, on prend le maquis! Les fachos, les nazillons, y passeront pas!
@Victorious Parasol
That is so inspiring. I am like tearing up here.
@Stacey
That’s probably part of it, as he seems very insecure in himself. He also is probably annoyed I keep tearing apart all his arguments.
Dang, so used to seeing those guys bleating in writer’s groups that I almost forgot where I was for a minute.
@Mog, you’ve got him to a T. Comical heights of self-importance, combined with all the bombast and the most pretentious obfuscation the lad can muster – yup, Mr. Collins it is!
“but they were supposed to be loser, and not only did they seem unfazed, but they alway pointed out my failing !”
– Skimmingway, probably.
What is certain is that he was coming here believing to find a bunch of loser. Given how sad and bitter it seem, almost certainly because he though finding worse than him would help him feel better.
The other thing with him is that he think all leftists are alike, and that mean overweight and sad at home. Which is why his insult almost alway tended to fall flat. I think he tried to call me a whale except that I am toeing the underweight line at the moment.
@Naglfar
Yes, because you did and so did other commenters. He’s supposed to be so much smarter than everyone so he can’t handle it.
@StaceySmartyPants
Thank you. Mr. Parasol is also pleased at the appreciation.
Going back to the Austen discussion – hey, Alan? I know inheritance laws can be complicated, but the Bennet estate was entailed and only could be inherited by a son rather than a son-in-law, correct? Frankly, I say let the Collinses have it – a bigger house means that poor Charlotte has more rooms in which to avoid her husband.
I swear, Charlotte is the most tragic figure in P&P, the more so because her situation is so realistic. Most women in history could only dream of marrying a wealthy man who loved them and would treat them well, as we see with Jane and Elizabeth. Charlotte is a type we see to this day: Mr. Collins is not wealthy, but he’s a good social match, and he can support them easily. Charlotte has no property and is not considered a beauty; her opportunities and therefore her choices are limited.
@Victorious Parasol
Completely agree, I think her treatment in the 2005 film with Keira Knightley is so much more sensitive than the TV adaption with Colin Firth (although I like both for different reasons). It was a kindness to give her a happier ending, rather than the just deserts of a social climber, and cathartic in her “don’t you dare judge me, Lizzie” speech.
@ Vicky P
I believe it is something like that; although I must confess I got very confused when we did ‘settled property’ in our land law lectures.
My tutor though was a big Austen fan; there were a lot of familiar names in the exam questions.
She explained to us how the novels were written to highlight issues around how the law disadvantaged women; and that the books did contribute to the eventual passage of The Married Womens’ Property Act(s) which were an attempt to address some of the injustices.
A theme which is picked up in this book:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/551490/jane-austen-the-secret-radical-by-helena-kelly/
You may also want to check out Mary Wollstonecraft’s Maria; which was written with similar intent.
@Lollypop
I really should get around to watching that … I start the new job on Wednesday, so I have today and tomorrow to indulge in media consumption.
So skimmingway is also racist. What a shocking, shocking development!
My arms are almost that buff from carrying my satchel and parcels. I don’t work out other than, well, work. It’s really not super buff.