1. A Simple Test
Think of the countless conversations men have had with each other throughout the history of literature, film, television and gaming. They've covered everything they could think of in almost every circumstance for a variety of reasons. And now think of the all the vibrant conversations women have had with each other about...men. And only men. This problem was first noted back in a comic strip in 1985 by one Alison Bechdel, who gave her name to a
test with three seemingly simple standards:
1) There are two women2) Who have a conversation3) About something other than men When reviewed under these criteria, a great many films, books, games and TV shows overwhelmingly fail (not including TV reviewed on an episodic basis, and even then it's astonishing). Its intersectional qualities are curious, as a scene will automatically fail if it mentions
any male (father, brother, uncle, son, cousin, friend, colleague, mortal enemy) even if they're not romantically connected (bisexual and lesbian relationship discussions are allowable), but the most archaic sexist drivel where women only discuss shopping, clothes, marriage and children will technically pass as long as men are not referenced. The test is a reaction to a male-dominated creative culture that refuses to acknowledge that women are multifaceted human beings, and it is disturbingly
endemic and encouraged if some accounts are to be believed. And before someone says it, the Reverse Bechdel
does exist with gender-flipped requirements, but is excluded due to the extensive and varied subject matter of male conversation throughout the entirety of human creative expression, and the fact that assorted douchebags can and will attempt to use it as a trump card to suggest with a straight face that women are not still systemically maltreated. The perpetuated lie that men are the sun around which female planets revolve is part of the reason why gaming culture still has serious problems with casual disregard of women in conventionally male roles and outright misogyny. It is part of the reason why hugely successful franchises like
Mass Effect and
Saints Row, despite having the option to play as either sex (as well as literally anyone the player can imagine using the creator tools), both of which are equally tough and capable, habitually showcase the default, bland straight white male option in their trailers to play it safe with the potential audience, and why so many others relegate strong females to secondary status in service to yet another SWM. A rich, readily accessible history of women in warfare exists, and yet it is still considered controversial when
Call of Duty finally gets around to including women soldiers. And so, in this hypothetical future GTA, women must be complex human beings, like actual people are; living, breathing, sentient beings with hopes, dreams, fears, hobbies, principles and the myriad other things that make us who we are. Let's have an all-female crew of badasses who love nothing more than to talk at length about cars, guns, alcohol, sports, food, what media they consume, the virtues of modest and practical fashion when engaging in criminal endeavours, and just about anything they think is relevant or interesting. Men can get through almost all of their conversations without ever mentioning the other sex. The same is extremely easy to accomplish for women, even moreso those who have crime on their minds.