(no subject)

[skygiants]

rymenhild asked me for my top five feisty cross-dressed girls, because Rym knows me very well and is aware that I collect cross-dressed girl narratives like some people collect stamps. Which, again, makes these decisions very difficult!

5. Djaq, BBC Robin Hood



See, the thing is, if you weren't aware, the BBC Robin Hood series was kind of ridiculous. And I watched the first two seasons enjoying everything pretty much 100% ironically . . . EXCEPT DJAQ. Djaq, I loved with a whole heart: yes, she was the most hilariously obvious girl-disguised-as-a-boy I've yet seen on TV (for which I blame the series' costumer, but then, I blame the costumer for a LOT OF THINGS) but she was awesome and sarcastic and sensible - whenever she got lines, which admittedly was increasingly less common as the series got increasingly more focused on Robin's manpain - and when she left the show, I quit it. I mean, there were other reasons. But mostly it was Djaq.

(It was a fight for this slot between Djaq and Cecily, the cross-dressed girl from Robin McKinley's Outlaws of Sherwood, but Djaq won because thre are actually images of her, and I am shallow. But Cecily was also pretty awesome, and a large part of the reason that McKinley's is still my favorite adaptation.)

4. Rosalind, As You Like It



Rosalind is the reason that As You Like It is my favorite Shakespeare play. She's funny, she's clever, she totally passes the Bechdel test and hilariously stomps up and down on tropes of romantic tragedy; I don't blame Celia for being totally in love with her. I am totally in love with her, although, as I actually read the play before I ever saw it, I've never yet seen a version that did justice to the one in my head. But this is the first image I found when I went google searching, and I quite like the looks of this Rosalind, so she stays. (Let's not even talk about the Branagh version. Even aside from the racefail, how do you make As You Like It, which is an incredibly sparkling play, feel slow?)

3. Kurai, Angel Sanctuary



Only Kaori Yuki could come up with Kurai: super-adorable adolescent crossdressing demon princess who will totally eat human beings she doesn't like, on a mission to rescue the badass lady angel of her dreams, who subsequently has to deal with confusion about her sexuality when the lady angel turns out to have been reincarnated as a dorkfaced teenaged boy. I knew I loved Kurai with all my heart from the moment when she gave God the finger and told him he'd be sorry for messing with a bunch of stubborn idiots like them!

2. Mulan, Disney



I know Disney's Mulan is far from perfect or faithful to the original story, but . . . Mulan! She's so sensible and determined and heroic, and I love her kind of a lot, even if she does have the magical property of instantly growing out her eyebrows when she changes into boy's clothes. This is one of those movies I have to see about once a year just to watch Mulan kick ass or I start feeling like something is missing in my life.

1. Alanna, Song of the Lioness Quartet, and Jacky Faber, Bloody Jack



Yes, I am totally cheating here with a tie, but given that I wrote my thesis on THESE VERY LADIES, I think I am allowed! I could not choose just one. ;_; One's an awesome lady knight, the other just wants to run a merchant trading company if circumstance and various antagonists would only stop trying to make her be a schoolgirl pirate ballerina deep-sea-diver spy, and both of them are awesome examples of the way that gender fluidity interacts with coming-of-age narratives in a liminal [insert academic mutterings here] ANYWAY I LOVE THEM. These days Jacky is a bit more central to my heart, but I loved Alanna first.

All right, flist, your turn! Who is your favorite fictional cross-dressed lady? Bonus points if it's one I have not read or seen (because that means I can go hunt it down and make my collection grow. >:D)

Comments

[nevacaruso.livejournal.com]

Yay for Rosalind, Mulan, and Alanna! Naturally, I would also add Tenjou Utena to the list.

[skygiants]

The only reason I was able to eliminate Utena from this list with a clear conscience is that I will be talking about the show in several other Top Fives . . . and also, now that I have gotten, uh, some very close experience with Utena's outfit over these past few weeks for cosplaying purposes, I can firmly say that however she may think of it, that is not a boy's uniform.

[redbeardjim.livejournal.com]

Tossing in a vote here for Eowyn/Dernhelm, from [i]Lord of the Rings[/i]. It was a temporary disguise thing, but she's an awesome badass regardless.

[skygiants]

Eowyn was probably my very first crossdressed lady, and I suspect is one of the reasons I fell for the trope so hard. She's so incredibly awesome! The only reason she's not on this list is because I already put her on my Badass Ladies list. (And because 'feisty' is probably not the right adjective for her.)

[indy-go.livejournal.com]

Have you read Spindle's End? Rosie isn't exactly a cross-dresser, but is definitely disdainful of all the normal trappings of girlishness. It's an integral part of her ability to hide from Pernicia, who's after someone she expects to be a Pretty Pretty Princess. Anyway. It's a lovely story.

[skygiants]

I have read it, but it was many many years ago and I've sort of forgotten which bits belong to Spindle's End and which to Beauty and which to Rose Daughter. Which clearly means I need to reread all three! :D

[catslash.livejournal.com]

Charlotte Doyle (http://www.amazon.com/True-Confessions-Charlotte-Doyle-rpkg/dp/0380728850/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1282923864&sr=8-1)! She doesn't actually try to pass as male, but giving up her proper lady's attire for a sailor's outfit is how she rejects her "responsibility" to take the corrupt captain's side in the face of his cruel treatment of his crew. Instead she takes the crew's side and joins them, putting herself in a dangerous situation that she could escape from simply by resuming her position as lady passenger, but she won't do it. She risks being hanged as Mister Doyle rather than betray her morals by becoming Miss Doyle again. It isn't about gender fluidity so much as it is about doing the right thing, but it's also about a sheltered girl who becomes someone she never could have dreamed possible, and she starts the journey by changing one set of clothes for another. This was one of my favorite books when I was younger and just talking about it makes me want to read it again.

[skygiants]

Oh man, I've been meaning to read Charlotte Doyle for years, ever since jothra brought her into Milliways. Thanks for reminding me to push it up my list!

[peroxidepirate.livejournal.com]

Seconding this rec! Charlotte Doyle was my very first femininity-shunning seafaring love.

[themadpoker.livejournal.com]

-finally delurks because crossdressing girls are my absolute favourite thing-

Corinna from The Folk Keeper and Eun Chan from Coffee Prince are both pretty great. I also have a neverending love for Sarasa from Basara.

Also your post has finally talked me into watching Robin Hood when several instances of seeing my flist talk about it couldn't. =DDD Someone should have mentioned to me there was a crossdressing girl!

And umm hi. I've been lurking around enjoying your book reviews for awhile (ever since I found your Demon's Covenant review after I searched through the Internet when I finished), would you mind if I friended you? You have great taste in books, my to read list has increased exponentially ever since I found your lj.

[skygiants]

I keep seeing excellent things about The Folk Keeper, so I am thinking I should put it on my list! I have seen Coffee Prince and I do kind of love Eun Chan, who gets bonus points for being one of the most legitimately convincing girls to play a guy on TV . . . which is extra impressive given what Yoon Eun Hye usually looks like.

Hahaha, I'm not sure I would actually recommend Robin Hood, though it is totally lolarious. Sometimes intentionally, sometimes . . . less intentionally. But Djaq is really legitimately awesome. When they remember to give her lines.

And man, way to stroke my ego! I would in no way mind, I always love having more people around here to talk about books with. :D

[kattahj.livejournal.com]

I really need to get those fansubs of Dårfinkar och dönickar och Flickan vid stenbänken done, those are excellent crossdressing girls. :-)

I also have a soft spot for Lou in The Young Riders, but that might be just childhood nostalgia. And of course Viola, but I'll grant you Rosalind is more fun. (I just fell SO IN LOVE with Imogen Stubbs as a teen.)

[skygiants]

Well, you can rest assured that if you sub, you will have at least one viewer.

Hey, childhood nostalgia is totally a legitimate reason. And it really is hard to pick between Viola and Rosalind! Oh top fives, why do you make me choose between awesome and awesome. ;_;

[bravenewcentury.livejournal.com]

As someone named after a cross-dressing Shakespearean lady (and who has, in fine tradition, cross-dressed herself in two Shakespeare productions), SO MANY HEARTS for Rosalind. I really need to re-read As You Like It.

Hmm, there are many cross-dressing ladies of whom I thoroughly approve, but the first one that comes to mind is Elizabeth Swann. There are a heck of a lot of things wrong with the Pirates of the Caribbean films, but she is one BAMF whatever she wears.

[skygiants]

Cross-dressing Shakespearean ladies make for extremely excellent namesakes! (Oooh, which parts have you gotten to play? I have only cross-dressed for, uh, ridiculous Newsies cosplay. Which is slightly less dignified. Maybe. A little.)

Elizabeth Swann is totally a BAMF, and Keira Knightley pulls off the cross-dressing with excellent aplomb. And bonus very fine hats, which are always a good addition, I feel.

[rymenhild.livejournal.com]

Mmmm, Rosalind.

What, you wanted more coherent commentary?

[skygiants]

I accept your input as valid and appropriate. *serene*

[deutscheami.livejournal.com]

I am cheating, but my favorite (non-fictional) cross-dressing heroine is Deborah Sampson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Sampson), who fought in the American Revolution!

[skygiants]

Oh dude, I totally read a book about her! One of my favorite things about this whole cross-dressed badass lady trope: how awesome it is when it happens in real life.

[peroxidepirate.livejournal.com]

It doesn't get any better than your #1 spot!

But, I also recommend the movie Sylvia Scarlett -- see icon? Katharine Hepburn in convincing drag! (Like this. (http://archive.sensesofcinema.com/images/directors/04/33/sylvia_scarlet_hepburn.jpg) And this. ()) Cary Grant before he got too serious! It's all win until the WTF-romance (between Hepburn and someone else) starts up; after that, I usually wander away. But the beginning is worth watching.

Also, Queen Christina, (http://archive.sensesofcinema.com/images/directors/07/42/queen2.jpg) starring Greta Garbo (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_el0B2jjUqi0/SiQYhS-j-VI/AAAAAAAAA0U/gwV19ldAmT8/s400/Queen_Christina__1933__kiss+2009-06-01+21_03_54_984.jpg): as herself, she kisses one of her ladies in waiting; in cognito as a man, she flirts with John Gilbert. I could watch it every day.

[skygiants]

Okay, Queen Christina has been on my list to watch forever, but a;lkjsdfs I did not know Katharine Hepburn had ever done a cross-dressing role! MUST HUNT DOWN IMMEDIATELY.

[wavesofwood.livejournal.com]

Yay Rosalind! The picture you found is from The Globe's 2009 version, which you can get on DVD from Opus Arte - I wholeheartedly recommend it, it's completely delightful. Ugh, the KenBran version - I loved Romola Garai's Celia, but that was it >:(

[skygiants]

Oooh, really? I must investigate this! Just from the screencaps I think I am already crushing a bit on the girl who plays Rosalind. And yeah, that was pretty much my feeling on the KB version too - Romola Garai was a lovely Celia, and the gentleman who played Orlando certainly not displeasing to look at, but the whole tone of the play was really botched.

[futuresoon.livejournal.com]

Ha ha, I was about to make a post on Tamora Pierce, because I've been rereading her stuff lately--it's just that, uh, part of my post was going to be about how I never liked Alanna as much as Daine or the Circle of Magic kids. >.> CLEARLY I SHALL HAVE TO REREAD HER BOOKS TOO. (Possibly this is due to the fact that at age 10 I was not very interested in swords, but a pet dragon? SIGN ME UP, BABY.)

[skygiants]

The Circle of Magic books came out a bit too late for me to imprint on them the way I did on Alanna, I think. But also I was just ALL ABOUT lady knights as a kid; I still remember when I was seven and my brother was going to be a knight for Halloween, and he was like "you can be a princess!" and I was all "NO I WILL ALSO BE A KNIGHT. WHERE IS MY SWORD."

. . . which is not to say I would have said no to a pet dragon, either.

The only reason Haruhi does not make this list is because she is too blase to be feisty. Haruhi just does not care about your 'gender distinctions.' In other coincidences, I've totally been reading the actual Ouran manga recently for the first time, so I will be posting about that sometime in the near future!

[nextian.livejournal.com]

The Kenneth Branagh version is hilarious to me in retrospect because when it came out what I knew about older Japanese history consisted of "there was a Tokugawa period in which samurai and ninja roamed the land, there was a Meiji period in which people wore suits." So I was FURIOUS but I didn't get that it was also history fail beyond belief, like any group of British traders in Meiji Japan would wear motherfucking samurai or daimyo armor. What the fuck, dude.

Plus he fucked up the class issues! The point of that play, what makes it more revolutionary than Shakespeare's usual hilarious cornucopia of "let me lol at the people I am subtly hinting are also people" is that Touchstone falls in whatever it is with Aubrey, and Phoebe and Silvius get it together, and Rosalind marries her dad's most faithful servant's son and Celia straight-up marries her dad's most faithful servant, and the Dukes are rustics and the courtiers are fools and everything's grand and not all of it is restored at the end. And I love it!

...

cough cough ANYWAY I LOVE ROSALIND

[skygiants]

OH MY GOD I KNOW RIGHT. Like, it was basically wrong in every particular, ASIDE from being faily, aside from getting the race issues fail all up in the class issues fail, although I can't actually remember how much he screwed up the class issues because it was so slow I kept getting distracted and wandering off to check email or something. And it's my favorite play! THAT SHOULD NOT BE HAPPENING.


. . . ANYWAY YES ROSALIND IS AWESOME. (Your bits of musical still make me so happy. Have I mentioned that recently? Because they do.)

[minkhollow]

Rosalind! I tend to prefer Viola myself, but that's me.
Also, EVERYONE IN MONSTROUS REGIMENT, SERIOUSLY. Though [spoiler follows, for anyone who hasn't read it yet] I personally think Maladict is trans, or should have been the only actual guy in the regiment, for what would've been more twist than what happened. BUT I CAN FORGIVE THAT IN THE FACE OF AWESOME.

[skygiants]

I also love Viola! But I love Rosalind a little more because she is so in control of the narrative - and she does it all for the lulz. I can't help but love that in a protagonist. :D

I really need to reread Monstrous Regiment; I only read it the once, when it first came out, and I've forgotten far too much about it! Time to fix that. :O

[elspeth-vimes.livejournal.com]

Mine is, hands down, Corinna Stonewall from The Folk Keeper. Consigned to a life of washing things? HELL NO, she is going to bribe the boys into teaching her to read and write. Then when she moves to the next foundling home, she can disguise herself as a boy, utterly terrify the boy that was supposed to be the place's Folk Keeper, and take his place, thereby securing herself a position of power and eliminating the need for her to do other peoples' laundry ever again.


Also I have a theory that Orlando Gardiner is named after the Orlando of As You Like It. Y/N?

[skygiants]

I knew The Folk Keeper sounded familiar - I must have heard you talking about it. Anyway, is it totally going onto my list. :D

Also, HAHAHA Y. What with Sam (who really should have been on this list if I had only had room! And also remembered her in time) there is no way that wasn't deliberate.

[shati.livejournal.com]

Kurai! <333333 Mulan and Alanna! <33333 (And I'll add some extras <333s for the other characters who I don't know!)

The other day I stumbled across some discussion of Mulan -- I think it was while I was looking for a recording of the "Mulan's Decision" track (still my favorite piece of Disney music ever, including the songs) -- and whatever it was I was reading brought up the awfullest first version of the movie. WHY. ;_; But it didn't get made, so that's something.

[skygiants]

Haha, Shati, I was just rereading the other day the part where I'd posted about the awfullest first version of the movie - I'd totally forgotten about it until then. IT WAS SO TERRIBLE and I am still so incredibly relieved that they scrapped it.

(But I still kind of want that Mulan artbook that they had at the Strand that time.)

[fahye.livejournal.com]

I wrote an English oral on cross-dressing in Shakespeare, a long time ago, so it is a topic close to my heart!

Also, that picture of Alanna makes me want to hide behind something. She looks like she wants to suck my soul out through my nostrils.

[skygiants]

Close to mine as well! I couldn't put nearly as much as I wanted to about Shakespearean cross-dressing into my thesis, which is a fact that filled me with sorrow. ;_;

Well, I mean, it's always possible she might - early book!Alanna would probably not be so happy about the Milliways goings-on with Lucifer and Thom and Duke Roger . . .

[hafl.livejournal.com]

I should really reread Angel Sanctuary, since I only remember that I loved it all those years ago, when I first read it. And that Kurai was the most awesome character in the series.

Anyway, I'm not sure if it properly counts, since it's a transgender manga, but Takatsuki-kun from Hourou Musuko. The whole series is my current favourite manga, and probably my favourite manga ever, so anything I would add would be just incoherent fan babbling. As a bonus, there are crossdressing boys.

(As an aside, I've read your post on the Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini and then I found a cheap used copy published in 1936, fully illustrated and in wonderfully old-fashioned translation. He looks like a smug asshole in every picture.)

[skygiants]

Haha, shati and I sat down last week and realized that we couldn't remember what happened in the end of Angel Sanctuary, so we went to go reread the end . . . and realized that we still could not figure out what happened. Even with the pages right in front of us. THAT BEING SAID, Kurai is totally awesome!

Also, transgender manga probably counts, I think! And I am intrigued, so if you want to incoherent fan babble more, you're welcome. :D

(HAHAHA PERFECT. This validates ALL MY FEELINGS about Benvenuto Cellini. *____*)

[lacewood]

Cecily! <333 I haven't read that many versions of Robin Hood anyway, but McKinley's will probably always be my favourite hands down just for her (and the hilarious twist she did with Robin and Marian's archery) And MUULLAAANNNNN. *___*

I already recced Scott Westerfield's Leviathan once, so I'll leave off that. XD Joan Aiken also has a crossdressing girl in Bridle the Wind! (It's probably a spoiler to say this now, but I don't recall how obvious or not-obvious I found it the first time I read it) It might be kind of obscure/out of print, though I hope not. It's the second of 3 books, after Saddle the Wind and The Teeth of the Gale comes next, though Bridle the Wind's my favourite of the 3 and I THINK it can be read by itself.

[skygiants]

Oh man, I love the Marian-Robin archery twist in that one - I actually just really like Robin in that, in general. He's so grumpy! <33

. . . Joan Aiken has a crossdressing girl? I MUST investigate this. I am so curious how she will handle this trope, given her . . . you know, Joan Aiken-ness.

[spellcoats.livejournal.com]

Arianna Gasparini from Stravaganza! Although she only crossdresses once, briefly, in the beginning of the story, she was totally prepared to do so for life. And while she never fights (as far as I know, I'm two books behind), she still manages to be made of uninhibited awesome.

[spellcoats.livejournal.com]

OH ALSO god how could I forget. NAOTO SHIROGANE (http://i34.tinypic.com/2zgews1.jpg) FROM PERSONA 4. She actually transcends crossdresser to the point that she's certainly not cisgendered, though I don't think she's full-out trans the way a portion of the fanbase seems to do.

AND AND, Akira Okuzaki (http://i34.tinypic.com/wk61y8.jpg) from Mai-HiME. She's a badass ninja whose love interest basically takes the female role in the relationship.

Maria Thorpe (http://i35.tinypic.com/2nhf8f4.png) from Assassin's Creed had a brief stint as a crossdresser in her backstory, and when you encounter her, she's disguised as her male boss, so she might count??? I HOPE SO because she is assuredly MADE OF AWESOME though the fandom completely ignores her sob.