Why Halloween is depressing

POSTED BY: MAL4PREZ
UPDATED: Tuesday, September 9, 2025 06:32
VIEWED: 15515
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MAL4PREZ

Monday, October 28, 2013 9:14 AM

I enjoy dressing up, as do many of my students and co-workers. There's a few other teachers with long histories of excellent costumes, from Indiana Jones to Darth Vader to Jack Sparrow. My first year of teaching I was Princess Leia of Star Wars with the funny side buns and white dress. My second year I did Cher of the 60s: long black hair, overdone make-up, fake lashes, and a goofy 60s jumpsuit.

Since then... not so much.

I cannot find an interesting female sci-fi/whatever character to dress up as that isn't totally inappropriate for a woman who doesn't need to present herself as a sexpot. WTH? I think of all my favorite movies... nope. It's all skintight and revealing. Not what I need to be wearing in front of teenagers.

A few days ago I thought - hey, what about something from a kids story, like little red riding hood? Get a red cape and a basket to carry, I've got a flowery girlish dress... until I just did a google search for fairy tale female characters and it was all anime sexpots.

What the f is wrong with this world? Can women exist in fiction these days without being all sexed up? Even Joss has fallen - look at the ridiculous posters for the Avengers, with Scarlet Johansson presented as all T&A.

/rant

Anyone got ideas?

WISHIMAY

Monday, October 28, 2013 10:16 AM

That's one of the reasons I LOVE Avatar TLA and Legend of Korra.

Lynn Bei Fong is probably one of the strongest female characters ever made. Not a single thing about here is sexied up, from the don't touch me uniform to the scars on her face. And who DOESN'T wanna metal bend, really??
Toph is just as much fun and also Avatar Kyoshi. Really just awesome role models for kids and adults in both shows. I've now officially seen Avatar more times than I've seen Serenity.
Astrid is a great character that's not too sexified from Defenders of Berk. Plus all that great armor...and weaponry!

Pretty damn sure I was a warrior queen in another life. Could be why I'm paying in this one though

If you wanna go for sorta obscure Daria would be another great female character.

Captain Janeway?

Dax from DS9?

Carter from Stargate?

Reba from Tremors?

Bring a labeled "Empathy Gun" and be Trillion from Hitchhikers Guide?

Marge from The Simpsons?

BYTEMITE

Monday, October 28, 2013 10:42 AM

...Kaylee? In her overalls. Tomboy wrench girl is a fetish but not generally sex-pot fodder.

Zoe, but it would only work with a fake gun and schools frown on that I hear, kinda inappropriate too maybe considering.

I'd say Inara since I'm pretty sure you like her but I'm pretty sure she can be described as a "sexpot." River too, even though she's a scary assassin in a sundress, if it wasn't for the movie you would've been okay though.

oh and ask Frem, he probably knows a BUNCH of cosplayable girls who aren't wearing tinfoil and dental floss! I don't really watch new stuff often enough to have lots of suggestions.

OONJERAH

Monday, October 28, 2013 11:38 AM

Sue Storm Richards. Miss Piggy too sexy? Olive Oil is pretty asexual.

If you go waay retro, heroines were portrayed more Good than Sexy.
Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Snow White, etc. Orphan Annie.
Lucy (Peanuts Lucy or I Love Lucy). The Flying Nun.

No one'd know who you were in retro, tho.

==========================:>

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Monday, October 28, 2013 12:30 PM

Why Halloween is depressing

Because the fact that we now celebrate it is one of many indicators of how we are being culturally swamped by the US.

Next thing, we'll be doing Thanksgiving

OONJERAH

Monday, October 28, 2013 1:24 PM

You know perfectly well that Hallowe'en is from
the Celtic All Hallows Eve & so from Britain.
And Jesus celebrated it with His desciples. :)

The Fantasy and Folklore of All Hallows
http://www.loc.gov/folklife/halloween.html

Thanksgiving, OtoH, is a Massachusetts-Puritan,
Mayflower-Pilgrims thing. I should boycott it
as I am, for last several years, concerned that
Virginia colony (1584) & New York (1612) were
here before Mass-Mayflower (1620).

In elementary school, I believe they told us that
the Mayflower was the 1st ship to bring colonists
from England to the New World. So even back then,
the schools had screwed our history lessons.

But Hallowe'en is pretty cool as long you have fun!

P.S. NM St. Augustine's (1565)!

======================
A man's gotta know his Holidays, Doc.

MAGONSDAUGHTER

Monday, October 28, 2013 2:01 PM

It was never celebrated here, as far as I can remember, until about 10 years ago, when kids started trick or treating.

All Hallowed's Eve has never been particularly acknowledged, although as Catholic we had to go to church the next day as it was/is All Saints Day.

FREMDFIRMA

Monday, October 28, 2013 5:06 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by MAL4PREZ:
I cannot find an interesting female sci-fi/whatever character to dress up as that isn't totally inappropriate for a woman who doesn't need to present herself as a sexpot. WTH? I think of all my favorite movies... nope. It's all skintight and revealing. Not what I need to be wearing in front of teenagers.

Nausicaa of the valley of the wind.
Bonus points for her being my A-1 exemplar of humane behavior.
You could also try Yuna from Final Fantasy X.

Neither costume looks too hard to pull off, and they also represent strength and decency from a generally nonviolent aspect.

-F

MAL4PREZ

Monday, October 28, 2013 7:17 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by FREMDFIRMA:
Nausicaa of the valley of the wind.
Bonus points for her being my A-1 exemplar of humane behavior.

I saw that movie when I was in 6th grade and it had a huge effect on me. Really, it gave me dreams that I still remember. I never could recall what the movie was until just last year, when I finally hunted down the title and found it online.

I will note that the first section of the movie includes a whole lot of upskirt shots of this leggy little girl. Totally creeps me out. Am I just too sensitive?

Quote:

You could also try Yuna from Final Fantasy X.

Neither costume looks too hard to pull off, and they also represent strength and decency from a generally nonviolent aspect.

Haven't seen this. Cool thing is, I have students who are into Anime and would likely recognize these.

WishImay - great ideas! Wish I had more time to be creative. Marge from the Simpsons would be awesome.

Ripley from Aliens would especially rock, since I look a lot like Sigourney Weaver. Seriously, there are scenes from Working Girl where I swear I'm watching myself on screen. But I don't know how I'd be recognizably Ripley. Just a jumpsuit with "Ripley" on it.

I may just go look for a Marge wig and necklace. I have the perfect dress already...

*---------------------------------------*
The French Revolution would have never happened if Marie Antoinette had just given every peasant an iPhone.

AURAPTOR

Monday, October 28, 2013 7:45 PM

Halloween has become nothing but a great excuse for women to dress up and go out as a " naughty " nurse, or a 'sexy' lady pirate or some such. Which I'm fine with, but it does show a real lack of imagination.

Fathom the hypocrisy of a government that requires every citizen to prove they are insured... but not everyone must prove they are a citizen

Resident USA Freedom Fundie

" AU, that was great, LOL!! " - Chrisisall

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