Kōittenron: Anime, Tokusatsu, Denki no Hiroin-Zō
(From the BOOK Database)
“One woman among many men” is an extremely familiar setup in live-action and animated TV shows. What is this image of the heroine as a “lone female member?” “A magical girl is a father’s ideal daughter.” “The [single] female warrior is the ‘decorative flower of the workplace.’” “Sexy, unmarried adult women are evil queens.” The media has plenty of pithy sayings about these ubiquitous heroines-among-men. This critique seeks to expose what lies behind them and their milieux.
Discusses the position assigned to female characters in animation featuring “battles.” The points are caricatures but are on target.