This article is going to be about powerful female main characters.
Now, don't go confusing this with the term "Mary-Sue" or any other types of "Sue's" - I've taken it to myself to define these women as Ladies Marmalade, definitely derived from the song.
A 'Lady Marmalade' is, how I'd like to define, a woman that DON'T NEED NO MAN, physically powerful and strong spirited. Men may occasionally chase after her and she would occasionally take advantage of her female powers in "controlling" them or completely discard of their existence. I know it may seem like another version of a Mary-Sue, but it's not. At least, not through my eyes.
I'm all for GIRL-POWER! And the like, being a feminist and believing in women's rights, so I thought that this is important to the aspiring authors out there.
When I'm reading a Naruto fanfiction, most of the female characters are either Mary-Sue's or Anti-Sue's - there is literally no in between (as far as I've read). The first Gaara fanfic I read was just...so...cringe-worthy (I believe I deserve applause for reading all the way through it) and I got warning signs all throughout the fic before I even knew what a Mary-Sue was.
To be honest with y'all, Mary-Sues aren't that bad. It was enjoyable reading how this angelic girl that grew WINGS changed Gaara before Naruto could. No, really. The butterfly effect is clearly nothing but a lie. I mean, you'd think that Gaara wouldn't want to participate in Konoha's crush after she changed him, but no, he still went for it while he was in love with this white-haired angel/demon kekkei genkai'd kunoichi. Even Ibiki wanted to get in her pants. I'm serious. This is a real fanfiction.
Sarcasm aside, the story would've been somewhat better if it was an AU and if the kekkei genkai made more sense, or if the AU took place in a universe where sirens can indeed turn into angels (you read right).
That being said, this author's OC could've been a "Lady Marmalade" instead of an off-the-charts Mary-Sue.
✖Instead of having Gaara completely fall in love with her and turn 360 degrees OOC despite having Shukaku inside him, the author could have done it gradually (unless she really doesn't give two shits about what other Narutards say. Ha-ha, jokes on us >_> ). Let's break it down a bit more...✖
There's no way of making this character a non-Mary-Sue, not entirely, at least. Making everyone fall in love with you at first sight is nowhere near realistic ✖- if said author wanted 'love at first sight' going on, xe could've done it in a more realistic way by 'awakening OC's magical orange eyes to activate her way-too-beautiful siren kekkei genkai' on only certain people.✖
Scratch that. Scratch out the whole entire freaking thing. No, just no.
I'm sorry to say this but it just doesn't work that way. Being able to turn on sex appeal/beauty/charm
works, but it can't work on everyone.
First of all, Sirens' are a part of Greek mythology. Greek. GREEK. GREEEEEEEK!
Secondly, there is no such thing as an invincible kekkei genkai. Nope.
Third, I'm freaking digressing again, aren't I?
My apologies, BACK TO TOPIC!
A fine example of a "Lady Marmalade" is the queen herself: Lady Tsunade.
She is hella fine, beautiful, intelligent and freakishly strong.
With all the good things on her scale, comes a balance of bad things as well, which makes her a proper, well-rounded and believable character.
She has a gambling issue, is insecure about her old, true appearance and is, more or less, afraid; afraid of admitting to herself how she truly feels, that is.
