Summary:
- Hiromu Arakawa, the creator of the popular anime and manga series Fullmetal Alchemist, was deeply concerned about the sexist "shonen stereotype" of female characters in the genre.
- Arakawa wanted to avoid portraying the female characters in Fullmetal Alchemist as mere love interests or damsels in distress, and instead aimed to create strong, independent, and capable female characters that would challenge the traditional tropes.
- The article highlights Arakawa's conscious effort to subvert the sexist tropes often found in shonen anime and manga, and how Fullmetal Alchemist's female characters, such as Riza Hawkeye and Winry Rockbell, have become iconic and empowering representations of women in the genre.