1800 Who R U

Sometimes, I desperately wish my life was a '90s rom com. Which, in itself, seems like a wish straight out of a '90s rom com.

There would be me, wearing my straight leg jeans (or gaucho pants if I was feeling particularly Josie Grosie that day) and him, wearing some baggy suit (Lord, suits were ill-fitting inthose days). We'd probably work at some non-descript office/company. At first, we'd really hate each others' guts. You know what happens next...

My brief (ongoing) obsession with rom coms (particularly those of the '90s) has made me reflect greatly on the genre and romance and other shit. I asked Little Mishelle the other day what she thought of the damsel-in-distress plot and she said she didn't like it. Specifically, I was thinking about the final book in this series: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meg_Cabot#1-800-WHERE-R-U_series

In one of the final scenes, Jess Mastriani (or just "Mastriani" if Rob is feeling all casual and rugged) is getting choked by this child pornographer. Bear in mind, Mastriani is this feisty, violent thing that likes to punch people in the guts. In fact, technically we should hate people like Mastriani because she often resorts to violence unnecessarily. She is pretty much a bully. It is usually Rob telling Mastriani to cool her shit because she's such a little spitfire (as all '90s rom com protaganists really should be).

Back to the story. Rob punches Child Pornographer out and thusly saves Mastriani. I'm not gonna lie; this turn of events got me going. I completely buy into that crap. Maybe not the traditional damsel-in-distress storyline but, if you've ever read Meg Cabot (as really everyone should at least once in their life), you'll know that female leads are often slightly angry, feisty women and ultimately, they form some sort of partnership with male lead and work together to overcome Something Evil (Maria fucking de Silva). Usually, at some point, Male Lead will save Female Lead from ultimate death.

I love this. This is my favourite point of the book. It is orchestrated to perfection to make your heart beat wildly for Male Lead.

Am I buying into the misogynistic damsel-in-distress archetype? Am I anti-feminist for doing this? Should I not like the things I like? Am I being manipulated by the finely constructed stereotypes of evil males?

I think I'm pretty pro-woman but is it wrong to buy into these stereotypes? Am I doing a disservice to women everywhere or perhaps do my actions speak louder than the crummy chick lit books I like to read?

I'm not having a go. I'm just contemplating here.

J