MCU warrior-women outfit analysis - Iron Man I (2008)

✨⚔️This series is about⚔️✨: Warrior women and realistic female armour has always been one of my favourite topics to discuss, so this is what this series is about, focused on the women of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). We'll be analysing and commenting on the outfits and armour warrior women and action women wear and the way they are depicted in each of the MCU movies. I will also be commenting on unrealistic outfits for female characters who are not warrior or action women, but who find themselves in the midst of action scenes which involve running, for example (and you can't do that very easily in heels or tube skirts, now can you). 

 

A more in-depth description about this series in my first post about it, here. 

Well, this one will be quick (by my standards xD) because there's practically no warrior or action women around, apart from a female soldier extra at the start of the movie and a brief foray of Pepper Potts into the final action scenes (not part of the action per se, but the 'women running in thin stiletto heels' must be always criticized 🙄😬 xD). In fact, this being one of the most infamously sexist moviesin the MCU, most women are there to provide ample examples of casual gratuitous sexism - To be harassed, used, exploited and ogled at, as well as to fulfil the roles of the (future) love interest, personal assistant and emotional support who caters to every of our entitled male hero's wishes (hello, Pepper, you deserve so much better in this movie).

I'm going to focus on our small number of action women and how they are portrayed, but regarding general feminist criticism, I agree 100% with this post's discussion of Iron Man's sexism and racism/colonialism. I'd especially like to highlight this quote:

"Had the intent truly been to show Stark to be an ass, and not to use his mistreatment of women as proof of his success and charm, then some of the women would have registered disgust or discomfort in his company. By portraying women as being universally susceptible to the 'seductiveness' of Stark's misogyny, the film implies that all women either like being belittled, don't have the dignity to stand up for themselves, or are too empty-headed to notice a pig when he stares them in the face chest."

Peggy for sure doesn't agree with that kind of bullshit

 

Yep. My main issue with the casual sexism as portrayed in the movie was that the women didn't seem to mind being harassed, belittled, sexualized and used - they reacted favourably because it was the 'desirable' Tony Stark doing it (for example, this idea is handled better with Jim Kirk from Star Trek AOS - He begins as a cocky playboy wannabe but not all women he hits on are cool with his behaviour - nor is he into the Stark level of casual sexism or lacks so many morals at the start of his story, but that's another topic and another fandom xD). And of course, even though there are more than a handful of problematic aspects in Pepper and Tony's interactions, of course it's romantic story material from the start (I also 100% agree with the paragraph on Pepper in the above linked post).

Anyway, let's move on to the actual focus of this post xD:

• Number of warrior/action women: 1 - A female soldier extra. Pepper Potts gets involved a bit in the action, but barely.

 1. The lone female soldier

 

• Context: The movie starts with Tony Stark being driven in a military humvee in Afghanistan. A female soldier is the driver of the transport he's in. She's the only female soldier in the car and practically the only female soldier to appear in the whole movie (if we're not counting a couple bringing a stretcher at the airport - it's also pretty sad that it's all full of men no problem, but I have to be squinting at all the extras while pausing the film in order to find someone who's a woman). And she's basically there to be workplace harassed by Stark so that the audience knows that 'wow, he's an incorrigible - but still adorkable - playboy who hits on all the women'.  

The only other women in the military in the whole movie are army medics

 

"A female soldier giggles coquettishly when he throws some low-grade harassment her way, because what soldier wouldn't love to hear words like 'Now that I know you're a woman, I can't take my eyes off you. Does that make you feel uncomfortable?' drifting her way over the romantic rumbling of the humvee she's driving" Source

• Armour/outfit analysis: The only positive thing about how this character is treated is that she's actually wearing a realistic military uniform, same as the rest of the men. According to the context, she's wearing practical clothing that don't sexualize her or impede her mobility. And because she's non-sexualized, Stark obviously mistakes her for a man at first because it's so hard to recognize that someone is a woman when she's wearing practical outfits that actually give her protection and mobility, right? I guess that's just why they need to sexualize action women so much everywhere, it's actually about not mistaking them for men! 🙄

Not impressed.

Her response to Stark formerly mistaking her for a man is also problematic - 'I'm an airman', she says, having to prove her validity, worth and professionalism by using the masculine (faux) generic. Yes, the military already usually uses masculine generics for everything 😕. But another interesting point is that apparently the only way to be seen as an equal by her all-male entourage is to define herself according to male terms and using male language. Being a woman means being sexualized and reduced to her 'bone structure' (something which the filmmakers have also made her react happily to, yay). Being an 'airman' is her proactive job. And this is a thing, unfortunately - many women actually prefer to use masculine generics for their jobs - even if the feminine version of the word is ridiculously straightforward - because they think they will be taken more seriously that way. And hey, using masculine non-inclusive faux generics actually doesn't help society to see women as equals, or even neutral language more common. At least, that's my standpoint.

 

-About the character as a warrior/action woman:

• Representation: Female soldier. I'm anti-militaristic, but always nice to see parity (if you can call ONE female soldier parity, which you really can't either *eyeroll*).
• Female bonding/Bechdel with other (warrior) women: Nope. Surrounded by men.
• Token warrior woman? Yep, practically the only female soldier in the movie.
• Love interest/catering to men as main plot function? Harassed by Tony Stark while doing her job, laughs it off and is actually portrayed as being flattered by it because every woman wants to be talked in a condescending, sexualized manner by Tony Stark, of course they do. 

So -
+1 Non-sexualized, realistic outfit.
-1 Her minimal role is full of sexism and normalizes workplace harassment in a positive light.
-1 No female bonding or positive interactions with other women.

 2. Pepper Potts and her stiletto heels

Running in heels. That infamous sexist trope.

-Context: Pepper becomes embroiled in the movie's final showdown and turns up to investigate the antagonist's doings alongside Coulson and Co. from SHIELD. The antagonist ends up attacking them. She has to run from explosions and from the suited-up 'baddie'. In heels.

And not just any heels. THESE heels o_O

-Outfit analysis: As is unfortunately usual for many office and business jobs, pencil skirts (sometimes also pant suits) and stiletto heels are part of the daily 'uniform' of Pepper as a rich and important man's personal assistant. This is an example of the glaring double standard sexist-fest that is compulsory stiletto heels and skirts as part of many women's jobs - imagine having to wear uncomfortable and mobility-impairing contraptions just because of your gender, because if you're a woman, no matter if your job involves standing up of walking a lot (servers, assistants, secretaries, flight stewardesses, you name it), it's apparently super important to enhance your sexiness first and foremost. This has become so warped in our society that stiletto heels and pencil skirts have also come to mean 'professionalism' and 'smartness' as well as 'sexiness' and 'femininity', and are basically the 'female uniform' for many other occupations (from lawyers to businesswomen to politicians) where the woman in question wants to look adequately 'competent' and 'to be taken seriously'.  

 

And it's worth mentioning that in this movie we also get the delightful example of Stark's private plane's stewardesses, who sport high thin stilettos (and whose job apparently also includes pole dancing for the boss 😣).

So comfortable

But Pepper doesn't only have to brave through wearing stilettos and mobility-impairing skirts through her daily job, no. She also has to dive into - and run from - the action scenes of the last part of the movie in a tube-skirted dress and thin high heels. Because it's a cliché in this kind of man-made movies - as well as practical af, huh?! - to see women running from the danger and the baddies in stilettos.

"And as the tension mounts towards the film’s climax, watching her totter in heels to help save the day is unnerving–at least they could have given her some boots."  Source. 

(sarcasm all around once more)

(and again xD)

It was definitely ridiculous to have to see yet another woman run around in ridiculous thin heels without anyone questioning the absurdness of it all (couldn't Coulson or any of the agents give her another pair of shoes? Especially knowing they were going to face danger?? I guess maintaining her sexiness was the priority there :/). She is 100% ill-equipped for these action scenes - Even though she's not an 'action woman' per se, but she's very much in the *midst* of a pretty intense action area. And she is also very ill-equipped for an ardous daily job that requires moving and standing around a lot, just saying. 

Spot the differences between Coulson and Pepper

-About the character:

• Representation: She's competent in everything that she does, does have a role in thwarting the antagonist in the final showdown, and will become CEO of Stark Industries, but we cannot forget that her role as Stark's personal assistant and love interest means that most if not all of her actions revolve around the male hero's plot and decisions.  Pepper has the wit and cool-headedness to evade the antagonist in a scene prior to the final showdown, and the agency to go arrest him with SHIELD, so yay for Pepper there (and in heels no less), but she also kinda fulfills the 'damsel in distress' trope for a good chunk of said action scenes, surrounded by male agents with guns and hunted by the weaponized baddie.
• Female bonding/Bechdel with other women: Talks briefly with a journalist seduced by Stark (which shows us that Pepper knows exactly what kind of playboy life Stark has going on - one aspect of her job is to usher all his one-night stands out - and still finds his male entitlement, ego remotely attractive. And not only that, but the only scene where women talk is full of female competition, hell yeah! 😬). 

Pepper having a go at Stark's one-night conquests because hell yeah let's be jealous that your entitled womanizer boss sleeps with other women! "Why is she not referring to Stark as the trash in this situation? He's the one that continues to treat women as throwaway objects he's entitled to" Indeed (Source)

• Love interest/catering to men as main plot function? Yep. Her job is literally that. She doesn't really have a life of her own portrayed, and repeatedly has to put up with all the problematic stuff Stark comes up with because her job as his personal assistant is to attend to his every whim with a competent air, a ready smile, and a pair of stiletto heels always at the ready. Also a model of the female character who helps 'make the man better' with her emotional support and her putting up with too much of his shit (she does challenge some of his decisions, but yeah).  
  
• Additional notes (you know I had to xD): 
•  To those usually saying Stark appreciates and respects her competence, and that he gets more character development in that direction - that may be so, and I don't deny that Iron Man gets some character development going on in this MCU arch (without really making him accountable for his former higher levels of obnoxious sexism, if I may add, tho). But Pepper's still fulfilling the traditional role of the woman who does all the men's work while not being the actual boss, CEO or not. Not her actual company, but her boss-boyfriend's company. Yes, she wields power, as so many female PA's, consorts and the like do - But not her actual power, at the end of the day. Women with actual power are actually often portrayed as 'evil', 'bossy' and 'controlling', but because Pepper has Stark as her superior, that's all right if she displays her competence and skills. And it's also all right that she shows a lot of competence while catering to each and every one of the male protagonist's needs, paperwork and wishes, of course ("I don't think you could tie your shoes without me" and such are shown as proof of Pepper's competence, not Stark's utter incompetence when it comes to boring bureocratic matters other women handle for him).
• She's also treated in a pretty controlling and manipulative way by Stark in more than one occasion in this movie ("I don't like it when you have plans" and several other quotes come to mind). Yes, Stark gets character development, especially regarding his moral compass, and that's great, but his entitlement and flyboy attitude are still there in more than one way, and he is never held accountable for his casual sexism and use of women in the same way he is for his prior pro-weapons stance (if at all). They want to sell us Pepper's constant calm competence and apparent no-nonsense attitude as proof of her empowerment, maybe also to show us that everything's super normal and healthy where Stark is involved, a good foundation for a relationship (especially now that he's becoming the better hero!). But with that kind of discourse they're also hiding under the rug all of Stark's bullshit behaviour (for ex., the rather creepy scene where he pressures Pepper to fix his heart reactor or else he will go into cardiac arrest; the party scene where Pepper is uncomfortable to dance publicly in a backless dress with her boss, while privileged manly womanizer Stark is not only unaffected by sexist double standards of what people may think, but also suggests that maybe if he fired her she would feel better about the flirty scenario; or the cringeworthy entitlement in the very last scene where he very unsubtly asks Pepper to be his girlfriend), as well as promoting the idea that PA's are super happy to have demanding narcissistic womanizer bosses, so much they end up hardcore crushing on them! Yes, Pepper refuses Stark's offer at the end of the movie ("No matter how proud she might be of the ‘man he’s become’ Pepper’s not about to get into a relationship with a man who treats her like shit (hurrah), even if she might still work for him." Source). But as we know, that won't last long 😬

So - 

+1 Capable and competent. She's also pretty cool-headed in a crisis, even though -
-1 SHE HAS TO RUN IN HEELS EVERYWHERE. Also, job, plot and love story revolve around narcissistic womanizer dude who's never really accountable for his sexist behaviour.
-1 No female bonding or positive interactions with other women in this movie.