Loki92

Daisy Ridley and Natalie Portman will, forever and always, be my girl crushes. And now Emilia.

Movies

For me it's Carrie and Emilia.

Loki92

Actually I adore all the female characters.

Movies

Star Wars does a great job with them.

Loki92

It does.

Movies

But Qi'ra was really badass.

Loki92

I have never been fond of the femme fatale. While that role gave a female character something more to do in the mystery/crime genre, exchanging passivity for vileness has always seemed a poor tradeoff. Moreover, the femme fatale frequently was punished at the end of the tale, not just for being evil but for also for daring to step outside of the usual definitions of femininity at the time of the archetype's inception. But in this case it played out perfectly.

Movies

The femme fatale exists as a test for the hero, to see if he is able to reject emotion and retain the isolation that is threatened by his attraction to the femme fatale. Will the hero be able to resist her and do the right thing?

Loki92

Han wasn't really able to.

Movies

I wouldn't have been either

Loki92

Can't blame him.

Movies

Val and L3 are both killed off in a way that alters and helps define the relationships between two male characters. I didn't like that to be honest.

Loki92

I am glad Qi'ra didn't die either.

Movies

While Han does end up proving himself a mark above common smugglers and thieves by helping Enfys Nest at the end of Solo, it's ultimately Qi'ra who passes the test that would have been meant for Han in a typical noir tale.

Loki92

Qi'ra inhabits the femme fatale archetype in a manner that blends the expected tropes of the villainess with those of a male hero.