mera – Question of Smoke

youcompletedmyscarymission:

you know what i love about valkyrie? she’s a woman and the narrative doesn’t hold a knife against her neck for it

that scene of her falling down drunk in her first appearance? amazing! that’s there for us to know she has a drinking problem, but don’t underestimate her because she will still get the job done. it’s not there to make us oogle her, it’s there to show us she is a person.

the weight of her survivor’s guilt and the ptsd and the questioning of her identity because everything that made her a valkyrie, a protector of the throne, a fearsome warrior in the ranks of other legendary women, was taken from her by the people she should never have had to fight

thor asks for her aid because she is a warrior and her reputation precedes her. he doesn’t needle her to join by invoking her gender, but rather her pride.

the things we associate more frequently with male characters like heavy drinking or physical strength are embodied in valkyrie, but it’s not there to make her ‘manly’ or Not Like Other Girls. in fact, it’s to remind us that these are things that can be true of women. women can be traumatized and turn to alcohol. they can isolate themselves and run away from their problems and want to punch their demons in the face. men don’t have a monopoly on compelling backstories!

valkyrie got everything that make men shine in the marvel franchise and it didn’t come at the expense of her gender or her race