How to Train Your Dragon is one of my favorite movies. I love this movie for two reasons: Hiccup and Astrid.
First, Hiccup is what some in Romanceland calls a beta hero and I lurves the betas. Second, Astrid is a terrific, strong female character.
Regarding betas …. The definition varies, but a beta hero is the opposite of an alpha hero. Alpha heroes are the kind of men who get stuff done with brute force. They are usually endowed with … a corresponding amount of muscle, and often (annoyingly) characterized as emotionally constipated. Honestly? That’s not my idea of a romantic hero. Yeah, the muscles are nice, but as I’ve noted elsewhere, it wouldn’t be long before I got bored and cheated on Mr. Manly with the geeky astrophysicist across the hall.
The beta hero is more a thinking man/woman’s hero. He won’t or can’t rely on muscle and instead uses his brain to save the day. But the beta hero is still a hero. And better yet, freed of all the stupid conventions of macho-hero-dom, he is allowed a healthy range of human emotions.
Recently, in a discussion over at Dear Author, an author who specializes in alpha heroes was quoted to say that big, brooding, troglodytes appealed to modern women because, deep down, we’re all cave women. And our inner cave woman knows that the sensitive beta is destined to be a sabre-toothed tiger snack.
The idea is blindingly stupid because it ignores human nature. Testosterone didn’t make us the most successful and adaptable species on the planet. It was our big brain and opposable thumb. Without the nifty Clovis point spear designed by a prehistoric McGuyver, Mr. Manly would also be a tiger’s Scooby snack. Then there’s the fact that hyper-masculine men are often one stupid step from a Darwin Award. Blundering blinding into danger isn’t much of a survival strategy.
How to Train Your Dragon isn’t a romance, but Hiccup, the skinny, wiseass, inventor son of alpha-Viking Stoik the Vast, is a beta hero. He saves his people with a combination of brains and bravery.
His heroine is the Valkarie-esque Astrid.
Here’s where this movie could have gone horribly off course. First, Astrid, for all her aggressive bravery, isn’t stupid. She (unlike a lot of female protagonists in urban fantasy, grumble, grumble) is a capable fighter who doesn’t spend every moment onscreen spoiling for a fight. Hers is a down-to-business approach to dragon fighting. She’s the perfect woman warrior.
Better yet, there are no “female theatrics.” For example, at one point, after having met Toothless the Night Fury and taken a ride on his back, Astrid easily concedes that there is more to dragons that the Vikings have believed. But, she notes, she and Hiccup now know the location of the dragons’ lair and must tell their parents. When Hiccup, fearing for Toothless’s safety, says no, she angrily asks if he is willing to pass up this chance to defeat the dragons just to save his pet.
Hiccup says unapologetically, “Yes.” This is where I might expect Astrid to turn into a banshee, scolding him for his selfishness, ignoring the bond he has with Toothless, and finally, stomping off in a snit.
This “please-kill-her-now” archetype is illustrated perfectly by Rachel Dawes in Batman Begins, when she scolds Bruce Wayne for wanting to kill his parents’ murderer. Rachel is supposed to be functioning as his conscience, but her approach is self-righteous and nothing short of heartless. (And what moron thought Katie Holmes had the gravitas for the role, anyway?)
Astrid, however, is taken back by Hiccup’s response. Rather than scolding, she takes time to think and then asks him what he plans to do. Easy-peasy, no drama. They interact like … human beings. Imagine that.
I find it annoying that the only way some writers know to interject tension or drama is to fall back on the battle of the sexes cliché. The conversations between some screenwriters must go like this:
Writer One: Okay, so Bob’s dog has just died, his car’s been repossessed and a giant meteor has destroyed his house. How can we amp up the drama?
Writer Two: I know! Let’s have his girlfriend shriek at him like a rabid harpy, accusing him of being insensitive because he forgot her birthday. Oh, and don’t let him get a word in edgewise. Won’t that be cute?
Nope. Not cute. Take a cue from How to Train Your Dragon and let the guy save the day, with his girl at his side, with her acting like a capable and sane partner.
