Talk:Woobie

Hey! Question: does the character always need to be male? I've only ever heard it applied to male characters, so I wonder if this should be added to the description. --lian 07:30, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

I think traditionally most woobies have been male because (to me) the key aspect of a woobie is how silently/stoically they suffer through their trials. Lex for instance would repeatedly have some horrible, soul-destroying thing happen to him in canon and then just stand there with terrible devastation sort of hiding behind his eyes but no actual outward reaction. Same with, say, Dean Winchester (for those who watch SPN think of that shot in "Bloodlust" where Dean kills the male vampire and then just stands there staring at Sam with blood spattered across his face.) I think in most genre shows female characters just aren't allowed to be that stoic, or that bottled up about their emotions, so most woobies are traditionally male. (Does anyone in BSG fandom call any of their tough female characters woobies? I don't know.) -- Liviapenn 14:57, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense. Female woobies intrigue me! ...if they exist :) --lian 23:12, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Does anyone know the origin of the term? I seem to recall one account that Te and a second party came up with it. --Betty 15:10, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

I think it was Te, yeah. It might have come from an episode of "Batman: The Animated Series," where Barbara Gordon's teddy bear is named Woobie. Or it might be something Te just randomly came up with. -- Liviapenn 22:54, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

The first use of "woobie" I ever heard was in Mr. Mom, in 1983 -- the youngest kid's security blanket was his "woobie". It was in popular culture to at least some degree after that, and B:tAS would have been referencing it. (Quote from the film (dad to kid, trying to get him to give up the blankie): "I understand that you little guys start out with your woobies and you think they're great... and they are, they are terrific. But pretty soon, a woobie isn't enough. You're out on the street trying to score an electric blanket, or maybe a quilt. And the next thing you know, you're strung out on bedspreads Ken. That's serious.") --Arduinna 21:57, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

I think "woobie" might be british slang, not American. --rache 23:15, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

I think there's been some fannish drift with this term, but I don't have anything to back it up other than a general sense of how I see it used (and use it myself). To me it's more of a fanfic thing than a canon thing. In fact, thinking about it, I think it's actually the opposite of the original meaning! Instead of someone who suffers in silence and doesn't let it show, I think of it as being someone who's all emo and cutting, a la typical post-Trinity!Rodney. --Kyuuketsukirui 03:53, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree -- and I think we need both definitions in there. Go for it! --Sherrold 19:45, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Hey, there's a link or two on the wanted page for "Woobification" -- does that need to be a sep page, or can we redirect it here? --Sherrold 05:39, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

I'll go ahead and do the redirect. --rache 15:12, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

I found a thread on Wussification = subtle homophobia, which made me wonder, does Wussification = Woobification, or is Wussification the next step down... (with its own article)

IMO, Wussification=Feminization, Infantilization, etc but not Woobification. It's a subtle difference, but a continuously crying mulder, one that has little provocation for tears, is a wuss, but not a woobie. A stoic mulder, trying in vain to hold back tears as Scully is dying in his arms, would be a woobie. A woobie crys out for comforting, while a wuss simply cries. --rache 21:30, 19 November 2008 (UTC)

Scientific poll

Worst fanon childhood poll. Woobie related? --MegR 09:56, 1 March 2010 (UTC)