I got several comments on my Rinne no Lagrange first episode review, not so much pertaining to the show itself but in relation to a paragraph I posted about my thoughts on the term "Mary Sue" and how it did/didn't apply to the main character of that series. Those thoughts were based on a blog post that I linked to in the review. There was some discussion about the accuracy of the blog post and the use of "Mary Sue," as well as the choice that the author made to use the character Batman as a male comparison. I thought it was an interesting discussion that might better be addressed and clarified out in the open rather than multiple times in the comment section of that review, so here I am.
The primary point that I took away from Comic Book Girl's examination of Mary Sues is that we generally have different ways of examining and critiquing female characters than we do male characters. I wouldn't say that everyone is so-inclined - I'd argue that a good critic is someone who's equally critical of a poorly-written male or female character - but as far as casual criticism goes, what I have personally witnessed is that it seems much easier for people to jump on a dopey, poorly-written female character and criticize her freely, while ignoring or deliberately avoiding Johnny-goody-two-shoes in the other corner. It doesn't help that there really aren't a lot of lead roles for women, period, but that's a whole other post.
As at least one commenter mentioned, the term itself comes from a particular character from a particular Star Trek fanfiction from way back in the day. It came to refer to a very specific type of self-insert, one who is mysterious, unrealistically-talented and/or unnaturally beautiful, and beloved by all of the canon characters. I don't necessarily have a problem with the term as it describes these kinds of characters (since they are pretty one-dimensional and uninteresting), but what I do have a problem with is what I see as its widespread use to describe any sort of female character who's any measure above the norm. This isn't a crime committed by most critics that I'm familiar with, but poke around forums for a while and you're sure to see the term flung around in this way (and it's even listed as one of several relevant definitions of the term on the TV Tropes page for Mary Sue. Apologies in advance for the link, which will trap you within a TV Tropes time warp that may last for several hours). I don't mind being corrected about the definition and technical use of the term, but I do believe in semantic shift, especially in such a quickly-changing environment like online fandom. As a fan who doesn't passionately follow fanfiction but who pokes her head in once-in-a-while, this is my experience; we have different standards for judging original characters from fanfiction, and those standards often extend to "official" canon characters. And no, the existence of a male version,"Marty Stu" or "Gary Stu" (depending on your preference), does not imply that the male use of the term is nearly as common, or that the extensive use of the female version is somehow free from criticism.
This was the reason I applied this line of thinking to my review of Rinne no Lagrange's first episode; my immediate urge was to call Madoka a Mary Sue character mostly because of the time the episode spent showcasing her extraordinary skills and the devotion towards her as demonstrated by the girls in her class. I caught myself, though, because that's not fair; Madoka is an idealized hero character with skills to match. She might not be the type of character I care for (I prefer more regular, everyday people), and the series in which she stars doesn't appear to be anything special, but to knock some characters for being improbably brainy, physically strong, or talented means to criticize several lead characters from stories that span all media (which often doesn't happen). And that is where the term's semantic shift has proven to be the most detrimental to the expression of women's power fantasies an heroic ideals. One step out-of-line and she's a Mary Sue as judged by the layperson fanbase, whereas her male counterpart may not undergo the same scrutiny. Likewise, despite Batman/Bruce Wayne's adherence to many of the profile quirks of a traditional Mary Sue, it can be argued that he's not one, so it's a label that should be applied just as carefully and thoughtfully to women who are attractive, powerful and/or mega-rich. Being a fantasy doesn't make her a Mary Sue. Being unrealistic in certain ways doesn't make her meritless as a character.
In closing, I'm no Mary Sue apologist and I am aware of where the term comes from and what it means, but the point I'm trying to make is that its use is out of control. Even someone like me, who prides herself on trying to be conscious of race, gender and sexuality, can internalize this kind of fandom baggage, and that makes me feel a little ashamed of myself. My only regret in this specific case is that I made a big deal out of the use of this terminology as it relates to a series that doesn't seem as though it'll be worth talking about any further, but them's the breaks.
To elaborate on my previous post, here's a perfect example of the type of character in non-fanfic works that can be correctly classed as a Mary Sue.
Berry Shirayuki, main character of Tokyo Mew Mew a la Mode, the manga-only sequel to Tokyo Mew Mew, is a half-Japanese half-British girl with long golden hair, unusual red eyes, and flawless pale skin. She's in a perfect little fairy-tale relationship with a new waiter at Cafe Mew Mew within moments of meeting him, and every other boy who sees her thinks she's just so incredibly attractive. She can speak several different languages fluently and eat 10 whole cakes in one sitting without every worrying about getting fat. As soon as they meet her, the other Mew Mews become obsessed with her, stalking her everywhere, constantly crowing about how perfect and awesome she is, even transfering to her school {a private school that she admits she only enrolled in because they have cute uniforms} so they can be around her at all times. The villains have no real reason for wanting her gone, just that she's so perfect. She gets injected with the DNA of TWO animals instead of one because she's such a lucky speshul snowflake. And when Ichigo comes back for the final battle, she's there just to give every last ounce of her power to Berry, which makes Berry 10 times stronger than Ichigo was at her strongest and reduces Ichigo to her helpless kitten form for the remainder of the manga.
Tell me with a straight face that this character is not a Sue. In fact, she's even classified as a God Mode Sue and a Black Hole Sue, she's so bad.
There are male characters like that, too. In Gravion (and Gravion Zwei) there's a character named Klein Sandman. He's handsome, rich, sophisticated, accomplished, lusted after by all women, envied (but never hated) by all men, and he has a tragic past.
An absolutely CLASSIC Marty Stu.