NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Entertainment

Raybon Kan: There is nothing like a Dame, and a Queen

Raybon Kan
By Raybon Kan
Raybon Kan is an award-winning stand-up comedian·NZ Herald·
7 Jun, 2017 05:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Israeli actor Gal Gadot is a super Wonder Woman, in a film that is a female-directed triumph of feminisism. Photo / Supplied

Israeli actor Gal Gadot is a super Wonder Woman, in a film that is a female-directed triumph of feminisism. Photo / Supplied

Raybon Kan
Opinion by Raybon Kan
Raybon Kan is an award-winning stand-up comedian
Learn more

What a weekend for women. The Queen (who rose to the rank of Queen, despite being a woman) had a birthday. And she gave out knighthoods in this part of her queendom, including one to Julie Christie.

How long before there's a reality show, where competitors compete to service some sector, and every week the Queen says to one of them: "You're knighted".

(Is it sexist to call the Queen the Queen? Should we use the word King for both? Monarch?)

Certainly, I don't think Dame sounds as cool as Sir.

I think women, when knighted, should be called Sir. Dame sounds derogatory, 1930s gangster style, something James Cagney would mutter, before correcting a lady with the butt of his gun.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And then of course: Wonder Woman.

While watching Wonder Woman this weekend, I wondered: would Wonder Woman win World War I? And once won, would Wonder Woman wed?

I watched Wonder Woman in 3D, because two dimensions are simply not enough to show all her extra dimensions: empathy, open-mindedness, and an impulse to goo-gah over babies.

Worry not: there are no spoilers in this piece, because nothing could spoil such a wonderful film. Wonder Woman believes in love, but that's not a spoiler. It's her womanifesto. And while she believes in love, her methods of persuasion are not of the Jesus or Dalai Lama kind.

Wonder Woman's belief in love is expressed by kicking the living peace accord out of anyone who disagrees with her. And by kicking, I mean killing. If the technology existed, she'd have filled body-bags by the morgue-full.

Discover more

Opinion

Hey Donald, what about us?

17 May 05:00 PM
Opinion

Kan: Don't get me started on tipping

24 May 05:00 PM
Opinion

Kan: Budget as exciting as chores roster

25 May 05:00 PM
Opinion

Raybon Kan: Saving ourselves from KFC

31 May 05:00 PM

At first, she hesitates momentarily to take part in battle: but once one of her compatriots is struck down, oh boy, that's it: she's a one-woman weapon of war. Her belief in love, while strongly stated, knows no hope of individual redemption.

It doesn't matter if you were drafted, reluctantly, into the Kaiser's German army. Wonder Woman kills any man in German uniform, pausing only to look for the next.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In the last six months, I can think of three Hollywood films with a female hero: Moana, Beauty and the Beast, and Wonder Woman.

The first superhero movie to be directed by a woman, history will record Wonder Woman as the most significant film of the year, after Get Out. Moana was directed not by one, but TWO men. This is the level of sexism in Hollywood.

(And don't get me started on racism and white-washing. Right now, right here, in our very country, a TV show about Chinese mythology - Legend of the Monkey - is being produced with no Asian cast members. (Okay, one cast-member, who's half-Asian.) Seriously, why not call it Legend of the Honky?)

But back on topic. Beauty and the Beast, starring Emma (Hermione) Watson, pretty much instructs girls to marry the richest guy you meet, even if he's imprisoned you in his castle, behind bars, and isn't remotely of the same species. They might as well have called it Beauty and the Sugar Daddy.

Like any kept woman, Beauty chooses a loving, nurturing relationship with the household chattels - the enchanted candelabra, teapot and wardrobe - and of course, the castle's future capital gain.

Wonder Woman, on the other hand, elevates a female to the same status as Thor - a god - except Thor doesn't kill this many humans. Thor's fight is a family dispute. Wonder Woman, on the other hand, has left her paradise to save grubby humanity from itself, even if it means killing a ton of them, as an example to the rest.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Does it undermine feminism that this superhero is, to quote Zoolander, ridiculously good-looking?

Only beauty pageant winners have ever been cast. The 1970s Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter, was Miss World America; and Gal Gadot was Miss Israel.

Should Wonder Woman have been called Wonder Object? The costume is inherently like being judged in the swimsuit category, but male superheroes have to wear the spray-on outfit too.

Movie stars, whatever gender, tend to be ridiculously good-looking. Look at Thor, or the guys who've played Superman. Sean Connery was Mr Scotland.

But with Wonder Woman, the object of female beauty is no damsel. She's the one who climbs the tower, and when she does, she's there to steal a weapon.

My only quibble is that her costume includes high heeled boots, which seem impractical for athletics. Serena Williams doesn't wear high-heeled tennis shoes.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Then again, Wonder Woman's a god, so her ankles probably don't sprain. (Though, Achilles famously had heel problems.)

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Entertainment

Entertainment

Riccarton High: The centre of a changing Christchurch

03 Jul 07:29 AM
Entertainment

Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu

03 Jul 06:00 AM
Entertainment

The Kiwi still teaching Aussies to wave after 30 years

03 Jul 05:31 AM

Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

Riccarton High: The centre of a changing Christchurch

Riccarton High: The centre of a changing Christchurch

03 Jul 07:29 AM

Frank: Stories from the South, episode 8 – High on Culture.

Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu

Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu

03 Jul 06:00 AM
The Kiwi still teaching Aussies to wave after 30 years

The Kiwi still teaching Aussies to wave after 30 years

03 Jul 05:31 AM
Coronation Street star living life to the fullest after beating cancer

Coronation Street star living life to the fullest after beating cancer

02 Jul 09:23 PM
Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP