I would argue that your milage may vary in regards to whether or not you are sexually harassed, objectified, etc. in WoW based on the gender you choose to roll and whether or not you speak on vent. I can't recall someone being hateful to me simply for sexism's sake in random groups, guilds, or ventrilo (though someone did refer to me with the name that Garrosh calls Sylvanas because I called them out on ninjaing all of the loot in a lowbie PuG), but if a girl does have to put up with that kind of behavior, I feel sorry for her. I also feel sorry for anyone who has to put up with any kind of harassment in-game; this is not limited to one specific group, and nobody deserves random hate directed towards them by other players.

With that being said, I can't say I agree with the author of this article's stance that Firepaw's gender disparaging comments make Blizzard sexist as a whole. Firepaw is but one of their characters in a busy world of moving pieces; personalities of all types live there, from the impetuous and rude to the benevolent and kind. Part of Ji Firepaw's character is that he makes such odd remarks to people upon first meeting them. Yes, some may feel offended by them, some may like or find his words funny, and others such as myself may just be puzzled at what he says, but we must keep in mind that these statements are the opinion of one character in an entire universe of others. If every character up and down the quest chain was making (what could be perceived as) passes at female pandaren, then we should throw up some red flags.

Ji Firepaw doesn't really come off as sexist to me, but I remember a male orc quest-giver in Orgrimmar who told my character something along the lines of, "I made two mistakes: first, I trusted a blood elf, and second, I trusted a woman!" Can you guess what race and gender I was playing? Yes, that comment is terribly offensive to women, but that orc told my CHARACTER (not my actual person) this sexist remark, and I realize that statement just reveals a notable character flaw in the orc. Do you think anyone was supposed to read that comment and see it as being an absolute truth? No, it was more likely intended to be something that caused one to scratch their head upon reading, and it certainly doesn't mean that Blizzard feels that women can't be trusted. On the grounds that Firepaw's comment ticks you off or gives you the jitters due to its creep-factor, remember that he's looking at your character when he says this comment, not you. Also I hope I can reasonably guess that any woman any day would prefer to be called gorgeous rather than untrustworthy.

As for the armor, I agree that there are double standards. I, personally, don't mind and sometimes enjoy sets that are less-than-covering to my characters (each one a female) because they can be fun and feminine, and some of them look damn good. Thanks to transmogrification, there are now options for every female character to look sexy, tough, majestic, natural, or largely whatever their heart desires in both revealing and covering forms. I'm glad for that because variety is the spice of life; I just wish that male characters had some of that spice, too (though I'm not particularly partial to many of the blocky male models)! We ladies, on average, could stand to be better at taking compliments; which would you prefer: Ji Firepaw tells your character that she looks gorgeous, or Ji Firepaw tells your character that she looks like she'd be good at making him sandwiches?

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