Market›Flea (Chrono Trigger)
Company Profile

Flea (Chrono Trigger)

Flea, known as Mayonnai in Japanese, is a fictional character in the Chrono series of video games. He is a shapeshifter that presents as feminine but identifies as a man and, in Japanese, uses feminine signifiers in his speech. He first appears in Chrono Trigger, where he serves as a subordinate to the antagonist Magus and cameos in the sequel, Chrono Cross. Flea has been recognized as a noteworthy LGBT character, particularly for non-binary and genderqueer people. Critics like writer Flynn Demarco and author William Gibbons felt disappointed by the use of stereotypes of transgender people and androgyny to represent villainy.

Concept and creation
Flea was created for Chrono Trigger by artist Akira Toriyama. Flea is named Mayonnai in Japanese, a play on mayonnaise. This was changed in the English version to Flea, based on the musician of the same name. Flea ends all of his sentences with in the Japanese version, intended to be "[sickeningly] cutesy." He also speaks in a tough feminine tone, using the personal pronoun . During English localization, the nature of Flea's character was partially lost due to Nintendo of America's strict policies on "sexually suggestive or explicit content." Feminine signifiers, such as a feminine manner of speaking, tildes, long vowel marks, and heart icons were absent in the English version. ==Appearances==
Appearances
Flea first appears in Chrono Trigger. ==Reception==
Reception
Flea has been discussed as an LGBT character by multiple critics, with critics like author William Gibbons noting how his androgyny is used to indicate villainy. Automaton writer Ritsuko Kawai discussed Flea's gender, citing him as an example of how LGBT depictions in video games in the 90s increased dramatically. While describing his design as seductive, he could not determine whether the character was meant to be transgender or queer. TechRadar writer Christian Guyton felt that Flea was handled well, particularly for an LGBT character from the 90s, noting how the main characters use male pronouns after they initially mistook him for a woman. Flea has been criticized as being played for laughs by multiple critics, including RPGFan writer Nilson Carroll and IGN Japan writer Nayuta Miki. Flea also made a lasting impact on Miki, believing that he was a transgender character and stating that he stood out among what they believed to be the role-playing genre's propensity to favor heterosexual romances with little representation for queer people. Authors Adrienne Shaw and Elizaveta Friesem suggested that Flea was coded as non-binary or genderqueer, while author Madeleine Brookman expressed surprise that Nintendo of America allowed the localization team to depict him the way they did. Autostraddle writer Loraine commented on Flea's line about power and beauty positively, declaring him their favorite character in Chrono Trigger. Despite disappointment that he was a villain, they praised the game for not making a joke out of Flea's ambiguous gender. They were unsure of how Flea was meant to be depicted, citing poor representation of trans and gender-nonconforming people during localization. The Advocate writer Jacob Ogles regarded it as the "greatest pro-trans [line] in gaming history" and listed Flea as one of the best LGBT characters in video games. ==References==
Source: Wikipedia ↗
tickerdossier.comtickerdossier.substack.com