Girls and Subcultures

This is late, but I keep thinking about McRobbie's analysis of girls and subcultures in light of some of the reading I've been doing about the Otaku scene. McRobbie suggests that if the subcultures of girls somehow "provide their members with a collective confidence which could transcend the need for 'boys'" that it was a sign of progress (33). The Otaku cafes where girls dress as boys, for girls to come and pretend "flirt," seems to fit this description. Girls protect themselves from having their feelings hurt by boys who do not understand them, but they get to engage in play-flirting that is engaging, but completely harmless. I think this is an empowering move!