Back Poison (Final Fight) Spanish Poison (Final Fight) French Poison (Final Fight) Italian ポイズン (ファイナルファイト) Japanese Poison (Final Fight) Portuguese
| Poison | |
|---|---|
| Final Fight and Street Fighter character | |
&sq=&lang=en&file=File:Poison_SF.png) Poison from Final Fight | |
| First game | Final Fight (1989) |
| Created by | Akira "Akiman" Yasuda[1] |
| Designed by | Akira "Akiman" Yasuda[1] Trent Kaniuga (Streetwise)[2] Takayuki Nakamura (SFV)[3] |
| Voiced by |
|
| In-universe information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California[5] |
| Nationality | American |
Poison (Japanese: ポイズン) is a character in Capcom's Final Fight and Street Fighter series of video games. Created by Akira Yasuda for Capcom, Poison was originally conceived as a female thug in Final Fight alongside a similar character, Roxy, as part of the game's antagonist group Mad Gear, taking inspiration for her design from Jeanne Basone's appearance as "Hollywood" in professional wrestling magazine G.L.O.W. She later appeared in other Capcom-produced games, media and merchandise in particular those related to the Final Fight and Street Fighter franchises, with later appearances partnering her with fellow Final Fight character Hugo as his wrestling manager. Since her introduction several other designers have contributed to her designs and outfits, including Jun Ikawa, Trent Kaniuga, and Takayuki Nakamura. She is voiced by Atsuko Tanaka since the Street Fighter III series and Masae Yumi in SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos.[6][7]
Poison and Roxy were designed as fast, athletic characters for players to encounter. Due to concerns during Final Fight's development about reactions from North American audiences to fighting women, both Poison and Roxy were labeled as "newhalfs", a Japanese slang term for trans women. However, Nintendo of America did not consider this satisfactory and both Poison and Roxy were replaced by the male characters "Billy" and "Sid" and have been for every subsequent North American port of the title on Nintendo consoles and handhelds. This, coupled with several conflicting statements over the years, has led to her gender being questioned, though some statements imply that Poison is transgender, while Roxy is cisgender. Most recently, Capcom has taken the stance that Poison's gender is open to viewer interpretation.
The character's sex appeal has led to her being highly regarded, though often with acknowledgment of her gender status. The early ambiguity regarding this subject has led to much discussion and debate amongst fans of the character. While it has been acknowledged that the original circumstances were less than ideal, she is regarded as one of the earliest and most popular examples of a transgender character in video games.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
designworkswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
trentwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Street Fighter V Climax Arts + Zero to 6 (in Japanese). 双葉社. January 2023. ISBN 9784575317794.
- ^ a b c "Poison Voices (Street Fighter)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
cccpoisonwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Game Credits for Street Fighter III: Third Strike". MobyGames. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 16 June 2009.
- ^ "Game Credits for SvC Chaos". MobyGames. Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 16 June 2009.