*Warning: Slight spoilers for Yona of the Dawn ahead
Strength derived from strife. Power derived from loss. Love derived from betrayal. Friendship derived from exile. Yona had to deal with all of this and lost so much but gained that much more in return. Forced to grow up from just a carefree sixteen-year-old girl without a care in the world and only worried about how unruly her beautiful red hair was, to a fierce warrior with a group of powerful friends who will follow her to the ends of the earth and help her obtain her one goal: take back her beloved country from the man who murdered her father, the king. And was once the one she called the love of her life.
Yona in Yona of the Dawn is such an underrated character in an underrated anime. She’s powerful because of all of the things she had to face and go through. At the age of only sixteen, she had to witness her childhood crush and cousin kill her father and then flee from the only place she knew, the only place she had ever called home just so she could stay alive. Sure she had Hak with her, but even though she had him by her side and then one by one, the dragon warriors to help her on her quest of taking back her kingdom, the emotional healing, and growth that she had to go through was purely on her own. No one could help her with that.
I chose to write about Yona because seeing that it’s International Women’s Month, I thought what better way to celebrate it than showing off one of the many strong ladies in anime. Yea, I could have chosen to write about Erza Scarlet, Ochaco Uraraka and the other ladies of MHA, Celty Sturluson, or even Nobara Kugisaki, and maybe I will in the coming days–International Women’s Month does go on for a month after all and even then why can’t we celebrate them all the time? But I digress. The fact is, I could have chosen to write about any one of those amazing women in anime first, but I chose to write about Yona because of all of the things she had to go through in such a short time, her personality, and the fact that this amazing girl doesn’t get enough credit in general. She and her anime are highly underrated. I can even bet good money on the fact that some of you who are reading this, probably didn’t know of Yona of the Dawn or at the very least never seen it. That’s why the spotlight is on her today.
What could I possibly say from what I have already said? I don’t want to give away the whole anime, but I do want to point out some of the trials that she has faced that make her the strong young woman that I am proud to write about; probably the biggest thing is that she kept going. No matter what she was feeling, how hard the task was to find the Dragon Warriors that she was prophesied to be with. Or how long her journey was. Or even the fact that she felt inadequate, so she would train long into the night, firing arrow after arrow so she could protect the ones she loved. Not a single care for herself, but for her friends, the ones she came to know as her family. She. Kept. Going. Yes, she had Hak by her and one by one each member of her little ragtag crew, but the thing is, even though each one gave her strength in their own unique ways, it was purely up to her to accept it and run with it so-to-speak. Yona could have just run back to the castle and accepted her fate or even just given up and refused to take another step. But she didn’t.
That’s why I admire Yona and the anime itself. She and the storyline are incredibly powerful. Showing that no matter what happens in life, if you keep going no matter how painful life’s circumstances may be, you will come out on the other side stronger. I highly recommend this anime. Plus the chemistry that is between the whole group–Hak and Yona especially, is just too damn cute.
Well, that’s all this Fae has to say. Be sure to be on the lookout for more powerful women in anime articles…
Rebel Fae out!
The Rebel Fae 
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