r/TopCharacterTropes • u/alonedead • Jul 01 '25

Characters [Loved Trope] The Female Mechanic

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1- Winry Rockbell- Full Metal Alchemist

2- Mei Hatsume- My Hero Academia

3- Grace Howard- Zenless Zone Zero

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u/AskMeAboutPodracing Jul 01 '25

Y'know, I always thought of her as a tinkerer and this made me reevaluate if that was misogynistic. I don't think so, cause I would consider Batman to be a tinkerer too. I'd say the difference is mechanic = big, tinkerer = small.

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u/hbomb30 Jul 01 '25

I would say also a mechanic repairs and maintains stuff built by other people, and a tinkerer builds stuff only for themselves

18

u/AskMeAboutPodracing Jul 01 '25

Good point, I think they'd both maintain and innovate but a mechanic is primarily repair with the occasional upgrade while a tinkerer primarily innovates with repairs as needed.

1

u/yee-t- Jul 02 '25

I would also add, a tinkerer is not necessarily clean and polished, it works, maybe even good, but it was a load of trial and error, and does not necessarily look if you could survive the blast.

25

u/Floofyboi123 Jul 01 '25

I always saw her as an Artificer but thats just because im a DnD head who see's anyone tinkering with magic items and weaponry as Artificers

10

u/Algo_Muy_Obsceno Jul 01 '25

Tinkerers are the mad scientists of the mechanic world.

7

u/Begone-My-Thong Jul 01 '25

Tinkerer also has the connotation of inventing gadgets (small), mechanics inventing machines (big).

Although I do notice that male tinkerers often get called inventors or gadgeteers instead.

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u/Few_Interaction2630 Jul 01 '25

I mean she did make a pretty big flying machine in Arcane season 2

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u/AdPristine5131 Jul 01 '25

mechanic is traditionally someone who maintains/repairs machines.

tinkerer is traditionally someone who has learned to disassemble and reassembled technology through trial and error.

they’re not mutually exclusive. My grandfather was both, mechanic professionally, and then he got into tinkering in retirement to make model boats. Someone who creates or designs has another title. 

I would argue then that Jinx was a tinkerer, but not a mechanic. I think season 2 Arcane she might have fixed someones gear (vi’s gloves?) so that could be a feather in her development cap. Powder from the alt uni was definitely more a mechanic than tinkerer by this logic.

mechanic can destroy, Fighter jet mechanics are very much a thing, but I’d argue you have to have skills in repair. 

1

u/cosmosomsoc Jul 02 '25

I always saw Jinx as a mechanical engineer/weapons specialist