Very well made point there actually. I guess female characters can be very powerful and strong, just not in your typical "strong-man" way. For example, Lulu in FFX was a very strong mage, who for me was my main damage-dealer along with Auron for much of the game.

While female characters can be shoehorned into "magical" roles, which I find slightly odd, it's important to remember that those magical roles can be bloody powerful ones.

I know it's early days and it's only Part II, but XIII did alot for me to rebalance things. Fang and Lightning spring to mind very quickly. But then again, Jihl Nabaat's just your stereotypical big busted school teacher. It's annoying. For every breakthrough, they have to include a counterbalance of a huge rack. Guess you can't have it all.