Welcome to this week’s installment of Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week, wherein we spotlight strong women and nonbinary folks who inspire us. Now, this not only includes fictional characters in geeky media but creators as well. These folks are a prime example of empowerment and how crucial it is for youth to have said example to follow.
DISCLAIMER: The following contains spoilers for Apple TV’s Mythic Quest. Proceed at your peril.
Poppy Li
Fast Facts:
Not much is known about Poppy Li‘s (Charlotte Nicdao) past beyond her spending her formative years in Australia. Poppy graduated from the prestigious MIT and immediately started working at Mythic Quest Studios. Ian Grimm (Rob McElhenney), Poppy’s boss, created the ever-popular video game Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet. Poppy served as the lead engineer for the project.
Poppy and Ian often bicker through their workplace dealings. Ian is egotistical and driven, as is Poppy. She longs for more creative control when programming Mythic Quest. Poppy possesses a knack for coding. She incessantly works against the grain in a testosterone-dominated world. Additionally, throughout Season 1, tension of a different kind mounts between Poppy and Ian. By the Season 1 finale, Ian offers Poppy a promotion to co-creative director, which she eagerly accepts.
Season 2
After the COVID-19 pandemic, Poppy returns to work. Poppy and Ian throw together the Everlight festival to galvanize team morale. Next, Poppy creates a new expansion for the studio, Hera, which goes toe-to-toe with Ian’s Zeus. We see Poppy and Ian butt heads as co-creative directors throughout the season. However, Poppy’s respect for Ian deepens toward the end of Season 2. They eventually leave Mythic Quest to start their own company: GrimPop.
The Real Deal:
Poppy is a woman in a field that’s predominantly male. You don’t often hear of women as game engineers or in positions of power in the video game industry. When Mythic Quest begins, we meet her as the lead engineer; now, she’s a co-creative director. She essentially runs her own ship. Not to mention, she constantly holds her own against her male counterparts without relenting. That’s the very essence of badass. She’s brilliant, too.
RELATED: Catch up on all the video game shenanigans with our Mythic Quest recaps!
Additionally, Poppy is immensely driven, and she knows what she wants. She pursues her desires wholeheartedly despite her fears. Poppy doesn’t put a cap on her ambitions and pushes herself to be better. While she may not be a social butterfly like some folks, Poppy strives to be kind when possible. On the flip side of that, she’s not afraid to call people out on their bullsh*t when the situation warrants a good lambasting. Poppy is weird, and she embraces it. We love a weird gamer girl.
Why She Matters:
Why does she matter? Poppy is excelling in an industry where she’s a minority. In a field wherein it’s difficult to make waves, Poppy caused a full-fledged tsunami. She’s now striking out with Ian to build a company from the ground up. Not only that, but she’s a Filipina woman rising through the gaming ranks. A smart, successful woman of color from whom girls everywhere can derive inspiration. Take that, gamer dudes stuck in their moms’ basements!
RELATED: Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: Rachel
So, be like Poppy. Know what you want and pursue it with abandon. Continuously push yourself to be better. Don’t shy away from putting toxic male crybabies in their collective place. Lastly, never trust kids named Pootie Shoe. That last one’s fairly self-explanatory.
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What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events.
Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet.
Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium.
Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
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