Personally I have no idea why all my avatars are female. It's probably because I have little to no respect for most men, strange as that may sound.
Anyways, Raquel didn't seem to last long. I just bought Soul Calibur II, and Taki is everything I dreamed her to be, and more. I played through the game twice with Link, then I switched to Taki. That was it for me. I haven't even tried playing with other characters.
I am seriously considering spending $300 on a pair of Tonto at this point.
I REALLY need a sword now, and I left the one I did have in Lethbridge, as I didn't think it was a bright idea to bring it on the plane with me when I moved.