Women in Comics

[Armas Valo]

Hi. Lately, I have been doing some light research on the topic of women in comics. Mainly, I have been looking up information on the portrayal of women in comics and how it has changed. I have also looked up some information on female cartoonist throughout the years.

From my own observations, I have noticed that women usually tend to be the ones that accidentally cause problems and have to be saved in many comics. Also, they tend to be emotional and act as a love interest. This of course has it's exceptions, however this is just a generalization.

So the question is, how do you feel about the portrayal of women in comics and female cartoonist?

[Digifresh]

i dont have much to say about female cartoonists but

a lot of ladies say that female characters in comics set an unreachable goal in appearance and that its just for male fantasy and i understand that to a point, but then i started to look at it a different way

almost no guy that reads comics is as buff as the guys in them

so what im getting at is that i wish ladies would calm down about there looks when guys are actually put through the same exact thing

(note im not trying to call anyone in the forum out just an opinion)

[Armas Valo]

Digifresh

i dont have much to say about female cartoonists but

a lot of ladies say that female characters in comics set an unreachable goal in appearance and that its just for male fantasy and i understand that to a point, but then i started to look at it a different way

almost no guy that reads comics is as buff as the guys in them

so what im getting at is that i wish ladies would calm down about there looks when guys are actually put through the same exact thing

(note im not trying to call anyone in the forum out just an opinion)

Another point that I believe should be noted(because you make an excellent point) is the attitude. Men is comics are often drawn buff to show strength. Woman are often(but not always!) presented in a way that is more sexualized. Woman are not always fit to be strong they are fit to be "sexy". For example, I doubt Batman will start fighting crime shirtless.

This is just another view point that I have heard voiced by other women.

[Digifresh]

Armas Valo

Digifresh

i dont have much to say about female cartoonists but

a lot of ladies say that female characters in comics set an unreachable goal in appearance and that its just for male fantasy and i understand that to a point, but then i started to look at it a different way

almost no guy that reads comics is as buff as the guys in them

so what im getting at is that i wish ladies would calm down about there looks when guys are actually put through the same exact thing

(note im not trying to call anyone in the forum out just an opinion)

Another point that I believe should be noted(because you make an excellent point) is the attitude. Men is comics are often drawn buff to show strength. Woman are often(but not always!) presented in a way that is more sexualized. Woman are not always fit to be strong they are fit to be "sexy". For example, I doubt Batman will start fighting crime shirtless.

This is just another view point that I have heard voiced by other women.

i just feel like most of the body types in comics are unachievable so why are girls complain about it when guys just dont care

i guess the costume thing is a good point though girl costumes are just ridiculous

[10_Ace_of_Spades]

Digifresh

i dont have much to say about female cartoonists but

a lot of ladies say that female characters in comics set an unreachable goal in appearance and that its just for male fantasy and i understand that to a point, but then i started to look at it a different way

almost no guy that reads comics is as buff as the guys in them

so what im getting at is that i wish ladies would calm down about there looks when guys are actually put through the same exact thing

(note im not trying to call anyone in the forum out just an opinion)

I agree. Though women are drawn according to the fantasy of the men working in the comics, it has to be seen that the men are drawn by a higher imagination as well. I know just as many girls that look at the guys in comics because they're hot as guys looking at the women

[Ms. Selina Kyle]

I know I feel welcomed into the medium when all I see are breasts, camel-toe and lady-thighs in comics. These things totes reflect an image of heroism and power, it's just that all a girl's power comes from her girl bits!

Guys are right, we ladies should just sit down and shut up. The men have it just as bad, always having to contort into pecs/butt poses, flashing their enormous penises at the viewer during gratuitous kicks and constantly having to make sexy-pouty-face in panels. I mean really, how does Superman's costume even stay on?

[Digifresh]

Ms. Selina Kyle

I know I feel welcomed into the medium when all I see are breasts, camel-toe and lady-thighs in comics. These things totes reflect an image of heroism and power, it's just that all a girl's power comes from her girl bits!

Guys are right, we ladies should just sit down and shut up. The men have it just as bad, always having to contort into pecs/butt poses, flashing their enormous penises at the viewer during gratuitous kicks and constantly having to make sexy-pouty-face in panels. I mean really, how does Superman's costume even stay on?

okay just for the record are you being serious or sarcastic?
okay so iv re-read it a few times and i have decided that you are (honestly dont see why i didnt realize the first time)
when designing a costume you have more freedom for negative space on a female because (due to socal norms) breasts are not a girls naughty bits its just there nipples they can have as much side boob as they want. but im not trying to say sex doesnt sell and that they dont exploit it.
what im saying is that most body types in comics are unachievable so when wemon complain about how the breasts are to big to fight with. or that they only design them for sex. well its not exacltly true
(im not sure what issues this is in but there is a sketch of catwoman and they actually made her boobs smaller to look more athletic)

[Armas Valo]

I agree that comics do set almost impossible standards for both genders when it comes to physical attributes. However, by "portrayal" I do not intend to limit the discussion to how the women are drawn. I am also mentioning the theme that women usually need to be saved and are overly emotional,etc. How women are drawn and their personalities seem to be two issues that come up no matter where I look.

[Chris Powell]

Digifresh is so right! I have lost count of how many times I've walked into my LCS and found scads of women lustily drooling of the muscly men of Marvel and DC. It's digusting! The last time I was there, one woman had a copy of Spider-Man and announced loudly "I gotta get this home and diddle the bean!" It was a nightmare. Us guys have it just as bad.

[Ms. Selina Kyle]

Digifresh

okay so iv re-read it a few times and i have decided that you are (honestly dont see why i didnt realize the first time)
when designing a costume you have more freedom for negative space on a female because (due to socal norms) breasts are not a girls naughty bits its just there nipples they can have as much side boob as they want. but im not trying to say sex doesnt sell and that they dont exploit it.
what im saying is that most body types in comics are unachievable so when wemon complain about how the breasts are to big to fight with. or that they only design them for sex. well its not exacltly true
(im not sure what issues this is in but there is a sketch of catwoman and they actually made her boobs smaller to look more athletic)

It's true. Women have more negative space on them because of tits, so naturally they have smaller, tearaway costumes. If it weren't for the fact that men's chest areas (can I type "pectorals" on here? Is that ok?) are so obscene, they would probably be wearing just as little.

It's unfortunate that the men are so sexually objectified, forced to wear such scandalous full-body outfits to titillate the readers. It's like they're not even characters, they're just objects designed to turn on the viewer. That's why you can't find a shot of Superman or the Flash without their nipples jutting outward through their costume, thrusting towards the viewer, or their highly detailed crotches making certain you know exactly where the outline of their genitalia is.

(I think I know which Catwoman picture you're talking about. It's the one in the latest series, right? Where she takes of her shirt and unzips her pants so she can fight a guy? I can't count the number of times Batman has stripped so he could fight the Joker. That's how you know things are going to get serious.)

[Digifresh]

Ms. Selina Kyle

Digifresh

okay so iv re-read it a few times and i have decided that you are (honestly dont see why i didnt realize the first time)
when designing a costume you have more freedom for negative space on a female because (due to socal norms) breasts are not a girls naughty bits its just there nipples they can have as much side boob as they want. but im not trying to say sex doesnt sell and that they dont exploit it.
what im saying is that most body types in comics are unachievable so when wemon complain about how the breasts are to big to fight with. or that they only design them for sex. well its not exacltly true
(im not sure what issues this is in but there is a sketch of catwoman and they actually made her boobs smaller to look more athletic)

It's true. Women have more negative space on them because of tits, so naturally they have smaller, tearaway costumes. If it weren't for the fact that men's chest areas (can I type "pectorals" on here? Is that ok?) are so obscene, they would probably be wearing just as little.

It's unfortunate that the men are so sexually objectified, forced to wear such scandalous full-body outfits to titillate the readers. It's like they're not even characters, they're just object designed to turn on the view. That's why you can't find a shot of Superman or the Flash without their nipples jutting outward through their costume, thrusting towards the viewer, or their highly detailed crotches making certain you know exactly where the outline of their genitalia is.

(I think I know which Catwoman picture you're talking about. It's the one in the latest series, right? Where she takes of her shirt and unzips her pants so she can fight a guy? I can't count the number of times Batman has stripped so he could fight the Joker. That's how you know things are going to get serious.)

im not talking about the comic book in general (cat woman is ridiculous i agree) at the end they have interviews with the people that made them and in one of the pictures it shows a drawing of her then someone went through and wrote down things that needed to be corrected her breasts being to big was one of the things

and again im not saying sex doesnt sell. thats not what im talking about. although when i mentioned the thing about negative space what i was trying to say is that ladies (not in comics) still wear s**t like that. low cut tops and belly shirts so why shouldn't lady superheros. guys dont have clothes like that. (well i dont atleast)

what im saying is that in the media they say things like barbie, comics and the like are setting unreachable goals for girls because is impossible to obtain the body type. well that goes both ways.

(also side note. is pectorals normally a bad word?)

[Ms. Selina Kyle]

Digifresh

im not talking about the comic book in general (cat woman is ridiculous i agree) at the end they have interviews with the people that made them and in one of the pictures it shows a drawing of her then someone went through and wrote down things that needed to be corrected her breasts being to big was one of the things

It's good to know that the editors are on top of things like that. If not, then the poses and proportions of women in comics might be ridiculous, instead of the way they are now, which is completely reflective of possible human anatomy.

Quote:

and again im not saying sex doesnt sell. thats not what im talking about. although when i mentioned the thing about negative space what i was trying to say is that ladies (not in comics) still wear s**t like that. low cut tops and belly shirts so why shouldn't lady superheros. guys dont have clothes like that. (well i dont atleast)

Well that because outfits like this are such good everyday wear, people don't realize how comfortable and supportive a garment with an 8 inch gap cut down past your navel is. And Wonder Woman's bustier is just the best thing ever for jogging, especially when you don't wear pants. That's why women in the military wear such revealing uniforms and aren't allowed pants.

And since YOU don't have revealing clothes for men, I'll take your word for it that there aren't any men who wear revealing outfits like that. Not like women, who walk around wearing nothing more than their panties and a strapless top all the time.

Quote:

what im saying is that in the media they say things like barbie, comics and the like are setting unreachable goals for girls because is impossible to obtain the body type. well that goes both ways.

Well of course this has everything to do with "unreachable goals" and nothing to do with the fact that men are women are presented differently in comics. It's not like men routinely are presented as characters, and women typically are presented a blow up dolls.

[Digifresh]

Ms. Selina Kyle

Digifresh

im not talking about the comic book in general (cat woman is ridiculous i agree) at the end they have interviews with the people that made them and in one of the pictures it shows a drawing of her then someone went through and wrote down things that needed to be corrected her breasts being to big was one of the things

It's good to know that the editors are on top of things like that. If not, then the poses and proportions of women in comics might be ridiculous, instead of the way they are now, which is completely reflective of possible human anatomy.

Quote:

and again im not saying sex doesnt sell. thats not what im talking about. although when i mentioned the thing about negative space what i was trying to say is that ladies (not in comics) still wear s**t like that. low cut tops and belly shirts so why shouldn't lady superheros. guys dont have clothes like that. (well i dont atleast)

Well that because outfits like this are such good everyday wear, people don't realize how comfortable and supportive a garment with an 8 inch gap cut down past your navel is. And Wonder Woman's bustier is just the best thing ever for jogging, especially when you don't wear pants. That's why women in the military wear such revealing uniforms and aren't allowed pants.

And since YOU don't have revealing clothes for men, I'll take your word for it that there aren't any men who wear revealing outfits like that. Not like women, who walk around wearing nothing more than their panties and a strapless top all the time.

Quote:

what im saying is that in the media they say things like barbie, comics and the like are setting unreachable goals for girls because is impossible to obtain the body type. well that goes both ways.

Well of course this has everything to do with "unreachable goals" and nothing to do with the fact that men are women are presented differently in comics. It's not like men routinely are presented as characters, and women typically are presented a blow up dolls.

mhm you win

[Chris Powell]

WITH A TECHNICAL KNOCKOUT ON PAGE ONE, THE WINNAH AND STILL CHAMPEEN OF COMICS DISCUSSION, SELINA KYLE!

*raises Selina's fist as the crowd cheers*

[TCIX]

I think that while the attire itself can be outrageous at times, the actual physical fitness of women in comics shouldnt be looked at as an unfair portrayal. take Ms. Marvel, her attire mostly covers her body, still not practical, but her powers include flight and super strength. if she didnt LOOK fit, how would that be believable? you arnt going to see Ms. Marvel portrayed at 300 lbs of fat with super strength because shes an honest hero. the physical image of fitness conveys the idea of strength and hard work to be fit, not just eye candy.

to my knowledge, Jessica Jones and Sue Storm wear practical clothes (or at least proper suits) as well as Rogue, Jubilee, Jean Grey, Storm, Domino, X-23, Scarlet Witch...

I admit some can be clothed stupidly but the concept of women in comics being the damsel who screws things up is pretty far from what I think of. we arnt dealing with Princess Peach