A friend of mine shared that link on Facebook the other day. The first thing that caught me was the shock that people still follow Maddox and think he's funny/insightful.
I guess Maddox didn't get the memo that Marvel actually held a panel at SDCC regarding their failure at female outreach, promising to do better, with this title in particular. It was supposed to be a title to draw in female readership, not a Mystikal rap video.
This isn't the first time Marvel depicted women as nothing more than sex dolls with body paint. The reason why this time in particular it caused outrage was because of the panel when they used this at the time upcoming comic as an example of their new ways, which was supposed to be depict women in empowering and heroic roles but turned out to be hiring a literal pornographer to draw their titty comics now.
Except that Manara isn't drawing the comic, all he drew was a variant cover. And much of the outrage is hilariously misguided, as Maddox pointed out in his video.
This is literally the only video I have watched of this Maddox guy and while he has a point about it being a variant you don't have to buy, he is pretty much speaking out of his ass (TOPICAL PUN!) for the rest of the video. Mostly over the fact that pointing out...what? Only a few covers that can be seen as male-exploitation as somehow "balancing out" the thousands of covers that exploit women's bodies? That will CONTINUE to exploit women's bodies? That's not how this kind of thing works. Especially when one of the example covers can be said to be male empowerment because Spidey basically is showing off that he beat the bad guys and stuck them in the web-ball. AND his ass is nowhere near as wide open as Spider-Woman's is on that cover. I wonder if anyone ever pointed out to him how a variety of male comic book artists don't like to or just flat out refuse to emphasis the male crotch as much as they would when drawing a women's crotch.
And lastly, no, it is not an opinion that Manara used a pose that has Jessica presenting herself to an invisible audience. It is pretty much fact that Manara reused an older picture he did of a panty-less woman presenting herself to -you guessed it!- AN AUDIENCE OF LEERING MEN.
How long until Marvel wises up and realizes the feminism industry will find something to whine about no matter what they do? Meanwhile these same women hypocritically bitching about this cover are drooling over Tom Hiddleston's spandex covered butt.
It's long past time to stop pandering to them and go back to just making comics.
If anything Marvel should release MORE sexploitation covers. All the whining from the usual complainers will only boost publicity and improve sales of these "controversial" issues.
The average Marvel comic used to sell about a hundred thousand copies. Now some of the most popular titles struggle to sell forty thousand when there's no variant cover or event going on, so yeah, more sexualization alienating the majority of people who would be interested in cartoon funnybooks about musclemen, that aught to make them lots of money!
Oh good grief. I am sick & tired of people crying foul at every !@#$%^& thing ... it's starting to make my teeth itch. Why does everything need to become a big debate over politics or racism or sexism or whatever? It's a !@#$%^ comic.
The superheroes I grew up reading about (male AND female) were always a positive influence because they were the Good Guys. End of story. Their sexuality never entered into it for me and it's really grating on my nerves that this is what people focus on. As adults, I think we should be capable of realizing the size, shape and position of a drawn character's ass really doesn't amount to a hill of beans compared to the world at large. It's entertainment, nothing more. Just like movies and books and magazines and pron, there's something out there for everyone and the majority of it is NOT harmful.
If people want a big-assed superhero in sexy poses and others don't, here's the solution: those who like, buy the comic... those who don't like, don't buy the comic. Problem solved. If you're a woman who wants a superhero role model and you don't like the current ones, here's an idea... make your own comic and sell it to other like-minded individuals.
It drives me crazy that they !@#$%^ with my heroes when making movies (e.g. casting them with younger & younger people or changing other things about them in an effort to appease everyone). The hero is the hero from the comics. If you change too many things about them to put them on film, they are no longer that hero to/for me and you lose me. If you want them to be so different, be creative and make a new hero FFS.
Yeah, because the heroes have always been hypersexualized.
Except they haven't. The comics change too. This is a relatively recent development in super hero comics, and they are not the heroes I grew up with, or most comic fans actually. The demographics got older when comics became hypersexualized, because what parent would give this Western Hentai to their children?
But if there's something more pathetic than a grown adult talking about "My heroes" when referring to big tittied body paint wearing tracings from porno mags I've yet to see it.
I hate to tell you this but female characters in comics have always been drawn with big boobs & tight costumes and been made to look as sexy as possible. If you want to call it "hypersexualized" now that it's 2014, have at it, but don't try to "fix" for others what they don't consider broken. People who want to ruin things for other people just because THEY don't like it are eyerollingly annoying.
As for your need to call me pathetic... *shrug* whatever, your opinion. If you want to feel superior, go right ahead. I call them "my heroes" because they ARE "our heroes". They're made for us to enjoy and we all like some more than others. "My heroes" growing up were X-Men, Fantastic Four, Alpha Flight, etc (not so much Superman or The Hulk) etc.
I'm a 45yr old woman and if you think I'm pathetic for not being offended by hot-bodied superheroes (either muscle-bound men or voluptuous women), I don't really care. I just wish people like you would get off your high horses and just leave other people alone & stop pointing fingers and telling others how wrong they are to enjoy the things they enjoy.
I know what's more pathetic than a grown adult talking about "My heroes" when referring to big tittied body paint wearing tracings from porno mags.
Self righteous "do as I say" asshats whinging about it on the internet.
If you don't like comics like this, don't read them. But where do you get off thinking you have the right to tell other people what they should or should not like or should or should not read? It is literally none of your business.
http://thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=spiderwomans_ass
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine shared that link on Facebook the other day. The first thing that caught me was the shock that people still follow Maddox and think he's funny/insightful.
DeleteI guess Maddox didn't get the memo that Marvel actually held a panel at SDCC regarding their failure at female outreach, promising to do better, with this title in particular. It was supposed to be a title to draw in female readership, not a Mystikal rap video.
DeleteThis isn't the first time Marvel depicted women as nothing more than sex dolls with body paint. The reason why this time in particular it caused outrage was because of the panel when they used this at the time upcoming comic as an example of their new ways, which was supposed to be depict women in empowering and heroic roles but turned out to be hiring a literal pornographer to draw their titty comics now.
Except that Manara isn't drawing the comic, all he drew was a variant cover. And much of the outrage is hilariously misguided, as Maddox pointed out in his video.
Delete....That guy doesn't understand how social commentary works, does he?
DeleteThis is literally the only video I have watched of this Maddox guy and while he has a point about it being a variant you don't have to buy, he is pretty much speaking out of his ass (TOPICAL PUN!) for the rest of the video. Mostly over the fact that pointing out...what? Only a few covers that can be seen as male-exploitation as somehow "balancing out" the thousands of covers that exploit women's bodies? That will CONTINUE to exploit women's bodies? That's not how this kind of thing works. Especially when one of the example covers can be said to be male empowerment because Spidey basically is showing off that he beat the bad guys and stuck them in the web-ball. AND his ass is nowhere near as wide open as Spider-Woman's is on that cover. I wonder if anyone ever pointed out to him how a variety of male comic book artists don't like to or just flat out refuse to emphasis the male crotch as much as they would when drawing a women's crotch.
DeleteAnd lastly, no, it is not an opinion that Manara used a pose that has Jessica presenting herself to an invisible audience. It is pretty much fact that Manara reused an older picture he did of a panty-less woman presenting herself to -you guessed it!- AN AUDIENCE OF LEERING MEN.
Who doesn't like butts?
ReplyDeleteWho does like butts? That's where poop comes out of, you know.
DeleteAss isn't as wide open? Moving the goal posts now are we?
ReplyDeleteHow long until Marvel wises up and realizes the feminism industry will find something to whine about no matter what they do? Meanwhile these same women hypocritically bitching about this cover are drooling over Tom Hiddleston's spandex covered butt.
ReplyDeleteIt's long past time to stop pandering to them and go back to just making comics.
If anything Marvel should release MORE sexploitation covers. All the whining from the usual complainers will only boost publicity and improve sales of these "controversial" issues.
DeleteThe average Marvel comic used to sell about a hundred thousand copies. Now some of the most popular titles struggle to sell forty thousand when there's no variant cover or event going on, so yeah, more sexualization alienating the majority of people who would be interested in cartoon funnybooks about musclemen, that aught to make them lots of money!
DeleteSeems to me like the only people being "alienated" are ones who DON'T buy "cartoon funnybooks".
DeleteFive new catagories created for one comic. That must be a record.
ReplyDeleteMilo Manara seems to be kind of a creep.
ReplyDeleteOh good grief. I am sick & tired of people crying foul at every !@#$%^& thing ... it's starting to make my teeth itch. Why does everything need to become a big debate over politics or racism or sexism or whatever? It's a !@#$%^ comic.
ReplyDeleteThe superheroes I grew up reading about (male AND female) were always a positive influence because they were the Good Guys. End of story. Their sexuality never entered into it for me and it's really grating on my nerves that this is what people focus on. As adults, I think we should be capable of realizing the size, shape and position of a drawn character's ass really doesn't amount to a hill of beans compared to the world at large. It's entertainment, nothing more. Just like movies and books and magazines and pron, there's something out there for everyone and the majority of it is NOT harmful.
If people want a big-assed superhero in sexy poses and others don't, here's the solution: those who like, buy the comic... those who don't like, don't buy the comic. Problem solved. If you're a woman who wants a superhero role model and you don't like the current ones, here's an idea... make your own comic and sell it to other like-minded individuals.
It drives me crazy that they !@#$%^ with my heroes when making movies (e.g. casting them with younger & younger people or changing other things about them in an effort to appease everyone). The hero is the hero from the comics. If you change too many things about them to put them on film, they are no longer that hero to/for me and you lose me. If you want them to be so different, be creative and make a new hero FFS.
Yeah, because the heroes have always been hypersexualized.
DeleteExcept they haven't. The comics change too. This is a relatively recent development in super hero comics, and they are not the heroes I grew up with, or most comic fans actually. The demographics got older when comics became hypersexualized, because what parent would give this Western Hentai to their children?
But if there's something more pathetic than a grown adult talking about "My heroes" when referring to big tittied body paint wearing tracings from porno mags I've yet to see it.
I hate to tell you this but female characters in comics have always been drawn with big boobs & tight costumes and been made to look as sexy as possible. If you want to call it "hypersexualized" now that it's 2014, have at it, but don't try to "fix" for others what they don't consider broken. People who want to ruin things for other people just because THEY don't like it are eyerollingly annoying.
DeleteAs for your need to call me pathetic... *shrug* whatever, your opinion. If you want to feel superior, go right ahead. I call them "my heroes" because they ARE "our heroes". They're made for us to enjoy and we all like some more than others. "My heroes" growing up were X-Men, Fantastic Four, Alpha Flight, etc (not so much Superman or The Hulk) etc.
I'm a 45yr old woman and if you think I'm pathetic for not being offended by hot-bodied superheroes (either muscle-bound men or voluptuous women), I don't really care. I just wish people like you would get off your high horses and just leave other people alone & stop pointing fingers and telling others how wrong they are to enjoy the things they enjoy.
I know what's more pathetic than a grown adult talking about "My heroes" when referring to big tittied body paint wearing tracings from porno mags.
DeleteSelf righteous "do as I say" asshats whinging about it on the internet.
If you don't like comics like this, don't read them. But where do you get off thinking you have the right to tell other people what they should or should not like or should or should not read? It is literally none of your business.