Vapid, empty, flat ... we could use any of these words to describe the often one-dimensional predecessors to our modern day graphic heroines. The panel above, taken from X-Men #28 originally published in 1967, is in many ways still the norm - over forty years later. Sure, the costumes have gotten a little tighter and the powers have gotten a little cooler, but can we honestly say that the women in comics have transgressed the subservient role of the telekinetic helper? Can we claim that they have set the bar any higher for what qualifies as a credit to the female gender?
How do we and how should we read these female characters? What tropes and traits have changed and what remains the same? The roles that women occupy are still - more often than not - marginalized to the role of virginal sex kitten or promiscuous villain. Both of these roles often fall victim to subjection and the sexual perversions and violence of their male counterparts.
In this blog I would like to explore these issues with you by taking a critical look at what the comic industry and the popular media is producing, what we are buying, and most importantly what we think about it. In her now infamous Women in Refrigerators, Gail Simone asked us to compile a list of the unfair fate of women in comics; however, what this list does not offer is a way to read these women. This is something that we can work towards here.
Please post your questions, responses, and suggestions for graphic readings in the coming weeks. Are there particular characters that work with or against the typical trope of the female comic character? How do you "read" comics and understand the women who are written and drawn for them? What questions do you have?
- Nicole
Up next: Divas, Sirens, and Exiles ... Oh My!
