Project Thesis (Aka: "WTF is all this now?")
If any of you have been waiting with baited breath for the thesis to arrive, I now present:
Unrealistic Expectations: The thesis.
Unrealistic Expectations
Mainstream comic books typically feature women with absurd proportions, placed in semi-pornographic poses, frequently wearing as little as possible; their clothes seemingly held together by willpower and scotch tape. These women are usually either emotional train-wrecks, helpless “damsel in distress” types, or briefly powerful characters who are then severely hobbled in one way or another, as if it was somehow against the laws of nature for them to remain powerful.
Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Jean Grey are good examples of this. Wonder Woman, especially in her earlier comics is shown to be frightened and to run to men for comfort frequently, even when she has super powers herself. There is even one story, in which she turns in a love interest who has broken the law, followed immediately by his accusation that she has “betrayed” him. Wonder Woman’s response is to burst into tears and beg for his forgiveness, because obviously a woman’s loyalties should be to her man’s wishes, and not to silly things like laws or justice. Batgirl is paralyzed and then stripped naked and photographed, all in one book, (which DC is classy enough to show us… repeatedly). Jean Grey is a super-powerful telepathic psychic who spends a lot of time fainting and dramatically clinging to her husband. She also ends up hosting a superpowerful entity… which, despite her frequently mentioned super-powered telepathy and psychic ability, completely overwhelms her in short order (for no apparent reason) and drives her insane, causing her to try to kill literally everyone.
Rarely is a major female character allowed to be much more than an amalgam of stereotypes and sexual fantasies. Bisexual characters are rare, and when they do occur, are often shown as promiscuous and wild. Pagan characters almost never appear, (Wonder Woman being the best pseudo-example I can find, as an Amazon who follows the ancient Greek pantheon) and most “magic wielding” characters are villains or just complete basket-cases. The Scarlet Witch, for instance, not only dresses in what can only be described as comical lingerie, but dates her own brother and in another story-line conjures up doppelgangers of her dead children, following a complete mental breakdown. The above, plus the treatment of heroines like Wonder Woman and Jean Grey, serves to demonstrate the “women are stupid or crazy” principal that prevails in so many super-hero comics.
Here’s where my comic comes in. My project is an exploration of bisexual, pagan, and women’s issues, as well as a lampooning of mainstream comic books (such as Marvel or DC comics) via my own version of the typical super-hero comic. It features a cast of real people, who just happen to have super powers, doing what the other heroes are too busy posing dramatically to do: go out there and do some good.
My characters include an older bisexual/lesbian couple and a practicing Wiccan medical student. The comic also features realistic body proportions and practical clothing. Each character is based on real people in my life in order to keep the comic’s cast grounded and to avoid departing into the absurdity of traditional hero comic characters. I want women (and men, for that matter) to be able to look at these characters and see someone they know, perhaps even themselves, rather than a sexualized Barbie doll in spandex.
I have discovered that a major challenge of this project is to direct its energy constructively and keep its message and impact clear and focused. Negativity and reactionary content, though perhaps justified, only cloud my concept. I also need to remember that while I know everything about these characters, my readers do not and I need to find a way to explain things to them. I am doing this in the form of a flashback to introduce the characters to the reader as I introduce them to each other.
The comic is arranged in a five-panel format with three panels on top and two on the bottom, with an empty space in the lower left corner for the logo and date. This is simple, balanced, and easy to work with. It prevents me from getting tripped up in panel layouts, yet is more interesting than a straight-line format.
Each comic is drawn by hand before being scanned. Some limited gold, yellow, and beige tones are used on backgrounds and occasionally to add emphasis to panels. They are then touched up and placed into the page-layout in Photoshop. The comics are mainly being posted as a webcomic, (Unrealistic Expectations, at http://comicpixie. weebly. com) but have also been printed and mounted for display in the senior show. A small booklet of original character sketches and biographies is also included in the gallery to afford visitors some background information.
To clarify, this project examines mainstream comics as a whole, not necessarily picking out individual characters to lampoon, nor necessarily taking on particular artists or series. Anyone who has ever taken more than a very casual glance at the offerings of any major comic book company has seen examples of the things I address here. Comic pages and covers are flooded with women with inexplicably bent spines that defy all laws of anatomic possibility, “uniforms” that consist of little more than dental-floss and a bra, or spray-paint; and men who seem to eat Steroid-O’s for breakfast. Frequently even when a female character is meant to be dead or unconscious, she looks more like she is in the midst of having sex than anything else. (Frankly, how a dead woman can arch her back into such a sharp curve is beyond me.)
My comic parodies popular mainstream comics and comic tropes. It features people (primarily women) who are realistic in proportion and lifestyle. It includes groups who are usually marginalized or ignored in mainstream comics. These groups include “alternative” sexualities, older women, Pagans, and minorities.
Finding a balance between realism and an interesting story, as well as between the “easy” way for the heroes to solve problems and the “right” way have proven difficult. For instance, the characters’ first story arc begins with them doing battle with the serial pervert, Dr. Gropenfuher, molester of women. Initially he wilts at the idea of being hit and thinks women are too uptight about his…. flirting… methods. However, after Morgan, one of the characters, forces him to feel the pain he inflicts upon his victims, he realizes that what he wants is to BE abused, and begins provoking the heroes in hopes of getting beaten up. Morgan, whose powers include knowing and changing people’s emotions at will, could easily have re-written his psyche, but this crosses a line for me. Taking away this person’s free will, even if it would correct his obnoxious behavior, would make the team more into villains or simply vigilantes than people trying to protect those in need. Instead, I tried to find another way to deal with Gropenfuher, one which kept him away from the women he harassed and harmed, but one that did not cross that line. In the end, I think I succeeded.
While I do have limits to what I deem acceptable for my character’s behavior, I have also had to resist the temptation to pull punches or to shy away from potentially controversial material if there is good potential for satire. Ludicrous body proportions must be called out, ridiculous costumes must malfunction, and clueless “heroes” cannot plausibly succeed.
In essence, I am offering something more palatable to those who enjoy comic books’ stories and perhaps the medium itself, but find themselves put off by the frequent misogyny and biases presented in them. I’m also addressing issues that are very important to me in an entertaining way. While I realize there are many independent comic creators in the world, and that I am not the first to challenge the “big boys” of the comic book world, I know of no one who has approached the problem in the same manner I employ. Maintaining a self-contained story arc without having to cut out important development has been very challenging. Since the comic is by no means finished, (I intend to continue it for some time to come), I have tried to put as much content as possible into the strip without cramming in material that would be better served by waiting for a better time to be included. In the end, I believe I have a strong, steadily growing comic that both entertains and informs its reader.
Bibliography:
Hanna Is Not a Boy’s Name! by: Tessa Stonehttp://hanna. aftertorque. com/ (Pages such as the most current one: January 5th 2010 include the sort of limited coloring to which I was referring.)
Girly by: Josh Lesnickhttp://girlyyy. com/ (coloring style)
Yu + Me : Dream by: Megan Rose Gedris http://rosalarian.com/yume/
Queen of Wands by: http://www. queenofwands. net/
Marvel Comics – part of Marvel Entertainment
DC Comics – part of Warner Bros
Fantasy Magazine article http://www. fantasy-magazine. com/2008/08/the-objectification-of-women-in-graphic-novels/ (discussing the objectification of women in comics)
Culture Jam by: Kalle Lasn
Media and the Sexes – Women’s Studies course, Western Michigan University
Atop the Fourth Wall by: Lewis Lovhaug – Video series reviewing bad comics, mentions many of the same issues I address.
Amazons Attack Prologue (video from Atop the Fourth Wall series) – video dealing with Wonder Woman’s character and oft-changing origins
