10 Harsh Truths You Don't Want To Admit About Comic Books‏

5. There's A Whole Lotta Sexism Going On

Comics have a big ole problem when it comes to the representation of women. That's across the board, too, not just in the comics themselves but also who's producing them, who's reading them, and who's "allowed" to express their admiration for them in public spaces. The issue of how female characters are rendered by (mostly straight male) artists has been a problem for years, and is well-known, but doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. So many comics feature women in poses, outfits and with proportions that we're ashamed to be seen reading in public, in the same way that we wouldn't take a copy of Hustler out whilst we were sat on the bus. Any more. It goes deeper than that, though, hinting at a sort of institutional sexism similar to the institutional racism comics may have at their core. Comics are principally bought by straight white dudes, so why would they try and appeal to women? And why shouldn't their female characters be designed to appeal those self same dudes? It's that sort of thinking that has girls going to comic shops seen as a weird, socially unacceptable thing to do, and female cosplayers harassed at comic cons. Which is very easy for most comic fans to ignore because, well, we're historically straight white dudes. No skin off our back if you wanna misrepresent every other demographic! And that makes it easier to sweep under the rug on the grounds that it's not nice to have something you love called out for being sexist, or racist, or homophobic. You feel defensive over the stuff you dig, and rightly so. You have a personal connection, so you get personally offended on comic books' behalf. Doesn't make them any less screwed up, unfortunately.