Comments on: You're kidding, right?

By: Smartcard Manager

Smartcard Manager — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 14:25:53 +0000

Thanks !! Very helpful post!

By: John Seavey

John Seavey — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 04:00:56 +0000

Having read the book in question, there’s no doubt in my mind that it’s a sexist cover choice. The issue they pulled from to get that cover is one of a relative few near the beginning that are very sexist in their depiction of Batgirl, rather than the solo stories that make up the bulk of the book and show her as an independent, intelligent crime-fighter (and Congresswoman, a development that apparently got retconned away somewhere in the years since.)

In short, given any number of images to recreate for their cover, they picked the single most sexist image in the book, the one most guaranteed to create an impression of Batgirl as a ditzy bimbo. Whatever their motives, the result is a sexist cover.

By: Klio

Klio — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 01:45:28 +0000

Has anyone mentioned yet that the second one is just an ugly cover, in and of itself? Batgirl staring off into the middle distance, eyes out of wack, not at all looking into the mirror (how exactly is she supposed to do her lippy?); ribcage jutting out weirdly. She looks like she just got thwapped in the back of the head by one of those bad guys she’s ignoring.

If you want to do a funny, retro cover, it should at least be a nice-looking retro cover. Blech.

By: Laura Ellyn

Laura Ellyn — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 03:11:59 +0000

“Manga can’t manage to sell to boys while comic’s can’t sell to girls.”

READ: ‘go read manga like the rest of the girls!’ (also, dude: comics. No apostrophe.)

“It’s not sexist — or if it is, it’s a sexism reflected in the stories inside.”

READ: ’sexism is just a convention of the genre!’

“In short, it’s “mountain out of a molehill” time. Which has become all too commonplace online of late.”

READ: ‘Why are you complaining about this when women in Afghanistan are being killed?’

“Of course, I’m not the one with a political agenda or chip on my shoulder, who’s looking to find something “wrong” to rail against, no matter how benign it might actually be. But hey, whatever floats a person’s boat, right?”

READ: ‘There is no sexism here. These are not the droids you’re looking for.’ (Personally, I’m a little amazed to see this used right after “sexism is a convention of the genre!” Do you ever give yourself whiplash, Mark?)*

I can hardly believe I’m the first to call it, but… BINGO! :D

(Boys: http://girl-wonder.org/girlsreadcomics/?p=66 – a clue. Please to be getting one. Kthx.)

*This may not actually be one of the points of Karen’s Bingo card, but it ought to be.

By: Mike Haseloff

Mike Haseloff — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 04:04:01 +0000

"Tough call on this one. That cover was a direct riff on Page 1 of an actual Silver-Age Batgirl story, one of her most memorable (if regrettable) stories." Drats! And here I thought I could be the voice of reason! Better change my position... GRRR! MYSOGINISM! DOWN WITH COVERS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE MATERIALS CONTAINED WITHIN!!! ... That oughtta do it!

By: The Dude

The Dude — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 00:32:26 +0000

“Some will call a pattern a pattern, and others will call it random events. Or a spade.”

And some are so intent on finding a pattern, that they will do and say anything to find it, even in the most benign of places.

Not saying that about anyone specifically, mind you, just saying is all…

By: notintheface

notintheface — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 23:49:34 +0000

Tough call on this one. That cover was a direct riff on Page 1 of an actual Silver-Age Batgirl story, one of her most memorable (if regrettable) stories. Yes, it’s the sheer corniness and sexism (misogyny may be too strong) that makes it memorable, but it’s a memorable part of her history nonetheless, just as the Giant Turtle Boy is a memorable part of Silver Age Jimmy Olsen’s. Still, those early stories aren’t exactly the collocted works of Betty Friedan (Babs hadn’t become a politico yet), so maybe that cover embodies “truth in advertising”.

By: Kevin Church

Kevin Church — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 23:47:13 +0000

Manga can’t manage to sell to boys while comic’s can’t sell to girls. You do know manga is comics, right? Comics are a medium. Comics sell to girls just fine: Buffy, Love and Rockets, and other titles have large female followings. Hell, even Jim Balent's work sells to women. The Spandex fetish comics you like, that feature distorted men and women superpowers may not, but that's something else entirely.

By: Bill Aguiar

Bill Aguiar — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 19:32:29 +0000

Sad to see the gallows humor in this.

Manga can’t manage to sell to boys while comic’s can’t sell to girls.

By: Ed Cunard

Ed Cunard — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 17:51:45 +0000

Do you people know ANY comic history? What’s the big deal? This is NOT an invented cover! It’s a modern redo of “BATGIRL’S COSTUME CUT-UPS!” a story in this volume. It’s not sexist — or if it is, it’s a sexism reflected in the stories inside.

I apologize on behalf of anyone, like m’self, who does not have a comprehensive knowledge of Silver Age superhero comics. It makes us lesser people, I realize.

In fairness, however, it does mean that I’ve never had to have an internal debate to decide whether or not I should masturbate over comics laced with ’60s sexism or, instead, keep those comics in the fine-to-near-mint condition in which I purchased them.

By: Palladin

Palladin — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:23:52 +0000

At least there were no tentacles.

By: Sardonyx

Sardonyx — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:15:17 +0000

No offense, but I have to agree with The Dude, it is a tribute to the old Detective Comics cover with Batgirl having a run in her stockings. I remember laughing my face off when I first saw that run-in-the-stockings cover. Admittedly, I liked the run better than her doing her makeup.

As for the cover on the left side, tributes to it have been done a few times now already (I believe one was a Brian Bolland cover) so I can see why they decided to change it to something else. I really don’t think this is something to get so worked up about. It matches the period in which the reprinted comics came out!

By: Robby Reed

Robby Reed — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 15:57:38 +0000

By: Sleestak

Sleestak — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 14:59:56 +0000

I hate to say it but I saw the shipped cover as commentary, or warning, that the collection was from the 1960s and contained sterotyped depictions of a woman.

By: Colin Wales

Colin Wales — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 07:14:08 +0000

Content of respective images aside, they were going to have to do SOME editing at some point so that the top of the book didn’t actually read DETECTIVE COMICS STARRING BATMAN.