Sociology

We've mentioned book bloggers a few times lately, and contrasted their peaceful, herbivore ways with the violent, predatory jungle of comics blogging. Now here's a VERY direct comparison -- and also some interesting market research type stuff -- via the Graphic Novels Challenge. This is a blogging program in which book bloggers try to read a bunch of graphic novels in a given period -- one of a series of similar challenge for memoirs, history books or whatever. Most of the bloggers are not trained-from-birth comics experts and heir comments are illuminating. The list is also high on "litereary" and young adult comics -- not very much Marvel or DC. They also check books to read out of the library, so they are not "Wednesday" Crowd" much.

It's time for pissed off readers to put their money where their mouth is.

As regular readers of this site and other comics sites know, the DCU has been taking a lot of lumps for perceived insensitivity in handling the death of various minority characters, and they haven't had too many opportunities to set the record straight. However, a big interview with co-publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee conducted by Fearless Kiel Phegley has been quoted widely:

Okay, we've restocked our load of piss and vinegar and we've loaded our shotgun for bear! UNTIL WE TELL IT, WE JUST CAN"T MOVE ON! My first "Complaints" post drew a bit of private praise, especially from those who welcomed a return to more pointed commentary. To which I say, I'd love to do more of it but I was literally up until dawn writing that first one (I'm ssslllooowww) and this one will take just as long. Especially since this time I"m taking on everyone's FAVORITE SUBJECTS: Race and gender. It's a good thing comics never talk about religion or we'd be here all night and day! And if I can predict one thing with dead certainty it's this: Gene PHillips will show up in the comments.

The Last Airbender movie gained controversy for casting white actors in the roles associated with Asian characters in the cartoon original. Many folks are boycotting it because of this, including cartoonist Gene Luen Yang.

Dear lord, what is coming out of this woman's vajayjay? People, dogs, monster claws, golden light, frayed denim. This one has it all. The...

By the time the New York Times gets around to spotting a trend, that usually means it's something your grandma loves. IN this case, the recent manga implosion gives this New York Times spotlight on manga something of a more urgent undertone. The story focuses on budget cuts in the Queens library system, where the kids -- of widely diverse ethnicities -- have embraced the manga:

We haven't quite been following this story but some other folks have. It seems that a bunch of "legacy" characters at DC who were...

At the blog for the insanely popular webcomic XCKD, Randall Munroe directly confronts issues of gender, fashion and whether a color can be construed as "dusty" Here are the color names most disproportionately popular among women: 1. ... Kind of an incense-bomb-set-off-in-a-Bed-Bath-&-Beyond vibe. ... Here are the color names most disproportionately popular among men: 1.

In an announcement that will turn Tampa, FL into a place of dread and infamy for some a whirlpool of horror for some -- and a much-desureed destination for others -- this weekend's Vulcan Events Convention in Tampa, Fl will attempt to se a world record for Most people wearing ear cuffs in one place Largest gathering of people dressed as Star Trek Character in one place. Now the existing record for more Trekkies in one spot was set just this February in London, England, but there were a mere 99 Romulans, Bajorans and Mugatu gathered in one place -- so given a spurt of enthusiasm, setting a new record seems within grasp. Also, you might think it is a simple thing, but there ARE rules, which are as follows: #1 All participants must be wearing costumes representing characters from the Star Trek universe and extended canon.

...We'd dearly love to see this event unfold in all its natural majesty and beauty, and also to note how Next Gen costumes are faring in the Star Trek popularity race; adherents of the Rick Berman Trek-i-verse seems to have been steadily dwindling away, but that's definitely an outsiders opinion.

Since my Spring convention schedule wrapped up on Monday, I've been trying to just sit quietly on the porch with my eyes closed, but...

Can a gay teen comically get in trouble with Mr. Weatherbee, humorously strive to win a burger eating contest, make horrible puns and have trouble deciding who to date? At Archie Comics, the answer is yes, as they have introduced their first openly gay character, Kevin Keller. In the words of Archie Co-CEO Jon Goldwater, “The introduction of Kevin is just about keeping the world of Archie Comics current and inclusive. Archie’s hometown of Riverdale has always been a safe world for everyone. It just makes sense to have an openly gay character in Archie comic books.”