A critical look at comics and culture
Last week, I had the pleasure of appearing on KCUR 89.3 FM’s Up to Date along with Kristy Guevara-Flanagan, the director of Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines and Dr. Brenda Bethman, the Director of the Women’s Center at UMKC. Continue reading ‘Listen to ‘Wonder Women: The Strength Of Female Superheroes’’
Tomorrow, April 22, 2014, I’ll be a guest on KCUR 89.3 FM’s Up to Date!
I’ll be discussing Wonder Woman and other Golden Age superheroines along with fellow guests Kristy Guevara-Flanagan, director of Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines and Dr. Brenda Bethman, Director of the Women’s Center at UMKC.
I’ll be on air from 11am-noon CST. You can catch it on KCUR’s instant stream, available for both Windows and iTunes.
[Update: You can now listen to the recorded episode at Up to Date.]
This is the fifth of a multi-part examination of Brian Azzarello’s current run on “Wonder Woman.” It’s recommended that you go back and read the series from the beginning.
SPOILERS for Wonder Woman #0-20 ahead.
Marston’s Wonder Woman champions for a sense of solidarity among women. Diana’s relationship with the Amazons, Etta Candy, and the Holliday Girls all firmly establish the importance of women’s camaraderie as a central theme of Wonder Woman. Continue reading ‘Sisters in Arms: Examining Azzarello’s ‘Wonder Woman’ Part 5′
This is the fourth of a multi-part examination of Brian Azzarello’s current run on “Wonder Woman.” It’s recommended that you go back and read the series from the beginning.
SPOILERS for Wonder Woman #0-20 ahead.
Even more controversial than the changes made to Wonder Woman’s origins are these pages from the now infamous Wonder Woman #7. Continue reading ‘Rape, Murder, Slavery, and Infanticide: Examining Azzarello’s ‘Wonder Woman’ Part 4′
This is the third of a multi-part examination of Brian Azzarello’s current run on “Wonder Woman.” It’s recommended that you go back and read the series from the beginning.
SPOILERS for Wonder Woman #0-20 ahead.
Wonder Woman #0 introduces another interesting addition to the mythos. In this fun, Silver Age-styled romp set 11 years in the past, War becomes so impressed with the accomplishments of the then 12-year old Diana that he offers to further train her in the art of war. This is presumably to groom her to one day assume his throne. Continue reading ‘Trained in the Ways of War: Examining Azzarello’s ‘Wonder Woman’ Part 3′
This is the second of a multi-part examination of Brian Azzarello’s current run on “Wonder Woman.” It’s recommended that you go back and read the series from the beginning.
SPOILERS for Wonder Woman #0-20 ahead.
Wonder Woman #3 introduces us to Azzarello’s first major change to the Wonder Woman mythos: the revelation of Zeus as Diana’s father. Continue reading ‘From Dirt to Divinity: Examining Azzarello’s ‘Wonder Woman’ Part 2′
In the comments of my previous post about Wonder Woman’s feminist origins and how changes in the character often resulted from historical changes in the social role of women, several readers expressed an interest in my interpretation of Brian Azzarello’s controversial Wonder Woman series.
Well, I’m glad you asked.
Before I go any further, I should address the giant misogynist elephant in the room.
Women as accessories
As previously announced, I’ll be presenting “Tights, Tits, and Titian: Female Objectification from the Italian Renaissance to Contemporary Comics” at the 6th Annual Comics & Popular Arts Conference at Dragon Con 2013!
Here’s my presentation’s abstract as a little sneak peek.
From art historical depictions of “Venus,” odalisques, and nude bathers to the improbably proportioned superheroines of contemporary comics, the female form has long been the subject of objectification. Continue reading ‘Abstract: ‘Tights, Tits, and Titian: Female Objectification from the Italian Renaissance to Contemporary Comics’’
Kitty Pryde has a long history of drawing parallels between the plights of mutants and those of real life people of color (see X-Men: God Loves, Man Kill and New Mutants #45).
That’s why I was excited to see her speak up in All-New X-Men #13 to so masterfully address Havok’s infamous M-Word Speech. The monologue comes courtesy of Brian Michael Bendis and I can’t help but interpret it and its lack of counterpoint as explicit commentary directed to Rick Remender. Either way, it’s a great monologue and an even better point.
Check out Kitty’s smack down below. Continue reading ‘Kitty Pryde Responds to Havok’s ‘M-Word’ Speech’
This past Wednesday, the female-lead X-Men #1 by Brian Wood and Olivier Coipel hit the stands. The reviews have been overwhelmingly positive and I’m happy to report that it’s well worth a buy.
The series’ all-woman cast has led to a lively Internet discussion with many questioning the appropriateness of the comic’s gendered title. At first, I thought there might be some validity to the criticism, but the more I reflect on Marvel’s decision, the more I think that they made the right call. Continue reading ‘Gendered Language: X-Men, X-Women, or X-People?’
