Title: The Supergirls (Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book Heroines)Author: Mike Madrid (American, 1950s(?)- )
Originally published: 2009
Page count: 315
Dates read: 5/22/2020-6/5/2020
2020 book goal progress: 16 out of 20
Reading category: TBR Shelf
Read my other book reviews for my 2020 goal HERE.
Description on back of book:
Comic book superheroines bend steel, travel through time and space, and wield the mighty forces of nature. These powerful females do everything that male heroes do. BUT they have to work their wonders in skirts and high heels. The Supergirls, a cultural history of comic book heroines, asks whether their world of fantasy is that different from our own. Are the stories of Wonder Woman's search for identity, Batwomen and Power Girl's battle for equality, and Manhunter's juggling of crime-fighting and motherhood also an alternative saga of modern American women?
First sentence:
"When America was in the throes of the Great Depression, people looking for an escape from tough times found refuge in the newspaper comic section, which became a passport to other worlds."
Favorite quote:
"Sex appeal was the 'spoonful of sugar' that helped the 'medicine' of feminism go down. A liberated heroine who still looked sexy would be less threatening to the male readers of comic books."
"When asked by her teammate Sub-Mariner whether her reputation as a man-hater is deserved, Valkyrie responds, 'I do not hate men, Sub-Mariner. I merely know I'm as good as they are.'"
Review:
This was an interesting and thorough history of women in comics up to about 2010. I was disappointed because I have always viewed comics as pretty sexist and I was hoping this book would prove me wrong BUT it didn't. Wonder Woman is one of the only heroines (at least of the 20th century) that was truly initially created to be a symbol of feminism BUT when her original creator passed away, even she went downhill a bit. In comics it seems women can have special powers BUT... there always seems to be a stipulation.
"Wonder Woman may have espoused messages of liberation and freedom in her own comic books, BUT, among her peers, she fell victim to oppression. With her great strength, intelligence, bulletproof bracelets, and magic lasso, Wonder Woman outclassed most of the men of the Justice Society. Yet she was only allowed to serve as the group's secretary."
Heroines have powers BUT they're still less powerful than the male heroes. Heroines want to save the day and make the world a better place BUT finding a husband is more important. Heroines get into skirmishes with villains BUT it's more important that they look attractive to male readers than protect their bodies with practical uniforms. Heroines get to represent the sexual revolution BUT they aren't allowed to act on any of their desires. A Heroine can be strong and independent BUT then she's viewed as a bitch. A heroine can be just as powerful as a hero BUT she eventually loses control of her power and becomes a villain.
And it keeps going and going. That was the whole book. It was filled with BUTs and when it wasn't, it was filled with butts... because the industry must continue to draw in (and for) its straight white male audience. At the turn of the century, things did seem to turn around for heroines and I would be interested in the author's commentary on all the superhero movies that have come out in the past decade since the book has been published.
Despite my disappointment with the lack of feminism represented in comics, there still were some heroines that stood out to me (besides Wonder Woman) that I would be interested in reading: Power Girl and Ma Hunkel/Red Tornado of Justice Society; Storm of X-Men; Oracle/Batgirl, Black Canary, and the other heroines of Birds of Prey; Manhunter; She-Hulk and the Lady Liberators; and Ms. Marvel's transition to Captain Marvel. (I also am interested in Spider Gwen, but she wasn't created until after the book was published and, obviously, was never mentioned.)
"Wonder Woman may have espoused messages of liberation and freedom in her own comic books, BUT, among her peers, she fell victim to oppression. With her great strength, intelligence, bulletproof bracelets, and magic lasso, Wonder Woman outclassed most of the men of the Justice Society. Yet she was only allowed to serve as the group's secretary."
Heroines have powers BUT they're still less powerful than the male heroes. Heroines want to save the day and make the world a better place BUT finding a husband is more important. Heroines get into skirmishes with villains BUT it's more important that they look attractive to male readers than protect their bodies with practical uniforms. Heroines get to represent the sexual revolution BUT they aren't allowed to act on any of their desires. A Heroine can be strong and independent BUT then she's viewed as a bitch. A heroine can be just as powerful as a hero BUT she eventually loses control of her power and becomes a villain.
And it keeps going and going. That was the whole book. It was filled with BUTs and when it wasn't, it was filled with butts... because the industry must continue to draw in (and for) its straight white male audience. At the turn of the century, things did seem to turn around for heroines and I would be interested in the author's commentary on all the superhero movies that have come out in the past decade since the book has been published.
Despite my disappointment with the lack of feminism represented in comics, there still were some heroines that stood out to me (besides Wonder Woman) that I would be interested in reading: Power Girl and Ma Hunkel/Red Tornado of Justice Society; Storm of X-Men; Oracle/Batgirl, Black Canary, and the other heroines of Birds of Prey; Manhunter; She-Hulk and the Lady Liberators; and Ms. Marvel's transition to Captain Marvel. (I also am interested in Spider Gwen, but she wasn't created until after the book was published and, obviously, was never mentioned.)
Now I'm off to read another book... BUT since a review should be more about the author of the book than about the writer of the blog, I will let Mike Madrid have the last words:
"One of the problems facing the liberated superheroine was that she often wound up being written as the Superbitch. While some superheroines toyed with feminism in the '70s, Power Girl was the real deal. She was strong, confident, outspoken, and unapologetic. When she began her career as a member of the Justice Society of America, she demanded that the male heroes treat her as an equal, and defied any man to try and put her down. Romance was never the motivation for any of Power Girl's actions since she didn't expect a man, including Superman, to complete her life. Power Girl was a young, independent woman of her time who stood up for herself. As a result, her character often came off as a bitch, as was often the case with strident feminists."
"Power Girl acts as a mentor for a new generation of heroines, teaching them not to take any crap. She states her philosophy about sexism and staying true to one's self in this way, 'I've got a rep for being stubborn, headstrong, and brash. I'm called a lot of things behind my back by other heroes. The main one rhymes with witch. I'll be honest. It's not an act. Not completely. I do have confidence. I am smarter than a lot of the other costumed cops out there. Maybe I could learn a thing or two about mutual respect. BUT you have to understand something, girls. If I was Power-Man. If I was stubborn and headstrong and brash. If I didn't take to authority well. No one would think anything of it.'"
"One of the problems facing the liberated superheroine was that she often wound up being written as the Superbitch. While some superheroines toyed with feminism in the '70s, Power Girl was the real deal. She was strong, confident, outspoken, and unapologetic. When she began her career as a member of the Justice Society of America, she demanded that the male heroes treat her as an equal, and defied any man to try and put her down. Romance was never the motivation for any of Power Girl's actions since she didn't expect a man, including Superman, to complete her life. Power Girl was a young, independent woman of her time who stood up for herself. As a result, her character often came off as a bitch, as was often the case with strident feminists."
"Power Girl acts as a mentor for a new generation of heroines, teaching them not to take any crap. She states her philosophy about sexism and staying true to one's self in this way, 'I've got a rep for being stubborn, headstrong, and brash. I'm called a lot of things behind my back by other heroes. The main one rhymes with witch. I'll be honest. It's not an act. Not completely. I do have confidence. I am smarter than a lot of the other costumed cops out there. Maybe I could learn a thing or two about mutual respect. BUT you have to understand something, girls. If I was Power-Man. If I was stubborn and headstrong and brash. If I didn't take to authority well. No one would think anything of it.'"
No comments:
Post a Comment