Ellis on Women in Comics
- Posted by Johanna on January 30, 2006 at 4:46 pm
- Category: LinkBlogging
At his message board, Warren Ellis takes a more measured approach to the question of women in comics than is usually seen.
I know I’m picking on my own phrasing here, but why is it even a question? There are plenty of women in comics, just not the comics fanboys read. And those comics, the ones women do from Pantheon and Viz and Tokyopop and Graphix and self-published and on the web, are the ones that are selling and reaching new readers. They don’t need the direct market, and they don’t need the superhero fans. Which might be why so much rancor surrounds the subject, typically. People feeling unappreciated and unnecessary often say inappropriate things.
January 30, 2006 at 5:16 pm
I notice he mentioned Rachel Hartman, so good on him.
January 30, 2006 at 6:38 pm
And people in positions of power often come off sounding like pompous gits, even when they are simply trying to explain the situation.
(Which explains why there was rancor on the subject long before Manga was even a glimmer on the cultural horizon.)
It’s facile, and yes the exact balance of rancor will be informed by current cultrual trends, but in the end it is all “Us vs Them”. But unlike “Coke vs Pepsi”, the battle lines are drawn by biology, and the vast majority of the planet can’t simply claim to be uninterested in the outcome.
(OK, I admit it: Where’s the righteous fury over Hermaphrodites in Comics, eh?)