dcwomenkickingass:

A few weeks ago on the 3 Chicks Review Comics Podcast I do on CBR, myself and the other two chicks, Kelly Thompson and Maddy got in a heated discussion regarding Women in Refrigerators. The issue was whether the treatment of Bette Kane, the former Titan now turned Batwoman sidekick wannabe,…

Meh, I don’t like how the brutal treatment of any character should be somehow forced into some arbitrary “Sex War” for feminist righteousness.

I understand that the fact that there have been more examples of brutal treatment of women in comics over the years might provoke the idea but I feel this is simply because all of these writers, and the industry as a whole has been run by… well, old men who grew up in times when women were actually seen as the “weaker” gender.

I’m just saying, if a Male character was killed off brutally in the same manner in a comic book then or tomorrow I doubt it would warrant the same kind of outcry. Dudes all over the world going “OH GOD, WHY ARE THEY DE-MASCULINATING US?! THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!” would be seen as silly; yet somehow this isn’t. Hmm.

But on the topic of the post, recent comics I’ve enjoyed that featured female characters as “women” are Secret Avengers #14 & #15; both having a spotlight on Valkyrie and Black Widow respectively (although the ladder was less about being woman than it was about being a “hero”), they were a really great read and showed strong, poetic if not intelligent characters in both.

And this might spark some flare but I’ve really enjoyed the new Catwoman series. Aside from the fact that she’s a lot of “sexy” there’s a powerful/complex/human character in the title.  Her relationship with Lola, her emotional ruthlessness clashing with her moral compass, self deprecating monologue as she cleans up her best friend’s body, nonchalant attitude towards sex and the fact that it’s an asset not a weakness etc. all making for a good read. (and my girlfriend would agree)