Women in the Golden Age to Modern Age of Comics
One could argue that North American comic books have reflected what’s been happening in the world. Comic books have long been a boy’s-only club. Between the start of Platinum age of comic books (1897 to 1937), and the end of the Golden age (1938 to the early 1950s), in which superheroes like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman were introduced, only a handful of women were found in the bullpens of publishers. During this time period, if a female character wasn’t a superhero, she played the romantic interest or a lively teenager. Non-superhero comics usually featured career oriented female characters like Nellie the Nurse, Tessie the Typist, and Millie the Model. While this was typical for the time period, most titles were created and written by men. It wasn’t until the Modern Age of comics (1985 to today) that a surge of women started working in the industry as editors, writers, artists, and colorists. During that time period, independent comics started making a comeback, and many found their voices outside of the superhero genre and the stereotypical tropes of days gone by. Just as the internal workings of comics was changing, the audience was changing into a diverse group.
Geek culture in the digital age
In more recent years, the digital age has been able to attract even more female readers. In large-part, this was done with the help of apps like Comixology, where female-readership is close to 50%. Many agree that the variety of offerings in online stores helps attract new readers from a spectrum. In its March 2015 Tumblr, Comixology revealed that female superheroes dominated their Top 10 with titles like Ms. Marvel, about teenaged Kamala Khan, Silk, starring Korean American Cindy Moon, and the Jane Foster version of Thor.
Geek culture has become much more mainstream in the last few decades. Within the science fiction world, were the trailblazers Sigourney Weaver in the Aliens franchise and Linda Hamilton in Terminator. The X-files is often cited as being a source of inspiration, with Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) being a strong protagonist who was not sexualized to get more viewers. It gave birth to many new series that saw female characters starring or, at the very least, being treated as equals: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess, Orphan Black, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Fringe, The Expanse, Black Mirror, Lost, The 100, The Walking Dead and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Some shows, like Game of Thrones and Westworld, take a step further by taking advantage of their respective genres to tell nuanced stories about gender politics, as well as questioning power dynamics.
In the last decade, we’ve also seen an explosion in attendance at pop culture events centered around comic books, science fiction and cosplay (costume + play). Comic book superhero films have dominated the box office and have brought more attention to these types of gatherings. Originally, conventions like these would attract over 80% male collectors, while today it’s closer to a 50/50 split. We’ve come a long way and the culture has progressively changed to be more diverse and inclusive.
But not without some pushback. Enter #Comicsgate
There will always be some degree of resistance to any type of change. Comic books and geek culture in general is not immune. In 2014, we saw the rise of the Gamergate controversy, which stemmed from a harassment campaign centered on issues of sexism and progressivism in video game culture. In the last few years, some comic book fans and retailers have claimed that Marvel and DC Comics had a political agenda to push their comics to the extreme left. In the summer of 2017, Marvel editor Heather Antos posted a picture of herself and several female Marvel staffers on Twitter. Internet trolls used the opportunity to claim that this as an example of “what is wrong with comics today.” A few months later at New York Comic Con, Diamond Comics Distribution held its annual exclusive breakfast panel for comic book retailers. With several Marvel writers in attendance, the panel, which was going well, went off the rails with several retailers angrily (and colourfully) voiced their opinion of Marvel’s increased presence of non-white, non-male characters as headlining their own books.
Through the noise, two principle figures rallied their followers to harass and boycott certain key creators that they deemed as social justice warriors (SJW), a pejorative term for those that hold progressive views. Richard C. Meyer posts on Youtube and Twitter through his banner Diversity & Comics, denouncing what he deems to agendas in comics, TV and film by the far left. Ethan Van Sciver is an award-winning comic book illustrator whom has worked on important comics like Green Lantern and New Xmen.
It is true that comic book sales have slowed, especially in the physical copies. Though one could easily argue that book sales in general have slowed in the face of shifting media. To claim that Marvel, DC, Image or any other publisher is attempting to ostracize white males is ludicrous. These companies aim to hire the best writers and artists to tell the most interesting stories. Does Marvel have an “agenda”? No, but it does have a motto that has often been repeated by comics legend Stan Lee: “Marvel has always been, and always will be, a reflection of the world, right outside our window. That world may change and evolve, but the one thing that will never change is the way we tell our stories of heroism. Those stories have room for everyone, regardless of their race, gender, religion, or colour of their skin. The only things we don’t have room for are hatred, intolerance and bigotry.”
Cliff Caporale is the Director of the Montreal and Ottawa Comiccon, an annual Comic convention dedicated to creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comics and related popular artforms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture. References & Resources:
https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/opinion/women-reading-comic-books-ever/
http://comixology.tumblr.com/post/11 5856753040/marvel-bogo-top-10
http://thefederalist.com/2018/08/08/cr owdfunded-rebellion-identity-politicscomics-nets-1-25-million-counting/
https://twitter.com/heatherantos/status/891004244089810945
https://www.inverse.com/article/37213-marvel-new-york-comic-conpunisher-northrop-grumman
https://twitter.com/marvel/status/915924418693554176