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Comics, especially the superhero genre, haven’t always had the healthiest attitude towards sexuality. Aditya Mani Jha deconstructs the ethos that went into the making of some bizarre and seriously disturbing sex scenes in comics. At a time when pop cultur
Aguy and a girl walked into a bar. The guy drew superhero comics (the muscles-and-spandex kind) for a living while the girl made Bollywood movies ( the flowers-having-sex kind). He had two martinis too many while she knocked back a half-a-dozen Bloody Marys. She took his hand, only for both of them to disappear in a blinding flash of light, SHAZAM!
Confused? You shouldn’t be. If Bollywood films of a certain vintage set the standard for Victorian prudishness, comicbooks — espe- cially those from the reigning superhero genre — were equal and opposite entities, in their over-the-top fantasias and ridiculous contortionist art. It’s safe to say that for the longest time, comics had a sex problem: too in-yourface, too problematic, too much. And it’s only recently that they have started the repair process.
Some of the weirdest sex scenes in recent comicbook history have come courtesy The Ultimates, Marvel’s reboot of the Avengers series. The Ultimates debuted in 2002, with writer Mark Millar ( Wanted, Kick-Ass) and artist Brian Hitch helming the first few miniseries. The idea behind this series was
In a deliciously gruesome scene, we see the blueskinned Manhattan in bed with his girlfriend Laurie Jupiter (herself an ex-vigilante called Silk Spectre), when something creepy happens: Laurie, with her eyes shut, feels about half-a-dozen hands touching her simultaneously. She opens her eyes to see that he has made several replicas of himself; easily the creepiest gang-bang of all time. And that’s not all: yet another replica is busy finishing
an experiment in Manhattan’s laboratory.
to adopt some of the grit and the old-world noir sensibilities of Frank Miller, among other people. Unfortunately, the creators did what a typical teenager would do on confronting the real world: draw as many boobs on as many walls as possible.
When we meet the scientist couple Janet and Hank Pym, we know from previous Marvel history that they can shrink or expand their body size at will. The Pyms are a bit like the Hulk, in the sense that their earnest nature and scientific temperament make them especially sensitive about their powers and the good. They desperately want to do something for the greater good, not just as superheroes but also as scientists. So when you see Millar using these powers for some superhero- style shrink-and-swell oral sex, it leaves you with a strange taste in your mouth (stop it, whatever you’re thinking. Just stop.)
Hank (aka Giant Man/Ant Man) shrinks to the size of an insect and goes down on Janet, who puts her best Hollywood-O face on. Hank finishes, and says, panting: “Your turn, Jan.” Riddle me this, Mr Millar. What, pray, is the strategy here, when you’re nay so tall (about an