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beccatoriaI think I probably am. Sorry.
I just... Marvel are in the unprecedented position of having succeeded in creating a shared superhero universe for a mainstream audience, of proving that it works, of establishing it well enough that now, in the wake of the insane success of the Avengers, they can actually start broadening it, building it, really showing what such a fictional construct can do.
And what do they do? Oh, right. More hetero white dudes. Of course.
Seriously, where is the Black Widow film? Why isn't it Ant-Man & Wasp? When do we get to meet Black Panther or Luke Cage or a freaking kick ass team-up with Misty Knight and Colleen Wing? Can we all be really surprised when it's Peggy, not Bucky, who turns out to be the Winter Soldier?
When you're making a movie about Ant-Man, who has basically no name recognition with the general public, and a powerset that inspires Aquaman level jokes, in addition to the fact that the two things he is best known for in popcultural terms are (a) beating his wife that one time and (b) spying on chicks in the shower without their consent that one time - so whether or not that's a fair reflection on the way his character is normally written I don't know but it doesn't change the fact he's got an image problem - the fact that he's historically associated with the Avengers in ways the other characters may not be (since Luke Cage is sometimes their freaking LEADER), and when you're already deviating from the classic Marvel Universe in your Movie Universe...that is a weak ass excuse for picking him instead of anyone else.
Look, I've read a few Marvel comics in my time but I make no secret of the fact I'm a DC fangirl first and foremost. A lot of my Marvel knowledge is from fandom osmosis, borrowed trades and the movies. But I like these movies. They don't rule my universe, but I go see them, I like them, I look forward to them. Like most of the world, this is the face of the Marvel Universe that I see most, this is their chance to impress me, to say to me, come read more of my stuff.
And this is what they show me.
I don't get all the squee.
No, wait, I do get all the squee and I do not begrudge it. I get psyched about a lot of things that probably could have been made with better representation, or fairer choices. It's entirely possible to be excited about something and acknowledge the parts of it that aren't ideal. Probably that's what a lot of people are doing. I don't want to be the asshole who draws lines and insists no one can have a complex response to a situation.
What I don't get is that I just...don't see anyone talking about this.
Probably I just don't know where to look, but pretty much the comics-related response to SDCC news seems to be that DC is the devil incarnate for having replaced a minor (hate to say it but it's true) cult female character who's taking on the role of a previously male character in a piece of minor (hate to say it but it's true) spinoff media, with another, slightly better known, female character still taking on the role of a previously male character, while Marvel shits kittens because they...are making some more films about straight white dudes?
And like, the Stephanie Brown switcheroo was capricious and honestly, because it's not even a mainstream product, pretty fucking fruitless and probably achieved nothing but upsetting loyal fans. It was dumb and disappointing, don't get me wrong, but given that Steph's ongoing situation is almost always linked to discussions about representation and gender in comics, I just can't help but feel there's a weird double standard going on here.
Then again, and without suggesting DC is some sort of bastion of feminism, because it's really not, I think in general DC gets given a much harder time about the way it treats its female characters than Marvel. Possibly because it actually has some. OOOH BURN. Okay, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, and as someone who's going to go out and buy the new Captain Marvel title, I should shut up and stop being unfair, Marvel have a lot of great women in their line-up, but I do think that DC has more women visibly soloing books and that means there's more opportunity to be critical.
Or something. Whatever. It's...petty of me but I'm sort of pissed about the whole thing.
Also I'm sick. So.
I just... Marvel are in the unprecedented position of having succeeded in creating a shared superhero universe for a mainstream audience, of proving that it works, of establishing it well enough that now, in the wake of the insane success of the Avengers, they can actually start broadening it, building it, really showing what such a fictional construct can do.
And what do they do? Oh, right. More hetero white dudes. Of course.
Seriously, where is the Black Widow film? Why isn't it Ant-Man & Wasp? When do we get to meet Black Panther or Luke Cage or a freaking kick ass team-up with Misty Knight and Colleen Wing? Can we all be really surprised when it's Peggy, not Bucky, who turns out to be the Winter Soldier?
When you're making a movie about Ant-Man, who has basically no name recognition with the general public, and a powerset that inspires Aquaman level jokes, in addition to the fact that the two things he is best known for in popcultural terms are (a) beating his wife that one time and (b) spying on chicks in the shower without their consent that one time - so whether or not that's a fair reflection on the way his character is normally written I don't know but it doesn't change the fact he's got an image problem - the fact that he's historically associated with the Avengers in ways the other characters may not be (since Luke Cage is sometimes their freaking LEADER), and when you're already deviating from the classic Marvel Universe in your Movie Universe...that is a weak ass excuse for picking him instead of anyone else.
Look, I've read a few Marvel comics in my time but I make no secret of the fact I'm a DC fangirl first and foremost. A lot of my Marvel knowledge is from fandom osmosis, borrowed trades and the movies. But I like these movies. They don't rule my universe, but I go see them, I like them, I look forward to them. Like most of the world, this is the face of the Marvel Universe that I see most, this is their chance to impress me, to say to me, come read more of my stuff.
And this is what they show me.
I don't get all the squee.
No, wait, I do get all the squee and I do not begrudge it. I get psyched about a lot of things that probably could have been made with better representation, or fairer choices. It's entirely possible to be excited about something and acknowledge the parts of it that aren't ideal. Probably that's what a lot of people are doing. I don't want to be the asshole who draws lines and insists no one can have a complex response to a situation.
What I don't get is that I just...don't see anyone talking about this.
Probably I just don't know where to look, but pretty much the comics-related response to SDCC news seems to be that DC is the devil incarnate for having replaced a minor (hate to say it but it's true) cult female character who's taking on the role of a previously male character in a piece of minor (hate to say it but it's true) spinoff media, with another, slightly better known, female character still taking on the role of a previously male character, while Marvel shits kittens because they...are making some more films about straight white dudes?
And like, the Stephanie Brown switcheroo was capricious and honestly, because it's not even a mainstream product, pretty fucking fruitless and probably achieved nothing but upsetting loyal fans. It was dumb and disappointing, don't get me wrong, but given that Steph's ongoing situation is almost always linked to discussions about representation and gender in comics, I just can't help but feel there's a weird double standard going on here.
Then again, and without suggesting DC is some sort of bastion of feminism, because it's really not, I think in general DC gets given a much harder time about the way it treats its female characters than Marvel. Possibly because it actually has some. OOOH BURN. Okay, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, and as someone who's going to go out and buy the new Captain Marvel title, I should shut up and stop being unfair, Marvel have a lot of great women in their line-up, but I do think that DC has more women visibly soloing books and that means there's more opportunity to be critical.
Or something. Whatever. It's...petty of me but I'm sort of pissed about the whole thing.
Also I'm sick. So.
