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Breaking the macho mold with new heroes in town
/ MARVEL COMICS, DC COMICS
Comic books. Reimagining superheroes means we’re starting to move away from the stereotypical white macho male characters. The comic book world has taken a huge leap of faith by changing the gender and race of two of its most-loved superheroes: Thor is now a woman, and Captain America, an African American. Marvel’s announcements last month have fuelled yet another debate on sexual and racial diversity, leading skeptics to wonder whether these changes are being made to reflect today’s more accepting modern society; or manipulated to please, and ultimately widen, the fan base. Axel Alonso, editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, tells Metro that the decision to make Thor a woman and Captain America Afro-American is just another example of the company’s ability to adapt and respond to diversity. “The Marvel Universe has always been built to resemble and reflect the diversity of the world around us. The all-new Thor and Captain America put an exclamation point on our commitment to populating our stories with smart, powerful and diverse superheroes,” he explains. The passionate reaction to the news of Thor’s ‘transformation’ has had further repercussions: fans now have reason to hope that from now on, we can expect to see more and more female superheroes, a considerable development in an industry that has often been thought of as sexist. According to Mike Madrid, author of “The Supergirls: Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book
Heroines”, women are rarely the main protagonists in comic books; they’re either the hero’s sidekick or his (weaker) female equivalent, such as Batgirl. Marvel isn’t the only comic book company to embrace change. The Green Lantern, a DC Comics character, two years ago made his coming out, and is now openly gay. Jesús Jiménez Varea, a communications professor at the University of Seville and an expert in graphic novels, told Metro how this decision could mark the end of heterosexism within the industry. Although Marvel’s decision may seem verging on the provocative, one must remember that the industry is worth millions. Comic book companies cannot afford to be out of touch with their readers. On average, the U.S. comic market generates a net profit of more than $200 million in the first half of the year. According to Diamond Comic Distributors, America’s biggest comic book distribution network, the rest of 2014 will be just as lucrative. But is Marvel’s announcement nothing more than a publicity coup? Eric Reynolds, associate publisher at Fantagraphics Books, thinks so: “The Thor and Captain America stories are another logical extension of the kind of stunt-driven publicity that Marvel and DC Comics have been pursuing for years. The most obvious comparison is the way they kill off characters to great fanfare only to inevitably bring them back.” Despite acknowledging that Marvel’s decision-making was probably a PR ploy, Jiménez recognizes that by exposing readers to characters of such a diverse nature, and having them interact with each other could help get rid of prejudices existing within the fandom. Marketing strategy or a reflection of today’s society? No one knows for sure. But what’s sure is that the comic book world has decided to make its superheroes a little more real,
Alias: Captain America Marvel Comics Name: Sam Wilson Date: 2014 Controversy: First time in the comic franchise’s history, the superhero has been cast as an African-Ame-rican man.
a little more ‘interesting’. And although many critics may see this tactic as short-lived, its success will depend on how fans respond to a black Captain America, a gay Green Lantern and a Thor with breasts – nothing else.
DANIEL CASILLAS
Metro World News
Q&A
AXEL ALONSO Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics
We recently learned that major changes will be presented soon in some characters like Thor and Captain America. How does Marvel decide to do these kind of changes and with what purpose? The Marvel Universe has always been built to resemble and reflect the diversity of the world around us. The all-new Thor and Captain America put an exclamation point on our commitment to populating our stories with smart, powerful, diverse super heroes – but in a way in which these characters are defined by their actions, not by their super-powers, gender or race. What other examples of
this type of change do you remember? The characters in the Marvel Universe are always changing and evolving. A recent example of this would be Kamala Kahn, a 16-year-old Pakistani-American Muslim girl from Jersey City who is the new Ms. Marvel, and Miles Morales, an AfricanAmerican and Hispanic teenager who is the Spider-Man of the Ultimate Universe. Both of these characters are connecting with fans because their stories are universal.
America — Sam Wilson, previously known as the Falcon — earned the right to put on the red, white and blue costume over decades of stories where he functioned as Steve Rogers’s friend, partner, confidante and, at times, conscience. And judging from the response to the all-new, female Thor at Comic-Con, there are a lot of fans out there – male and female – who are very excited about a woman wielding that powerful hammer and the responsibility that comes with it.
Do these changes damage the essence of the characters? Marvel has always focused on the person behind the mask and how they cope with grand, gigantic, and sometimes galactic, challenges. Anyone who is familiar with Captain America knows that the All-New Captain
How do you think readers will receive this kind of change? When it comes to changes to well established characters, there are always those that oppose change, but the majority of our fans welcome a shakeup to our status quo. It’s part of the fun of comics.
Alias: Thor Marvel Comics Name: Thor Date: 2014 Controversy: The new character using the power of Mjölnir - the hammer - is a woman. She is now the one and only Thor!
Alias: The Green Lantern DC Comics Name: Alan Scott Date: 2012 Controversy: Revealed to have a boyfriend named Sam, to whom he intends to propose while on vacation in China.
Alias: Batwoman DC Comics Name: Kate Kane Date: 2011 Controversy: Openly lesbian comic book heroine. She had a romance with Renee Montoya, Mallory Kimball and Maggie Sawyer.
Q&A
MIKE MADRID
Autor of book “The Supergirls: Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book Heroines”
What is your opinion about the recent announcement of Marvel that Thor now will be a woman? Initially I thought that Marvel was just introducing a female Thor as a publicity stunt. The male Thor will still be seen in other comics, so there is an opportunity for him to inevitably return as the one and only Thor. There may be legal motivations to change Thor in this way, but it also suggests that the company is willing to push the envelope to try new things with their very recognizable heroes. Of course, since Marvel Comics is owned by Disney, there is speculation that this is simply an attempt to transform Thor into a Disney Princess. Does this change represent a breakthrough in the role of women in comics? It’s a breakthrough of sorts for female character in comics. For decades we had women acting as the assistants or helpers to male heroes – Captain Marvel and Mary Marvel, Superman and Supergirl, Ant Man and Wasp. The women were
always presented as secondary, less powerful versions of men. But this new Thor is not the assistant to the male version of the hero. She is his replacement. She has been deemed worthy to wield the power of Thor. So, this says that heroism is determined by bravery and integrity, not gender. If this character is successful, it opens the door for a woman to one day assume the role of a popular hero like Captain America. What is the role of women in the comic industry? Can it even be considered to be “macho”? The comics industry has traditionally been seen as a man’s profession, even though women have played a big part in it since the 1940s. Many female writers and artists have had challenges being accepted in the male dominated world of mainstream comic book publishers, which is essentially DC and Marvel. But the flip side is that many women aren’t interested in just telling stories of superheroes fighting each other. As a result, there are many more female creators working in alternative comics and graphic novels, which consequently attract a large female readership. Anyone
interested in the history of women in comics should check out “Pretty In Ink: North American Women Cartoonists 1896-2013” by Trina Robbins for the definitive look at women in comic books. What other women, besides Wonder Woman, have a leading role in the comics? There have been many women that have leading roles in comics besides Wonder Woman — Batgirl, Catwoman, Supergirl, She-Hulk, Manhunter, Ms. Marvel. But often these characters’ series have not had long publication runs. There is a perception in the comics industry that female characters don’t attract the same numbers of readers that male heroes like Batman and Spider-Man do. As a result, women are given fewer opportunities to headline their own series. The X-Men’s Storm was introduced in 1975, and has only been launched in her own ongoing solo series this year. Meanwhile her teammate Wolverine has starred in a number of his own comics since 1988. The industry is definitely making more attempts to change the situation, but the progress is slow.