Feminists and Spider-Woman

     "Here's a simple rule: If it's inappropriate for a male character, it should also be inappropriate for a female character" states Charlotte Allen. In the article, "The Great Spider-Woman Sexist Derriere Scandal", Allen talks about the fact that female superheroes are generally portrayed in a more sexualized way then male superheroes. Her article also serves to counter argue some feminists who "[shoot] from the hip about sexism and double standards in superhero comic books". But the more important point that she mentions in her article is that "[Superheroes are] essentially nude, like Greek gods and goddesses in classical art, with every muscle of their perfectly toned bodies in high definition", which leads us to the group topic, Superhero Body Image. This quote is important because it reminds us what superheroes look like, and their influence on younger boys and girls. Could we say that comics enhance the "double-standards" and "sexism" since such "pornographic" comics are read by many teenage boys? Well, Allen quotes Maddox's statement that when Spiderman was drawn in the same physical position as was the new Spiderwoman (pornographic, almost impossible to take, position) and when that issue was out "Nobody cared or even noticed". The article explains that no one noticed because it was Spiderman and since he is a man, then it is not such a big deal that he is holding an inappropriate position.
     Okay, but when it comes to women and their perception of Spiderwoman's body image, for example, this is what we see: "She looks like she's wearing body-paint, and that's a big no-no for an industry still trying to remember that women exist and may perhaps read comics and also don't want to feel completely gross when they do so..." as Rob Bricken says in Allen's article. Would you agree with this point? I would. This quote gives me the image of a person illustrating female superheroes constantly taking "pornographic" poses within the comics' frames, and young boys buying such comics exactly for that reason... That is gross, ladies and gentlemen!

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-spider-woman-variant-cover-20140911-story.html