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I've started noticing a disturbing trend turning up in the X-Books, and Marvel lately.
Lots of sex 'appeal'. Sure, gratuitous sex has been part of comics for a long time, from
the costumes, to the women, and there isn't anything inherently wrong with it, but Marvel
has begun pushing the boundaries beyond anything even seen by Image or Chaos! Comics back
in the day.
The most annoying thing about is Marvel's recent "Tsunami" launch was aimed
to try and get more women and girls to try reading comics, by appealing to them with anime
style art and stories. All well and good. What is one of the main launch titles? Mystique,
whose cover proudly displays her in all her Joseph Michael Linsner glory (Creator of Dawn),
shoving her ass in our face, and her perky boobs bouncing along.
The interior isn't much better. In the first few pages, there's a woman in an evening
gown which gets torn up, then as she's running, breaks a heel so they can once more shove
her ass in our face. Later, we're introduced to a hooker (Does that make it ok?) whose
clothes leave less to the imagination than most of Lady Death's outfits. Now, this wouldn't
be so bad, but there is absolutely no attempt at subtlety.
However, I'm withholding judgment until after I've read a few more issues, to see if the
story manages to outweigh the T&A factor.
This is minor however, compared to a comic which hasn't even started yet, X-Men: Phoenix.
Those who know me will probably be surprised at this at first, but once some details are given,
it's easy to see why I am so against this title. First off, it's set in Marvel's Mangaverse,
which has yet to do anything but make me go "Why??" and question its very existence.
I've never cared for endless variations and retellings of Marvel's stories, and wish they would
focus all this effort on making the core continuity stronger.
Next up, is the high level of T&A factor here. First cover showcased a redhead in a
very skimpy costume, with a tiny patch covering her lower bits held on by two tiny strings, and
a barely existent top, with a little coat - she might be cold, you see. Ok, a bit annoying, but
otherwise eh. Next issue's cover had her sitting on top of a glowing orb, with her legs spread
wide for all to see. Some interior pages were shown at this point, and almost every panel shoved
either the rear or boobs of one or both of the twin redheads in our faces, again. Finally, so
far, the third issue cover showcased the redhead once more, with her boobs flying around, looking
like they're trying to, or about to, escape, and she has managed to completely lose the little
patch of cloth down below, making it look very much, and as close as I can tell she IS, naked down
below. On the cover. Of a Marvel comic. Using the same art and storytelling style of the line
they're launching to get female readers. Oh yeah, this is gonna backfire.
Recently, Marvel changed the rating on the X-Men: Phoenix series to it's PG+ rating. Gee, you think?
No, I'm not a prude, and I do enjoy attractive women in my comics, but I also enjoy some subtlety in it, and not groins being shoved and thrust at me, with heaping doses of story. Maybe a justifiable reason for the peepshow, too. Marvel also isn't the group of folks who should be foisting things like this into the public view, in my humble opinion. At least not outside their MAX adult comics line.
Oh, and let's not forget their upcoming White Queen series, which will likely be more of the same. Marvel's main-line attempt at this trick, Thunderbolts, was recently cancelled. The scantily clad boob-thrusting women on those covers sure didn't help sales do anything but tank. Sex sells, sluts don't. At least, in an ideal world they don't.
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