"As a female creator..."
I hate that phrase. I really do. Just typing it right now makes my muscles tense and hands ball into fists. Questions that begin with those words make me see red. Awards bearing this label leave me cold. And most of all, when I hear women in this industry use these words to define themselves, I turn green, my muscles burst through my clothes, and I start smashing everything in sight. Okay...well, maybe not...but that's how I feel sometimes.
Why the rage? Well, there's a whole host of reasons, really. Too many to list here, for sure, but by tacking the "F" word onto everything we do--female artist, female writer, female whatever -- we women diminish our own accomplishments. We cheapen our art, pander to outdated ideas, and create divisions where there needn't be any. Women will NEVER be taken seriously in this (or any industry) if we keep using gender as a reason, or a selling point, or an excuse for what we do. Solid work speaks for itself. If the only thing a creator has going for her is that she's female, she's already lost. And when people start supporting a creator's art simply because of their gender, then all we lose. Read a book because it's damn good. Admire someone's artwork because it's compelling. Not because it was created by the angry Kinko's employee who looks like Avril Lavigne.
Truth is, right now in comics I believe a certain breed of misguided feminist is holding us back. And by that, I mean holding ALL of us back -- fanboys and geek girls alike. For whatever reason, a rather vocal faction of girls in the comics media wants to rally around the "F" word. They muddy the water with rants about how the industry is "inherently sexist" and post lists of every bad thing--actual or imagined--that has ever happened to female superheroes. They write editorials about Wonder Woman stories that haven't been topical since 1969 and wave them in our faces like protest placards as proof that the genre is dominated by men who want nothing more than to keep women down. If they don't like a costume, it's sexist. If they don't like a story, it's sexist. Sexual tension between Uhura and Spock? Sexist. Favorite character dies? Sexist. Power Girl's big boobs? Sexist. Then of course there's the one claim that pisses me off the most, which is, "Publisher X rejected my series pitch! They must be sexist!"
All of this seems to serve one purpose--to popularize the myth that female fans and creators need their own special support system to guide and protect them from the phallocentric boy's club that is comics. Phallocentric? Yeah, that one confused me, too...I'll get into that one in a later column. Trust me.
This is why I've decided to start "The F Word" here at ComicRelated.com. It's time I come forward as a female creator and say ENOUGH! I am sick to death of girls reveling in the idea that women are oppressed, that the deck is stacked against us, and that we need a girl's club. I'm sick of the mixed messages this sends to men. I'm sick of the assumptions people make about me because of the "girls club" mentality. In short, I'm sick of these GIRLS speaking on my behalf as a WOMAN in comics. Their rhetoric is unhealthy, regressive, and, worst of all, it's holding EVERYONE back. I believe if you want to be treated as an equal, you have to live and work as an equal. Men and women are both equally capable of great and stupid things...so let's stop pretending one gender is more noble, or more capable, than the other.
And let me just say one thing about the so-called "boys club" of comics. Ladies, if you haven't yet noticed, the comics community wants you in the club. The door is open, the welcome mat is out, and there are legions of fanboys out there who would just love to talk to you for hours about the finer points of Geoff Johns' run on JSA. Ask any publisher-geek girls are one of the most coveted demographics. And every year more doors open for artists and writers who also just so happen to be female. And manga...don't even get me started on manga!
My goal with this column is to take these issues head-on, to un-muddy the waters, and de-bunk misguided assumptions about what a strong, independent woman is, and what she wants. I'm going to give credit where credit is due and I will ridicule folly when I see it. I'm especially going to call out misguided feminists when they make ludicrous arguments like, "...the story has a plot ripped off from porn movies: girl gang enslaves a young pretty, backs off when penis enters the room and conquers them all."*
Now don't get me wrong. I'm all "Hulked" out and ready to fight right now, but I DON'T want this column to be an ANGER fest. That get's old real quick. Like I said, I will be giving credit where credit is due, and spotlight those in the industry (both men and women) who get it right.
But to get the ball rolling, I will state for the record, I believe a woman doesn't have to be a bra-burner, a man-hater, or a Rosie O'Donnell to be strong. I believe there is NOTHING wrong with men finding a woman attractive and saying so. I believe the female form is beautiful in all its shapes and sizes. I believe sex is good, and that a woman can be sexy without being exploited. And if women want to be action heroes, they're going to have to accept that they'll occasionally get punched, groped, set-on fire, or even stuffed inside a refrigerator...just like Indiana Jones.
Oh, and I also believe the female form is best viewed in leather...but maybe I shouldn't go into that here.
And finally, because I'm woman enough to say so, I do have a co-pilot on this journey. My wonderful husband, Josh Finney. Why? Because I'm an artist, not a writer (at least not yet) and I can admit when I need a little help getting my feelings out there in a more articulate form than "KAT SMASH!! GRRRRR!!!"
* http://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=1391
Kat Rocha is a comic book artist currently collaborating artistically with writer/artist Josh Finney on the acclaimed sci-fi series Titanium Rain from Archaia Studio Press. She lives with her husband in San Diego, collects knives and enjoys drawing pin ups of strong, buxom women in her free time. Titanium Rain #1 will be available in the June 09 Preview.
For more information, visit www.titaniumrain.net and www.aspcomics.com
To read more of Kat's rantings, visit, http://kat-a-pult.blogspot.com
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