Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Dan Slott: New Poster Child For Women In Refrigerator Offenses?


So, Tigra was having sex with the Skrull Hank Pym. Now she's pregnant. The internet is aghast, it would seem, at how Dan Slott has handled this.

If you check over on LiveJournal, you'll see a lot of discussion about it, but I'm reposting my favorite one (from kali921):

I don't have a problem with the scene in regards to its treatment of Tigra. For me it was about repercussions. When I stopped and looked at where the character was and where continuity and other creators had left her, I realized that here was a character who had casual sex with a skrull-- someone assuming a fake name/appearance/false pretenses. That's horrible. That's life-scarring.

Mr. Slott, do you not see how problematic that statement is, especially in regards to the way Tigra has been treated by Marvel's writers and editors over the last few years? Why would Greer be having unprotected sex? There are also troubling connotations to your statement, the kind of connotations that can lead one to believe that you're punishing a female character for having "casual sex."
While I don't know that this is supposed to be punishment for casual sex, it seems silly that Dan Slott's immediate assumption was that they were having unprotected, casual sex. Casual sex is sex that occurs outside of an established relationship, making it seem even more unlikely that our fair heroes would be bonking unprotected. I mean...Marvel IS the company that won't show a hero smoking because it can be deadly, right?

I'm told that Dan Slott is all over the internet defending his decision and honor.

Posted by Kevin Huxford at 4:47 AM
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14 comments:

  1. I gotta say that...doesn't really bug me. I mean she was in a "relationship" and by chance she got knocked up. That happens quite frequently in REAL LIFE!!! She's not being punished she's being shown as representing what can, and does, happen. It was done in a weird way, Skrull kittens...wonder if they're cute?

    And besides throw in that the only TRUE protected sex is called ABSTINENCE. Capitalized on purpose.
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  2. The only answer to this is, of course, Dan Slott hates women. I hear he's got an upcoming Tigra one-shot where she goes against Shuma Gorath and Doc Ock, what's he got in mind for all those tentacles anyways?
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  3. It rubs me the wrong way. I'm not sure why. It does seem moralistic -- like sex out of a relationship or marriage is something that should be punished.

    Maybe I'm reading too much into it. Does the comic discuss abortion? My store got shorted a few copies and I haven't read it.
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  4. Mike, yes, abortion is brought up. It's her intention to abort the pregnancy.

    Jake, by Slott's referring to it as casual sex, it would appear he's suggesting there was no relationship and she was just jumping into unprotected sex.
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  5. I'd debate Slott's apparent suggestion of casual sex. There were a couple of scenes in Initiative through the past several months that showed them, at one point, jogging together, and another where I believe that they were dining together. Dining and jogging sounds like dating, as opposed to casual sex.
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  6. Heh. Well, that'd mean the writer either isn't clear on the relationship of the characters he writes or the definition of casual sex. ;)
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  7. He's not clear on the definition of casual sex. They had a relationship by, my assumption, all their activities. Sure it may not have been a serious and committed one. Heck he was a Skrull. But it was a relationship. And how are we to know it wasn't protected? Maybe Skrull sperm easily tears through a human made condom. She might has been on the pill, used a condom, and had that uterus thing in but still the Skrull sperm was just that dominant. We'll never really know what happened. We weren't privy to the coitus. My argument would be that he hates Tigra and Patsy Walker...cause lets be honest...crappy character (Patsy Walker not Tigra...she's kinda hot in a cat person with a nice rack for a comic superheroine kind of way).
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  8. I hear ya, Jake. But it seems that Slott is using "casual sex" in place of "unprotected/unsafe sex".
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  9. Tigra happens to be my favorite Marvel character, and I have been disgusted by the casual disregard writers have for her. It's getting harder and harder to find a comic book that's in continuity from the big two that I like.

    I'm especially disappointed in Dan Slott for exacerbating this apparent unstated mandate to trash Tigra. This is the guy who used to write superb Justice League Adventures and introduced in "Local Hero" a magnificent female Leaguer called All-Star.

    For those looking for the "real" Tigra. Buy Marvel Adventures Avengers. Paul Tobin has recently added her to the roster. Tobin's Tigra is strong, smart--she's a private detective no less--and whimsical.

    The artists of Marvel Adventures, usually Matthew Lolli or Ig Guara illustrate her as a lithe, sexy crimefighter. Lolli draws her a little more elfin and catlike than Guara, but both are the best representations I've seen of the character since John Byrne introduced her to me in Marvel Team-Up back in the seventies.

    Ray
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  10. These are all great points, after all, in real life there are no such things as unwanted pregnancies. I personally have never known any woman that got pregnant at the wrong time in their life or felt ambivalent feelings about wanting to keep a child that they may not be able to support or care for. Good for you for pointing this out! We need realistic portrayals of women in our supertight wearing comics! So please Marvel, please stop hating on the fairer sex and give us more women in bondage gear with huge hooters who never get pregnant or engage in any kind of angst or selfdoubt! Just like real life!
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  11. Are you "anonymous" in real life, as well? ;)
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  12. He may anonymous, but I'm sure you're still an asshole.
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  13. An anonymous troll calling someone else an asshole? Shockingly ironic.
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  14. kali921 is NEVER worth quoting.
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