7 Gift Ideas for your Bestie this Galentine’s Day!

Hello Geeky Femmes! How’s your February treating you so far? As some of you know, today (13^th February, the day before Valentine’s Day) is Galentine’s Day. What is Galentine’s Day? In short, it’s totally awesome. A fictional holiday dreamt up in Amy Poehler’s awesome comedy show Parks and Recreation, it’s a day where you appreciate your best and closest lady pals in the way you would celebrate Valentine’s Day.  Backed by Amy Poehler’s Smart Girls, an extension of Poehler’s awesome, which helps support ladies and girls around the world, it's one of the best fake-holidays in the world! I think it’s a super cute idea to appreciate your BFFs and let them know how much you love them! Sadly I’m not hanging out with my bestie Gina this year (Booo to 9AM university starts!) but we have the weekend to be awesome. 

Onto the list!

Number One: Mixtapes/discs/playlist/your music player of choice

I’ll admit, I can be a little old-fashioned at times. Sometimes this comes as part of the various fashion subcultures I’m part of, sometimes it’s because I enjoy it. When I was at school, I would frequently make mix discs for my close friends (a friend of mine informs me that he still has one of these!) and I absolutely loved the experience. Picking songs from my wide library that I hoped my friends would love, customising a case and then giving it to them was absolutely magical. So, do the same for your friends- not only is it a great way to share your music taste and introduce your friends to new bands, it can be a great ice breaker with new people.

A sample of awesome femme-friendly playlists from 8Tracks that are great:

Ovaries Before Brovaries

Who Run the World? 

Happy Galentine's Day! 

Number Two: Friendship bracelet/necklaces

Leslie Knope & Ann Perkins from Parks & Rec!
Available here on Etsy. 

Another slightly old-school thing, I love friendship necklaces. I never had them when I was younger (partially out of not knowing anyone who would really appreciate it, and partially because I’d rather keep both necklaces to myself!) but as I grow older and peruse the endless shopping websites and services the internet has to offer, I’ve come across some awesome ones. In pretty much any Claire’s Accessories shop you can find some super cute ones, but if you think they’re a bit too little-girly, you can get some super cool ones on Etsy. Check out some of my favourites here, here and here.

Number Three: Fandoms

How cute is this Adventure Time cross stitch?!
You can buy the pattern here.

Is your best friend a Potterhead? Sherlockian? Pegasister? Mega-fan of Adventure Time? You can find her something perfect online! Whether it’s a t-shirt subtly declaring her support for Destiel, an Adventure Time cross stitch, you can find a sea of amazing things online. Or, if you don’t want to buy something, check out the sea of tutorials online, and adapt them for your needs.

Number Four: Charity Donations

If your best friend isn’t into material possessions, you can always arrange a charity donation in her name for a set amount of money. Pick a charity she feels strongly about, and away you go! V-Day is a great charity to donate to, but keep in mind any local ones.

Number Five: A magazine subscription

Magazines are both a blessing and a curse. On the plus side, you can always keep them about, be it for scrapbooking, inspiration or just a flick-through on a lazy afternoon if you don’t have time to get invested in a book. On the negative side, you can (I always tend to) wind up with a collection of them scattered around your house, dangerously teetering on any solid surface. However, magazines are always hand to have around. Bitch magazine currently has a sale on their gift subscriptions (as well as including a pretty slick gift card!) so this is another great gift idea.

Number Six: Baked goods

Everyone I know LOVES baked goods. I mean, who doesn’t? Galentine’s Day is a perfect opportutnity to make your bestie some delicious treats. I love this cupcake recipe, and I am known to make yummy Nutella cookies from time to time. Buzzfeed have a great list of yummy cupcakes which can be great inspiration… OR just make for pretty things to look at!

Number Seven: A Cup of Tea and a Chat

How perfect is this gif?!

Sure, pretty things and lovely gifts are great, but sometimes you can't beat a good cup of tea. Either in your own home or out at a cafe, a cup of tea and a long chat can be perfect. 

So there you have it! Let me know what you get up to this Galentine’s Day, and how you celebrate!

You can also find me on Twitter, as well as over on my blog comicsandcookies.com

DC stands for Dubious Choices, Amirite?

Hello fellow Geeky Femmes, it's Ari! It's been a while since I wrote anything here, but I've been saving up all my wrath for writing and working on something really needed to be reported on. Sure, over the last month we've had some pretty bad stuff from creator of Kickass, Mark Millar's egotistcal and self-entitled mouth, but it hasn't enraged the comics community as much as what DC have spent this last week doing. 

While I don’t typically read many DC titles (and so my judgement may be either biased or missing in vital information, two things I’ll admit) what’s gone down this week has still majorly pissed me off. DC have truly been rocking the boat with a variety of questionable decisions, all of which have coalesced into one group of seriously annoyed fans. Earlier this week, J. H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman announce that they were leaving hit title Batwoman due to ‘editorial interferences’ from the higher ups, the most shocking of which stated that Williams and Blackman could not show the marriage between Kate Kane and fiancé Maggie Sawyer. Effective as of #25, the duo will no longer be on the title, much to many fan’s dismay. (Read more over on CBR, including Williams and Blackman’s statement. iO9 also had an interesting take on the news, and comicbook.com features a factual report) Secondly, DC have then gone on to announce a fun new art contest for talented readers and fans, with the prize to have artwork included in Harley Quinn #0, written by Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti. Sounds all fun and games, right? Not quite. The contest requires prospective artists to illustrate four specific panels, as written by Conner and Palmiotti, with no knowledge as to the rest of the content, but the content is rather… Questionable. It follows Harley’s various suicide attempts, and climaxes with Harley, naked in a bathtub about to drop a variety of electrical appliances into the tub. Leaves rather a sour taste in your mouth, doesn’t it? 

A match made in heaven...
Art from DeviantArt.

While the actions mentioned within the panels may be more representative of Harley Quinn’s more frenetic characteristics (since the contest has gone live, Jimmy Palmiotti has stepped in to give more context to the panels- see here for more details) it has still sat wrong with a lot of fans, myself included. While some internet speculators have suggested the possibility that DC may be attempting to make Harley into their very own Merc With A Mouth, it’s still an odd direction to take Harley’s character. Many sites on the net have practically bent over backwards offering their views on the subject (Tumblr and Twitter being such places, much to no-one's surprise) and many news sites have jumped over each other to completely vilify DC, or in some rarer cases, defend them. All things considered, DC are being portrayed as the villains they have dedicated this month to. 

First of all, we’ll discuss the news on Batwoman, and what this could mean for DC.  While it certainly isn’t the latest DC cock-up, I feel it’s definitely up there as one of the more significant ones. As mentioned, artist and writer J. H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman have both walked off Batwoman, citing ‘editorial interference’ often at the last minute, forcing the duo to drastically alter scripts and art. While this level of editorial interference is nothing new with DC, it’s what’s being interfered with which is raising tempers.

As a brief bit of backstory for those of you unfamiliar with Kate Kane/Batwoman, here’s a cram

Cover to Batwoman #17,
art by J. H. Williams III.

session. Batwoman is one of DC’s few female superheroes leading a solo title, but in a move unseen from either of the Big Two, she is also a lesbian, and her positive portrayal within the series has garnered the creative team/s (including Greg Rucka and J. H. Williams III’s storyline Elegy, which takes place shortly before the New 52 not-a-reboot-reboot offers a well written and insightful look into Kate as a character) a series of awards from LGBT+ group GLAAD for positive representations of LGBT+ characters and portrayals in comics. Recently in the comics, Kate Kane proposed on-panel to her long-suffering girlfriend Maggie Sawyer, in what was hailed as an exciting new turn in comics and equal LGBT+ representations. 

Before I continue, it’s extremely important to clarify that at no point have DC said that they are against gay marriage, or are anti-LGBT+. This is not a thing that they have explicitly said, nor is it an attitude they’ve taken. Furthermore, from these actions you can’t necessarily prove that DC are anti-LGBT+, in this case, they’re just being dickheads to a good character. They (Dan Didio) has simply stated that DC are anti-marriage… 'Cuz y'know, God forbid a superhero be married and have a loving relationship. 

However, DC have gone on the record as saying that they don’t want to show the marriage between Kate and Maggie, if it happens at all, horrifying people everywhere. This goes in flagrant opposition to Marvel’s X-Men 2012 summer event, wherein Alpha Flight superhero Northstar (alias: Jean-Paul Beaubier) married his partner Kyle Jinadu in Astonishing X-Men #51, which had many fans celebrating the pairing, event and progressiveness that Marvel seemed to be showing. However, some have criticised the event as Marvel treating it as a ‘novelty’, due to the limited references to it. While it is mostly unfair to compare the two companies, it’s certainly not unfair to compare the two companies’ stances on marriage and gay marriage. 

Surprise! It's weakly written character motivation.

We can now go onto look more into DC’s position on marriage and relationships, and what this means to readers. It’s no big secret that very few folk in the DC universe seem to be able to keep and maintain a healthy relationship without incurring murder or worse. Just look at the latest issue of Batgirl, wherein her boyfriend gets shot. Heck, the trope ‘girlfriend-in-a-refrigerator’ as a ‘motivation’ for male characters came from DC, where Green Lantern Kyle Rayner’s girlfriend was murdered by supervillain Major Force and left to rot in the refrigerator. Charming.  However, in a curious turn from that also embodies a false sense of we-know-lady-comic-readers-yo, DC announced a comic based entirely around the romantic relationship between Superman and Wonder Woman (‘cuz all lady comic readers are super-interested in romance. By geez, I know it’s all I want from my comics, as it might just melt my cold, cold heart) and how they work as a couple and as crime-fighters. To many female comic readers, this series came off as more as an insult to many fans. That said, I’m not holding out much hope for it, but we’ll have to wait for its release before we judge… At least before we judge too harshly, anyway. Returning the topic of marriage and relationships, it’s safe for us to establish the DC has a horrible tendency to mistreat romantic partners and spouses as a poor excuse for character motivation.

The fact that DC is so against romantic relationships and marriage is not just inherently sad, but

Kate proposing to Maggie,
art by J. H. Williams III.

it’s also incredibly damaging. While I as a person may not have a positive view towards marriage, I’m not going to insist that my media follows my worldviews. I think that marriage, for the right people and right reasons is a wonderful thing, bringing together two people who are very much in love. In the case of Kate Kane and Maggie Sawyer, it would be an absolutely earth-shattering, jubilant thing. It would potentially change the shape of comics to come, and would prove a talking point for years. As I already mentioned, I’m not a fan of marriage, but I would read and celebrate the hell out of a Batwoman marriage comic! I think it would be a good thing for DC, and a great thing for Kate herself. However, If DC aren’t willing to portray positive relationships or marriages, then what does it mean for future characters? What does it mean for people read the comics? It is perpetuating that superheroes can’t have romantic interests. They can’t be happy in a relationship, which is an extremely negative message to send. To all those people who look up to superheroes (myself included) it’s saying to them, you’re either a superhero, or you can have a romantic interest, and to this, I say no. I refuse to accept this. You can be a superhero with a husband, or wife, or girlfriend or boyfriend (or a mix of all four!) if you want to be. Superheroics don’t end on the streets. You can have both. The fact that these relationships are being portrayed in such a negative way is hurtful to those who consume the media. 

Next up, we’ll discuss the art competition based around Harley Quinn. At it’s very, very base, it’s a fairly good idea. A contest to scout out new talent, (God knows DC are doing a damn good job scaring away their own talent!) using the premise of one of DC’s most popular characters outside of the Holy Trinity, of course, and launching a new title. On paper, it’s a great idea, gives a lot of  amazing unknowns the opportunity to share their work with a big company, something they wouldn’t have been able to do otherwise. The contest is being judged by artist Jim Lee (Superman/Batman, Dark X-Men who also wrote a series of interesting tweets about the controversy, collected here) and DC head honcho Dan Didio, so artists really are getting their work looked over by professionals.

However, the thing that has sat wrong with just about everyone is what the script requests:  

PAGE 15

4 panels

PANEL 1
Harley is on top of a building, holding a large DETACHED cellphone tower in her hands as lightning is striking just about everywhere except her tower. She is looking at us like she cannot believe what she is doing. Beside herself. Not happy.

PANEL 2 
Harley is sitting in an alligator pond, on a little island with a suit of raw chicken on, rolling her eyes like once again, she cannot believe where she has found herself. We see the alligators ignoring her.

PANEL 3
Harley is sitting in an open whale mouth, tickling the inside of the whale’s mouth with a feather. She is ecstatic and happy, like this is the most fun ever.

PANEL 4
Harley sitting naked in a bathtub with toasters, blow dryers, blenders, appliances all dangling above the bathtub and she has a cord that will release them all. We are watching the moment before the inevitable death. Her expression is one of “oh well, guess that’s it for me” and she has resigned herself to the moment that is going to happen. 

Cover art for Harley Quinn #0.
Art by Amanda Conner.

While a lot of news sites have gone for the sensationalistic headline “DC COMICS ASK YOU TO DRAW A NAKED LADY COMITTING SUICIDE!!!!!” it boils down to much more than this. Palmiotti has gone on to explain what the context behind the script is (a mildly intelligent fourth-wall breaking commentary on the state of the strange imaginings from writers, as well as a strange commentary about nudity in comics? I’m not entirely sure on that part) but it still leaves many questions unanswered. Sure, Harley is the lovable, crazy rogue we’ve always known, but isn’t this a bit extreme? Sure, in context, it’s a commentary on crazy writers, but it’s still a strange concept. Draw a woman, naked in a bathtub about to commit suicide (for whatever reason)? Even WITH context it’s kinda weird. It perpetuates a rather lackadaisical attitude about suicide, and with the contest happening the weekend before National Suicide Prevention Week, it equates out to either a sick joke or incredible bad timing- take it as you will. 

In conclusion, DC Comics have done some shitty stuff this week. The Tumblr page Has DC Done Something Stupid Today? Has been buzzing constantly, and the counter has rarely raised above one. Everyone knew DC were capable of doing stupid stuff (and have been doing for years) but it seems that this past week they’ve been making bad choices in an abundance this week, pissing off people left, right and centre. DC’s anti-marriage/positive relationship has resulted in them looking like fools, and the fans and followers of Batwoman have almost launched a revolt against the company. As for the Harley Quinn palaver… Less said the better. I still hope to wake up one morning and find it was all a horrible dream. That said, there are still potential silver linings to be made from both situations. With the Batwoman-marriage issue DC might one day rescind and change their thoughts, we might be onto something- I’d rather see positive relationships in my comics than awful ones, and I’d especially like to see a good wedding- especially so if it’s Kate Kane’s. DC seem to be ‘learning’ through a trial by fire, as fans are more vocal than they ever have been when things have been done that hasn’t been to their satisfaction. Also, as J. H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman leave Batwoman, it’s been announced at Baltimore Comic Con by Dan Didio that Marc Andreyko would be taking over on writing, and has promised that he wants to live up to the legacy.  All in all, it’s safe to say that DC have really screwed us all over this past week, and seem to have lost a lot of fans.
 Follow me on Twitter for more comic ranting: @Ariellalphabet 

Ari: Female Superheroes in Film

Hello! Ari here, resident comic book geek, here to talk about female characters in films and TV programmes. "Why is this an important thing? At least there are female characters in the things you watch. That should be good enough." To which I respectfully reply, while having female characters in there is enough, oftentimes it is simply not good enough. The point of feminism and ultimately the point of this post is equality. The same for both genders, and for people who identify as either gender. What goes for one, goes for the other. This really isn't a hard concept to understand, even for the most unscholarly of us.  So, in this context, for every one male character/superhero I see in a comic book film, I want to see one superheroine. In the last thirteen years, there have been 48 comic book adaptation to the big screen (accounting for series from Marvel, DC and Dark Horse. For the sake of my argument, original scripts such as Super (2010), Chronicle (2012) and Hancock (2008) have been omitted) and I'll cheerfully (or cheerlessly if we're talking about Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007) admit to having watched nearly all of them. However, out of those 48 films, only two of them, which is less than 5% have female characters as the lead. Frankly, that's an awful number and a rather dire representation of women in film and superhero fiction, and I for one want it to change. 
    
Let me preface this mini-rant by saying I LOVE COMIC  BOOK FILMS. I cannot get enough of them. Every time I get the news that another of my beloved characters is making the transition to the big screen, I shriek with glee and hunt down every single piece of information about the potential film that I can. Also, like a lot of other straight girls, I especially love watching attractive actors taking my characters and making them into something new, and I have absolutely no complaints about the gratuitous topless scenes featuring the aforementioned actors (Watch the TV series Arrow and you'll see what I mean!) or anything else, and view it as an interesting view on the 'female gaze' as opposed to the male gaze. 

Referring back to the 48 superhero films and the characters contained within them, the female characters tend to be one of of two extremes: powerful warrior women or weak little girls in need of being rescued. If we look at Bryan Singer's X-Men (2000) we can see the two extremes almost straight away. Storm/Ororo Munroe, played by Halle Berry is a powerful warrior woman. Jean Grey, played by Famke Janssen, is a powerful warrior woman. Then, we have Rogue, one of the most powerful mutants in the world reduced to be being a weak little girl who then goes onto be rescued by Marvel's fucking poster boy, Wolverine. Of course, we can't blame 100% of this on Wolverine, but the story itself shouldn't need such a cheap writing device to get the point across. At it's heart, X-Men is about social injustices and prejudices, a fascinating subject in itself, especially when you transfer the message to the attitudes for/against the gay community. However, all this said, the female characters in this film are successful and powerful and fairly positive representations of the characters that they're portraying. While it does (only just) fail the Bechdel Test (like many superhero films tend to) it's not one of the worst offenders within this group. 

Like many superhero films, the narrative is often derailed and deviates (in some cases very,

very far) from the original source material, and one of the worst offenders of this is Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). Funnily enough, it was these films that got me hooked on reading Marvel comics in the first place, but now I can wholeheartedly say that I hate them. Whether they were intended to be loose adaptations of the Ultimate universe Fantastic Four or whether they just lost track of the story somewhere down the line, I don't know. However, one problem I've always had with the film is the way Susan Storm is represented. I understand catering to a larger audience by using eye-candy or whatever reason they found for having Sue act/dress the way she did, but it just sat very uncomfortably with me. In the comics, Susan Storm/Richards is an intelligent, deadly, and modest woman who developed the use of her powers without a humiliating and unnecessary scene that left her wandering the streets of New York in her underwear. Call it humour, call it allowing for the male gaze, call it whatever you like, but I know the original Sue Storm would never be in that situation. Frankly, I could talk about how the Fantastic Four films have annoyed the crap out of me with their terrible character representations, weak narrative and ridiculous script, but for the sake of brevity, I won't. 

Fortunately for those who are supremely annoyed by this shit, there's slowly but surely been a difference in the way women are shown in superhero films. In Superman: Man of Steel (2013) Lois Lane (a character I talked about in my previous post, which you can read here) is a strong, female character who didn't fall prey to being damselled or otherwise incapacitated for whatever reason. While her romance with Superman did feel rather tacky and awkward at the end, her character still came out on top, which was an absolute delight to witness. Not only that, but in the promotional shots did an unspeakable justice to the characters, and instead of featuring Lois in either the stereotypical damsel pose (see here for an amusing parody) or any other ridiculousness, but Lois was at the forefront of the picture, and Superman was stood behind her, mirroring her pose. Here, we see a strong, confident woman who doesn't need to be saved by Superman. Here, we see a damn change. 

Credit to Kate Leth of Kate or Die. Taken from
 http://kateordiecomics.com/archive/xyz/

Another example of a female character who was surprisingly awesome was Catwoman/Selena Kyle, as played by Anne Hathaway in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises (2012). One of many big complaints about Catwoman (aside from the film from 2004) is the sheer impracticality of her outfit, as illustrated in the strip by Kate Leth of Kate or Die! comics. Kyle's outfit/catsuit/whatever-the-hell-it-is remains zipped up and covered throughout the whole film, and the film itself doesn't rely on her cleavage as (if you'll forgive the pun) cheap titillation for the audiences. Admittedly, the fact she's wearing high heels to fight crime is rather redundant, but her characterisation and representation were certainly satisfactory. Again, like X-Men (2000) its passing of the Bechdel test is rather rocky. Lastly, we can't consider women in superhero films without considering one of the biggest superhero ensemble films of the decade- Avengers (Assemble) (2012) directed by Joss Whedon. While I (and many others) have problems with the way in which Whedon creates sympathy for female characters by frequently placing them in peril (see this post over on the Mary Sue for more details, and read the post on the Geek Feminism wiki for more information) it doesn't seem to happen in Avengers, prompting a celebration from this blogger. Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff, played by Scarlet Johansson fights her way out of every situation she finds herself in without any problems, and ultimately, if it wasn't for her, the Avengers wouldn't have been able to save New York, as Romanoff was responsible for closing the portal that the Chitauri were pouring out of. Not only that, but Maria Hill, played by Cobie Smulders, member of S.H.I.E.L.D. was similarly kickass, and basically beat the crap out of anyone that dared to get in her way. If you wish to read more about Feminist readings of Avengers, read this article by the Opinioness of the World. 

So with all that said, why are there so few female-led superhero films? As I mentioned in my previous post, there are absolutely no shortage of awesome female characters who could easily hold a successful film. Sure, Elektra (2005) and Catwoman (2004) were absolutely dire. But not because of the characters in the film. Because of a series of creative decisions, directorial decisions, and generally bad writing. However, you can't place the success/failure of female-led superhero films on bad creative decisions, and with the correct writers, directors cast and so on, a female-led superhero film will be brilliant. Not even a film in necessary in this juncture; even just a TV series would be a start, such as the Birds of Prey series that shakily made its way onto screen and then off again after one paltry series several years ago. The last female-led superhero TV show that wasn't animated was Wonder Woman, from back in 1975-1979, so we're certainly due for a new one! Returning back to Joss Whedon for a moment, his newest series (premiering this autumn) Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. already features a strong, equal cast, but we'll ultimately have to wait for it to air before we can make assumptions or readings on it.  

A strong point I'm trying to make here is that in the original texts (the comics books) there is a never-ending, wonderful smorgasbord of strong, female characters, and yet they have little to no equal representation within the world of film and TV. You know what? That is awful. Why is there such a small fraction of female characters in the big screen adaptation? Because people haven't realised how flippin' awesome the ladies in comic books are, and this is wrong. 

"Now," I hear you say. "Ari, you've been waffling about female characters in superhero films for

a very long time. Why do you want them so badly?" Well it boils down to simply wanting an equal representation in the fiction and media I love. I want to see my favourite characters on screen. I want to see Carol Danvers on the big screen being sassy and beating the crap out of people that deserve it. "But it's not always that simple!" You say. Well sadly, I'm aware of that. Not everyone likes to see strong female characters (for whatever reason) and not everyone is interested in making films like that. I don't know why, but it is damn frustrating. All that I (and many others around the world) want is for both genders to be equally and fairly represented, and it really isn't a big ask. However, unless these films or TV programmes are to be made by the right people, there is that horrible possibility that the characters will fall into one of two camos: They'll be either hyper-sexualised, or frequently put into damsel-in-distress situations, both of which are boring, overused concepts and ultimately lazy writing. 

In conclusion, I'd like to say that this isn't a losing battle. It's an uphill battle. There is a distinct possibility of there being more comic book films featuring female characters in the starring role. As the DC cinematic universe looks to be following in Marvel's footsteps by making an ensemble film (Justice League) it would be extremely hard to do it the correct justice (haha!) without having a standalone film featuring Wonder Woman, exactly in the way of Captain America or Thor. Furthermore, it is frequently rumoured that such a film will exist featuring everyone's favourite Amazon, so again, we'll have to wait and see. On the Marvel side of things,  there are two currently unnamed films coming in 2016, and there is the distinct possibility that one or both of these could have female characters in the lead, and there has been enough support from the Marvel cinematic and comic universe fandoms to make individual films starring Black Widow and/or Peggy Carter, which is a wonderful idea. With Black Widow, you could do a film about her origins, and for Peggy Carter, you could look at her character development post-Captain America. 

So, to sum up: Wonder Woman film? Yes please. Captain/Miss Marvel films? Yes please. Black Widow film? Yes please. Peggy Carter film? Yes please. We want superhero films led by women, and they are absolutely capable of leading them. However, if we so much as get the slightest whiff of damsel in distress or hyper-sexualisation, we will fuck your shit up. 

All we want is a fair representation in the media. It's not difficult. 

Ari: Behind Every Great X-Man Is An Even Greater X-Woman- Female Comic Book Characters Are Great, So Where's Their Titles?

I'm Ari, resident comic book geek here at Geeky Femmes! Apologies for the long delay, but I'm hopefully gonna get the ball rolling today. I'm ready to talk about the new all-female X-Men team, a comic that's recently started and has been making waves in the comic world. It's written by Brian Wood and features artwork by Olivier Coipel. 

 As long as there have been comic books, there has always been the female voice within it. Sure, maybe in the early days of DC and Marvel it was somewhat subdued or caught entirely in the romance sub-genre of comic books, but it was still there. Women have always been in comic books, and have quite often had big roles. Look at Betty and Veronica in Archie. Look at Olive Oyl in Popeye, ad nauseum. This isn't even considering the bigwig titles that started coming from Marvel & DC in the 50s and 60s, such as Superman, the Fantastic Four, X-Men and The Avengers. Lois Lane, fellow intrepid reporter alongside the unassuming Clark Kent will have been in comics for 75 years

this year, which is downright impressive. She's dallied with having her own title here and there, but sadly, not enough has ever been made of it. Then of course, we can't think about female superheroes without considering Wonder Woman, the powerful Amazon. She's always had her own title, and is easily recognised from either the comics themselves, or the gloriously cheesy TV programme from the 1970s, starring Lynda Carter as the lead character. As a character, Wonder Woman has always fought against the patriarchy, and given girls a positive role model in comics. Same with titles like FF, where Susan Richards (neé Storm) has always been a constant in the team (however, we won't look at the gendered roles she was often given back in the day- it's enough to give me a headache!) and as the team work as a family, something rarely seen in comics of the day, it gave FF the relevant edge to stand out in a world full of Supermans and Batmans. 

The same can be said of the X-Men. Originally conceived back in 1963, the 'children of the

atom', featuring among their ranks Scott Summers (Cyclops), Warren Worthington III (Angel/Archangel) Henry 'Hank' McCoy (Beast) and Bobby Drake (Iceman) also had the supremely powerful Jean Grey (Marvel Girl) amongst them, and she was without doubt the strongest mutant out of all them, her psychic prowess matched only by their kindly teacher Professor Charles Xavier. Since the early days of the X-Men (and of the Marvel Universe altogether) there have been dozens and dozens of female X-Men, mutants, and super-humans, and many of them being just as strong, if not stronger than their male counterparts. So why, I ask, are there so few female-led superhero books from Marvel? Ever since Marvel unofficially rebooted last year in an enormous creative shake-up and renumbering that annoyed thousands of fans the world over, there's been a dismal amount of female-led comics. Before Marvel Now! There was the incredible X-23 series, which focussed on Wolverine's daughter/living weapon Laura, there have been Ms. Marvel titles over the years, but sadly these titles have never lasted long. Out of all of Marvel's current superhero titles (and boy, are there a lot of them!) there's a tiny fraction that are lady-led: Captain Marvel, Fearless Defenders, Journey Into Mystery, and the newly minted X-Men.

Frankly, this is ridiculous. Don't get me wrong though, I love comic books. There is rarely a day that goes past where I'm not talking/writing/reading/thinking about comic books, and many of my role models have fallen straight out of the pages of my favourite comic books, so it upsets me that so few of them have their own titles. As I previously mentioned, it's definitely not that there isn't any interest- female led titles have often proven to be successful, fan favourites, but they've always been cancelled prematurely. The fact of the matter is, it's frustrating how long it's taken for a full-female team of the X-Men to have their own title. There's plenty of female characters within the X-Men's universe, so it's never that there hasn't been enough interest. I for one am really happy to finally see this book see the light of the day, and despite the negative attention a couple of douchbag assbros have given the book, it's a good thing, and it should be celebrated as being A Good Thing. 

So what's the point of this post? The few lady-led titles from Marvel are totally kick ass. Kelly Sue DeConnick's run on Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers) has really opened my eyes to a new character, and I never miss this title when it comes out. Cullenn Bunn and Will Sliney's take on The Fearless Defenders is also an awesome title, and the art is downright gorgeous. I could go on and on about my favourite Marvel comics all day, but for the sake of brevity, I won't. 

I’ll leave you with this: How freakin’ awesome would a female-led Avengers title be?! 

Welcome to Geeky Femmes!

Welcome to Geeky Femmes! 

Left:Ari  Right: Gina

Geeky Femmes is a new blog run by two nerdy friends, Ari and Gina; two aspiring writers who are proud of their interest in Geekdom! The blog will be our platform to express our views and opinions on various aspects of Geek culture; from comics to video games, science to computers, we plan to cover it all in our regular posts. The blog will be officially 'open' in 2013, but for now, here is a little bit of info on the two Geeky Femmes who will be your guide to all things nerdy!

Gina's quiz!

 

What are your personal favourite aspects of geekdom?

I'm interested primarily in video games, books and science. The first two have been passions of mine from an early age, and in the last few years I've enjoyed studying books which focus on scientific aspects of different topics, such as neuroscience, environmentalism and how it ties in with scientific findings, and other more wacky subjects!

What is your video gaming history?

I've been gaming since I was little. My first video games were 'Road Rash' (looking back, attacking motorcyclists with nun chucks, cattle prods and chains at 6 years old is pretty shocking!) and Sonic for the Sega Megadrive. Eventually we got a computer and my days were spent playing the very square Tomb Raider, G-police and Motorcross Madness. On vacations and long journies, my trusty GameBoy provided my entertainment, later to be replaced by it's coloured successor. Fast forward a couple of years to the PlayStation 1, and  Tekken 3 became my new favourite game (and still is one of my favourite series today!). I also enjoyed the Spyro and Crash Bandicoot games at that age, too. After a few years collecting games for the PlayStation 2, I received an Xbox 360 one Christmas and started playing FPS'. Fallout 3 quickly became my favourite, while I also ventured into the button mashing madness of Halo and Borderlands. I enjoy most other genres of video games as well, including adventure games. My game collection is ever-expanding, and with a history of playing games it's no surprise that they have become such an intregal part of my life.

And your video gaming platform of choice?

Currently the Xbox 360, but if I'm craving nostalgia I have no qualms with returning to my Sony roots!

What is your favourite video game and comic book?

It's so tough to choose one favourite game, so I'll choose one from the previous period of my gaming history and a more up-to-date one. Tekken 3, and nowadays, Fallout 3.

I'm not huge on comic books (that's more of Ari's thing!) but I have always admired the artwork and concept of Tank Girl. I think she's a kick-ass heroine.

What are the hardest aspects of being a geek for a female?

I think the fact that society encourages this idea that anything geek is an exclusive boy's club, because it's eye-poppingly infuriating when I go into a game store or comic book store and get stared at with such baffled intensity purely because I'm female. There's also the tirade of harassment female geeks get online and on Xbox LIVE. I think it's tougher to be a female geek than a male one because not only do geeks in general get branded 'weird anti-social hermits' by society outside of the culture, but you get the male geeks who are skeptical of your interests just because you have boobs. You have to go through two layers of judgement, and it is ironic that some people within geek culture aren't hesitant to ostracise others.

What sections of geek culture are you going to explore in your part of the blog?

I plan to cover video games, book reviews, science related titbits and internet related goings on. A nice mixed bag of nerdy goodness!

Why do you think it is important to address the problems and difficulties faced by female lovers of nerdy culture?

It's important because so many are either put off joining the culture due to the exclusion of females, or they receive abuse for being brave enough to do so. The sheer amount of women who report receiving abuse from other players on internet-based gaming platforms like Xbox LIVE is atrocious, as is the cultural negative view of female geeks as somehow being less likely to enjoy nerdy interests.

Who is your favourite nerdy fictional female character?

This is definitely a tough one (and I have plans to cover my favourite fictional nerd girls in an upcoming blog post), but I'd have to say that my all-time favourite is probably Daria. Being equal parts implicit and sarcastic- well, she reminds me of myself!

What do you hope to accomplish with this blog?

I hope that between us, me and Ari help to increase visibility of female geeks who enjoy games, comics, books, science and other stuff within this male-dominated culture. I hope we can both entertain and educate people and give a female viewpoint on some of the topics usually buried in male opinion.  

Ari's Quiz!

What are your personal favourite aspects of geekdom?
I adore comic books with pretty much every fibre of my being. Every day I can’t help but read new comic books, think about them, talk about them… Pretty much everything! Comic books have long become a world I can escape to if the real world gets too much for me, and knowing this has become an integral part of my life. Aside from comic books, I play video games quite a lot, favouring the terrifying survival horror antics of the Resident Evil series to most FPS. I am also a budding/noobie cosplayer, and hope to debut a lot of new outfits in the new year! When I’m not busy in university or scribbling up posts for my blog I devour all kinds of literature. My book taste has ranged from the teen-drama series Gossip Girl to dystopian classic 1984 and further. I’m currently reading ‘X-Men and Philosophy’ which is a collection of academic essays detailing various philosophical aspects of the X-Men universe, and it’s been a very good read so far! 

What is your video gaming history?
I’ve been gaming for as long as I can remember! My first game console was the Playstation 1, and I spent hours upon hours playing Spyro The Dragon, Resident Evil 1 & 2, Tekken, Crash Bandicoot, Final Fantasy 8 and a whole range of other games when I was a kid. When I wasn’t gaming at home or at my best friend’s house, I was playing Pokémon Blue Version, Tetris and Wacky Races on my purple GameBoy Colour (a relic I still have to this day!) at every chance I got! As time passed on, the PlayStation 2 was released, and I added a new bunch of games to my favourites. Some of my best memories centre around playing Resident Evil Four with one of my best friends, or playing Final Fantasy Ten and facing off against the dark aeon… But now, I’ve been sticking to the Xbox 360. I’m a huge fan of the Bethesda game Fallout 3, and I play Resident Evil 5 on a pretty regular basis. 

And your video gaming platform of choice?
That would have to be either the PlayStation 2 or the Xbox 360! 

What is your favourite video game and comic book?
Like Gina said, it is super difficult to pick just one game, and for me it’ll be even harder to pick on favourite comic book! If I’m looking at retro games, it would probably have to be Spyro The Dragon. Who doesn’t love running around as a diminutive purple dragon? As for newer games, like Gina, I’d have to pick Fallout 3 for the amazing gameplay and storyline. My favourite comic book is incredibly hard to pin down, since I tend to change my mind every other month as new titles come out, or I revisit my old graphic novels. In my top favourites list however, is Transmetropolitan, a futuristic tale of politics, scandals and madbastardry; Morning Glories, a ‘cross between Gossip Girl, Avengers Runaways and Lost’; and Peter David’s X-Factor. 

What are the hardest aspects of being a geek for a female?
I often find that one of the hardest aspects is people not believing I’m a geek, or not believing I read comic books.  It’s not entirely un-common for women in this subculture to be looked down, and people only believing that they’re interested to their boyfriends, male friends and so on when it’s not always like that.  Not just that, but many people believe that the geek subculture is purely a ‘boyz-only’ club, but I know dozens of talented, amazing women who are just as devoted to geekdom as I am, and we're not all out to 'prey on geeky guys' like asshole supreme Tony Harris would believe.  Women in geekdom are here to stay, and yes, we brought cupcakes. 

What sections of geek culture are you going to explore in your part of the blog?
I will be exploring the comic book side of geek culture, as well as talking about any conventions I go to, and maybe a few bits of cosplay thrown in there too! 

Why do you think it is important to address the problems and difficulties faced by female lovers of nerdy culture?
Because this culture is not just for men. There are lots of geeky girls out there who love the subculture just as much as men, if not more, and they deserve an equal voice in this. Also the representations that women tend to get within comic books are often absolutely dire, and I am sick to death with them, almost as much as the spangly, completely impractical outfits. Equality is an important thing in our society on the whole, and I don’t see why it shouldn’t stretch to subcultures as well.

Who is your favourite nerdy fictional female character?
“Hi. I’m Layla Miller. I know stuff.” Layla Miller, one of the female protagonists of Marvel’s X-Factor has been one of my favourite nerdy fictional characters ever since I read her first appearance during the events of M-Day. Smart, quirky and sarcastic, Layla is everything I aim to be! 

What do you hope to accomplish with this blog?
I hope that I (along with Gina) can raise more awareness for girl geeks, and girls who love geeky things. I will hopefully be raising more awareness for the amazing women in comics, and hopefully we’ll be able to entertain people along the way!