Pretty Deadly, by Kelly Sue Deconnick VS Rat Queens, by Kurtis J. Wiebe

Comics by Women

Looks like we're gonna go round 2 on the concept of representation or as I see it, pandering. I highlighted the two books above as I read them as they released a few years ago. Pretty Deadly is a great book, Rat Queens however, is an exhausting series of female fantasy that makes me groan with every panel. 

I'll first talk about Pretty Deadly, which too me should not be in this category and should instead just be featured in a category along the line of "Great Contemporary Graphic Novel". This book is a well rounded and superbly visualized story that does not harp on the fact that the protagonist has a vagina at every waking moment. The story is a well written narrative that deals with higher concepts than just "I have periods". I find it insulting to shove this book into a group of books that are highlighted just because the author is a woman. To put this kind of grouping into effect takes away some of the merit of this book that could hold it's own in a much broader genre than just "by Women".

A book that really revels in the cheapness of "by Women" comics is Rat Queens.... This book is so clearly a money grab at the rising feminist movement of our time that it hurts. Instead of creating respectable women protagonists along the lines of Alita Battle Angel, this book presents the most stereotypical and boring characters since comic book superheroes. The book takes the typical fantasy genre and switches everyone's gender role so that any man mentioned is a complete pussy and every woman is the most bad ass legend of all time. I think people can make whatever they want, I'd never tell the people behind this comic to not make it or anything, but the concept of this book is so vapid, generic, and transparent it was just painful to read. Upon reading the first trade paperback I just asked my comic book shop to take it back, I didn't want my money back or anything I just didn't want this thing in my sight.

I think comparing a book like Battle Angel Alita and Rat Queens is a great way to highlight how I see female characters will actually find a place in popular media. Creating respectable, interesting, and deep characters that people can actually relate to is what I have always loved and see in Battle Angel Alita. These vapid cheap stereotypical characters featured in Rat Queens is just an echo of the old school male hero type that everyone is so sick and tired of now except they changed the gender. I guess girls gotta have their hayday of over the top generic protagonist hero types before their role in entertainment can really evolve.