kink and canon

[hth_the_first]

The friendly folks at Marvel have brought us this cover for the new issue of Heroes for Hire. I can't imagine hiring any of these women for anything, unless I should suddenly be in need of backup singers, but what do I know. Anyway, for all of you who loved the Mary Jane statuette but really wished there had been more crying and alien spooge,

Comments

Leia, Obi-Wan, and Male/Female Sexuality in Public Space

[nindulgence]

To go with our PleasureSlave!Obi-Wan statuette, let's imagine a theoretical tv show: The Padawan Adventures, where an eighteen-year-old Obi-Wan travels the galaxy with his master, and every week he is menaced by villains, who tie him up and rip his clothing and his skin [...] I would think it was gross and exploitative and disrespectful, and I wouldn't accept "But it's on the Oxygen Network, so it's for/about women's pleasures!" as a defense.And in such a situation, I would totally agree with you. The reason I used slave-girl Leia as a comparison is that her gold bikini is so often affectionately referenced in pop culture (e.g., on "Friends") as having been a key moment in a lot of young boys' sexual awakenings. And I remember there being debate at the time of RotJ about whether it was appropriate to portray the famously turtle-necked Leia in this way--debate that seems almost quaint in retrospect given that by today's standards, Leia's slave-girl outfit offered ample coverage and was actually rather practical and athletic

Canonical Harem Pants on Young Indy

[nindulgence]

I have only just now recalled the episode of "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles" in which Sean Patrick Flanery's Indy plays a harem guard in an avant-garde production, and must use his shiny loin-protector as a signalling mirror.

Apparently George Lucas gets more points for gender parity than I thought. ;-)

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Re: Leia, Obi-Wan, and Male/Female Sexuality in Public Space

[myniamh]

Everything you've both said is very interesting and excellent but my mind got a bit stuck on the image of Obi wan in Leia's slave outfit.
I have previously put Carrie Fisher in Han Solo's costume, gender switchery is sometimes the best way to explain to those who have never thought about the situation, exactly what the issues are.

Re: Leia, Obi-Wan, and Male/Female Sexuality in Public Space

[nindulgence]

Thanks for the links! I think it's the inclusion of the beard that somehow really makes the Obi-Wan pic for me. *g*

Carrie looks fab in her Corellian gear! It reminds me a bit of the early Ralph McQuarrie sketches in which Luke was a girl.

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Re: Leia, Obi-Wan, and Male/Female Sexuality in Public Space

[myniamh]

Thank you for looking, the art that I've seen popping up in response to the MJ statuette, the HFH cover and the assorted redesign/genderswitchery drawing memes recently is really impressive.

Luke was a girl? I feel like that should explain something, I'm not sure what that is though. =)

Genderswap Art; Luke as a Girl

[nindulgence]

the art that I've seen popping up in response to the MJ statuette, the HFH cover and the assorted redesign/genderswitchery drawing memes recently is really impressive.

And the art in response to Frank Miller's "I have a date with Bruce Wayne!" version of Vicki Vale as well--I recall some rather fetching hypothetical superhero covers coming out of that brouhaha. :-)

Luke was a girl?

Yes, apparently George Lucas hewed a little closer to The Hidden Fortress in his early conception of Luke. If I recall correctly, there's a lovely costume drawing of a female Luke in The Art of Star Wars--she had short hair and a very cool bodysuit that looked a bit like a less-regal version of Princess Amidala's white catsuits from the later prequels.

You can get a bit of the idea here.

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Re: Genderswap Art; Luke as a Girl

[myniamh]

Second attempt:

They are up on Girl-Wonder here.

Thanks for the link, looks very cool. I wonder how it would have changed the story, it certainly messes with how the character sits in your head. In a good way though. =)

Re: Genderswap Art; Luke as a Girl

[nindulgence]

Yes, those are the ones--thanks for the link! I do enjoy the flurries of genderswapped art that emerge from these sorts of debates, and would like to see more of that kind of stereotype-flipping and assumption-challenging move from the realm of guerrilla art into more mainstream work.

I hadn't seen that full "How to Draw" piece before, though I had seen some of the guerrilla art inspired by it, and man--the assumptions inherent in something as basic as how you make your character stand (because of course superheroines keep their hips cocked all the time rather than standing up straight and strong)!

And I see that the first article on that page makes a much more succinct version of this point: Solution: Parity in sexual emphasis. Either tone down the women, or tart up the men.

Heck, yes. Preferably both.

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