Sunday, February 22, 2009
Super Heroines: The Unsung Heroes
For the past several weeks I have discussed superhero movies, but I have unintentionally left out the feminine fighters for justice. The first female superhero woman that comes to mind is Wonder woman. From her invisible jet to her "lasso of truth" this ferocious female is not out done by her male counterparts. Originally played by Lynda Carter in the 1976 movie, that became a TV show; this super heroine will surely remain one of the most well known female superheroes of all time. Another super heroine that comes to mind, originally a "baddy" duking it out against Batman, Catwoman has recently appeared on the big screen. Halle Berry brought this character to life, "Purrfectly" in 2004. I must say it was a different take on Catwoman's appearance in Batman Returns, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, but both actresses did the character justice. They both brought out the cat like reflexes and showed the bad guys their claws. There are other less known heroines out there such as Batgirl, who made a quick appearance in 1997's Batman and Robin, with a classic battle scene against Poison Ivy. There are many, many more super heroines that have been unaccounted for. Storm of the X-men, who has the ability to control the weather; Sue Storm of the Fantastic Four, who has the ability to turn invisible are just a few more. Their powers many of the times are much cooler if not better then the male superheroes. They carry all the aspects of what we look for in our heroes: defending justice, righting the wrongs, and promoting peace. We must ask ourselves, why then has the female superhero movie been less main stream than male ones? In this day and age, we have progressed enough where it shouldn't matter what sex one is. I am also a little disappointed in Holly Wood's sexed up female superheroes. It is true that sex sells, but its way over done. Women can fight a bad guy with a decent amount of clothing on as well; an excess amount of skin showing from my knowledge doesn’t help them out any. So this week, I say celebrate those unsung super women in your life… your mom. I know Mother’s Day is coming up in May, but any woman that can balance family, work, and “motherly duties” without completely going nuts deserves some recognition and more than just one day a year.
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GIRL POWER! haha Ok, so that is NOT at all me. All the more power to whoever can do the job right. I do believe though in equal opportunity and equal treatment. However, I'm going to have to side with the male superheros. There are more and they are WAY cooler. I'm not deserting the females for they have their awesomeness as well, but the guys just outrank them. My favorite female superhero is Sue Storm for the Fantastic Four or Elasti-Girl from The Incredibles.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Zach! The fact that the female superheroes are basically there for eye candy is something that has been irritating me for a while. I'm glad to hear that you, a guy, is bugged by this, too. I mean, fighting a bad guy in basically nothing and high heels is just not practical.
ReplyDeleteNice tie-in to Mother's Day.
I am happy to say that it's about time to see a post on these super ladies. They have just as much right to be in the spot light with the boys. For the most part I agree that they deserve something, but the problem is they are designed after the main men from the comic series. So they lack their own ground in the comic world. What comes to mind to many people when you talk about comics is the men and that is because of when superheroes came to the existence. A good example is when we look back in history of past cultures. Their main hero of their beliefs in gods where man based. So the problem is just that. For the most part I really enjoyed your post Zach.
ReplyDeleteI think there are more male superheros just because of the audience the comics and shows reach out to. I think more young boys would watch the shows or read the comics than girls. From my observation, you usually don't see backpacks or sweatshirts with the feminine heroines, but rather princesses. My sister never cared for super hero stuff. I think the males like to have someone to look up to in a different way than females, but there are always exceptions.
ReplyDeleteYeah, in my experience, super heroines have been created to give all the guys a show. My dream superhero is the stocky super female truck driver with a fe-mullet. I think that would be more realistic. That would actually make me believe that she could beat up a bad guy. Not a slutty looking model in a whoreish goofy costume. I have not really been a fan of super hero movies but if they would get some originality I might consider it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Anthony, there is definitely way more men super hero, which makes sense with the types of audiences or the readers of these comic books and movies. It is nice to see that there are girls that can also be super heroes. I think it’s important to realize that girls and guys should be treated equally and that there aren’t always just the men they are the strong ones. But I also believe that they only put these girls in the movies and comic books because of what they are wearing with their super tight clothes and huge boobs. I personally really like the incredible movie, and its great cause its family movie as well, so it makes it more enjoyable.
ReplyDeleteI agree that superhero women do not get the recognition that they deserve. To be completely honest though, I do not know the names of many superhero women. The only ones that come to mind would be Batgirl and Wonder Woman. I, for some reason, always thought that Batgirl and Catwoman were the same person.
ReplyDeleteTo your question about why superhero woman do not get the same amount of love as the men is because in todays society, the superhero has an image. Sexism is not as big of a deal as it was years ago but people still see the world being saved by a male person. I do agree that mothers are superheroes and my mother is a great one for being able to put up with me all these years.