Bianca Sommerland
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Guest Post-Cartoons: Not just for kids anymore!

9/20/2011

12 Comments

 
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By J.S Wayne

*Cue tranquil music*

When I hear the word “cartoon,” it takes my back to my misspent childhood of He-Man, Transformers, and GI Joe, and the associated toys and action figures. I think about the cumulative years of imagination that contaminated me to the point where I’m wholly unsuitable for a 9-5 desk jockey’s job and that helped create a neophyte writer STOP THE MUSIC!!!

The first inkling the American mainstream had that cartoons were not solely the province of children and emotionally-stunted adults was the wildly imaginative animated movie Heavy Metal. Featuring a hard-driving metal soundtrack and incorporating nearly every genre from sci-fi horror to erotica to fantasy, Heavy Metal was a wake-up call for a generation. I remember it because it was the first cartoon I ever saw featuring exposed breasts and nipples, which as a healthy nine-year-old male made it a REALLY BIG DEAL to me. (Yeah, the caps are intentional: I’m amazed my palms aren’t furry because of the chick with the white hair.)

The way the women were dressed, in a whole lot of not much mostly consisting of a complicated series of straps that barely covered the essentials, was echoed in most of the comic books I started reading around the same time. The women either wore form-fitting bodysuits that in the real world would be so snug you could see their labia or a few wisps of leather or latex not a great deal more modest than the gauzy material that some jurisdictions require exotic dancers to wear around their hips. Don’t believe me? Go over to your local Mecca of Geekdom (aka the comic-book store), grab a random comic book, and open it up. If there’s a woman in the story, 9.9 out of 10 times, she’s wearing this kind of outfit, give or take a cape, a crown, or some kind of accessory designed to do thoroughly unpleasant things to anyone in its path and featuring an elaborate semi-divine back story a la Excalibur. 

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Now, let me back this bus up for a second before it builds any more momentum and someone gets all the wrong ideas. I’m not saying comic books are bad or are loaded with subliminal messages; far from it! Comic books and movies like Heavy Metal were specifically intended to cater to the budding sexuality, natural curiosity, and feelings of social isolation that plague adolescents. (Oh, yeah, there’s plenty of eye candy for the girls, too. All the guys look like they’ve been dressed by dommes or are so ripped they look like they can bench-press refrigerators.) Comic books offer that little thrill of the forbidden, wrapped up in heavy morality tales and liberally peppered with punches, kicks, slashes, and blasts from various exotic weapons to make them palatable. “It’s a comic book! Little Timmy won’t learn ANYTHING about sex from this.” (Although I myself had some fairly “torrid” fantasies about Marvel Comics’ Psylocke. I say “torrid” because while they were pretty randy for a thirteen-year-old, they were positively pedestrian compared to what I write on a daily basis now!)

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And now, here’s the kicker: The point of this little diatribe is that if you read between the lines with a knowing, adult eye, you’re likely to find all kinds of little kinks and fetishes hidden in comic books. The meaning and metaphor will most likely be wholly lost on the kiddies, who just see a good or not-so-good story. They’re not as likely to focus on the exposed “naughty bits” as they are the number of explosions or “Hey! Did you see how Wolverine/Superman/Batman sliced up/blasted/beat up that Sentinel/rogue missile/bad guy?” Thinking on Batman: The whole joke about what REALLY happened behind the scenes with Bruce and Dick has become a little shopworn, but still bears consideration.

A disclaimer: Everything that follows is off the top of my head and the ones I am aware of from personal experience and knowledge. I’m sure that I’ll miss some, but this is by way of example, not the encyclopedia. Any fetishes that I didn’t give specific references for, you can find online with a little research, but trust me: They’re out there. Also, I’m not weighing the relative “goodness” or “badness” of any particular fetish or proclivity; I’m merely acknowledging their existence.

In the broad sweep of the comic book world, you’ve got shadings or blatant mentions of BDSM (Batman, Spider-Man, Wonder Woman), GLBTQ (subplots of The Green Lantern, Superman), necrophilia (Not touching this one), voyeurism (Spider-Man, Superman, Batman. . . need I go on?), an entire host of bestiality fetishes (Batman again. . .  what’s up with this guy?), and sado-masochism (Insert your favorite comic villain here. If they weren’t getting off on getting pounded on, why would they insist on pissing off the people most likely to push their faces into their brainpans?).

So what does it all mean?

Comic books are a great medium. They have layers to appeal to their nominal target audience, and the messages they convey, of tolerance and justice and being the one to stand against the darkness, are timeless parables written to be accessible to the tween and up set. But if you scratch the surface and take a closer look, somewhere in the colorful costumes and explosions, you can find yourself looking back from the eye-catching pages.

And in the grand scheme of things, that’s the entire point of ANY medium of writing: To see ourselves in a glass, darkly, either an idealized or debased reflection of our own personas, beliefs, and desires. No matter how extreme or well-tolerated, we ultimately just want to be accepted for everything we are, and a truly good book will leave us feeling, at the end, a little less isolated. And that includes our own peculiar kinks, too.

Thanks to Bianca, and all you terrific readers, for letting me come by again and shoot my mouth off. It’s been fun! I look forward to seeing YOUR takes on this notion.

Until next time,
Best,
J.S. Wayne

12 Comments
Ren
9/21/2011 03:13:15 am

I was more of the Archie, Betty and Veronica and Jughead comic crowd. I didn't get into Batman or Superman until later.
I remember seeing the coming attractions for Heavy Metal and thinking, "Oh My God." I was too scared to go and see it. Looking back now, I honestly think it changed the look of comics forever and helped with the evolution of graphic novels.
Great article, JS :)

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KevaD link
9/21/2011 04:16:04 am

When I read comics, Superman et al were tame, not the graphic pieces they have become.
Detective comics and creatures like the Swamp Thing featured the tortured and scantily clad women.
I still remember the first time I saw the cover where a woman with only shards of cloth covering the "naughty bits" was tied to a tree and a creature was rising from a black lagoon.
I knew I'd never get away with taking that one home.

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cate chase
9/21/2011 06:42:44 am

Batman always did it for me. Then, they had George Clooney play him, and I was really messed up.

Other than Adam West and zip, zam, zowie, I have always loved Batman comics best of all.

And yeah, I was a Space Ghost addict, too.

Good thoughts, J.S.

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Amber Green link
9/21/2011 09:22:43 am

The Riddler frequented BDSM clubs.

John Constantine has mad skillz with a whip.

There was one mention of Spider-man dressing MJ as himself and tying her up.

Spider-man doesn't wear underwear when he goes out and about because it chafes.

The Mad Hatter from DC was once caught in sexual congress with a hat, and is also a pedophile (little blonde girls).

Apollo and the Midnighter from Wildstorm Comics are a gay married couple. (Read the Authority.) The Midnighter once accidentally tied himself up with Christmas lights and managed to get himself and Apollo highly turned on by the situation.

The Black Hand (a GL villain) was confirmed to be a necrophiliac.

GBLTQ:
Moondragon and Phyla-Vell (Capt. Marvel's daughter) were lovers until Moondragon got turned into a dragon and died.
Wiccan and Hulkling
Northstar
Karolina from the Runaways.
Xavin from the Runaways
The current Batwoman
The current The Question
Wonder Woman and Zatanna are now confirmed to be bi.
etc etc etc

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J.S. Wayne link
9/21/2011 10:48:28 am

@ Ren: I forgot about Archie! Jughead had a massive food fetish...or a tapeworm. You call it. :D Thanks for peeking in!

@ KevaD: I think the turnaround came around the same time as Heavy Metal, give or take 5 years. The costumes got more scanty, and the "back-story" asides, including the kinks each character had, a little more overt. And now, today (see Amber's reply), they're pretty much right out there for anyone with eyes to see them for what they are.
And, as I mentioned above, I don't see that as a bad thing! Thanks for coming by :)

@ Cate: Batman was always my favorite "superhero." I put that in quotes because although he's costumed and has a mindblowing command of technology, he doesn't have any powers other than a very keen deductive mind. But as I grew up and started becoming more, ahem, exposed to comic-book culture, I added any number of others to my list.
And I agree: George Clooney was arguably the worst Batman ever! Although that entire movie was a dog (which of course means my wife LOVES it), I think WB redeemed themselves by running the Dark Knight series with Christian Bale. Now THAT'S Batman!

@ Amber: *blinks* Who needs an encyclopedia when you're around? *laughs* Clearly, I've gotten behind on my reading! *Surveys the battlefield that is my desk and computer TBR list.* With any luck, I'll be all caught up by, hmm, December of 2017. At least now I have a goal if the Mayans were wrong! :D Thanks for weighing in!

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Cari Silverwood
9/21/2011 03:41:54 pm

My Goodness, who woulda thought it LOL

I think the sexual attraction of comics is pretty much a given nowadays and yes , I too remember that Heavy Metal movie and being wowed by all the nudity.

Great post JS but you should have given more specific examples of Batman et al. Describe the scenes so we can drool or gasp or faint :)

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J.S .Wayne link
9/21/2011 03:51:50 pm

Fair enough!

For Batman, voyeurism is more technological (eg the cell-phone monitoring tactic he used in "The Dark Knight," which also shows up in the comic book.) The bestiality schtick is tied up with the fact that he seems to go out of his way to be around bats. They started out as a trope, but as much time as he spends with them, one has to wonder. And the BDSM? "Funeral For A Friend," part II of the "Death Of Superman" graphic novel, where Batman runs a would-be terrorist bomber up a flagpole by a high-test nylon line and threatens to drop him unless he gives up the bomb. (This can also be applied to Spider-Man and Wonder Woman at various points in their careers; both of them have a thing for tying up bad guys.)
I didn't give specific examples to try to keep down the word count to something less than that of the Encyclopedia Britannica :D Besides, while I've got the bird's-eye view, Amber's clearly forgotten more about this topic than I'm likely to learn any time soon!
Thanks for coming by!

Reply
Amber Green link
9/22/2011 02:22:53 am

My son reads comics. A lot of what he feels like talking about is the comics. So I get a lot of second-hand exposure. I was going to mention bonding, but this seems to be the wrong discussion for that.

Reply
Bianca Sommerland link
9/22/2011 06:14:58 am

Damn. I thought this topic would be cool, but this is above and beyond! There's even more plot bunnies than I thought possible! And all those plot bunnies are doing what bunnies do and having a party!

I was into mostly Elfquest comic books when I was a kid. And Xmen. Yeah, both had sexual undertones, but I didn't notice for the longest time. I think I had an internal sex filter until I as in my late teens. That filter in now gone ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
Bianca

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Ashley
10/19/2011 11:03:22 am

Very interesting blog. I am a fan of X-men. I never thought of comic books in a BDSM type of light before but know that you brought it up I can see it. I think alot of comic writter guys are hoping for some Domme with some of those outfit choices.
Ashley
grindhouse300@hotmail.com

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