A selection of some of the funniest, most interesting and strangest quotes from the past week:
“I don’t know that I want it to be discussed, but I remember I read [Alan Moore's] Swamp Thing and I thought ‘I don’t know half of these words and what the hell is this about menstruation rituals?’ I felt like my brain was being pushed into uncomfortable places. I want that internal kind of sense.”
– writer Steven T. Seagle, on spurring a wider discussion of the issues in American Virgin
“Just dump the superhero comics already. While I understand that many female readers wish to continue reading superhero stories, only without the offensive depictions of women, perhaps it’s time to look at the overwhelming evidence on record and cut one’s losses. Why support publishers who seem to go out of their way to aggravate and alienate female readers? What incentive do those publishers have to change if you’re still buying their books? And you know, there are several manga series out there that could probably satisfy your jones for superpowered action once you left the Big Two behind. So why not just give up on superhero comics? (I did, and I’ve been much happier with comics as a result.) They’re not going to change, so why stay in an unhealthy relationship with the unfounded hopes that someday they’ll start treating you right?”
– blogger John Jakala, on women and superhero comics
“Some women have even thrown in the towel, basically saying that superhero comics aren’t for women. We just shouldn’t bother because there are enough good non-superhero comics out there and the superhero comic book industry doesn’t care if we like what they make or not and frankly, doesn’t make it for women anyway. How sad is that? Give up on action? Give up on adventures? Give up on escaping to a world where people can fly and lift cars?”
– retailer and blogger Lisa Lopacinski, on women and superhero comics
“Recently, I entered a bookstore in the Tokyo area with a fellow Japanese student, an avid fan of seinen manga. Instead of making a beeline for her favorite series, she flipped disinterestedly through a few magazines and then promptly asked to leave. Upon my inquiry as to why she wouldn’t simply go over into the aisle she was interested in, she confessed that the aisle was exclusively seinen, meaning the only people to be found in it were twentysomething males, and that for her to stand alongside them reading would be ‘chotto hen’ — a little weird. Because there’s such an enormous mass of manga available, series are grouped into aisles based upon target demographic. Meaning, males would need to brave an aisle full of young girls to get their hands on a copy of, say, Ouran High School Host Club while girls face rows of businessmen and male college students to grab the next volume of xxxHolic. Coupled with the cultural desire not to draw attention to oneself or stand out too much, some fans can only stare wistfully down aisles or skirt closing times in hopes of an empty store. Next time you feel compelled to grumble about the lack of titles at your local B&N, remember that at least you get to skim your copy of Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service without elbowing through crowds of questioning salarymen.”
– blogger Chloe of Shuchaku East, on the shelving of manga in Japan
May 29th, 2007 at 5:43 am
Those were some really choice selections, Kevin.