It's finally come. The day I use my powers for good instead of awesome.

[seriousfic]

So, if you've not been following this recent Catwoman/Starfire controversy (oh, for a world where the controversy is that Selina and Kory have pulled a Xena & Gabrielle), one of the things that crops up a lot in the articles is that the sexuality on display isn't depicting a sexually liberated woman, but appealing to straight male readers. And that's true, but the thing is, I haven't noticed many straight men liking it. I checked the comments on that mailing list I told you about and my Fempop article and while there is some ambivalence and naysaying and trolling and "this comic is aimed at boys!", I don't see anyone saying "This is a good direction for the character" or "I find this appealing."

Just praise for the art. I have to say though, 1. why would someone that curvy have visible ribs? and 2. Is that a little kid taking a picture of her in the background?

Let's face it, not all of you are here for my insightful commentary and exotic good looks. Some of you are here because I wrote about the cast of Sucker Punch having an orgy. And that's okay! We're pervs! I'm proud to be a pervert. I'm good at it.

Now, speaking as someone who would "tap that," I find myself in the familiar position of being insulted, insulted, that this is meant to appeal to me as a sexual fantasy. I may be a pervert, good sir, but I have my principles! So I was thinking of writing an article from the pervs' POV.


No, less racist.

If you're someone with a vested interest in sexy, sexy Starfire, drop in a comment with your feelings about the reboot. I'll see what I can do about whipping it into an article. Feel free to comment anonymously. I'll practice some smidgen of journalistic ethics, even if it means I have to retire my catchphrase of "What am I, a journalist?" (Nothing feels better than to bust that out when someone asks if you even did research on Wildstorm superhero Voodoo's background).

Let's put one in the Real World section of the Chivalrous Pervert TV Tropes.

Comments

[iphignia939.livejournal.com]

The whole point of Starfire, back when she originally appeared in Teen Titans--the Perez years, you know, the good ones--was that yes, she was from a society where sex and love were both fairly free, but it was tempered with an innocence. (Innocence, not stupidity. It's easy to confuse them sometimes, in the hands of a lesser writer.) Starfire herself had been through a hell of a lot more than most Tamaraneans, what with being sold into slavery and genetically experimented on, but she never lost that essential innocence: that love was good, and the easiest way to express that love was through sex, and if you didn't want it, no harm no foul. It was a little like seeing a space hippie that could shoot energy bolts from her hands and had delightfully improbable hair.

The "new" Starfire is basically a really articulated and sentient version of those six-thousand-dollar sex dolls. I don't even know if she fights anyone, or if she just fucks Jason and offers to fuck Roy. The old Kory would have been horrified. Frankly, so am I. So are the rest of us.

[seriousfic.livejournal.com]

Perv-wise, I was sure box_in_the_box was going to comment here first.

[(Anonymous)]

Does it have to be an article? Could it be expressed by Properly sexy starfire and powergirl femslashly goodness?

If not, I do think that there's room for some cheap T n A in comics without it being a bad thing. I just think there needs to be some kind of service to the character involved as well. For instance, I thought the opening of Catwoman #1 was fine. Yes, there's plenty of gratuitous Selina Boob but it comes off as fun because it's in the context of her getting the hell out of her apartment before it blows up. The problem with the Starfire sequence is it diminishes her character which, as a straight man who prefers it when his women with awesome breasts are just awesome in general, makes it less sexy.

[nike-ravus.livejournal.com]

What made it suck most was that the art was decent. Sexy Starfire on the beach is ~relevant to my interests~. (Although not at all as relevant as this pic here: http://womenfighters.tumblr.com/post/10037563468/fuckyeahwomeninarmor-jessica-post-is-one-of)
But then she speaks and it's this horrible horrible moment where it's like 'OMG, she's an automaton! They've kidnapped Kory and replaced her with some soulless, dead eyed clone.' It's like the sort of thing that would happen in a CLAMP manga. Actually, it's like the end of Chobits, how the dude has to choose between fucking his sex doll and keeping her memory intact. Scott Lobdell, you made the wrong choice!