They don’t all have giant boobs. They don’t show the wide range of types that a Love and Rockets will exhibit, but Love and Rockets is more grounded in reality. Plus, Adam Hughes can only draw from the established statistics of these characters. While I don’t know what their stats are, I would assume they’re all basically taller than average with anatomically idealized frames. It’s a beautiful piece of art. Why can’t that be enough?

“When Landry and Eric announced their Supergirl miniseries, I immediately said, “She’s so age-appropriate!” and Landry told me that people were already complaining, insisting that an eighth-grader should have boobs. So, so CREEPY! ”

Technically, an eighth-grader COULD have boobs. Stating that one SHOULD have boobs is silly. Not all women develop breasts at the same time, and sometimes they don’t develop any large enough to really stick out. However when I saw that picture of the new Supergirl, aside from thinking it looked great and that the book could be a great all ages read, I didn’t think eighth-grader. I thought maybe fifth or sixth-grader. I do think it’s unrealistic for eighth grade level, but it’s a comic book. It should just be appreciated for what it is, and it’s a great design with great potential. Buy it for your daughters. Maybe they’ll turn their attention away from Paris Hilton and Britney Spears for a minute or two, and we can all be thankful for that.

“That philosophical question is moot because the main biological function of women’s breast is NOT to advertise sexuality. If we’re talking biology, breasts are to feed infants. ”

That’s simplifying it a bit. Breasts serve multiple purposes. If they were just there to feed infants, there are more effecient designs for that sort of thing…. like the way a baby bottle looks, for example. The main biological function of a nipple and lobules is to feed infants. The rest of the breast isn’t exactly necessary. So one could conclude that the main function of the breast is to advertise sexuality, but it isn’t the main biological function of which there really isn’t one except to provide a comfy place to locate the nipples.

Johanna, if I could draw, I would enter… and make them all look like Fabio on a romance novel cover.

Steve Taylor is correct as well. It is often ignored how the men in comics are idealized representations as well. However, since men don’t really bother with worrying incessantly about how they are viewed as a result of this, it is rarely brought up. Plus, men aren’t allowed–due to how they are viewed by society–to whine and moan about stuff like that even if it did bother them they way women are. Which is why men often get tired of hearing women complain about this stuff all the time and have largely adopted a “get over it” viewpoint towards women on these types of things.

“I am seeing so many examples lately for never venturing among men ever again. Makes a girl wish a burqa were a voluntary option sometimes. Seriously. ”

A burqa is a voluntary option in places women aren’t forced into wearing them. So, feel free to wear one in the future. I’m sorry you are seeing so many examples for never venturing among men again, but if one of those examples is viewing the breast a more than just a biological baby bottle, then it has more to do with your personal attitude toward men than men themselves and their supposed bad behavior. Also, there are plenty of examples for men not wanting to venture out among women ever again, as a certain comic book creator has found which also has more to do with his personal views than women themselves. So, take what you will from that. There are plenty of worthwhile and worthless individuals on both sides of the fence, and I’m sorry things aren’t more in the positive for you in that area.

Back to the topics at hand, the Adam Hughes piece is beautiful and a great piece of art, and the Supergirl design and future comic looks to be a positive and refreshing take on that particular character so hopefully it turns out to be a good book that lasts a long time.

I meant “anthropoid mammals.”

For “sessile” substitute “flat,” then.

“Hey, I’ve another file processing. That philosophical question is moot because the main biological function of women’s breast is NOT to advertise sexuality. If we’re talking biology, breasts are to feed infants.”

To my knowledge every other mammal that suckles has teats that go (technical term here) “sessile” when not in use. Breasts that are just permanent bags of fat with glands running through them would seem to be counter-intuitive from a survival point of view. But if they enhance survival in other ways, as with sexual signalling, then the short-term disadvantage could become a long-term advantage.

It may be that the question of “why boobs” is one that will never be definitively answered, being that it deals with evolutionary events to which none of us were witness. But a “moot question” it isn’t.

Women standing around in white gowns?

::weary look::

Adam Hughes draws beautiful women (and men). While I am not a diehard fan of DC (I wouldn’t have guessed Batwoman and Raven), I think he did an admirable job of delineating each character via the dress and pose.

Two things I would like to see: the equivalent AH! poster with male characters (not necessarily in tuxedos, as that might be boring); and a “couples” poster by Colleen Doran, drawn in her “Distant Soil” glamour style.

Wow. Just thinking about the CA Supergirl… is she gonna use the wig from the silver age, or has that be co-opted by Hannah Montana?

The poses, monchrome palate, and sly fun of the piece suggest to me that Hughes may have been inspired by promo campaign photos for The L Word, another piece of pop cultural ephemera that effectively utilizes female diveristy.

Also, one thing about breasts is that they are attached to a woman.

I am seeing so many examples lately for never venturing among men ever again. Makes a girl wish a burqa were a voluntary option sometimes. Seriously.

“The fact that he actually said, “No boobs” indicates that, at one point or another, boobs were a “marketing strategy” when putting together a book about a female character.

How…sad.”

Philosophical Question:

If you were absolutely convinced that the main biological purpose of women’s breasts was that of “advertising” sexuality–

What morality would be outraged by using breasts to sell cheap fiction?

OK, no more commenting for me. My file has finished processing finally.

I think Power Girl is supposed to be Supergirl from one of the alternate earths, so there’s room for a bit of variety. Maybe she’s from Earth Busty? =^p

Michael:
I always give a wayward look when one tries to describe the variety of women in comics, but it ends up being a man making the drawing. It is a little odd. Are there no women artists that could really make that same statement?

I would have loved to have seen Amanda Conner do a drawing like this…

And I gotta agree. I always give a wayward look when one tries to describe the variety of women in comics, but it ends up being a man making the drawing. It is a little odd. Are there no women artists that could really make that same statement?