Tag Archives: Women Studies

Review: TUFF LADIES, published by Centrala

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Tuff Ladies by Till Lukat

What does Belle Starr, Rosa Parks, and Ma Barker have in common? In “Tuff Ladies,” a new work in comics by Till Lukat, they are part of his kaleidoscopic tour of women in history. This is a most unusual book and quite a page-turner. Lukat has assembled 24 portraits of significant women. He calls his choices “remarkable” but, perhaps “colorful” is a better catch-all word. Or maybe “provocative.” It’s a fascinating collection.

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Profile on Ann Boney, Pirate Queen

There is certainly a subversive sensibility at play here. It’s not so much that Lukat is glorifying each and every woman he’s profiled. It’s more like he’s presenting each figure as a compelling character from fiction. Each woman here is depicted in Lukat’s energetic woodcut-like style. Each profile has its own crazy urgency: a bold portrait followed by a brief comic strip and topped off with some brief text.

The most controversial inclusion is Ulrike Meinhof of the Baader-Meinhof Gang, a left-wing terrorist group that committed several murders, kidnappings, bank robberies, and bomb attacks. The overall theme is that all these women made a huge impact. Not all of them are well-known. In fact, Lukat pretty much avoids obvious choices. One of the more poignant ones is for Miep Gies. Thanks to her, the Diary of Anne Frank was kept safe from the Nazis to go on to be known throughout the world.

This book is a treat. It’s a perfect gateway for further exploration. It’s odd, artful, and most refreshing.

“Tuff Ladies” is a 64-page hardcover published by Centrala. For some of the most unique works in comics, visit our friends at Centrala right here.

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Filed under Centrala, Comics, Graphic Novel Reviews, graphic novels

Kickstarter: SHE MAKES COMICS

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Sequart, short for Sequart Research & Literacy Organization, is a highly regarded resource for all things comics. When they have a project, we comics folk listen. Right now, it’s all about SHE MAKES COMICS, a documentary film about the untold history of women in comic books, celebrating female creators and fans alike. Support this exciting project at Kickstarter. At this writing, the funding goal has not quite been reached so every bit helps. Visit the project here.

From the press release:

Continue reading

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Filed under Comics, Crowdfunding, Kickstarter, Sequart Research & Literacy Organization

Welcome to DC Comics: Harley Quinn, Naked and Suicidal, Subject of Contest

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Step right up, boys (and girls, if you insist), step right up and try your hand at depicting Harley Quinn naked in a bathtub with a variety of devices aimed to electrocute her. All those young people eager to break into comics and this is what DC Comics has to offer? They offer up a contest where the aspiring artist draws four panels that depict Harely Quinn in four suicide attempts, the last depicting her naked about to be electrocuted.

This is what DC Comics wants to align itself with? If it wants to come across as your typical corporation, insensitive to humans, it has succeeded. Of course, they can claim it is all in jest. But this tiresome “boys will be boys” mentality is pretty weird.

It’s not like Warner Bros. Entertainment doesn’t care what you think of it. They have an ongoing media blitz to bring attention to their donations to the Horn of Africa. It is called, “We Can Be Heroes.” Check it out here.

Is too much being made of the current contest at DC Comics where aspiring talent are asked to make a devil’s bargain? The concern is genuine and it’s growing. It has already caught the attention of the Huffington Post. You can read that here.

No doubt, there is a huge disconnect at DC Comics right now. Maybe, many years down the road, this contest will be seen as utterly ridiculous…by DC Comics. Maybe, many years down the road, the latest clash between DC Comics editors and talent will be seen as unfortunate…by DC Comics. The decision from DC Comics top brass to kill the story of Batwoman’s marriage to her girlfriend led to the co-writers on the Batwoman story, J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman, quitting. Read more about it in this excellent piece by Rob Bricken, at io9, here.

If you want the official DC Comics response to this contest, look no further than DC Comics co-publisher Jim Lee who got all Twittery. Check that out here. He claims that the writers of the contest script, longtime DC Comics employees, Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti, were just poking fun at themselves. Sadly, that makes no sense.

But people, here and now, understand that something is wrong and are not afraid to voice their opinion. There are exceptional voices of dissent, like the always eloquent Alyssa Rosenberg at Think Progress. Read her piece here. Or check out this awesome piece by Aja Romano, at The Daily Dot, here.

So, here’s the thing, I’m smart enough to not go completely Wertham Comics Code bonkers about this. You have to imagine that the boys at DC Comics want to stir things up. But the “boys will be boys” method is just so creepy and should off itself.

So, DC Comics, can we be heroes?

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Filed under Batman, Comics, DC Comics, DC Entertainment, J.H. Williams III, Superheroes

Stumptown Comics Fest 2013: ROBIN HA

Robin Ha and Ellen Lindner are two very distinct cartoonists who happen to have a lot in common. For one thing, they are neighbors, as their art studios are next door to each other. They also share a certain cosmopolitan sensibility. This led Robin to contribute to the anthology that Ellen co-edits, THE STRUMPET.

We talk about THE STRUMPET and Robin’s work in general. You can view a sample of Robin’s work, as well as Ellen’s, from THE STRUMPET, in the previous post.

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Robin Ha’s work has a delicate ethereal quality balanced by a wry and worldly vibe. Her latest project is a webcomic about a haunted vintage dress, THE RED DRESS. You can keep up with it HERE.

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And you can keep up with Robin’s work HERE.

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Filed under Alternative Comics, Comics, Illustration, Independent Comics, Portland, Robin Ha, Stumptown Comics Fest, The Strumpet, Webcomics