Things We Saw Today: A Love Letter to the Comic Book Misandrist

SyFyWire has a great piece up today exploring the history of misandry-based characters in comic books and beyond. From Poison Ivy to Cheetah to the Enchantress, comics have always been full of villainesses who live to destroy men. What makes these characters ridiculous, of course, is that they were created by men by way of a response to what they saw as the dangerous evils of feminism.

The article may not actually be so much an ode to these women as it is a hope that “the myth of the murderous man-hating feminist can finally retire,” but the campy transparency of the total fear of women behind the creation of these characters’ hatred of men is so over-the-top that I can’t help but be in awe.

Misandry has always been a creation of misogynists, but at least these dudes gave their straw feminists great outfits and superpowers.

• If you’re not listening to Bitch Magazine’s awesome podcast Popaganda, you’re missing out. The latest episode is an interview with two women offering unique perspectives into the current “blue wave” of Democratic women running for office. (via Bitch)
• This weekend, Chicago hosted the first-ever Wakandacon and the photos are amazing. Come for the cosplay, stay for the “Queerkanda” panel. (via Chicago Mag)
• Every time Joseph Gordon Levitt explains to a dude on Twitter that Tom is not the hero of 500 Days of Summer, a manic pixie dream girl gets her wings.
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  Watch it again. It’s mostly Tom’s fault. He’s projecting. He’s not listening. He’s selfish. Luckily he grows by the end. https://t.co/lEJ8uXlpJw

  — Joseph Gordon-Levitt (@hitRECordJoe) August 6, 2018

• What book you should read next, as determined by your chosen Westeros Kingdom. (via Portalist)
• We’ve talked about how ludicrous it is Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade has an R rating, but for one night only (this Wednesday) theaters in every state across the country will have free screenings with no rating enforcement. (via A24)
• Important scientific question: Has Hollywood ever seen a redhead before? (via Vulture)

(image: Marvel Comics)

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Vivian Kane

Vivian Kane (she/her) is the Senior News Editor at The Mary Sue, where she's been writing about politics and entertainment (and all the ways in which the two overlap) since the dark days of late 2016. Born in San Francisco and radicalized in Los Angeles, she now lives in Kansas City, Missouri, where she gets to put her MFA to use covering the local theatre scene. She is the co-owner of The Pitch, Kansas City’s alt news and culture magazine, alongside her husband, Brock Wilbur, with whom she also shares many cats.

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