Comics, homophobia and jerks
Aug. 29th, 2002 01:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mamadebI'm a Green Lantern fan. I've been one since I was a kid, if only because Hal Jordan was the handsomest hero with the *best* costume. I was eleven. - that was my criteria. A lot of *stuff* happened during my hiatus, with John Stewart and Guy Gardner and the Emerald Twilight, and now Kyle Rayner.
Kyle Rayner...well, I've slashed him, so you know I like him. And I like his writer, Judd Winnick, too. But a lot of GL fans don't like either one. And some of them hate them so much that neither writer nor character can do anything good in their eyes. And a lot of them...well.
One of the characters that Judd introduced is Terry Berg. Terry is a fifteen year old boy who is paid to be Kyle's assistant - getting him supplies, making sure he meets deadline, delivering his finished comics to the Cosmolike magazine that publishes them. That sort of thing. And, for a year, with some really minor hints, that's what Terry was. A good, level headed kid who liked his somewhat mercurial boss, despite his long and frequent absences. Just a minor character who still made his presence felt.
Then it turned out that Terry had a crush on Kyle. Because Terry is gay. Horrors! A gay kid in a comic book! That might corrupt all the many kids who are reading the comic. All ten of them. Maybe. The semi-nude scenes, the unmarried couple in bed together, the violence and blood and such, those are okay. A kid coming to terms with his sexuality...that's bad. And Kyle (not Judd, just Kyle) handled it poorly because Kyle is clumsy with other people. This is an established part of his character. But Judd is evil and Kyle is evil and Terry is especially evil. And comics should not be used as a soap box.
Except that a few months ago, Peter David did an equally blatant piece about racism after September 11 in his "Young Justice" and it was greeted with universal approval (including my own.) It's still a double standard. But everyone likes Peter David and everyone likes Young Justice, and racism is not a button issue.
Among the issues are, "If only Judd had developed Terry before making him a stereotype."
Hello. Terry was around for a year. And even now, he's no stereotype. He's a normal teen age boy who happens to date boys. And. I'm annoyed.
I'm also annoyed at batfans who don't like a *one page* scene in the latest Gotham Knights because it features a middle aged m/m couple. Who are celebrating the anniversary of the day that Batman saved one of their lives. *Sigh*.
Kyle Rayner...well, I've slashed him, so you know I like him. And I like his writer, Judd Winnick, too. But a lot of GL fans don't like either one. And some of them hate them so much that neither writer nor character can do anything good in their eyes. And a lot of them...well.
One of the characters that Judd introduced is Terry Berg. Terry is a fifteen year old boy who is paid to be Kyle's assistant - getting him supplies, making sure he meets deadline, delivering his finished comics to the Cosmolike magazine that publishes them. That sort of thing. And, for a year, with some really minor hints, that's what Terry was. A good, level headed kid who liked his somewhat mercurial boss, despite his long and frequent absences. Just a minor character who still made his presence felt.
Then it turned out that Terry had a crush on Kyle. Because Terry is gay. Horrors! A gay kid in a comic book! That might corrupt all the many kids who are reading the comic. All ten of them. Maybe. The semi-nude scenes, the unmarried couple in bed together, the violence and blood and such, those are okay. A kid coming to terms with his sexuality...that's bad. And Kyle (not Judd, just Kyle) handled it poorly because Kyle is clumsy with other people. This is an established part of his character. But Judd is evil and Kyle is evil and Terry is especially evil. And comics should not be used as a soap box.
Except that a few months ago, Peter David did an equally blatant piece about racism after September 11 in his "Young Justice" and it was greeted with universal approval (including my own.) It's still a double standard. But everyone likes Peter David and everyone likes Young Justice, and racism is not a button issue.
Among the issues are, "If only Judd had developed Terry before making him a stereotype."
Hello. Terry was around for a year. And even now, he's no stereotype. He's a normal teen age boy who happens to date boys. And. I'm annoyed.
I'm also annoyed at batfans who don't like a *one page* scene in the latest Gotham Knights because it features a middle aged m/m couple. Who are celebrating the anniversary of the day that Batman saved one of their lives. *Sigh*.
