Why are females in comics seen as sex symbols?

It grinds my gears when people overlook them for their skills and powers and just care about their looks .

Because Powergirl.

Shouldn't it grind your gears in real life as well since most women are overlooked for their looks as well? it's not just in comics but everywhere so you shouldn't be surprised if you find it in comics as well.

New theory: Wolverine08 has a rudimentary knowledge of Search Engine Optimization and is attempting to make the sandwich thing a legitimate meme by posting it in every single thread that mentions "women" or "females." Very resourceful, my sheltered friend.

Because the world is still male dominated, the majority of comic readers/purchasers are male, and we're all bombarded with images of women scantily clad.

In short: Sex sells.

Or he really just wants a sandwhich...Occam's razor.

Occam's Razor would dictate that he just wants a sandwich. But just because Occam's Razor is primarily correct doesn't necessarily mean that it is the only valid option.

Not in my eyes

Alternative Hypothesis...he had a very troublesome childhood where his mother ignored his needs and he had to rely on himself. Because he wants to have a macho man image he makes comments like the one if the meme but in reality he just wants a women to give him the attention he never got as a child.

So you can have something to look at when there talking

... Sorry, what? I wasn't paying attention while I was googling Firestar. :p

Okay, seriously, superheroes ARE sex symbols. Not JUST sex symbols, but defiantly that too. Superman's costume, just as a example, is suppose to look like a bodybuilders.

Its just that there are more male SH-fans than girls. They probably see male heroes as sex symbols as guys. My mom once told me that Wolverine is kind of hot.

Yet another thread becomes about @wolverine08.

@wolverine08 said:

One of these days..... I will post in one of these threads before Wolverine posts this meme.....

Why are women comics sex symbols? Because the sex drive is at the forefront of man's thinking. Any beautiful women will make men think about sex on some level or another. Comics are not unique. Commercials sell stuff with sex.. Sports have cheerleaders. So on and so on.

And sheesh. Wolverine08 is like his comic counterpart, seeing that guy in every thread.

I remember reading a debate over weather sex sells and I don't really think it does.

Personally I'm surprised people feel this way. Before comics I only read manga, the sheer difference in how much respect women are given in western comics compared to their Japanese counterparts is so uncanny that all I could think about when I got into comics is "wow, it's nice to read something where the artist doesn't give about 5 different shots up a girls skirt, and to see women who actually where bras that stay on".

One word, bewbs.

Go read some decent manga I would say to that. If you see a tag "Ecchi" or something like that you know what's gonna happen. But I agree, most of the "Moe" and "Ecchi" things are getting out of hand. You have to search carefully for a manga with strong female leads.

But women in comics are basically the same, though not in Marvel and Dc. Marvel and Dc treat their characters with utmost respect, but some of the smaller companies do the same thing as most Ecchi manga do.

Just wanted to share my opinion...

@scorpion2501: Yeah, but nowadays it seems like almost every popular manga series out there is Ecchi these days. One of the big reasons I'm more into comics now is because I don't feel like they have as much of that element.

@captainmarvel4ever: QFT. With manga, you have to search through the garbage to find the gems. With comics you're safe most of the times. That's what great about it. I can basically buy anything with a tag of Marvel or DC and be content. With manga on the other hand...

But I already have quite a lot of faved manga writers/studios that generally produce quality products, so I don't have to really experience anything bad. When you do that you can survive in the manga world.

@joygirl: That, or he just has no other memes in his arsenal.

Women are sex symbols in comics simply because women are objects meant o fulfill my sexual desires.

Get used to it, I'm the chauvinist ComicVine needs, but not the one it deserves!

Oh trust me I get that, I've found plenty of gems over the years. Your totally right though, with comics the trash to gem ratio is much better.

I dont think many girls see male heroes as sex symbols, sexy? sure. But being a sex symbol is a completely different thing, the whole bodybuilder thing is as much an unrealistic standard as the way female heroes are potrayed yes, but other then their looks they are generally treated with a respect that female heroes do not.

Pretty much sums it up right there

And men in comics aren't? Sure Superman is seen more as a symbol of justice and a good role model than a stack of meat in the cast of Magic Mike (at least not intentionally the guy where's undies outside tights for Christs sake...but there are some male heroes who are like Noh-Varr, gambit and most famously, Wolverine for his movies, Hugh Jackman is the only reason why women who are unfamiliar with the character go to see those X-Men Movies. There are many female heroes as well like Barbra Gordon, Kate Kane, Donna Troy, Wonder Girl just to name a few who aren't always seen as sex symbols ... And Wonder Woman is portrayed as a hardcore combatant more than the basis of an erotic novel.

Why are males seen as sex symbols?

It grinds my gears when people overlook them for their skills and powers and just care about their looks .

#menhaverightstoo

@joygirl: Finish her, Tigra!

1. Sex Sells

2. They are scantily clad and have perfect bodies

3. For some reason, now I want a sandwich.

Why not ?

oh boy.

Because why not?

....or the man just wants a sandwich. Someone get the man a damn sandwich.

SOMEONE GIVE THIS MAN A MEDAL!

@dragonborn_ct: Ugh, god I hate that character...

P%ssy.

@ostyo: Here are some better pictures then :P

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The answer is above, hidden. Press F3 and type the word you think it is.

I partially agree with this. I think it does and doesn't, depending on the item being sold.

In the case of comics, I don't honestly think it does. I don't think it hurts, but I don't think it helps. For example, I think Power Girl is often drawn attractive but I'm not shilling out cash for her current "World's Finest" run. I think Black Canary is often drawn attractive but I'm not spending money on her title either.

Like I said, depends on the good or service being sold. In the case of comics, I don't think it sells a book, although I doubt it hurts it's chances of being sold.

It's kinda hard not to. Just saying.

QFT

Sorry, I am going to hijack this thread kinda. I think the better question is: Why do female characters in comics seem more sexualized disproportionately to male characters, and what are the pros and cons if they are? Nothing inherently wrong with sex or being a sex symbol, its about context and balance. The balance traditionally as far as selling things and making money was tipped in the favor of white teenaged males to middle aged white males (as far as generic superficial markets go) but this is heading towards being an outdated concept, since what variables influence what groups of people buy things is becoming less about superficial generic attributes and more about other stuff thats a bit harder to pin down, but usually more around accessibility and technology. Basically we will always have female sex symbols in comics, but many of those characters are going to be fleshed out more and have depth to them, we'll probably see an increase in Gambit and Nightwing type male characters (Thor and Loki have started getting more sexy in comics as well just because of how sexy they were in movies) but they still have depth and other likable qualities.

Really more about balance and context. Books like Saga and Sex Criminals have a lot of sex and sexiness but the balance is a lot better, its not so one sided and its not so TnA and its a bit more grounded and raw and thats why those books are also popular with female readers as much as males.

Oh yea. I was talking about in the context of comics. Clearly sex sells, as there are specific markets for it. It does.

But yeah comic book readers don't buy comics simply because they find certain characters attractive. It is the stories and those people's interests in said characters/series that people buy them for.

Sure there are plenty of comic book fans out there who buy Spiderman or Wonder Woman comics and they might find the characters attractive but that is not the reason they are buying their books at all.

@wolverine08 said:

@the_stegman said:

1. Sex Sells

2. They are scantily clad and have perfect bodies

3. For some reason, now I want a sandwich.

i want one too.