Wonder Woman by Women
When people think of superheroes the first ones they think about are Superman and Batman. While both characters are completely different, one has superhuman strength, is bullet proof, and is from an alien planet called Krypton and the other is a rich playboy philanthropist with a tragic past that fights crime with all his shiny gadgets, what they both have in common is that they are men. What happened to the female superheroes? It’s not like they don’t exist. There is Wonder Woman, Black Widow, Gamora, Elektra, and the list goes on and on. The reason we don’t hear about these strong role models for women is because society does not rally under their names. There has been nine Superman movies and seven Batman movies, but where is Black Widow or Gamora? Oooo that’s right they are seen in Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy. Many people would argue that female superheroes are seen in many films, but the truth is they are seen as a side attraction. They are not the focus of the film, but the characters that help the lead male superheroes succeed. When it comes to comics, the movie industry, and women, things have to change. Not only does the comic and movie industry need to put out more films and rally under their female superheroes, but they have to change the way they are portrayed.
No matter what female superhero you look at, the outfits and proportions of their bodies are ridiculous. Let’s take Wonder Woman, who is one of my favorite female superheroes, for an example. Wonder Woman is an immortal Amazon warrior with superhuman strength and speed that rivals Superman. In some comics Wonder Woman has even kicked Batman and Superman’s butts. While Wonder Woman is a strong and independent female character that you would want all young girls to look up to, she also has many flaws due to her male creators. Wonder Woman’s iconic look consists of a red strapless corset, blue bikini bottoms with stars, metal cuffs and a golden lasso. When it comes to fighting, this is the furthest thing any warrior would wear. One it leaves a lot and I mean a lot of skin bare, which leaves her unprotected, and secondly the material appear to have no protective ability at all. Due to this bizarre outfit, many woman have taken this issue into their own hands and have reimagined Wonder Woman’s look. When they designed her outfit, they gave her pants, plated armor, and a reasonable haircut. Because honestly having long flowing hair which is common for many female superheroes would just get in the way in a fight.
While the scandalous outfits that many superheroes wear is a major issue, the body proportions are an even bigger issue. Similar to the iconic Barbie doll, many female superheroes have large breasts, small waists, and curvy hips. While I’d rather have young girls look up to Wonder Woman than Barbie, the issues of body image still arise. Many girls will look at these superheroes and want to grow up just like them. They will try their hardest to attain what media claims a woman should look like and through trying to become the image of their role model many young woman and girls will attain eating disorders.
What the world needs is a Wonder Woman created by women. If a woman was able to take the role of recreating all the female superheroes, I believe that these new designs will make a large impact on how women should be portrayed. If a woman were to redesign the characters, then they would give them reasonable and probable outfits, normal proportions, and erase the tools of objectification of women in media.
What do you think? Does the comic and movie industry need to change or is it fine the way it is? Also, what’s your favorite female superhero and why?
