“I can’t bring Let’s Make A Deal up on this thing.”
Transformers Spotlight #1: Shockwave
IDW Publishing (September, 2006)
WRITER: Simon Furman
ARTIST: Nick Roche
SELECTED COVER ART: James Raiz
COLORIST: Josh Burcham
LETTERING: Sulaco Studios
EDITOR: Dan Taylor
ICv2 is reporting that Sony has bought a huge chunk of American anime dubber and distributor Funimation, known mainly for the better import of the Dragon Ball franchise. One wonders what the future holds for the company, their streaming service, and their deals with other streaming sites like Crunchyroll and Hulu. And will the Funimation library and simultaneous releases shows up on Sony’s free streaming service, Crackle?
“They made me a girl?”
Voltron: Defender Of The Universe #2
Image Comics/Devil’s Due (June, 2003)
“Revelations” part 2
WRITER: Dan Jolley
PENCILERS: Mike Norton & Clint Hilinski
INKER: Clatyon Brown
COLORIST: Brett R. Smith
COVER ART: Mike Norton & Jeremy Roberts
LETTERING: Dreamer Design
The Day the Earth Stood Still (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The original The Day The Earth Stood Still was inspired by a book that doesn’t share its name, much like Total Recall or Blade Runner. Farewell To The Master, however, is far different from the movie that came from it, much as the 2008 remake had little to do with the original movie. (Or so I hear as I still haven’t seen it, but the original is a movie I have seen and enjoyed.) Bill Silva, the “Man In Black” who isn’t a government agent hunting monsters or a popular country singer (both to my best knowledge), compares the two versions, their messages, and their protagonists.
Yesterday was all about how advertising is playing on the insecurities of teen girls while trying to play on the insecurities of adult women when it comes to their bust. Today we’re moving to fat women and skinny men. And it’s not like he’s totally wrong about this either. Even in my time we had the ads where Charles Atlas celebrates that skinny guy who gets his girl taken and sand in his face because he lacks muscles, only to push guys around when he gets muscles. I don’t think that was the attitude Atlas was trying to sell, but I’m more surprised Dr. Wertham doesn’t call him out on it.
As for women and weight, phony weight loss plans, and plans that don’t work for everybody but will only tell you that in the fine print, are something that we deal with today as well. However, we’re lucky nowadays as there is a movement to tell plus-sized women that as long as their health isn’t affected being big isn’t necessarily bad. My mom had thyroid problems and other people do have a naturally larger figure. It’s also good to hold up those large breasts the other wonder cure didn’t give you. The problem is again that Wertham is blaming the comic rather than the advertiser and that’s where he’s after the wrong villain. Then again, his anti-comic bias is universal.
Remember to read the chapter first if you haven’t.
And Jerry Mathers as the Beaver.
The Incredible Hulk #-1
Marvel Comics (July, 1997)
“Grave Matters”
WRITER: Peter David
PENCILER: Adam Kubert
INKER: Mark Farmer
COLORIST: Dan Brown
LETTERER: John Workman
EDITOR: Bobbie Chase
The Clutter Reports (my other site) Atop The Fourth Wall Crisis On Earth Prime Lean Into Artcast Bully Says “Comics Oughta Be Fun” Siskoid’s Blog of Geekery
Cartoon Hero’s Lair SF Debris Four Million Years Later
Chapter By Chapter Special: Seduction Of The Innocent ch. 8 part 3
No matter what subject Dr. Wertham tackles he will always find a way to turn it to the problem of violent kids. You could ask him what he wants on his salad and he would have a 10 minute rant about how comics teach kids to kill with a salad fork. It should be no surprise then that the subject of advertisements turned to weaponry. As late as the 1970s there were ads for knives and BB guns. And Wertham’s specialty were the type of kids who shouldn’t have either.
We’ve seen a few biases from the good doctor previously: biased against comics for pulling kids away from books as if they would read great literature if it wasn’t for those darn comics, bias against superheroes based on questionable research, and bias towards delinquents over normal kids who for the obvious reason he rarely if ever had contact with. We’re going to see one more I hadn’t realized until this part of the chapter, bias via location. Understanding why Fredric Wertham was wrong about comics makes it easier to write him off, although we have also seen things he is at least partially right about. You know the old saying about the broken clock, right?
Do your research, kids. Don’t be like Dr. Wertham.
And we all know how reactionary the internet can get without the full facts.
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Posted by ShadowWing Tronix on August 2, 2017 in Comic Spotlight, Seduction Of The Innocent and tagged advertisements, book review, Chapter By Chapter, Comic book, commentary, Dr. Fredric Wertham, Seduction Of The Innocent.
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