The New 52 Should Add 17 More Titles

Yes the title of this essay is a bad 69 joke and for good reason. Since the re-launch of the various DC titles in September of 2011 there has been a marked increase in the sexual content of these comics. Now comic book women have always been portrayed as sexy. Seeing as how the majority of comic readers are young and not-so-young males (guilty), it just makes sense to appeal to their desires. Still it seems like the new 52 has been pushed to an extreme.

The debut issue of Catwoman, admittedly one of the more overtly sexual characters, featured a flat-out sex scene between her and Batman. Still in costume. What was once always a flirtation between two characters has lost all subtext and innuendo and merely become a straight up hook up. It is true that Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle did enjoy a relationship prior to the reboot but in that world Selina was aware of Batman’s true identity. In the new 52, the two appear to be ignorant of each other’s real identities. Essentially they’re engaging in random anonymous sex.

Of course Batman is not the only member of the Batfamily getting a little something something. According to the new 52 title Red Hood and The Outlaws, both Jason Todd and Dick Grayson have hooked up with Starfire. Roy Harper, aka Red Arrow or Arsenal (I’ve always preferred Arsenal more), also got himself a piece of Tamaranian but I thought I’d mention the two Robins first. There’s probably a Teen Titans joke I could make involving Starfire and Beast Boy but I shall refrain.

It used to be that DC was the conservative publisher and Marvel was the more risqué publisher. I can fondly remember an X-Men swimsuit spread put out by Wizard Magazine that was a big part of my adolescence.  Psylocke and Rogue certainly were far more appealing to me than Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman came across like my mom (Sorry Debbi, but I have to be honest). There was a dignity surrounding the women of DC that prevented them from being completely sexualized. Of course my key adolescent years occurred during the nineties where you had the over sexualized character designs of the brand new Image Comics so of course the DC women were going to appear tame.

The New 52 must be trying to make up for lost time. After years of being perceived as the elder statesmen of the comic book industry the desire to turn some heads is surely there. But is DC overdoing it? Is this a case of Sandra Dee in Grease? After being perceived as the prim and proper little good girl is DC now slapping on some leather, buffing up the hair and speaking in a sultry and smoky voice? Seems to me like they are.