Costume
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©Marvel Comics, The Savage She-Hulk 1980
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©Marvel Comics, She-Hulk no 12, November 2006 |
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She-Hulk appears in a variety of costumes depending on the occasion.
Her first costume was the ragged white shirt that barely covered her body. What was amazing about that costume was that no matter what The Savage She-Hulk wore, the shirt was always white. |
She-Hulk models an alternate universe judge costume here. Notice the gavel wrapped around her wrist. Purple has always been her favorite color as it compliments her gamma green skin best. |
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She-Hulk gets some fashion sense from fellow superheroines. She-Hulk's comment pokes fun at the idea that she could really fight in clothes like that. At least, she doesn't have to wear heels this time.
©Marvel Comics, Sensational She-Hulk |
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Richard Reynolds, Superheroes a Modern Mythology (1992) stated that "Costume creates a community between its wearers. The costumed superheroes generate their own particular world - a world which starts at the point where our own familiar world leaves off".[Reynolds, 37] The superheroines helping out She-Hulk with better clothes are indeed a community unto their own. For no real woman could fight in costumes such as these.
She-Hulk's green birthday suit is a costume unto itself. It acts to mask her true identity, the demure Jennifer Walters. As Jennifer, she wears conservative clothes that suggest she is a professional and should be treated with respect. As a lawyer, She-Hulk dresses in form fitting power suits through out the Byrne era of Sensational She-Hulk. The current She-Hulk tends to wear sexy workout wear, with purple being the focus color.
She-Hulk and most all superheroines are anatomically incorrect and that gives the creators an entirely different canvas. Trina Robbins, comic artist and historian, noted in Gender Differences is Comics (2002) that "to show off these bizarre ly morphed bodies, the artists clothed the women in bottom-baring thong bikinis, with as little as possible on top".
The costume itself is not the problem, though there are sure to be wardrobe malfunctions as shown under the anatomy tab. The underlying issue is the perception of the female as object and icon. The objectification of the female in the costume leads the male viewer to think that the superheroine is slutty or a whore. Plain and simple, it's a form of negative attention if not properly handled. Outside of the fantasy world of comic books, the purpose of fetishization and objectification seems mute because most real women do not look like superheroines. The question is what do men and women readers take away from reading comic books along with the barrage of soft porn imagery. Does She-Hulk's message of sexual aggression fuel the notion that women should or should not be sexual aggressive? Does the way a woman dress affect her professionalism and behavior? She-Hulk's co-workers and lovers certainly thinks so.
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Double standards, even in comic books! She-Hulk questions why playboy Tony Stark gets away with sleeping around and she is labeled a "skank".
©Marvel Comics, She-Hulk no 17, May 2007 |
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Jennifer Walters is on trial while her nemesis Mallory reminds her of the unihibiting effect of becoming the She-Hulk. |
