Hello again! I hope everyone is having a wonderful PRIDE month. If, like me, you’re without a local PRIDE event, I hope you’ll celebrate virtually in a way that makes you happy. Maybe you want to support queer creators? Check out this Twitter thread by Noelle Stevenson for inspiration. I just paid off my loans,…
Chalice Can’t Contain Our Hope: How Alters’ Marketing Alienates
Being trans can be lonely, it can be scary, it can be sad. It can be so many things at once, especially in these dark times. For so long we’ve wanted to see trans heroes. People who defy their assigned gender and still manage to fight the big fights. Alters, a book published by an exciting,…
Love is Love: An Ally Anthology?
Love Is Love Edited by Sarah Gaydos and Jamie S. Rich. Stories by various creators DC and IDW Comics December 28, 2016 Love Is Love will likely go down in history as a key comic project for the 2010s. A charity book spanning 146 pages, its proceeds will be donated to help victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting….
Suffer with Me: A Review of Alan Moore’s Jerusalem
Alan Moore is a celebrated comic book writer. He’s the creator of V for Vendetta and Watchmen, he’s worked on Batman, Superman, and the Swamp Thing. Some believe him to be the greatest writer that’s ever lived. But since he announced that he is officially retiring from comics, his novels may be all we have…
Gender Fluidity in Fiction: Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin
Symptoms of Being Human Jeff Garvin Balzer & Bray February 2016 Jeff Garvin’s debut novel Symptoms of Being Human is a contemporary young adult novel starring Riley Cavanaugh, the only child of a prominent California congressman. The story opens on the morning of Riley’s first day at a new school, detailing the process of eating…
On Orlando and Supporting QTPOC Comics Creators
Early in the morning on Sunday, June 12th, 49 people were murdered and 53 injured at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. It quickly became clear that these were QTPOC (queer, trans people of color). A quick scan of articles about the club revealed that Puerto Rican and other Latinx drag queens were scheduled to perform…
Dear Amanda: Letters of Caution
Cathy G. Johnson’s Dear Amanda plays catch with you for a while. Then it knocks the ball out of your hands. You thought you were reading a simple diary comic? You were reading a rather complex meditation on perspective, in fact. It knocked the ball out of my hands, I should say. Reading experiences may…
TGIFeminism: The First!
Welcome to the first edition of TGIFeminism, a new weekly link blog by Laura Harcourt and Megan Purdy. Every Friday we’ll be highlighting feminist issues in culture and politics from all over the world — hard stories, uplifting stories, and food for feminist thought. Thank Goodness It’s Friday, Thank Goodness It’s Feminism Last Sunday, a…
A Trans Woman in Orbit Around Bitch Planet
When I explained the context of the Non Compliant symbol to my tattoo artist, the one she was going to etch into my skin that day, I used the same elevator pitch I’ve been using since Bitch Planet was announced: “It’s like Orange is the New Black in Space.” Her smile at that description told…
When Boy’s Love Goes Bad: CLAMP’s Legal Drug
(Disclaimer: Review copies of Legal Drug and Drug & Drop vol. 1 and vol. 2 were supplied by Dark Horse. This essay also contains some light spoilers.) First, a primer! If you’re familiar with boy’s love, girl’s love, yaoi, yuri, shonen-ai, or shojo-ai just go ahead and skip this paragraph. For those of you who…
Tangerine: A Comedy Where I Wasn’t The Punchline
Tangerine Directed by Sean S. Baker Starring Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Mya Taylor, James Ransone, Mickey O’Hagan, Karren Karagulian Screenplay by Sean S. Baker, Chris Bergoch R, 88 Minutes July 10, 2015 (limited) There’s something to be said for a movie that thrills you before you even sit down at the cinema. I had luckily caught…