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gargoylekitty (gargoylekitty) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-06-03 12:13:00

Entry tags:

creator: gail simone, creator: nicola scott, title: secret six

Secret Six #10

First we continue from the preview...

So Bane's in the clear, good. Good.

So we continue to have the Scandal/Bane interaction skirt the line. Hurm.

Now this page I'm including for a few reasons.

1) Jeanette doing something cool.
2) Bane beating someone with their own arm.
3) We find out how Artemis is getting involved in this story.

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	I think Bane and Scandal are great! proteus_lives 2009-06-03 01:34 pm UTC (link)
	They are obivously BFF's forever. I think it's great that GS is showing us that a man and woman can have an intense and emotional relationship without it ending in romance/sex. (Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

statham1986
2009-06-03 02:24 pm UTC (link)

This.

I don't think GS has any intention of pulling a switcheroo on Scandal's sexuality anytime soon, as easy as it would be to just say 'oh, she was curious'. She's been shown to give a damn about the other members of the group before, and given Bane's one of the ones with more obvious issues, she obviously wants to see him get over that addiction.

It's probably more down to the fact that I think Scandal most likely considers the Six family, to a degree, given her father is the original asshole.

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Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

parsimonia
2009-06-04 01:59 pm UTC (link)

Yes. Motto to your comment and the one above. I love seeing close, intimate relationships that aren't sexual, and as you say, with Gail Simone writing we don't have to worry about Scandal's sexual orientation being changed.

And I love that while they're all "villains", they're still written as whole human beings with their own sets of morals, even if the moral compass is often skewed different from that of heroes in other books. Moral ambiguity in stories ftw.

Even Deadshot figures if he's going to kill someone, the "right" thing to do is to do it quickly and not let them suffer if they don't deserve it.

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Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

queenanthai
2009-06-03 04:18 pm UTC (link)

They are obivously BFF's forever. I think it's great that GS is showing us that a man and woman can have an intense and emotional relationship without it ending in romance/sex

YES.

I have male friends with whom I share beds all the time. Granted...they aren't naked...but I love them as much as possible and it's in no way sexual. God, I thought I was the only one who DID that. A lot of people think I'm weird and that my social circle has "boundary issues"...whatever the hell that means.

THANK YOU GAIL.

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	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! kingrockwell 2009-06-03 05:05 pm UTC (link)
	Motto! When an ensemble books acts like a family book, it becomes my favorite kind of book. These are the kinds of stories I love to read and strive to tell. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

parsimonia
2009-06-04 02:13 pm UTC (link)

I never thought of it that way before, but yes, that family dynamic, when you've got a team that's close, knows each other really well and cares about each other, and their interaction and the way they react to outside forces reflects that, it makes for very satisfying reading.

For instance, as much as I love Batman, I can grow weary of stories that are entirely about him alone facing off against a villain. For me, it's so much more entertaining (and perhaps realistic) to see him interacting with friends and family as well (and see them interacting with each other too) in addition to the villains. Which is why I wish there was a series like Gotham Knights again...but maybe Batman and Robin will be a start.

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Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

kingrockwell
2009-06-04 03:18 pm UTC (link)

I'm still not sure enough about Batman & Robin to buy it yet, but some things I've seen posted here and flipping through Flex Mentallo (and remembering how great an artist Frank Quitely is when he's in his element) has made my feelings toward it a lot more gracious. I don't know if I will start following it, but that might have more to do with not having extra money burning a hole in my pocket.

Definitely motto on Gotham Knights, though. The plots were iffy sometimes, and there was at least one arc that treated Helena pretty badly, but it was always good to at least the immediate Batfamily from what I've read.

And the Black & White backups!

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	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! thehefner 2009-06-03 08:25 pm UTC (link)
	I'm still sad Rucka didn't keep this sort of dynamic with Harvey Dent and Renee Montoya. I love these kinds of relationships. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! philippos42 2009-06-03 08:35 pm UTC (link)
	Harvey? Not Vic Sage? (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! thehefner 2009-06-03 09:14 pm UTC (link)
	Both! All three! Under Rucka, Renee has a history of platonic relationships with face-themed men! Rucka's said that he doesn't consider the Ballad of Renee and Harvey to be over, but after "Half A Life," I can't really imagine what possible future they could have as anything other than strict enemies. Seems like such a waste. Hopefully he truly has something planned... (Reply to this) (Parent)

	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! kingrockwell 2009-06-04 03:22 pm UTC (link)
	No Man's Land. Though it ends badly when Harvey misinterprets the relationship. (and yeah, like thehefner's gonna mistake another character for Harvey!) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! cmdr_zoom 2009-06-04 01:06 am UTC (link)
	Maybe someday, fandom will acknowledge that possibility for two people of the same gender. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! bluefall 2009-06-04 12:38 pm UTC (link)
	Maybe when there are some canon gay couples, there won't be so much need to slash everyone who isn't. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

parsimonia
2009-06-04 02:47 pm UTC (link)

You know, I was thinking about this, and I can't think of any male characters in DC who are gay. I know there are supporting characters in Manhunter, but most DC readers are probably unaware of them.

I mean, when it comes to lesbian couples we've at least had Grace and Thunder, we've seen a couple of Renee Montoya's love interest IIRC and then there's Batwoman. And considering (at least to my knowledge) they haven't been treated as simply "hey look, guys! lesbians! let's watch their sexytimes!", that's a big improvement to how they're often treated elsewhere in pop culture.

But I can't think of any DC male heroes that are gay, let alone any couples. Am I forgetting any? It seems like such a glaring omission now that I think about it.

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Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

bluefall
2009-06-04 03:00 pm UTC (link)

I would't call Todd and Damon "supporting characters." Well, Damon, certainly, but Todd is one of the most powerful guys on the JSA, has a long history with the JLA, is a major player in Alan Scott's mythos - he's kind of a C-lister, sure, but he's no more supporting cast than Manhunter herself, and probably better known to the fanbase than Renee or Grace. And Todd and Damon have actually done better than any of DC's lesbians, in that they're happy, stable, neither of them is dead or comatose, and they actually get to occasionally have sexytimes (Maggie Sawyer and her partner Toby come close, but I don't think they've ever kissed on-panel).

Still not as meaningful as if they finally let Tim come out, though, no.

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	Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great! parsimonia 2009-06-04 03:10 pm UTC (link)
	Ah, my ignorance of JSA is showing. I didn't realize that. Still not as meaningful as if they finally let Tim come out, though, no. That would be pretty awesome if that were to happen. Though I have to wonder how Chuck Dixon would react... (Reply to this) (Parent)

Re: I think Bane and Scandal are great!

vengefulacorn
2009-06-04 11:00 pm UTC (link)

Besides Damon and Todd, there's also (/boyfriend's name):

Piper (/Micheal Forbes, /James-no-surname, /Earl "Fury" Povich), Tasmanian Devil (/Josh Barbazon), Hero Cruz (/Leander), Mikaal Tomas (/Tony?), Houston (/Rive-no-surname), Frostbite/Off-Ramp, Tommy Jagger, Creote, Josiah Power (/Rupe?), at least one version of Invisible Kid/Condo Arlik (Chemical King), and Extrano.

There's probably a few that I've forgotten, but working with what's there (and all of this is just my opinion/observations):

Several of these guys (Hero, Houston, Frostbite, Off-Ramp,and Josiah Power) are from the late 1990s/early 2000s. For whatever reason, most characters from that era just don't stick. They have a "shelf-life" of about three years, and then they're dumped into limbo.

Creote and Tommy aren't really "heroes". One's a mercenary, the other is an intelligence operative.

Extrano is in a class by himself.

I have no idea how Legion of Three Worlds ended, so I don't know if that continuity's Lyle and Condo were killed/wiped out of existence or not.

Piper will probably show up in the new Flash series at some point. Mikaal is supposed to be in the new Justice League book. Todd is currently in JSA (and is currently the only gay guy with a regular gig in the main DCU). Taz gets a cameo once or twice a year.

As far as relationships go, most of the guys seem to date civilians. The civilian boyfriends are rarely fleshed out, with the exception of Damon, who actually seems to have a life outside of being Todd's boyfriend. Condo and Lyle hooked up in one continuity, but in that one Condo never became Chemical King. Off-Ramp and Frostbite hooked up as Young Heroes in Love was ending; a "future" issue showed they spent several years together before going their separate ways.

I think DC's actually been a bit better overall to the gay/bi male characters than Marvel has, even if most of them are in limbo right now.

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