Last Friday, former DC editor (and current member of the comics media) Janelle Asselin wrote a guest column at Comic Books Resources titled Anatomy of a Bad Cover: Teen Titans #1. It is a sharp and engaging piece of criticism, and took a strong stance against what is, in fairness, a bad cover. A really bad cover. Here it is.

Not surprisingly, Asselin’s primary concern was Wonder Girl’s gigantic (fake) breasts. Writes Asselin: “Let’s start with the elephant in the room: Wonder Girl’s rack. Perhaps I’m alone in having an issue with an underaged teen girl being drawn with breasts the size of her head (seriously, line that stuff up, each breast is the same size as her face) popping out of her top. Anatomy-wise, there are other issues — her thigh is bigger around than her waist, for one — but let’s be real. The worst part of this image, by far, are her breasts.”

The article continues detailing many of the other problems present in this cover-and there are many-and the reasons this cover fails the Teen Titans audience. It also links to Meghan Hetrick’s How To Draw Boobies guide, which, if you are a comics artist, you should print out and tack above your desk.

Asselin’s article caused quite. an. uproar. in the comics portions of the internet for a number of reasons. But chief among them in my opinion is the fact that outright criticism of the two major comic houses at huge sites like Comic Book Resources is very rare. CBR and their competitors depend upon maintaining close relationship with DC and Marvel for exclusives, and other good-natured exchanges, which has made this kind of critique too uncommon. When one does appear, it come with backlash.

The ensuing kerfuffle included professionals like comics artist Brett Booth who spent much time on Twitter making bizarre arguments against Asselin’s piece. My favorite is that real critiques “praise what’s good, to offer encouragement, and then point out what doesn’t work and tell them why.” Apparently Booth holds the same critique standards as Junior High pottery classes. Also in response to Asselin’s piece, Booth said: “they wonder why DC is keeping things close to their chest.” I truly hope DC Comics doesn’t lock reporters out because a thoughtful person wrote a harsh critique of one bad cover of one comic title.

But these comments from Booth and others like them are at least directed towards the article Asselin wrote, and her role in comics media. They may be wrong, or too personal, but they haven’t crossed into creepy territory.

Now it’s Monday. And the Teen Titans piece has had a few days to fester. Today, Asselin posted to her tumblr and article titled Let’s Talk About How Some Men Talk to Women in Comics. It details Asselin’s interactions on Twitter, the (real) presence of harassment in the comics industry, why some people are afraid of the word feminist, and how a survey she has been conducting on these issues has been flooded with vitriol from the internet community. Vitriol that is, unfortunately, too often aimed at women who have committed the audacious crime of participating in life on the internet. Asselin closes the piece by addressing the threats of rape made against her:

At first I wasn’t going to talk about the rape threats because honestly, most of the women I know with a solid online presence get them regularly. This is just a thing we are forced to deal with.

I’ll re-post that sentence for you, because you really need to read that again:

At first I wasn’t going to talk about the rape threats because honestly, most of the women I know with a solid online presence get them regularly. This is just a thing we are forced to deal with.

If you can read that and keep you’re cool, I don’t know who you are. That comics culture and internet culture has enabled not only a willingness in male readers to make such threats at all. ever!. but to make them with such frequency that they almost don’t even warrant mention is enraging. Your blood should boil. For men-of any age-to publicly (Twitter is public, FYI) or privately threaten a woman with rape because she criticized your community requires breathtaking levels of cultural insulation and security.

Still. You know this happens. Anyone who honestly engages in comics culture on the internet knows this happens. I’ve written about it here, and elsewhere online. So many others have too. It’s a problem that we KNOW exists. This is a part of comic book culture: rape threats are made online against women so often that they almost don’t even deserve mention. However small that part of comic book culture may be doesn’t matter. It is real, and needs destroying.

Luckily, that’s happening.

Here’s Asselin, addressing this insulated group of men:

The truth is that you are on the losing side. Women in comics aren’t going away. Even if you continue to talk to us like this. Your threats and insults do nothing more than make me want to stick around and shout even louder. So thank you for that.