Jeph Jacques’s comedic webcomic Questionable Content dedicates a rather insightful June 10th installment, entitled “A Question of Belief,” to the topic of faith for its sentient, man-made robot characters:
Punny — but still thoughtful.
On the heels of ReligionLink’s less-than-comprehensive topical overview of religion and comics, The Huffington Post recently made its own attempt. Written by Professor S. Brent Plate, an expert on religion and American visual culture, kept his commentary narrow and targeted on the Judaic elements. While not pioneering new trails in the exploration of the medium (and the superhero genre) in terms of Judaism, Plate does bring the discussion largely up to date on the eve of Superman’s latest film incarnation in Man of Steel. One suspects, though, that if there’s something new or more to say on what Plate calls “the sacredness of superheroes,” it’ll come from outside Judeo-Christian discourse.
ReligionLink.com is, by its own description, “a non-partisan service of Religion Newswriters” that is “by journalists, for journalists.” So, it’s understandable that they encourage religion writers to think further on the intersection of the comics-based genre of superheroes and religion in recognition of Superman’s 75th anniversary and new film. Clearly, Rao endorses this viewpoint, too.
However, the “background and expert sources” they claim to provide prove sadly lacking; though lengthy and exhaustive-looking, it reads as the result of Google searching and Amazon browsing rather than an actual, knowledgeable resource. Their list of recommended books leaves out any title that isn’t Judeo-Christian, and, similarly, their article list includes one mention of Islam in regards to coverage of The 99; likewise, their manifest of three dozen experts seems to only include one focusing on Arabs (the esteemed Fedwa Malti-Douglas) and one on occult practices (the weirdly unattributed Christopher Knowles). They even get Professor Malti-Douglas’s URL wrong!
But it’s easy to criticize. What else should have been there? Well… Continue reading ReligionLink Targets Comics, Misses a Lot
Over the course of the past year, various pieces — pertinent both to comics in terms of religion specifically or simply the serious consideration of comics — have come to light that either fell through the cracks at the time or deserve some wider coverage. They include:
And then there’s just this odd/funny/insulting/compelling comic from Kevin Moore’s In Contempt comics from back in 2008. No better place to put it than here:
In the wake of the Boston Marathon Bombing and capture of suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Boston University Associate Professor Kecia Ali was invited as a guest blogger for NPR affiliate WBUR’s Cognoscenti where she recounted not only running a 5-kilometer fundraiser with a “Heroes and Villains” theme but also having to convince a fellow runner that her costume as Dust of the X-Men was actually heroic.
Dust, of course, brings the veil front and center. She may be a rare positive representation of a Muslim woman in comic books, but her character is affected by Orientalism and sexism. Does she break down stereotypes, or does she reinforce them?
Ali pointed to an earlier writing by blogger Broken Mystic on the character of Dust and the complexities her portrayals present:
So overall, can we appreciate a character like Dust? I think we can; however, there is a lot of room for improvement. […H]er character is incomplete and her character suffers from stereotypes that are due to misunderstandings about Islamic beliefs and practices.
What with the recent headlines generated by DC Comics’ introduction of Simon Baz as a new Green Lantern, are Marvel Comics readers likely to be reintroduced to Dust anytime soon?