Publisher’s Weekly Booklife section recently reviewed Boobs of Steel for the October release of their magazine!
“Finney (author of Tabula Rosa) begins his Boobs of Steel series with an exploration of the Amazon archetype and its literary, creative, and cultural influence. “Classic superheroes have been systematically insulted, debased, and then replaced by so-called ‘inclusive and diverse’ females,” he writes, asserting that those changes have negatively impacted comics. Finney looks at examples, past and present, of comic and film’s female icons, including notables like She-Hulk, Xena, and, the “seed from which all our modern action heroines sprung from,” Wonder Woman—taking note of their symbolism as well as the impact cultural changes have had on those heroes over time.
Self-labeled a child of the 1980s, Finney posits that “feminine soft power in the form of hard, muscled flesh” is a “larger than life primordial archetype” that illustrates humans’ tendency to associate the power of life with females—and he identifies five archetypes of this “Boobs of Steel trope” that were solidified in ‘80s literature and film: Amazon, Tomboy, Bad Girl, Valkyrie, and Jungle Goddess. Finney posits that, whether women are wielding weapons or not, they forever bear the power of life—the very characteristic that has always given Amazon women such a spellbinding mystique.
Finney dedicates space to exploring female superheroes in cultures other than mainstream America, too—notably the history of anime and manga—and spotlights Japan’s much-publicized artist, Go Nagai. Those interested in the history of comics will find his detailed review of past superheroes intriguing, including various photos that feature central female characters through the years. His appreciation for the Amazon archetype is evident throughout, christening it “the independent woman who is unafraid to compete and succeed within male spaces.” Ultimately, Finney concludes that the concept of full-bodied females as a symbol of inherent power is crucial: they’re not meant to represent “ordinary” women, they’re supposed to call forth transcendent warriors. This will spark discussion.
Takeaway: An examination of powerful female archetypes and their changes over time.
Comparable Titles: Mike Madrid’s The Supergirls, Shea Fontana’s DC: Women of Action.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: B+
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