WalMart Can’t Please Feminist Comic Book Fans

Here is a story that perfectly encapsulates the impossibility of satisfying a feminist showing that they care about being outrageously outraged than they do about curing any real ills. It concerns the uproar over the 3D printing kiosk that puts a child’s face on a superhero toy–either Captain America of Iron Man. The chicks are mad that WalMart didn’t include a female superhero. But…

A company named 3DPlussMe has crated a self-serve machine that will take a photo of a child’s face and then, using plastic 3D printing technology, will create a toy figurine of either Captain America or Iron Man with that child’s face on it.

The kiosks are being rolled out in select WalMarts across the country and they seem like a great idea for kids to get a personalized toy.

But female comics fans are mad that only two male comic book heroes are being offered. Why no female characters, they ask?

Among the many pop culture writers complaining that the machines only offer the two male characters is Monica Beyer of, Sam Maggs of, and James Whitbrook of

Beyer carps that offering only the two male super heroes is “awfully familiar” in that brik-a-brak for female comic book characters is hard to find in stores. Beyer says “sorry, girls” to those who may want a female super hero from the WalMart machine.

Maggs at melodramatically whines, “Sorry, girls; superheroes aren’t for you I guess.”

For his part, Whitbrook says the machines are a great idea, “unless you happen to be female and want a female character to have your head printed on.”

He goes on to complain that, “it’s baffling that a female Hero option hasn’t been included.”

These are typical of the many comic book and pop culture sites complaining about the WalMart machine.

Now, on the 3D printing machine company’s website they do show a third hero figure; Iron Man’s Black Widow, the character played by Scarlett Johansson in the movies. For whatever reason, though, it appears that the Widow figure isn’t being offered in the WalMart machines.

OK, so at first blush you may think these complaints make sense. Why no girl character? Wouldn’t Walmart have seen this coming?

Ah, but you have to know more about the complainers in the world of comic books to know why WalMart may have decided not to include a female character.

You see, for several years now female comics fans have been complaining that the female superheroes are overly sexualized, always traipsing about in barely-there costumes that emphasize their heaving cleavage and prominently displaying their prominent rear ends.

A recent flap over the artwork for a Spider Woman book cover is typical of the feminist attack on the comics industry.

So, on one hand female comics fans are mad that female characters are too much the male fantasy with skin-tight costumes and heaving breasts but now they are mad that little girls can’t put their faces on a toy in a skin-tight costume that showcases heaving breasts?

This is the dilemma that WalMart faced, certainly. I am sure it was easier just to exclude the female figure than have everyone start claiming that WalMart was trying to sexualize little girls.

All this tends to show that feminists cannot be pleased. Exclude girls and they complain, include them and they complain some more.

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