New Avengers 8: Jess considers a new name!

[benicio127]

Just picked this up yesterday, though it came out last week. Jess&Luke are one of my favourite couples and I could probably just read an entire comic of them talking and doing stuff. I noticed they are having a conversation I've been sort of having with myself and others after recently getting engaged...



And obviously I don't mean taking on the superhero name of my fiance, lol, but rather the last name! It was interesting to me as more and more women in North America choose to keep their last name, hyphenate and generally just choose different options rather than take on someone else's last name; as well as a growing number of gay and straight married couples in Canada (and I suppose some states in the U.S. that allow gay marriage, which sadly aren't very many) decide to create a whole new name out of both last names (ie. John Fawcett and Tom Wood became John and Tom Woodfawcett). As well as the practice/tradition of who takes on whose last name varies widely in other countries (ie. Spain, Mexico) (I've put A LOT of thought into the whole last name thing, OK)

ANYWAYS....! ON TO THE SCANS! Approx. 4 pages.

Luke makes the initial suggestion.












And Jess is swearing because a Doombot comes around and spoils their sexy dinner date. And then at the end of the issue, Jess makes an announcement:




Luke's mug, OMG. Truth: I actually showed this last bit to my fiance and was like: See what Luke did? That's what not to do.
Ahhh I love these two. :D

Comments

[greenmask]

Haha you've been getting such mileage out of that icon.

I wonder if they always intended to marry Sue to Reed? 'Susan Storm' does seem like too groovy of a name to create knowing it would become outdated.

((I'm kind of fascinated that I never noticed the phrase "maiden name" before.))

[bluefall]

Of all the "yar feminism" icons I've had over the years, it's become very much my favorite. ^_^

That's an interesting question! Certainly "Susan Storm" is a little stronger and flows better than "John Storm" or even "Johnny Storm," which makes me think the name was designed around her, not him. (Must have been Kirby's doing.) But "Susan Richards" does have a certain comfortable flow of its own, which compared to, like, "Lois Kent" or "Iris Allen" seems more likely to be deliberate than fortuitous. I don't know!

((Curious how much that philosophy still dominates the language, even in this modern world of "Ms.", isn't it?))

[benicio127]

Curious how much that philosophy still dominates the language, even in this modern world of "Ms.", isn't it?

Haha, yes. A friend of mine, a journalist who now works at the Globe and Mail, wrote a lengthy piece about why she chose to take her husband's name. Most female journalists don't -- they've already established themselves as having a career, have built a reputation by that name and are well known for it. My future sister-in-law is a doctor and kept her last name, same with a few of my professors who are lawyers.
The following day, another female journalist wrote a piece in a competing newspaper about her decision and how it it seemed "backward" given the feminist movement, etc., etc. The thing is... this was my friend's choice.
And interestingly, Quebec has a law that is almost prohibitive to that choice, as some women have voiced frustration over the fact that the law makes it difficult for them to change their name if they want to.

(haha like I said... topic and scans relevant to me right now, lol)

[benicio127]

Also, late the game.... just realised the Ms. could be talking about the magazine or the prefix. Hahah

[greenmask]

Lois Kent does not really trip off the tongue. I really like the episode(s?) where Lois thinks (angsts) about whether to change her name after they marry on Lois & Clark. She decides to stick with Lane since she made her reputation under it, but they do get called "the Kents" occasionally afterwards.

((Here is an anecdote about "Ms.": no-one who's tried has ever guessed I was over eighteen, but when I have told people I go by Ms. they have replied "Oh.. you're divorced?" YES THAT MUST BE IT))

[rordulum]

"That's an interesting question! Certainly "Susan Storm" is a little stronger and flows better than "John Storm" or even "Johnny Storm," which makes me think the name was designed around her, not him. (Must have been Kirby's doing.)"

Well, Stan Lee always had a bit of an obsession with alliterative names. Bruce Banner, Reed Richards, Scott Summers, Peter Parker, Otto Octavius, J. Jonah Jameson, Warren Worthington, Victor Von Doom (kinda).

Though that is a common feature of lots of comic book characters, including those not created by Stan Lee.

And given the dynamic of the group, I'd guess that Sue was created before Johnny. You've got Reed, the leader, so now you need his girl (being the early 60s, she probably started off as little more than that). And then you come up with the others.