FF #6 introduces a new transgender character to the MU...

[icon_uk]

And it's someone we've met before, and whilst it could have been something rather tacky or clumsy, instead;



As Tong, one of the Moloids living in the Baxter Building, makes an announcement.



Sniff... sniff...

Comments

[donnblake]

Awww,

[captainbellman]

That was quite elegant. I'm impressed.

[insolent_one]

No offense, but gender hasn't always seemed very descript for Moloids.
If anything, there is a massive imbalance in the male to female ratio.

But yeah, a very open and honest confessional moment for a family.
Rare to see that. Makes me wonder what Bentley's reaction will be.

[auggie18]

Yeah, my first reaction was "huh. I didn't know Moloids had gender."

[doomisay]

I think they didn't either until recently.

[chrisdv]

Bentley: "WHY COULDN'T I HAVE THE DEVIL IN ME?!"
*Bamf*
Mephisto: "Well, since you asked..."
*She-Hulk walks in*
Mephisto: "OHCRAPSHEHULKBYEKIDYOU'REONYOUROWN."
*Bamf*
She-Hulk: "Hi Bentley... Why do I smell sulphur?"
Bentley: "I hate you..."

[shadowpsykie]

.... did i miss a reference?

[chrisdv]

Probably not.

[darkknightjrk]

I think we both did.

[captainbellman]

-Later-

Bentley: "I could at least sell off my sense of decency, for a hover mobile?"
*FMAB*
Bentley: "Deadpool?! You're the devil now?"
Deadpool: "It's always the one who you least suspect owns all of the classic Simpsons episodes on blu-ray."

[icon_uk]

I don't think there needs to be much gender identification amongst the Moloids, for this to have impact (And as they are a Deviant created species it's quite possible that they don't have a gender as we understand the term)

The other three aligned themselves as male when given the choice, for whatever reasons of their own, and it was presumed that Tong was the same. However, Tong has decided to go against that presumption.

In some ways that makes her move even more significant, she's not identifying with a gender for the convenience of humans (If that were the case it wouldn't matter which she picked, since neither would be genuine for her), she's making a choice for herself, and one which risks marking her as "odd" (in Moloid terms).

[shadowpsykie]

i...i....

*ugly crying*

[mrstatham]

Ugh, sometimes I hate being a trade waiter.

And I hate being a trade waiter most of all when all I want to do is read this book and not Fantastic Four, but Marvel's packaged them together for the first trade.

[beyondthefringe]

That was...adorable. Unexpected, but very cute.

Though I, like most other people, probably never really gave much thought to Moloid gender identification. Or reproduction. Or anything else of that nature.

I'm thrilled that they're tackling the subject, though. Trans characters of any nature are always welcome, as long as they're portrayed in a positive light.

Now, how weird would it have been had the trans Moloid in question actually been the floating head in a jar?

(Best teamup of all time: Moloid head in a jar + Xavier's head in a jar from X-Treme X-Men + Martha/No-Girl's brain in a jar...)

[akodo_rokku]

Sadly, Xavier head in a jar is all dead and stuff.

[salad_barbarian]

This is comics. I don't think something as trivial as that would stop a team up.

[fiddlingfrog.livejournal.com]

Aren't there like an oodleplex of Xavier-head-in-a-jars floating around?

[kamino_neko]

Well, that's cute.

But it really seems to be the gender-ID version of what TV Tropes calls Discount Lesbians.

[mrstatham]

I have to disagree. As specified on the page, this doesn't really seem at all like a gender-based version of 'they're gay but they're not really gay'. If the Moloid identifies (or identified) as a male and Fraction is taking the time to show this in an interesting and thoughtful way - and I think it is, because Fraction isn't tossing the importance of this decision out the window because the character isn't human - then it doesn't really match up to what you're trying to say. IMO, of course.

[kamino_neko]

Very few, if any, examples of Discount Lesbians push the importance aside in canon. Hell, some of them make a bigger deal of it than the use of 'non-discount' gay folks in most stories. (The Star Trek ones, for instance.)

That doesn't make the use of non-humans any less the 'safe' path to take. Especially such strongly non-human beings as the Moloids.

[mrstatham]

I can see what you're saying, but I still have to disagree. This doesn't really feel equivalent at all to something like, say, Mass Effect, which did allow FemShep to be with Liara with the intent of at least offering some fanservice. 'Discount Lesbians' seems to be primarily about fanservice without having to really deal with the underlying ideas or to really acknowledge that it's a gay scene - again, thinking about Mass Effect.

But I don't particularly understand how you could really do fanservice when it comes to something like this, and I don't see how you can really have a gender-based version of Discount Lesbians. Even if they are non-human, the Moloids clearly still have a gender, but I don't really see this as Fraction making a 'safe' choice, more kind-of a natural extension of the Moloids living on the surface with the FF and coming to this decision.

[lieut_kettch]

Aaannnd there goes any hope of me doing anything remotely productive for the day. See you in a few hours...

[ablackraptor]

That is a touching moment indeed. I haven't been following this book but damn does this one scene make me want to read more.

[akodo_rokku]

And a third of a page of delightful follow-up:

[icon_uk]

:)

[akodo_rokku]

In my head, when Scott asks "Is that a thing we're doing now?" he means walking around holding hands. Like when he, Darla, and Jen leave the room, they have to do it holding hands because that's just how its done now.

[nezchan]

Everyone loves a parade!

[nezchan]

I really wasn't sure that particular dress suited her at first , but now I think it's amazing.

[palabradot]

Belated as hell, but what I like about it?
Absolutely no confusion on the part of the one that says "Good for her." I half expected a "Good for...her? Him? I didn't know they had gender," or some such thing. But no.
She is what she is and is accepted immediately. :)

[pyrrhocorax]

Awww, they're all so happy and supportive!

[leoboiko]

This is very great.

The tower thing in this issue was awesome too.

[spidermanwashere]

This was great, I loved it. You go girl!

[thefiretonight]

Ya know, there was a time where I thought that I could never ever enjoy a Matt Fraction comic [Hate his run on Uncanny] but with this and Hawkguy, I'm very glad to be proven wrong. Well played, sir!

[captainbellman]

I know, right? I always thought he was a snore after "The Reality-Show Superheroes No-One Cares About" and "The Punisher Does Random Stuff, Lol", but it seems like he's really hitched up his trousers and come into his own. These are brilliant comics.

[mrstatham]

Yeah, this. I loved Fraction's Iron Man run, even if the nature of superhero comics meant Tony ended back at square one, yet again, and I liked Immortal Iron Fist, but this in particular is a step up for me. The only book he's putting out at the moment that I'm not enjoying is Fantastic Four, which just isn't as a fun or interesting as this book.

[angelophile]

Seriously.

[northstarfan]

D'aaaaaw. <3

[kenn_el]

In order to be supportive it would be nice to have the female members of the FF show up next issue in dresses.

[stubbleupdate]

This isn't Mike Allred; it's Joe Quinones

[icon_uk]

Ah,, thanks for the catch!