Dissecting Comicsgate (Conclusion): The Comic Book Industry Strikes Back

Despite all of the bigotry and controversy surrounding Comicsgate, it is my great pleasure to inform you all that their activities have not gone unnoticed or unopposed. In addition to several media outlets like Bleeding Cool, The Daily Beast, Buzzfeed, and even The Washington Post denouncing the movement, several people working within the comic book industry have publicly spoken out against Comicsgate. The most prominent of these individuals is Mark Waid, a long-time industry veteran whose worked at both Marvel and DC and has written several critically acclaimed comics like KINGDOM COME, CAPTAIN AMERICA, FANTASTIC FOUR, and 52. Waid has been one of Comicsgate’s most frequent targets ever since September 2017, when he posted the following message on Facebook after being informed that Richard C. Meyer would be attending Baltimore Comic Con:

“For anyone attending this weekend’s (excellent) Baltimore Comic Con, I have an important request. There is a serial YouTube harasser named Richard C. Meyer who I’m told may be attending as a fan. If anyone sees this gentleman or any of his friends, I need you to come find me and tell me immediately. Even if I’m on a panel, come up and interrupt.

Please circulate this request as widely as you possibly can through all your social media accounts. Fellow pros, tell each other. This is about attempting to lessen the harassment of women in comics, and it is important. Please spread the word. Thank you.”

Although many of Meyer’s supporters accused Waid of threatening Meyer with physical violence, Waid clarified that he simply wanted to engage in a civil discourse with Meyer. Despite this, these very same people continued to accuse Waid of trying to silence free speech and criticism. Waid disputed this accusation, stating in a later Facebook post that “criticism of the work itself is fine, but no reasonable person would fail to draw the line at direct personal threats and attacks on gender and race and orientation.” This argument was supported by Waid’s earlier comments that although he himself was able to withstand many of Comicsgate’s attacks since he was both a white male and an industry veteran, several of his colleagues lacked that same privilege. Essentially, Waid was not trying to silence criticism but was merely trying to stand up in defense of his fellow female and minority co-workers, as not only were many of them afraid to show up at conventions or stores, but some had even received death threats like being “burned to death” or being “put down like a dog” (which Waid states are some of the more tame threats they received, believe it or not). Nevertheless, Waid’s efforts fell through since the Meyer not only failed to show up at Baltimore Comic Con, but Waid stated that in a later phone conversation with Meyer, “[they] mutually agreed that all that need be said is that it was unproductive.”

This wouldn’t be the last time Waid and Meyer would clash with each other, as Waid has been a central figure in the controversy surrounding JAWBREAKERS. The controversy began when it was announced in May 2018 that JAWBREAKERS would be published by Antarctic Press, which led to several comic book stores openly refusing to stock the comic due to its author. Meyer responded intentionally posting the specific stores, their contact information, and even the names of their retailers that refused to sell his book, which may have resulted in the breaking and entering and theft of one comic book store. In light of this news, Mark Waid contacted Antarctic Press to inform them of Meyer’s history of online harassment and connections to Comicsgate, and Antarctic Press later announced although it stood for creator’s rights, it would no longer be publishing JAWBREAKERS. This not only led to Meyer starting up another Kickstarter to try and form his own company to publish JAWBREAKERS, but Meyer later went on to file a lawsuit against Mark Waid on September 19, 2018 for “tortious interference with contract and defamation,” claiming that Waid used his status to threaten and bully Antarctic Press while accusing Meyer of being a bigot and “serial harasser of women and minorities.” This is in spite of the fact that Antarctic Press publicly stated that:

"This is an untrue story. Please do not spread it. Nobody at AP contacted Marvel. Mark Waid did not bully anyone at our company. Though he did call and express concern. No letters were written between us and Marvel. Mark shed more light on the situation, and other factors that came into play that do not involve any staff or freelancers at any other company, that led us to our decision.”

In response to Meyer’s lawsuit, Waid has hired Mark S. Zaid, a Washington D.C. attorney with experience in high-profile defamation cases, and started a GoFundMe campaign with a goal of $75,000. Fortunately, it appears Waid's efforts to combat Meyer in this case have largely been successful, as not only did the campaign raise more than its intended goal, but Zaid managed to dismiss Meyer's lawsuit through a Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction, since Meyer sought to sue Waid in a Texas court of law, whereas Waid lived in California.

But Mark Waid hasn’t been the only industry veteran to fight back against Comicsgate. On August 21, 2018, a random Twitter user claimed that late-comic book writer Darwyn Cooke would have been supportive of Comicsgate, which led to Cooke’s widow Marsha retweeting the following:

"Hi guys, this is Darwyn’s wife and I can guarantee he thought you comics gate idiots were a bunch of crybaby losers ruining comics. because you are.”

This resulted in several Comicsgate supporters harassing Marsha and accusing her of not really being Darwyn’s widow, and when Marsha requested Ethan Van Sciver put a stop to the situation, the latter instead blamed the SJWs for the harassment she was facing and demanded them to apologize instead of his own followers. In response, several prominent figures within the comic book industry who up until that point remained silent or neutral about Comicsgate, came rushing to Marsha’s defense. It all started with OLD MAN LOGAN writer Jeff Lemire tweeting “Comicsgate is based on fear, intolerance, bigotry and anger,” along with NEW MUTANTS artist Bill Sienkiewicz stating on Facebook that Comicsgate promotes “hateful, misogynistic and plain-old ugly dogma.” ALL-NEW WOLVERINE writer Tom Taylor later tweeted, “I believe comics are for everyone. There’s no excuse for harassment. There’s no place for homophobia, transphobia, racism or misogyny in comics criticism.” Taylor’s comment was later retweeted by several other prominent industry figures including Deadpool’s co-creator Fabian Nicieza, and BIRDS OF PREY and SECRET SIX writer Gail Simone. Even the artist of Alan Moore’s legendary WATCHMEN Dave Gibbons spoke out against Comicsgate after reading Sienkiewicz’s Facebook post. Furthermore, this event helped inspire later incidents in which prominent comic book writers have risen up to defend marginalized creators, as was most recently evident with prose writer Eve Ewing. When it was announced that Ewing would be writing the new IRONHEART series, several Comicsgate proponents lambasted her for being supposedly inexperienced and unqualified since she had never written a single comic before. Consequently, writers Tom King and Neil Gaiman came to Ewing’s defense, with Gaiman stating that he managed to get hired by DC decades prior despite having only published three short stories beforehand. 

Regardless, while it is good that comic book industry veterans are finally standing up against Comicsgate, many including Marsha Cooke have argued that it took them too long to respond, which in turn has allowed Comicsgate to continue thriving and infecting the comic book industry just like a festering mold. The movement still continues to grow strong and currently shows no signs of dissipating, which begs the question of what should be done. Well, in my personal opinion, I feel not only should veteran writers and artists continue to vocally oppose Comicsgate, but also that the CEOs and higher-ups at companies like Marvel, DC, Image, and IDW should throw their voices into the arena as well. They shouldn’t necessarily outright call their fans and customers bigots, as that’s the type of language that has and will continue to antagonize Comicsgate’s supporters. However, they should openly denounce all forms of bigotry and harassment while continuing to promote inclusiveness and tolerance in both their books and their working staffs. Speaking of which, companies should also provide additional support to marginalized creators who are or have already suffered from online harassment, such as more actively promoting their books. As for us the fans and customers, I believe that it’s moral obligation to provide support for the victims and targets of Comicsgate, whether it’s by simply complementing them on social media, or by buying their products. I myself, for instance, not only follow creators like G. Willow Wilson, Sana Amanat, Sina Grace, Heather Antos, and Magdalene Visaggio on Twitter, but I’m also currently purchasing titles from Marvel’s featuring their newer diverse characters like MS. MARVEL, UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL, and ICEMAN. On the matter of voting with our wallets, I also propose boycotting any of the given works being published by Comicsgate’s members. While I’m normally not one for advocating the boycott of any given product, since I personally feel that it’s unfair as all works should be judged on their own merits, I propose making an exception in this case. People like Richard C. Meyer, Ethan Van Sciver, and Vox Day have fueled their internet careers off of the harassment and discrimination of others, and buying books like JAWBREAKERS: LOST SOULS, CYBERFROG, and ALT★HERO will only serve to give them more money and attention. And on that same note, ignore YouTube channels or Twitter accounts that are supportive of Comicsgate like “Diversity and Comics,” “Capn Cummings,” “Douglas Ernst,” “Yellow Flash,” “Mim Headroom,” etc. As the late Stan Lee said in one of his famous soapboxes, “Bigotry and racism are among the deadliest social ills plaguing the world today… sooner or later, if man is ever to be worthy of his destiny, we must fill our hearts with tolerance.” 

Take Stan’s words to heart people. Let his legacy live on by demonstrating to the world that comics are a community that is all-inclusive and do not allow it to be infected by the intolerance and hatred that Comicsgate promotes!