Feminism and movements towards the empowerment of women have been a hot button issue over the past few decades as civil rights have become more prevalent within American society. While reactions to the uprising of the struggles that women have had to face over the years have been mixed, there is no doubt that the various movements that emerged have garnered many reactions from many different places. One of these mediums used to commentate on these movements is the feminist comic Bitch Planet by Kelly Sue DeConnick. Through this comic we see a futuristic society in which women are under constant pressure to follow the standards for which the “Fathers” place on the women of that society. Failure to comply with these standards results in dire consequences. I will be using the events that have taken place in this comic and comparing them to the struggles that women have to still face within our society, and the overall role that plays in the current movements of feminism and the retrieval of women’s rights in today’s society. Some of the ways this comic goes on to serve as a commentary towards modern day problems is through the complications of setting certain standards for women, the treatment of women who often do not fit what is viewed as the “ideal” women, the struggle to fit against those ideals that are set, and how reactions to strong women and the fight to have their voice heard is perceived not only in the comic but in our current society as well. 

It is no secret that there has been a certain image of what a perfect woman should look like. While it varies from country to country, it is obvious the type of women that we see glorified. We see these so assumed “perfect” women in TV shows, in ads, on the covers of magazines that rave about the latest secrets to obtaining beauty. With all these images around us, it is not hard to unconscious have it planted in our minds what the ideal woman should look like. Unfortunately this plants a lot of problems in society and media as to what is considered desirable with women. Bitch Planet has no problem exploring this problem. In a society such as in Bitch Planet the majority of women are portrayed as skinny and almost unrealistically prim and proper, with straight hair and smooth skin .Bitch Planet introduces a diverse cast of characters to challenge this standard that is set. One such character is Penny, who embraces her appearance proudly despite it not fitting into the mold that is set. Because of her acceptance of herself and annoyance towards those who stay stuck in their superficial ways, Penny quickly gets herself in trouble for not fitting into the mold with everyone else. 

The conflicts that Penny faces easily reflects the struggles that women in today’s society still face. There is still a lot of pressure to live up to what is portrayed as desirable. It is so engrained within our minds that we find these standards normal and acceptable without realizing it. Fariha Roisin summarizes the problem of these standards, saying “They immediately devalue anyone not in, and of, that equation and they also dictate what we supposedly deserve: The jobs, the men, the happiness. (Roisin x)”. It is such a problem that attempts to normalize other standards of beauty that are not conventional can often be meet with backlash, just as Penny was faced with backlash for not finding any need to change the way she was despite what the world around her said otherwise. Though even with these standards being set for women, as we go on more and more of an effort is being made to progress past the constraints that they have had on women. While it will be hard to completely move past them for a while, other body types and appearances have been being embraced as being just as beautiful as what the standard looks like now. Representation of these women who do not fit the mold have also been increasing as well. Even in this comic, the spotlight is put on women fighting against these unrealistic standards, thus giving another outlet of positive representation to those who need it.This is just one of the ways that Bitch Planet brings attention to important issues for women in today’s society, while also working to help progress past those problems as well. 

As there are these standards, there sometimes hardships to be faced when one does not fit them. As Penny was reprimanded by those around her for not being afraid to break the mold, people often in our society receive backlash for not fitting into the mold that has been put in place as well. There is so much pressure still put on the importance of physical attractiveness. So much so, an article states, “The 'bias for beauty' operates in almost all social situations – all experiments show we react more favorably to physically attractive people. (Fox x)” The importance of beauty is often demeaning of many people’s self-image. Since people have expectations for women to live up to certain beauty standards, those who do not live up to them often face problems with low self-esteem. A good example of this is those who are overweight. Our culture specifically places importance on how thinness is equated with beauty. As a result, “Fat-phobia and prejudice against the overweight in our culture is such that obese people (particularly women) tend to have a very poor body-image – not to mention severe anxiety and depression. (Fox x)”. This is not a worldwide problem, either. People who live in cultures without prejudice against overweight people tend to not suffer from the same effects that people living in countries such as America face. While a movement has been put into place to rid society of fat-phobia there often is still backlash against those who advocate against these beauty standards. These standards of beauty are so ingrained into our life-styles that when people try to break free of them it tends to be a struggle to get other people to change their perspectives. Even Penny, who proudly embraced who she was, still faced backlash just for looking as she did.

Penny is disregarded by society in part of her physical attributes. Not only is she discriminated for her body type, which defies the norm, but she is further alienated for her skin color. By being a woman of color, Penny is already put at a significant disadvantage in a world where beauty standards are in favor of white women. A critic of Bitch Planet states “We don’t have to get thrown on a shuttle to be judged non-compliant—be a little overweight, talk too loud, have an opinion on the Internet—or be a woman of color” (Lynch x). This quote greatly exemplifies how people of color, despite progress regarding civil rights, still have prejudices placed upon them heavily. Penny is no different, and is put at an even worse advantage for being overweight on top of being a woman and being a person of color. I think the comic gives Penny these attributes in order to make a strong point. In life, no matter where you come from or who you are, you will always be at a disadvantage if you do not fit society’s mold of an ideal person. Not only will things like your appearance and your gender hold you back and make it harder for you to succeed in the world, but race especially still remains rampant as a way to discriminate against those who are not white. 

These messages of discrimination gain even more value as Penny’s placement in a system that is similar to our prison system reflects the discrimination in those same systems. “1 in every 15 African American men and 1 in every 36 Hispanic men are incarcerated in comparison to 1 in every 106 white men” (source x). As made clear from this statistic, those who are African American are at a massive disadvantage when it comes to being incarcerated. Bitch Planet does a wonderful job of representing this statistic within the story. Even with this statistic for men, African American women are still three times more likely to be incarcerated compared to a white woman. While Penny faces other difficulties concerning prejudice against her, it should be fair to say that her placement in society as a woman of color already marks her as a target. Her actions, while they do go against society’s absurd rules and regulations, are most likely taken with more gravity than someone who would do the same things but as a white person. The statistics that are in place are a good indicator qof such prejudices, and while Bitch Planet is not a direct copy of how things function in our society, there is no doubt that the events within the comic reflect the prejudices that still exist in our society today. 

Even with these setbacks, there is still inspiration to be found in those who try everything in their power to fight against the oppression. Penny is a great symbol for someone who shows great strength in times where it seems like everything is stacked up against you. “By depicting women—specifically women of color—actively working to take power back, even from behind the bars of a prison on another planet, they’ve made something relatable and inspiring” (Lynch x). Bitch Planet does a wonderful job of spreading inspiration and a powerful message through a strong protagonist. For her whole life, Penny has faced every sort of obstacle imaginable in a world that seems to always be stacked up against her. Instead of backing down against it, she displays resilience in her own way. She does not find herself completely defeated, even in the face of the Fathers. This shines a very optimistic light for those reading this comic who might also face similar problems with prejudice as Penny. By showing Penny facing her struggles head on, it provides hope and a positive role model which can be very hard to find in media. Penny represents a beacon of hope and empowerment, her struggles easily relatable to other minorities who face similar problems in today’s society. 

Penny’s role that she plays in Bitch Planet holds a lot of importance. Representation in media such as books, comics, and television shows is so very important, especially in today’s modern times. Representing a strong role model in popular media can bring a great amount of inspiration to those who consume that media. Olivia Heusinkveld reflects on the importance of representation, stating “Without equal representation, there are people who are not feeling heard or seen. In a nation and world as diverse and complex as ours, the last thing we want is to lose the stories of a large portion of our people” (Heusinkveld x). There is a very real problem with representation in media. Without proper representation, it leaves a lot of people without the intimate connections to stories that can easily be attained by others. In regards to Bitch Planet, I think Deconnick was very aware of this problem. By putting strong characters such as Penny as a leading voice throughout the story, she offers up a great connection that is now accessible to minorities who have difficulties finding that in other stories. By not being afraid to shine the spotlight on these characters who differ from the norm in media it is opening the doors for the normalization of this type of media. It is also doing a great service by providing the readers with this great connection to this powerful protagonist. It is easy to take the simpler route that a lot of main media has by making the protagonist more cookie cutter to reach “bigger” audiences. Overall, what Deconnick does with Bitch Planet is very amazing- she boldly breaks norms of media, therefore opening the door for representation for those who need it the most. 

In conclusion, Bitch Planet is a very versatile work that holds very powerful messages. It represents the struggle against oppression and holding your own in a world that is against you. It cover important issues such as the standards that are expected of people within society, the repercussions that can be faced for not living up to the standards, the discrimination that people of color still face, and the inspiration that can be gained from portraying a positive character to fight back against these struggles. These are only a few of the great points to be derived from Bitch Planet as a whole, and the work stands as a very eye-opening piece of media. From this comic alone great strides are made to normalize conversations about sexism, racism, and many other great topics. Overall, Bitch Planet is a wonderful, thought-provoking work that not only stands as a great demonstration of talking about injustice in the world while also providing inspiring characters to light the flame of change for those who are reading it. 
