In Kelly Deconnick’s Bitch Planet, there is a certain image of how women should look in order to meet society’s expectations of them. Penny is the opposite of what society believes a woman should be, which is to have a professional attire, be skinny, and to keep up with hair and make-up. She is shown in the comics as overweight while society feels that women should be thin.  Her weight is often criticized for not meeting standards, but her weight is only one of her many imperfections. Penny’s attire is also not professional as she is found wearing casual clothing like tee-shirts and jeans. Penny also does not keep up with hair standards nor does she wear make-up. She is a representation of women in the outer world society who are out casted due to not meeting society’s standards. This excerpt from Deconnick’s Bitch Planet reveals a deeper meaning behind Penny’s imperfections by showing how women in society are portrayed as objects and should meet society’s standard of how they should look. In Bitch Planet, women must obtain a certain look such as clothing, body type, and beauty standards in order to be successful and hold a place in society. 

             In one of the panels found in Bitch Planet, there are three women found in the restaurant Penny works at who meet society standards of body image. All three of the women are very thin and are seen not eating very much. In order to maintain this image, the women are not eating very much as they are splitting a muffin between them. The dialogue shows them discussing the amount of calories in each serving and one women brings up how she “evac’d 12 ounces two days in a row.” On the other hand, Penny is overweight and is not seen counting calories or obsessing over her body image as she is held to society standards. Not surprising, women outside of the comic face the same adversities.  Society says in order to be beautiful, women have to be presented in a certain way, especially when it comes to their body. Society characterizes women as objects rather than a human being. They are often reprehended for not having curves like the women that are showcased in magazines and movies as Penny is reprehended in Bitch Planet for not having the thin body type a woman is supposed to have.

       Another way how a woman’s place in society is determined in Bitch Planet is how women style their hair and make-up. Another panel that can be used to see this is when Penny is sent to Mother Sibertling’s office. Mother holds a higher place in society than most women due to her appearance. Along with her thinness, Mother’s hair is curled and styled and she also is wearing make-up. She has a dark lip color on along with some eye make-up. Penny is seen with her hair natural, as it is not styled or “done up” nor does Penny display any make-up. By looking at these two women and their places in society, Mother, who follows the beauty standards of hair and make-up, holds the highest position for a woman while Penny, who follows none of society standards does not hold any position in society. Hair and make-up is another beauty standard that must be upheld by women in order for them to have a place in society.

Yet another way that the visual imagery depicts the important society places on women and their appearance is the attire of the women. Clothing that is typically associated with success, such as business suits, are worn by the women who are focused on their appearance and how little food they eat. Using the same panel of the three women, their attire can be noted as they are all wearing business casual clothing which includes skirt and blouses. Penny, on the other hand, is overweight and dressed in a simple t-shirt and apron. She has her hair pulled back with a scarf and doing manual labor. This, again, demonstrates that in order for women to be successful and have importance, they must look a certain way. The imagery also further propagates the idea that even successful business women have little else to discuss than things associated with their appearance as well as can be seen throughout their conversation. The panel discussed between Penny and Mother can also be used. Mother’s attire is very professional as she is shown wearing a high-waited skirt and classy top while Penny is seen wearing jeans and a tee-shirt. By seeing the difference in successful women’s attire and Penny’s attire, this is another example of how women’s appearance and upholding of society standards determines their place in society. 

Bitch Planet highlights the image of women, including body image, clothing, and up-keeping of their hair and make-up. In the analysis of the panel of the three women, it shows how controlling their weight and diet has consumed their everyday life. Each of them is only eating a third of a muffin to consume less food in order to lose weight. Society’s expectations of women have reached such an extreme extent that they have resorted to habits that destroy their health and wellbeing. This visual text makes Penny appear overweight as a result of society’s expectations of what her size should be. Clothing is another example of how a women’s appearance determines her place in society. Women who appear successful are dressed in a professional attire while Penny is found wearing casual attire such as jeans. Women must also keep up with hair and make-up to go along with their thin bodies and proper attire. Penny does not follow society’s expectation so therefore she does not hold a place in society. She is a representation of women in today’s society who are viewed differently because they do not meet the expectations of society. The visual element in Bitch Planet is to make the viewer aware of women’s everyday struggle to meet the standard which is set for them. The visual imagery provided demonstrates society's impact on women, their appearance and worth. 
