In a 2015 Vanity Fair interview, Kelly Sue DeConnick, author of Bitch Planet, says, “Being a woman in a male-dominated industry sort of sucks, but it doesn’t suck any more than being a woman in the world. My advice? Be terrifying.” (DeConnick 175). This is exactly the idea that DeConnick illuminates in Bitch Planet. The common themes in Bitch Planet are sexism as well as the everlasting controversy of racism, with the main character being of color. Going along with both sexism and racism, there are many visual clues in the comic that portray this futuristic society’s idea of a “perfect” woman in a world full of judgmental white men. Reoccurring colors and visual themes go hand in hand with the textual content of the comic to make sexism and racism prominent concepts in Bitch Planet. By illustrating the stereotypical “perfect” woman in society, the reader is able to infer the real reason why the main character, Penelope, is being questioned and jailed. The image of an underweight, Caucasian, busty blonde woman and an overweight, African American woman aid in the molding of the ideal woman in the society. 

It is simple to discern racism throughout this futuristic comic. As shown in the comic’s illustrations, the woman being imprisoned is African American. Today’s society is desegregated and it is not unusual for people of color to be of high importance; the president of the United States, for example, is African American. However, in Bitch Planet, the main character, Penelope Rolle, is a black woman surrounded by white prosecutors. The reason for Penelope’s arrest is not stated as being based on race, but it is implied that race did play a role. In the very first panel, Penelope fills the entire page, standing in a bare room, being watched by Caucasian males, through what look like windows. This long shot exposes Penelope by showing her standing alone: powerless and vulnerable. The long shot gives the viewer a similar perspective to that of the prosecutors, focusing on Penelope. In the next panel, Penelope is shown through a close up shot, giving the viewers a sense of her perspective. Through Penelope’s perspective, she is unable to see the men through the windows, but her eye is squinted as if she knows they are there. Her eye looks as though she knows she is being watched and judged, even though she is unable to see the men watching her. The look on her face is one of complete detestation. This same expression is illustrated three times within the first two pages of the comic, as she is facing an entire wall full of white men on screens. The look on Penelope’s face speaks for her, as she ponders the absurdity of her arrest administered by all white men.

Bitch Planet is dominated by men, with every prosecutor, shown on the many screens surrounding Penelope, being male. The guards and the people performing tests on Penelope are all men as well. There is not one woman involved in the arrest and testing process of Penelope. The women in the comic are given more stereotypical feminine professions, such as teaching. Being a teacher is an acceptable profession, but the men in the comic are given the more significant, higher positions. This goes along with the stereotype that men hold higher positions than women. Another reoccurring sexist theme is the color pink. Pink is a clichéd “girly” color. Almost every panel that involves a woman has the color pink; pink clothes, pink font, pink speech bubbles, pink furniture, and pink walls. Pink is observed as a very delicate and feminist color. This makes the women in Bitch Planet seem very powerless and frail because of their presence always being associated with such a dainty color. Women in this comic are underestimated in their professional ability and are portrayed as weak and incapable of the things men are able to do. The sexism in Bitch Planet assists in illustrating the ideal image of women in this futuristic society. 

The women in Bitch Planet, minus Penelope, share common traits: white skin, thin framed, and blonde hair. For example, one of Penelope’s flashbacks involves her school teacher, who is illustrated as a beautiful, sexy, blonde, white woman. In another one of Penelope’s flashbacks, she is serving a woman that requests a “sugar-free, salt-free, gluten-free muffin and three plates” (DeConnick 193). This woman looks almost identical to the school teacher. Not only is she ordering a muffin deprived of all necessary ingredients, but she is splitting the muffin with two other women. Her diet entails a thin bodily figure, but she is also illustrated as a petite, blonde, Caucasian woman. In the same flashback, another woman with the same characteristics is shown on a television screen in the bakery where Penelope works. The lanky, busty, blonde lady is discussing diets. All three of these very comparable women disturb Penelope’s sanity. Since Penelope possesses quite opposite traits, she is constantly irritated by these “perfect” women drawing all of the attention to themselves and their unnecessary diets. Not only is Penelope African American, but she is big and seemingly overweight. The skinny, blonde women have the ideal semblance of the era, while Penelope does not. Because of this, Penelope is treated unfairly and judged by the men and women around her.

One of the reasons for Penelope’s arrest is her obesity, as stated by a white prosecutor. She is being forced to look in a mirror and state every aspect of her body that is “wrong”. Her race most likely played a role as well, since she is a minority in a judgmental world. The people of Bitch Planet have a high standard for the physical attributes of women. So much importance is placed on appearances and expected behaviors. The women in Bitch Planet have absurd diets that make them lean and of “acceptable” weight. Penelope is frowned upon for her weight and is a victim of racial stereotypes. She is an example of what a woman should never look like in this futuristic society, and she is punished because of it. In a world where men hold the higher positions, women are portrayed as weak and incapable beings. Racism and sexism in Bitch Planet contribute to the illustration of the ideal image of a woman in a supercilious society.
