A funny thing recently happened in the pop culture world in a rare moment of synergy (OMG! I dropped a Jem reference already, and we just got started!), when the world of comic books and Hip-Hop controversy collided. Marvel Comics released its arguably super sexed-up variant cover image for the forthcoming Spider-Woman series by renowned erotica artist Milo Minara at precisely the same moment Nicki Minaj dropped her new single, “Anaconda.” The song is an ode to big butts and I cannot lie . . . and borrows heavily from the 1992 Sir Mixalot hit, “Baby Got Back,” another tribute to titanic tushes. The artwork features Nicki in what could very well be reminiscent of a typical Spider-Woman pose with her barely covered, albeit surgically enhanced derrière front, center, and in your face.
Don’t think I’m hating – I love Nicki. I wrote her biography comic book, after all. It’s just that butts seem to be exploding every where lately. Every time I turn around, I’m getting some @$$ shoved in my face. Is booty the new black? Don’t call it a comeback. I suppose it’s been en vogue for some time, thanks to the likes of J-Lo and Kim Kardashian. It just seems like there’s a new hyper focus on the tuchas. And, why all the fuss over Spider-Woman? This is far from her most porn-like pose. You could hang some of her covers in the waiting room of a gynecologist’s office for Sappho’s sake! I suppose it’s the sultry aspect the artist exudes. So, for art’s sake, I stand behind it, and Milo Manara. He’s not a perv. He just draws that way. Okay, maybe he’s a perv, but it’s still pretty art.
Would people care as much if the same cover would have been drawn by an artist such as Rob Liefeld? (Of course, her head would be coming out of her foot which isn’t that titillating, but . . . )
As for “Dear Old Nicki?”
OMG Look at her butt!
OMG Look at her butt!
OMG Look at her butt!
Either way, call me prude, snob, or highbrow, but I think it’s only a sign of the unraveling of society and not in a good way. That said, “Anaconda” is on heavy rotation on my iPod, and I will read the new Spider-Woman series.
Make sure to download your copy of “Anaconda” from iTunes.
Also make sure you pick up the new adventures of Spider-Woman from Marvel Comics.
And, get a your own parody t-shirt here!
