I’ve been sitting on this essay, but in light of NPR naming Man-Eaters one of their favorite graphic novels in their 2019 Book Concierge, I’m publishing this as a counterpoint and why it shouldn’t be on that list.
Man-Eaters #4 by Chelsea Cain (writer/creator)
Art: Lia Miternique (cover/creative producer), Lia Miternique and Stella Greenvoss (additional interior art), and Eliza Fantastic Mohan (additional writing)
I wrote some glowing reviews for issues #1-3. Reviews, which at this point, I won’t ever publish.
Unfortunately, Cain has expressed a disinterest in talking about gender issues — namely gender identity and the many genders or non-genders a person could be — while writing a book about gender. Man-Eaters has become a binary gender essentialist text, and it breaks my heart. Continue reading “The Disappointment of an Exclusionary Man-Eaters: Issue #4 Review”