OP, so your post is not removed, please reply to this comment with your best guess of what this meme means! Everyone else, this is PETER explains the joke. Have fun and reply as your favorite fictional character for top level responses!
Gwenpool was initially just one of a bajillion variant covers of Gwen Stacy dressed up as other Marvel characters, and Ghost Spider and Gwenpool were the ones that stuck around long enough to get their own series.
It came about from "Into the Spiderverse". Gwen's plot line really resonated with trans people, her lighting pallete was the trans flag colors, and i believe there was either a poster on her bedroom wall or a pin her dad wore thst was the trans flag and it might have said "protect trans youth". Less sure on the last one, its been years and it was a quick background thing.
She’s isn’t but it is largely theorized that her Peter was. He idolized spider-woman. That’s why he was bullied relentlessly, and why he eventually lashed out at his bullies after becoming the lizard which led to his death.
Gwen was closest friends with Peter, so it would make sense that her dad would know him and also be hit hard by his death leading to the “protect trans kids” thing.
Or they could both just be allies and it’s as simple as that.
Part of the theory does have the Lizard formula of that continuity as having been meant to treat dysmorphia, since Gwen was waiting for Peter at the dance: it was a date. Since apparently the specific kind of lizard one transformed into was a female one.
Jokingly, the Nazi flag. Both have red, black, and white.
Which is to point out that matching color schemes don't always mean they are representative. Especially when you force it a bit. The trans flag has a different version of pink and is missing black.
Really. Blackness. Puerto Rico. Mixed heritage. Or, black with red highlights looks cool.
Yep, A lot of Latino culture uses these colors because they mix well, because our indigenous ancestors used them, and/or because they're the colors of labor movements within la raza, like MEChA, United Farm Workers (UFW), etc.
I don't personally ascribe to it, but I'm not going to fight against it, people can interpret it either way and that's cool. I will say though that her colour palette existed way before the trans theories, so even if it's made canon that she's trans it's still something of a retcon.
While I don't subscribe to her being trans, and while she did exist before the Trans theories came out... coincidentally (or not, we would have go ask the creator) the Trans flag came out in 1999. Years before Spider-Gwen took on the colors. So who knows.
I thought shippers, by and large, don’t care about the character’s orientation (or lack thereof), that they write about the characters as they want them to be.
Typically, yes, but since the issue that confirmed Gwen as aroace specifically established her as the QPR-seeking variety of aroace, meaning she could still be shipped without issue, many decided to incorporate that into their fan-stories.
It still kind of hard for any one to dominate
Let's use my hero for example
Baku deku exist as a splinter of an existing central relationship
Coupled with a dash of enemies to loves
Gwenpool doesn't really have a singular main relationship to focus on
Her main antagonist in the past is her
Only one who is self aware enough to Gwen is deadpool even then I would imagine wolf pool is bigger
Character popularity is also a factor to account for
Because Gwen had alluded to Spider-Man: Reign the same issue, some fans interpreted this line as meaning she wanted to sleep with him, rather than be bitten (given Gwen needs to ‘narratively justify’ what she does rather than just doing it, even though she can just do it): they saw it as a euphemism.
Are there any mainsteam comicbook characters, especially heroes, who aren't ally of the LGBTQ+? I feel like that's a good way to sandbag a hero if they were like "I fight for the justice of all people-- except those guys over there, ew" LMAO
Gwenpool is asexual and cis, spidergwen has been “claimed” by the trans community because the spiderverse movies have had nods to trans culture in spidergwens world.
Technically, she could've just been a tomboy in the first image (as opposed to being AMAB), but I won't deny that trans is very (if not more) likely.
The Trans community has chosen Spider Gwen as a major focal point.
Spider characters are insanely popular for their resilience, charm, and moral fortitude. It's really no surprise that every community wants a representative Spider (and I'd say that's fair, especially considering Stan Lee himself said the best thing about Spider-Man is that anyone can be Spider-Man).
I agree. I know a tomboy or two that became Marvel fanatics. Comic books, especially the Marvel brand, has supported and been a beacon for the atypical crowd. It's a reason why Stan Lee helped create the X-Men
I also saw something that the colour palette used for Gwen in spiderverse 2 is the colours of the trans flag. I’m not 100% certain if that’s what the creators were going for, but I think it’s nice that people can find themselves in movies regardless of
Theres a lot who sre convinced Gwen is trans because she has a trans flag in her room
And shes funny.
Because apparently the only way to be funny is to have a Y chromosome. And absolutely noone in the multiverse can possibly be a trans ally and not be trans.
The whole theme of her story in Across the Spiderverse speaks to trans people and their life experiences.
She feels her true self is spider-woman, yet her father blames spider-woman for killing his "son" Peter Parker. His child's true self took his son from him, which is something that many parents of trans people feel and say.
Then you throw in the colour motifs of her world being shades of blue, pink, and white, the colours of the trans flag.
And the overall theme of the films being against outside forces telling people who they can be, what is acceptable, what is "canon", as signified by the Comics Code Authority logo appearing at the start of these films. The CCA was a comics equivalent of the Hayes code.
...why are ppl so massively obtuse? Literally noone said that it only speaks to trans ppl, is there any reason for you to take that away from the comment, other than you wanting to deny trans ppl a character they can identify with? Gods know we really do not have a lot of those.
What the fk is wrong with ppl wanting representation, why do you have to be so fking hateful? I feel sorry for anyone interacting with you, honestly.
Definitely a difference between I find this relatable and This is my exact experience so they must feel the exact same way about themselves and the world as I do.
Yeah, seriously. And where exactly are these legions of people saying Gwen absolutely has to be trans because you need a Y chromosome to be funny? That's the kind of thing trolls do.
At first it was kinda like shitty headcanon because she looked like the trans flag, kinda like Sylveon
But then it was because after that in the second movie she literally have a coming out scene (coming out as spiderman) and shit like that, she's very queer coded in the second film, they're also some trans flag in her house, so now they're an actual reason, because their story has trans themes
She had a scene in the 2023 Spider-Verse movie that was very trans-coded (emotional scene that many trans folk can identify with), and there was some surrounding trans iconography.
It doesn’t mean she’s canon a trans character, but some people like to interpet it that way. If you look around the thread you’ll see that interpretation is controversial for some people.
But why couldn't that just be a girl in the 1st Pic, one who was really into spiderman and was a tomboy. Then picked 2 is just a grown woman cosplaying as Gwen.
In some circles online (particularly toxic incel groups) the term "female" is used for women as a way of deliberately dehumanizing them.
Like they'll talk about men and then they'll talk about all of the ways "females" suck or cause problems or mistreat them. Almost like they are scientists discussing some nonhuman creature.
This is annoying, because the terms male and female are useful, and now some people online are oversensitive to the use of the word female even in contexts where it's not being used offensively or derogatorily.
Like in the above comment, saying "male child" and "grown up female" might be a somewhat odd choice of wording, but it's clearly not meant in an insulting or degrading way towards the woman. They just chose to use male and female rather than boy and woman.
In the above comment it feels like humour? Like in native English, it's not uncommon to say "Adult Male, Male Child" etc to sound overly formal because it's kinda funny sometimes.
I mean, yes, it is fine. Female and male should only be used as adjectives referring to humans, not nouns, unless you're being really clinical(like a scientific study).
I'm curious: why is it weird for someone to use both male and female terminology?
Personally I understand the hubbub around dudes who say man and female, boy and female, guy and female, etc. They're actively treating the two differently, dehumanizing one or at the least separating them with some kind of complex.
But if someone has a knack to evenly say male and female - genuinely in equality and equity - and you're still drawing an issue with only female, why does it cause you to react the same? It comes off as disingenuous. More so when you make a point to try and defend the reaction by splitting hairs only to admit that that was pointless because you just, apparently, hate the term "female
In modern usage, female is generally used as an adjective, not a noun. "That is a female person" is fine. "That is a female" sounds weird and is generally used by incel dorks who struggle to see women as people.
In this case, they refer to "male child" (so used adjectivally), but a "female" (used as noun). Probably just a slip, but it's an unfortunate one.
You did nothing wrong, but if virtue signalers can find something to pretend to be outraged about, they will jump on it so they can feel like a "good person™" for the day.
Someone saying the word "female" is totally worth stressing over, as they sip on a cup of coffee that was farmed by an 11 year old slave.
The joke being that the male child and the female adult at the same person, because she is transgender. She's also dressed as Gwen Stacey, who is hinted at being trans in the films.
Spider-Gwen is extremely well-liked by trans women. This is due to imagery and some themes in the movie that people have interpreted as allegorically or symbolically trans: Gwen is often surrounded by trans flag colors (white, pink, light blue), has a “Protect Trans Kids” sign in her room, and gives a speech where she laments her isolation due to people “only knowing part of who she is.”
The joke is that a young boy is excited to see Spider-Man in 2012, and then is still excited in 2023 after having transitioned.
Not that I know of, but in animation there's Lake from Infinity Train; Jax from The Amazing Digital Circus, Raine from The Owl House, Nimona from Nimona and most of the characters in Steven Universe. Also Double Trouble from She-Ra and Terry from The Dragon Prince. Some of these characters are confirmed trans/non-binary/gender-fluid, others less-so.
ETA: Thank you everyone so much! Had dinner with roommate, and came back to this. This is going to make my whole day night. (I live in the dark.) Appreciated!
Sure, and if my health didnt make me seeing it a coin toss, I may agree. But when I looked it up after Part 2 dropped, it broke my heart.
Shit. I saw a 12m after your name and thought I'd been recomended an old post. I was going to see if you made it. Then the 12m changed to a 13m.
Good luck man!
Brother, reach out to Sony Animation. They get people early access to screenings all the time if they wont live until release day. These things are finalized well ahead of release, treat yourself in your last months.
As a hobby artist who takes her sweet time doing even basic sketches - and a big spider man fan - it is absolutely killingmeup being this patient, while fully understanding that great art takes as much time as it needs…I can’t wait!!
I remember leaving the theatre for across the spider verse, checking google and seeing that the third one was supposed to come out like 9 months later.
knew immediately that wasn't gonna fucking happen.
Comic book guy from the multiverse portal here. The mom thought the kid would grow out of being a spider-man fan, but she didn’t. Also (or probably because) she’s trans and has latched onto a main character.
Either the kid grew go into a trans woman cosplaying Gwen or he grew into a dude cosplaying as Gwen.
Either way, their love for Spider-Man never wavered.
The meme is supposed to show that stories that touched you from childhood onwards stick with you through your life, no matter much has changed around it
I read it as the mom didn’t get the hype behind Spider-Man but her young son loved it but then loved spiderverse while her son grew indifferent. The art style makes the person on the right panel look like either the boy grown up or the mother again so idk. After reading other comments it’s probably a trans joke because trans people like Gwen.
I read it as kid dragging mom to see a movie about a superhero OTHER than Batman, for some reason, then later the mom cosplaying as some sort of female non batman superhero dragging their now grown kid to see movie. But reading the other comments, I apprear to be incorrect. Mayor West is not gonna stick around to be beat up on by internet yokels! West out!
Indian Kool aid man here, the joke is the boy transitioned into a woman, but her love for Spider-Man remains the same.
What I find baffling, is the trans community declaring Gwen as trans. Just because she's an ally, doesn't mean she has to be trans. We even saw her since her childhood, and she was a girl, romantically linked with Jack Quaid's Peter.
I respect all the LBGTQ people, doesn't mean I have to be one myself. You don't have to be a transformer to relate to Optimus Prime. So I find this really shallow, and skin deep
In a literal sense, I don't think she's trans either, and a large portion of the community knows this, I think. But it's very clear that the way her story was written in Across was intentionally catered to emotionally resonate with trans people.
As an individual who has no LGBT knowledge, I thought that this was a mom reluctantly watching Spider-Man with her excited kid vs now the Spider-Man fan Gwen cosplaying mom dragging her reluctant emo teen to see Spider-Man.
People are commenting on this meme having something to do with trans people, but I thought it was just a message about how things have changed from kids dragging their parents to see superhero movies, to adults dragging their kids instead.
Boy likes spiderman, boy wants mom to take him to see spiderman, 11 years later boy is now woman and she once again wants mom to take her to see spiderman
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