If you think of SuicideGirls as mere models and pin-up girls, you might be surprised by their show Blackheart Burlesque at San Diego Comic-Con. Because I’m a SuicideGirls Comic-Con sponsor, I recently sat down and talked to founder Missy Suicide about their Comic-Con show and why some girls are not just performers but nerds excited for next week just like us.
Missy Suicide and her friends started SuicideGirls in Portland in 2001. Yep, they've been around that long. You super-youngsters might not
remember back then, but the notion of beauty was even
more narrow then than it is now. A website showing a green-haired sex kitten with
ink just wasn't something you saw a whole lot - adult models tended to look factory-made. Today the Internet has broadened everyone’s horizons in that regard, but I still remember my friends' reaction to the SuicideGirls around 2004-2005; it was the first time we'd ever seen any kind of official adult anything that looked like our world.
Today there’s over 2500 SuicideGirls girls and they represent far
more than pin-up modeling. They publish books, they make movies, they have a thriving online community and of course they perform all over the world.
They are also unabashedly nerdy, with gamers, comic book collectors, Doctor Who fans, cosplayers and Trekkies in their midst. As the
blurb for their book Geekology says, "We're not just playing dress up in a world we know nothing about."
Missy, thanks for talking to me. What
can fans look forward to at the Comic-Con show of the Blackheart Burlesque?
It’s super pop-culture laden. Our Comic-Con shows tend to
have more nerdy references than the others. I dare people to pick up all the
references - there are a lot.
Will there be a quiz at the end?
We should have the host do that.
I hope people will get all of the references – we have Star Wars,
Zelda, Clockwork Orange, Harry Potter and a lot more – but I can’t tell you all of them. You have to show up to see them all.
I
heard a lot of people complaining last year that they didn’t get tickets in
time.
It’s usually so packed.
What
crazy experiences have you had at past Comic-Con shows?
Last year we had a trained belly-dancer do a Slave Leia
number. The audience went bananas – it was the craziest, crazy-loud reaction I’ve
heard anywhere. We knew we were onto something.
Tell
us about your booth #1730. Any advice for attendees and fans who come up?
They should come up and take pictures with the girls. We
love cosplayers, so please come by and show us your cosplay and take pictures
with us. The girls will also sign our coffee table books, movies and our comic book for you. The comic is sold out most places but you can get it at our booth.
Would any of the girls coming describe themselves
as nerds?
All of the SuicideGirls
coming to Comic-Con are pretty nerdy. It’s as much fun for us as it is for
any other attendee. It’s our favorite convention. At least 6 or 7 girls are dedicated cosplayers, and they flip out over the Doctor Who panel, the Buffy panel, all the
installations, Supernatural.
Is that why nerds have such a special connection with SuicideGirls? There seems to be an affinity there.
Maybe because the girls are nerds themselves? They can relate to us. Look at our newest book, Geekology. It showcases our girl geeks in all their glory – reading their comic books, cosplaying.
Modeling is just a part of the SuicideGirls. The community is my favorite part – meeting people from around the world who share our thoughts and ideas and interests. Everyone’s favorite part of being a Suicide Girl is all the friends you make on the site. If you look, some of the most active boards are Marvel, comic books, Buffy and so on. And it’s a positive geek community- there's no negativity. No one’s going to make fun of you.
If the SuicideGirls had a superpower, what would it be?
The coolest superpower would be teleportation so we could all hang out with each other without a 20 hour plane ride. “I want to go to the shoot in Ibiza!” And you’d be there. That would be the most useful for the girls.
But the real superpower they most embody is being confident in ourselves. Exuding confidence, that’s the SuicideGirl superpower.
Are there any plans to revive the SuicideGirls comic book?
We keep talking to Cameron Stewart about it. He’s been a little busy this year understandably with Fight Club and Batgirl but we’ve been talking for like 3 years about doing another one. We’re hoping he frees up.
Anything final words?
Come out to the show – it’ll be the most fun you’ll have at Comic-Con!
No comments:
Post a Comment