Woman Suggests That A Female Joker Would Be A Convincing Character, And Men Lose Their Minds
Ghostbusters, Oceans 8, Dr. Who – female reboots are a phenomenon that men continue to lose their minds over, even when said in jest. There are some hardcore women in the comic book world but what would happen if one of the more iconic male characters was a woman instead? Well, as one writer on Twitter discovered it would lead to some classic male outrage.
It all began when writer Geraldine DeRuite took to Twitter and proposed that The Joker from Batman should have been a woman, and tied in a joke about some classic misogyny. Most of the men missed the joke and instead spared no time voicing their horror.
This writer took to Twitter to suggest an alternate plot for a female The Joker from ‘Batman’

And men proceeded to lose their collective minds
Geraldine was unphased and continued to taunt her haters
So more upset men filled her thread with comments
ADVERTISEMENTThe back and forth between the OP and commenters went on
ADVERTISEMENTAnd even developed into a deeper discussion beyond comic book characters
One man joined the discussion to point out that her ‘outrageous’ idea had, in fact, already been done in the Flashpoint comics
ADVERTISEMENTNot appreciating the mansplaining, she had some more fun and made a game out of the comments
ADVERTISEMENTAnyone can write on Bored Panda. Start writing!
Follow Bored Panda on Google News!
Follow us on Flipboard.com/@boredpanda!
198Kviews
Share on Facebook
Sofie Tapia is a journalism graduate from the University of Kentucky. She is now a free-spirited content creator who wanders the globe rearranging words for various outlets. She previously worked as a reporter for Lebanon Daily News and worked as an editor at both Al-Masry Al-Youm and Egypt Independent. She can be reached at Sofie@BoredPanda.com
Read less »
Sofie Tapia
Author, Community member
Sofie Tapia is a journalism graduate from the University of Kentucky. She is now a free-spirited content creator who wanders the globe rearranging words for various outlets. She previously worked as a reporter for Lebanon Daily News and worked as an editor at both Al-Masry Al-Youm and Egypt Independent. She can be reached at Sofie@BoredPanda.com
I have nothing against the possibility of a female joker, but we already have Harley, who, in my opinion, is much better. ♥
Indeed. This whole, "We can't have cool female characters unless they inherit a character that is a male," Thing seems like not so so
Load More Replies...I hope (but probably will) I don't flack for this, but that's why I wasn't that keen on the all-female Ghostbusters reboot. I feel that there are plenty of stories that can be told with strong female leads (Hunger Games, just off the top of my head) without a taking previously told story (Ocean's, Ghostbusters, What Wo/Men Want) and simply swapping in women for men. It's almost like Hollywood is saying, "This was already popular; let's see if we can make money on it again, just with women." It feels like a disservice.
So guys, you realise that this was just an idle comment that got out of control by the haters? There are a*****e men out there (not all men and not the majority of them) who, when women offer their opinion/ask an informed question about their work/turn in better work to their shared boss/quite frankly does anything better than them they can't take it. Most men don't mind, most men appreciate anyone with a brain weighing in, they appreciate healthy competition and so on. But there are some who are a******s and are convinced women should be below them. When a situation as above happens, they feel the need to reassert their feelings that women are below them. So, while a (friendly) compliment saying you look nice when you smile, or you smile more it suits you is never out of bounds, a douchebag talking down at you and then saying, you should just smile, or something similar is infuriating. Imagining yourself smacking a city full is harmless fantasy.
Harley is so much better than a female joker could be. Harley is complex yet seems simple. She is not a villain nor is she a hero nor a anti-hero she is something else.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
A walking boner factory
Can't agree more, Harley had some excellent development in the original cartoons and as a character got only more interesting as time went on. Joker is kind of stale compared to her.
In fact, reading some official comics about her, she's not really a completely bad villain, sometimes she is the one to actually save the day. She's also very smart, but her fellow villains (including Joker) tend to underestimate her, except for Poison Ivy and Cat Woman. She's a very interesting character.
Yeah! It's more complex than she's simply crazy. She shows up with a big heart in a lot of situations, despite her emotions being heavily played upon by circumstance (not excusing her responsibility to make good decisions, but her character development has been pretty layered). And she's not above a good 'that's what she said' joke XD
so, if there's one (Harley), there doesn't need to be any more? An equal smattering of each would be nice...
Are your children too stupid to know the difference between a cartoon and real life?
1st - that depends on which comic you read. Her classic harlequin outfit has her completely covered. 2nd - showing a little bit of skin and sex appeal is not exclusive to "whores". In fact, sounds logical to me that professional prostitutes cover themselves too while they're not working. 3rd - she's a provocative sexy fictional character and a criminal lady. I don't wanna live in a world where all fiction is censored to death and all female characters need to look like nuns. Nothing wrong with nuns, but, you know, it's a specific uniform for women who chose to serve god.
I know, understand and share your concerns. But, see, when I was a kid, I knew the difference between fiction and reality, why some things are inappropriate, and I had solutions to "emulate" my favourite characters with more appropriate, yet still exuberant versions of their aesthetics. So, communication with your kids is the key, just learn their language. ^_-
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Harley represents a abussive relationship(very vey abussive one), thats why I don't like harley or joker. Maybe in future release of this two the guionist will make this disappear but, from now... Remember Joker pushing her down to the acid in Suicide squad.
Yep. But I also remember Harley coming after Joker, determined to kill him, after his plan to murder her miserably failed because she was smart enough to do something about that explosive rocket she was imprisoned within. I remember also when she gave herself in to Batman and the police to go back to prison and therapies, in an attempt to live a normal life, far from crime. I remember when she and Poison Ivy saved that little girl who was escaping her kidnapper, who misunderstood the two of them as super heroes because "they wear costumes". The point here is, she's not about ethics, she's an interesting character with lots of layers and an unusual personality. Suicide Squad (the film) was only a fraction of what she is.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You think Harley is better? She's a horrible character imo. EDIT: You twats keep feeding me hate for not liking your stupid b***h psycho character, it makes me stronger! Keep it coming!
Woah, chill. People hand out downvotes like flyers here, I wouldn't take it too personally. And many people would appreciate if you didn't use the r-word.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Wow, negative points for saying I don't like a fictional character. Imagine if I started talking about my opinion on religion, abortion, and socialism, you retards would probably send someone to kill me then!
This is such a stupid thing to argue about. Why do people get so bent over someone's random alternate universe idea? Stuff like this is a dime a dozen in fandom. They should read more fanfiction, it might help to get the stick out of their a*s. PS: OP should have ignored them imo. There's absolutely nothing to gain by arguing with these types.
I'm old enough to remember when the Internet was new. I also remember logging in with a mostly female name and within minutes receiving nasty sexual comments and nasty put-down comments for daring to log into a male world. Telling a woman may not seem hostile and isn't high on the scale, but it is condescending, patriarchal, and assumes that a woman's feelings should be dictated by what a man wants. When you encounter it enough times in your life the hostility becomes really obvious.
Load More Replies...Hi elfin, thanks for that. I think that's this too. She probably just had a bad day/week with others (men who are also a******s, not all men or even a majority) and shared her private vengeance fantasy. All the guys with big mouths and insecurities went bonkers and she found a way to have fun with it. They didn't consider the difference between a friend(ly person) saying 'you should smile more' and a nasty person saying that but mostly implying that's all women are good for. And please everyone don't think I think all women are above reproach. Women can be awful too, but the smile thing is a male comment. Revenge fantasies where you get to smack all the a******s in a city are completely justified and honestly, creative.
yeah but sometimes laughing at the trolls is funny. some of us enjoy it...
Living is already so difficult occasionally you need breaks to laugh. I can totally see myself creating that bingo card for the sheer nonsense of it. #nonsenseisatypeofhumor #itsnotforeveryone #werealldifferentandthatsokay #dont@me
Little incel bois are a bunch of crybaby whiners who are so scared of women that they'll attack anything we say, even if it is, as you say, something silly and trivial.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Sure sexism is bad, i wont deny that. I also wont deny that sexism exists and there is no real way to completely eliminate it. Why do i believe this? because the only way the radical feminists and others like them seem to know how to 'attack the patriarchy' is by attacking men in general. These men in the comments for the most part arent attacking her directly, they are attacking her IDEA because its not a good idea. Politics and comics shouldnt be mixed, it almost never ends well for the book. they never said having a female villain in gotham was a bad idea, merely that the idea of this female joker that the OP had was a bad one. Now you can disagree and think the idea is fine, and thats fine. We can have a difference of opinion on the subject, and that is what these men had, a difference of opinion. Her problem is her inability to take criticism, and instead attack those criticising her idea.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Mostly because 1) It's not a really good idea from the beginning, 2) It's already been done, just without the abundance of feministic "sexism is bad" being bashed into your head with it, and 3) her responses to some of the comments with stuff like "LOL Hurt Men's Feelings" (especially the ones that rightfully point out that a female Joker already exists) prove that she's not much better than the people she's making fun of, being a general troll and dismissing any legitimate criticism of her idea with bs strawman comments or switching to a different issue.
"Feministic "sexism is bad""? Are you saying sexism is not bad?
I dont even use twitter but i want too now! Go geraldine! you dindt even flinch, the best...
It's insane so many people apparently think it's fine and not rude at all to tell a complete stranger to smile.
Load More Replies...It happens all the time..and you’re right. It’s creepy and hostile.
It is super creepy. And if people wanted to smile, they would. A rando telling someone they need to smile is condescending. And it is absolutely no one's business what I choose to do with my face. How can another person think it's okay to "suggest" what one should do with their body without that person having asked?
Btw, it freaks out women because it's an unconscious form of gaslighting. "Do not make this unpleasant face. You do not have any problems. Smile."
All those guys who are arguing never explain the WHY. So why? I have never asked anyone who looked miserable or just had a resting b***h face to smile to make them "feel better". Mostly because it is common sense that smiling does not make you feel better if you're down. It's just faking it. So why they are keep asking woman to fake smiles?
@ Daniel Witzel all I can say to you is "Actions speak louder than words". So yea maybe a guy isn't threatening me or invading my space but just hearing some of the stuff that happens to women or girls like me just because they're outside at night is DISGUSTING, having to always watch your back even when you shouldn't have to.....so yea when a stranger (male or female) randomly tells me to smile it freaks me out, and for the rest of that day I'm thinking the worst; maybe it doesn't sound scary or threatening but it's definitely not nothing
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
It doesn’t happen all the time you fucktard. Your a special kind of stupid if you think that.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
how is being told 'you should smile more' or being asked 'why dont you smile more?' how is that even remotely ''hostile''? Now, if the guy is right up on you and attempting to harm/rape/steal or whatever from you, and then tells you to smile while they are doing so, I think THAT would be hostile, but the simple act of asking a question or making a statement ISNT hostile, some may find it creepy, on that i will agree with you, but not all the time, not everyone and a majority of the time they are not hostile but simply being friendly and you are reading too much into a simple statement or question.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
SOMETIMES THEY ACTUALLY ARE TRYING TO BE NICE AND CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS DON'T LOOK INTO IT TOO MUCH
Yeap. In Canada too. "It'S nOT wEIRd, A WOmAn Is sO muCh bEauTiFul wHen sHE SmilEs"
Oh gawd yes! Instead you would think they would understand that if a woman is having a bad day, you would complement her somehow and that alone would make her smile! But no.. misogynistic men gotta make her feel worse!
Sigh... this happens to both genders. I have seen men cat call and also women cat call attractive men. I literally saw a woman pop out the side of a car's window and yell "LET ME GET YO' DIGITS!" to my male cousin. At the time I was going to elementary school he was driving me to school. The lady had no shame. But it's only "hostile" and "creepy" when it's someone unattractive doing it to you. Everyone's looking to get offended. You can easily ignore someone or just say "Thanks" and move on with your life. If they continue and follow you, then that's harassment once you've made your stance known that you are not interested. Then, you call the cops.
@Yael Of course! I do it quite frequently. My wife does it to me as well. I do it to her. Why on God's green earth do people automatically assume that they are victims of subtle attacks? I can imagine life must be pretty hard constantly thinking people are attacking you.
You know your wife and your wife knows you, that's entirely different. Do you go around asking random men to smile for you on the street? I will say I think that calling it an "attack" is overkill. Say hello, if you must but asking strangers to smile for you is presumptuous and it's just plain weird. Now that you're aware of how the majority of people feel about it, I'd advise you stop lol.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Ok, but that's the thing. You apparently have never told a random woman that she should just smile. Then you'd be prettier. A random stranger. If any guy I care about and cares about me or even guys from the neighbourhood, or even if a random dude would say I'd love to see you smile, I bet you'd look great or something that's OK. But people, guys just telling you you should smile/you know, men like it when you smile more/you'd be more approachable if you'd smile/people would respond better if you smile/aw chin up, guys would love to do overwork, just smile- stuff like that it wears you out. And you hear variants of these from 13 till forever. It's not the nice or friendly compliments we're talking about. We're talking about the people talking down at you and saying your only worth is in smiling at the world no matter how you feel, because everything else is of no importance.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Women tell men this, men tell women this, men tell other men this, women tell other women this... I dont see this as a sexist issue. I think people in general like to see other people happy and a smile is a good indicator of happiness.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
People tell people to smile. I sometimes have a resting b***h face, and women and men do this all the time. Usually I appreciate that and it really makes me smile.
Ha! That smiling thing is really rude. And annoying. And unnecessary. If you want to "cheer someone up". Say hello and give them a darn compliment.
"why she not smile on command? if she listened better she would feel better and thus look better by smiling"
Load More Replies...@Full Name, Hi, the fact that you're saying it's never said with bad intentions already shows that you were never meant to be the recipient of the message. Because it can. And if you are saying things like that in the right situations and sincerely, you probably won't understand what we mean. Have you ever had a bully who could twist words you said? Or someone who said the right words in such a way they became offensive or demeaning? That's what she's talking about. Or also if a girl is upset about something and you tell her to smile anyways, then you're basically telling her that her thoughts and opinions don't matter, she should be thankful for what she has and smile like a dummy.
@pug pug. Depends how you say it and to who (whom?) you say it. If you're not a smarmy guy, I would personally like that compliment.
Sunzilla, yes and it's always the smarmy ones who think you should fall on your knees to even have a job. dude, stressing about making my deadline when overseas figures are missing is worth frowning and not fixed by smiling.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Tried that once it did not go well. i said hello, I think your tits are very perky today. JK - sorry i dont know why i had to say that...
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
These days a random compliment can get you into trouble as well. Also, women seriously need to stop whining about this as if it's extremely offensive. Annoying to hear? Maybe, but it't certainly never said with bad intentions so stop trying to make other people feel bad because that's an awful thing to do.
Wow I’m a male and I am appalled at how dumb some men can be They’re completely stupid and expressively sexist Sorry for all the women out there who have to suffer such stupidity
The same way men shouldn't tell women to smile, women shouldn't do it to men. And before anyone ASSUMES it. Not EVERY guy wants EVERY women's attention, especially some complete stranger. At the end of the day women can be just as creepy as men and the same way men need to respect women's space and feelings women should do the same for men. And you all shouldn't be ganging up on him for understanding something that's clearly going right over you're heads. Because if you're sister or mother told you she was having a rough day then got told to smile by some completely random guy on her walk home you wouldn't be too happy about it.
Load More Replies...You’re pretty pathetic. No offense to your teeny, tiny feelings. :D
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
So AlphaPuck, your car breaks down, your girl leaves, your wallet gets stolen. You're in a bar trying to tell this to a girl who offered you a drink. And she nods and says yeah sure baby. Aha. You know you should smile more taps your knee and turns around to talk to her friend. That would suck right?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You should chop your tiny nuts off then. Do the whole gender swap.
Where did all these sexist/racist/homophobic fanboys come from? Growing up as a comic book fanatic in the late 70s and 80s, fans were decent, intelligent open minded kids that appreciated change and evolution of the art form. Now we have this small army of whiny douchebags that hate troll anything doesn't feature only white, hetero men. They're a disgrace to comic/sci-fi/fantasy fans everywhere.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Your a f*****g idiot who didn’t read the article correctly. Maybe you should go back and reread the comics because you obviously don’t get it.
Load More Replies...This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
That isnt what they said at all in their comments. Point to me ONE of the comments on this article that states that they only want white hetero men. being open minded is one thing, and having a female joker in itself isnt a bad idea, its how she extrapolated that idea that made the idea bad. Forcing your own individual politics into a comic book, especially views on sexism like this woman suggest would then be used to try to imply that Batman stopping this female jokers political rampage could be seen as sexist, the idea is ludacris. If she had stopped at 'female joker' some people would point out it had been done already, but for the most part she would not have gotten the backlash that she did had she not thrust her socio-political viewpoint as the driving force of the character.
Yeah, great, but what breed of dog? (am I doing this right?)
Load More Replies...Agfox, I suggest you try something more like this: "No way! Everyone knows that if Joker becomes an animal it would be a cat! What sort of twisted logic did you use to come up with that?! You must know nothing about the comics, you probably only seen movies... Geez, women this days! Trying to push their agenda everywhere!" ;))
There’s nothing offensive or aggressive or misandristic about her initial tweet / proposal. Beats me why they were so bothered. Whistle and the dogs will holler.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
They weren't bother. They just think it is a stupid idea to make someone a mass murderer because they are mildly annoyed.
Load More Replies...Many years ago, I was going out from the dentist with my mouth paralized down by the anestesia, and I cross a random man in the street, and he told me: You must to smile miss ! I could not respond, better for him lol !
I always want to smack men who say this.... including the one who screamed it across the street when I was going to visit my dying mother in the hospital.
Load More Replies...Right, Emo.. that's the point. If you actually care about someone, you ask them if they are ok. You don't tell them to smile. Do you say it to as many women as you do men?
That's why they say "never miss a chance to shut your mouth", especially if you do not know what's going on.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
so God forbid a random stranger sees you in despair and wants you to feel better. Geez put that man in handcuffs now! Or just let you assault him like you expressed... much more tolerant ;)
I was on a bus once when a man said this to me. I turned my head very slowly to stare at him without smiling. ...If only you had blood pouring out of your mouth then, too!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
sometimes men say this because they wan't others to be happy. think about how these people are trying to make you feel better
At the end of the day, women face a huge potential threat when rejecting men. The catcalls, the come ons, the "smile girl," the misread signals... on their own they're innocent but the staggering statistics of violence against women by men speak volumes. I go about my business with a carefulness that on a regular basis most men do not fathom.
Yoooooo I hear you. But this explains it best: "Why do men feel threatened by women?" I asked a male friend of mine. So this male friend of mine, who does by the way exist, conveniently entered into the following dialogue. "I mean," I said, "men are bigger, most of the time, they can run faster, strangle better, and they have on the average a lot more money and power." "They're afraid women will laugh at them," he said. "Undercut their world view." Then I asked some women students in a quickie poetry seminar I was giving, "Why do women feel threatened by men?" "They're afraid of being killed," they said. Atwood, Margaret, Writing the Male Character (1982) (reprinted in Second Words: Selected Critical Prose from a Hagey Lecture on February 9, 1982, at the University of Waterloo)
I have nothing against the possibility of a female joker, but we already have Harley, who, in my opinion, is much better. ♥
Indeed. This whole, "We can't have cool female characters unless they inherit a character that is a male," Thing seems like not so so
Load More Replies...I hope (but probably will) I don't flack for this, but that's why I wasn't that keen on the all-female Ghostbusters reboot. I feel that there are plenty of stories that can be told with strong female leads (Hunger Games, just off the top of my head) without a taking previously told story (Ocean's, Ghostbusters, What Wo/Men Want) and simply swapping in women for men. It's almost like Hollywood is saying, "This was already popular; let's see if we can make money on it again, just with women." It feels like a disservice.
So guys, you realise that this was just an idle comment that got out of control by the haters? There are a*****e men out there (not all men and not the majority of them) who, when women offer their opinion/ask an informed question about their work/turn in better work to their shared boss/quite frankly does anything better than them they can't take it. Most men don't mind, most men appreciate anyone with a brain weighing in, they appreciate healthy competition and so on. But there are some who are a******s and are convinced women should be below them. When a situation as above happens, they feel the need to reassert their feelings that women are below them. So, while a (friendly) compliment saying you look nice when you smile, or you smile more it suits you is never out of bounds, a douchebag talking down at you and then saying, you should just smile, or something similar is infuriating. Imagining yourself smacking a city full is harmless fantasy.
Harley is so much better than a female joker could be. Harley is complex yet seems simple. She is not a villain nor is she a hero nor a anti-hero she is something else.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
A walking boner factory
Can't agree more, Harley had some excellent development in the original cartoons and as a character got only more interesting as time went on. Joker is kind of stale compared to her.
In fact, reading some official comics about her, she's not really a completely bad villain, sometimes she is the one to actually save the day. She's also very smart, but her fellow villains (including Joker) tend to underestimate her, except for Poison Ivy and Cat Woman. She's a very interesting character.
Yeah! It's more complex than she's simply crazy. She shows up with a big heart in a lot of situations, despite her emotions being heavily played upon by circumstance (not excusing her responsibility to make good decisions, but her character development has been pretty layered). And she's not above a good 'that's what she said' joke XD
so, if there's one (Harley), there doesn't need to be any more? An equal smattering of each would be nice...
Are your children too stupid to know the difference between a cartoon and real life?
1st - that depends on which comic you read. Her classic harlequin outfit has her completely covered. 2nd - showing a little bit of skin and sex appeal is not exclusive to "whores". In fact, sounds logical to me that professional prostitutes cover themselves too while they're not working. 3rd - she's a provocative sexy fictional character and a criminal lady. I don't wanna live in a world where all fiction is censored to death and all female characters need to look like nuns. Nothing wrong with nuns, but, you know, it's a specific uniform for women who chose to serve god.
I know, understand and share your concerns. But, see, when I was a kid, I knew the difference between fiction and reality, why some things are inappropriate, and I had solutions to "emulate" my favourite characters with more appropriate, yet still exuberant versions of their aesthetics. So, communication with your kids is the key, just learn their language. ^_-
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Harley represents a abussive relationship(very vey abussive one), thats why I don't like harley or joker. Maybe in future release of this two the guionist will make this disappear but, from now... Remember Joker pushing her down to the acid in Suicide squad.
Yep. But I also remember Harley coming after Joker, determined to kill him, after his plan to murder her miserably failed because she was smart enough to do something about that explosive rocket she was imprisoned within. I remember also when she gave herself in to Batman and the police to go back to prison and therapies, in an attempt to live a normal life, far from crime. I remember when she and Poison Ivy saved that little girl who was escaping her kidnapper, who misunderstood the two of them as super heroes because "they wear costumes". The point here is, she's not about ethics, she's an interesting character with lots of layers and an unusual personality. Suicide Squad (the film) was only a fraction of what she is.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You think Harley is better? She's a horrible character imo. EDIT: You twats keep feeding me hate for not liking your stupid b***h psycho character, it makes me stronger! Keep it coming!
Woah, chill. People hand out downvotes like flyers here, I wouldn't take it too personally. And many people would appreciate if you didn't use the r-word.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Wow, negative points for saying I don't like a fictional character. Imagine if I started talking about my opinion on religion, abortion, and socialism, you retards would probably send someone to kill me then!
This is such a stupid thing to argue about. Why do people get so bent over someone's random alternate universe idea? Stuff like this is a dime a dozen in fandom. They should read more fanfiction, it might help to get the stick out of their a*s. PS: OP should have ignored them imo. There's absolutely nothing to gain by arguing with these types.
I'm old enough to remember when the Internet was new. I also remember logging in with a mostly female name and within minutes receiving nasty sexual comments and nasty put-down comments for daring to log into a male world. Telling a woman may not seem hostile and isn't high on the scale, but it is condescending, patriarchal, and assumes that a woman's feelings should be dictated by what a man wants. When you encounter it enough times in your life the hostility becomes really obvious.
Load More Replies...Hi elfin, thanks for that. I think that's this too. She probably just had a bad day/week with others (men who are also a******s, not all men or even a majority) and shared her private vengeance fantasy. All the guys with big mouths and insecurities went bonkers and she found a way to have fun with it. They didn't consider the difference between a friend(ly person) saying 'you should smile more' and a nasty person saying that but mostly implying that's all women are good for. And please everyone don't think I think all women are above reproach. Women can be awful too, but the smile thing is a male comment. Revenge fantasies where you get to smack all the a******s in a city are completely justified and honestly, creative.
yeah but sometimes laughing at the trolls is funny. some of us enjoy it...
Living is already so difficult occasionally you need breaks to laugh. I can totally see myself creating that bingo card for the sheer nonsense of it. #nonsenseisatypeofhumor #itsnotforeveryone #werealldifferentandthatsokay #dont@me
Little incel bois are a bunch of crybaby whiners who are so scared of women that they'll attack anything we say, even if it is, as you say, something silly and trivial.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Sure sexism is bad, i wont deny that. I also wont deny that sexism exists and there is no real way to completely eliminate it. Why do i believe this? because the only way the radical feminists and others like them seem to know how to 'attack the patriarchy' is by attacking men in general. These men in the comments for the most part arent attacking her directly, they are attacking her IDEA because its not a good idea. Politics and comics shouldnt be mixed, it almost never ends well for the book. they never said having a female villain in gotham was a bad idea, merely that the idea of this female joker that the OP had was a bad one. Now you can disagree and think the idea is fine, and thats fine. We can have a difference of opinion on the subject, and that is what these men had, a difference of opinion. Her problem is her inability to take criticism, and instead attack those criticising her idea.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Mostly because 1) It's not a really good idea from the beginning, 2) It's already been done, just without the abundance of feministic "sexism is bad" being bashed into your head with it, and 3) her responses to some of the comments with stuff like "LOL Hurt Men's Feelings" (especially the ones that rightfully point out that a female Joker already exists) prove that she's not much better than the people she's making fun of, being a general troll and dismissing any legitimate criticism of her idea with bs strawman comments or switching to a different issue.
"Feministic "sexism is bad""? Are you saying sexism is not bad?
I dont even use twitter but i want too now! Go geraldine! you dindt even flinch, the best...
It's insane so many people apparently think it's fine and not rude at all to tell a complete stranger to smile.
Load More Replies...It happens all the time..and you’re right. It’s creepy and hostile.
It is super creepy. And if people wanted to smile, they would. A rando telling someone they need to smile is condescending. And it is absolutely no one's business what I choose to do with my face. How can another person think it's okay to "suggest" what one should do with their body without that person having asked?
Btw, it freaks out women because it's an unconscious form of gaslighting. "Do not make this unpleasant face. You do not have any problems. Smile."
All those guys who are arguing never explain the WHY. So why? I have never asked anyone who looked miserable or just had a resting b***h face to smile to make them "feel better". Mostly because it is common sense that smiling does not make you feel better if you're down. It's just faking it. So why they are keep asking woman to fake smiles?
@ Daniel Witzel all I can say to you is "Actions speak louder than words". So yea maybe a guy isn't threatening me or invading my space but just hearing some of the stuff that happens to women or girls like me just because they're outside at night is DISGUSTING, having to always watch your back even when you shouldn't have to.....so yea when a stranger (male or female) randomly tells me to smile it freaks me out, and for the rest of that day I'm thinking the worst; maybe it doesn't sound scary or threatening but it's definitely not nothing
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
It doesn’t happen all the time you fucktard. Your a special kind of stupid if you think that.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
how is being told 'you should smile more' or being asked 'why dont you smile more?' how is that even remotely ''hostile''? Now, if the guy is right up on you and attempting to harm/rape/steal or whatever from you, and then tells you to smile while they are doing so, I think THAT would be hostile, but the simple act of asking a question or making a statement ISNT hostile, some may find it creepy, on that i will agree with you, but not all the time, not everyone and a majority of the time they are not hostile but simply being friendly and you are reading too much into a simple statement or question.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
SOMETIMES THEY ACTUALLY ARE TRYING TO BE NICE AND CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS DON'T LOOK INTO IT TOO MUCH
Yeap. In Canada too. "It'S nOT wEIRd, A WOmAn Is sO muCh bEauTiFul wHen sHE SmilEs"
Oh gawd yes! Instead you would think they would understand that if a woman is having a bad day, you would complement her somehow and that alone would make her smile! But no.. misogynistic men gotta make her feel worse!
Sigh... this happens to both genders. I have seen men cat call and also women cat call attractive men. I literally saw a woman pop out the side of a car's window and yell "LET ME GET YO' DIGITS!" to my male cousin. At the time I was going to elementary school he was driving me to school. The lady had no shame. But it's only "hostile" and "creepy" when it's someone unattractive doing it to you. Everyone's looking to get offended. You can easily ignore someone or just say "Thanks" and move on with your life. If they continue and follow you, then that's harassment once you've made your stance known that you are not interested. Then, you call the cops.
@Yael Of course! I do it quite frequently. My wife does it to me as well. I do it to her. Why on God's green earth do people automatically assume that they are victims of subtle attacks? I can imagine life must be pretty hard constantly thinking people are attacking you.
You know your wife and your wife knows you, that's entirely different. Do you go around asking random men to smile for you on the street? I will say I think that calling it an "attack" is overkill. Say hello, if you must but asking strangers to smile for you is presumptuous and it's just plain weird. Now that you're aware of how the majority of people feel about it, I'd advise you stop lol.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Ok, but that's the thing. You apparently have never told a random woman that she should just smile. Then you'd be prettier. A random stranger. If any guy I care about and cares about me or even guys from the neighbourhood, or even if a random dude would say I'd love to see you smile, I bet you'd look great or something that's OK. But people, guys just telling you you should smile/you know, men like it when you smile more/you'd be more approachable if you'd smile/people would respond better if you smile/aw chin up, guys would love to do overwork, just smile- stuff like that it wears you out. And you hear variants of these from 13 till forever. It's not the nice or friendly compliments we're talking about. We're talking about the people talking down at you and saying your only worth is in smiling at the world no matter how you feel, because everything else is of no importance.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Women tell men this, men tell women this, men tell other men this, women tell other women this... I dont see this as a sexist issue. I think people in general like to see other people happy and a smile is a good indicator of happiness.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
People tell people to smile. I sometimes have a resting b***h face, and women and men do this all the time. Usually I appreciate that and it really makes me smile.
Ha! That smiling thing is really rude. And annoying. And unnecessary. If you want to "cheer someone up". Say hello and give them a darn compliment.
"why she not smile on command? if she listened better she would feel better and thus look better by smiling"
Load More Replies...@Full Name, Hi, the fact that you're saying it's never said with bad intentions already shows that you were never meant to be the recipient of the message. Because it can. And if you are saying things like that in the right situations and sincerely, you probably won't understand what we mean. Have you ever had a bully who could twist words you said? Or someone who said the right words in such a way they became offensive or demeaning? That's what she's talking about. Or also if a girl is upset about something and you tell her to smile anyways, then you're basically telling her that her thoughts and opinions don't matter, she should be thankful for what she has and smile like a dummy.
@pug pug. Depends how you say it and to who (whom?) you say it. If you're not a smarmy guy, I would personally like that compliment.
Sunzilla, yes and it's always the smarmy ones who think you should fall on your knees to even have a job. dude, stressing about making my deadline when overseas figures are missing is worth frowning and not fixed by smiling.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Tried that once it did not go well. i said hello, I think your tits are very perky today. JK - sorry i dont know why i had to say that...
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
These days a random compliment can get you into trouble as well. Also, women seriously need to stop whining about this as if it's extremely offensive. Annoying to hear? Maybe, but it't certainly never said with bad intentions so stop trying to make other people feel bad because that's an awful thing to do.
Wow I’m a male and I am appalled at how dumb some men can be They’re completely stupid and expressively sexist Sorry for all the women out there who have to suffer such stupidity
The same way men shouldn't tell women to smile, women shouldn't do it to men. And before anyone ASSUMES it. Not EVERY guy wants EVERY women's attention, especially some complete stranger. At the end of the day women can be just as creepy as men and the same way men need to respect women's space and feelings women should do the same for men. And you all shouldn't be ganging up on him for understanding something that's clearly going right over you're heads. Because if you're sister or mother told you she was having a rough day then got told to smile by some completely random guy on her walk home you wouldn't be too happy about it.
Load More Replies...You’re pretty pathetic. No offense to your teeny, tiny feelings. :D
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
So AlphaPuck, your car breaks down, your girl leaves, your wallet gets stolen. You're in a bar trying to tell this to a girl who offered you a drink. And she nods and says yeah sure baby. Aha. You know you should smile more taps your knee and turns around to talk to her friend. That would suck right?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
You should chop your tiny nuts off then. Do the whole gender swap.
Where did all these sexist/racist/homophobic fanboys come from? Growing up as a comic book fanatic in the late 70s and 80s, fans were decent, intelligent open minded kids that appreciated change and evolution of the art form. Now we have this small army of whiny douchebags that hate troll anything doesn't feature only white, hetero men. They're a disgrace to comic/sci-fi/fantasy fans everywhere.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Your a f*****g idiot who didn’t read the article correctly. Maybe you should go back and reread the comics because you obviously don’t get it.
Load More Replies...This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
That isnt what they said at all in their comments. Point to me ONE of the comments on this article that states that they only want white hetero men. being open minded is one thing, and having a female joker in itself isnt a bad idea, its how she extrapolated that idea that made the idea bad. Forcing your own individual politics into a comic book, especially views on sexism like this woman suggest would then be used to try to imply that Batman stopping this female jokers political rampage could be seen as sexist, the idea is ludacris. If she had stopped at 'female joker' some people would point out it had been done already, but for the most part she would not have gotten the backlash that she did had she not thrust her socio-political viewpoint as the driving force of the character.
Yeah, great, but what breed of dog? (am I doing this right?)
Load More Replies...Agfox, I suggest you try something more like this: "No way! Everyone knows that if Joker becomes an animal it would be a cat! What sort of twisted logic did you use to come up with that?! You must know nothing about the comics, you probably only seen movies... Geez, women this days! Trying to push their agenda everywhere!" ;))
There’s nothing offensive or aggressive or misandristic about her initial tweet / proposal. Beats me why they were so bothered. Whistle and the dogs will holler.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
They weren't bother. They just think it is a stupid idea to make someone a mass murderer because they are mildly annoyed.
Load More Replies...Many years ago, I was going out from the dentist with my mouth paralized down by the anestesia, and I cross a random man in the street, and he told me: You must to smile miss ! I could not respond, better for him lol !
I always want to smack men who say this.... including the one who screamed it across the street when I was going to visit my dying mother in the hospital.
Load More Replies...Right, Emo.. that's the point. If you actually care about someone, you ask them if they are ok. You don't tell them to smile. Do you say it to as many women as you do men?
That's why they say "never miss a chance to shut your mouth", especially if you do not know what's going on.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
so God forbid a random stranger sees you in despair and wants you to feel better. Geez put that man in handcuffs now! Or just let you assault him like you expressed... much more tolerant ;)
I was on a bus once when a man said this to me. I turned my head very slowly to stare at him without smiling. ...If only you had blood pouring out of your mouth then, too!
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
sometimes men say this because they wan't others to be happy. think about how these people are trying to make you feel better
At the end of the day, women face a huge potential threat when rejecting men. The catcalls, the come ons, the "smile girl," the misread signals... on their own they're innocent but the staggering statistics of violence against women by men speak volumes. I go about my business with a carefulness that on a regular basis most men do not fathom.
Yoooooo I hear you. But this explains it best: "Why do men feel threatened by women?" I asked a male friend of mine. So this male friend of mine, who does by the way exist, conveniently entered into the following dialogue. "I mean," I said, "men are bigger, most of the time, they can run faster, strangle better, and they have on the average a lot more money and power." "They're afraid women will laugh at them," he said. "Undercut their world view." Then I asked some women students in a quickie poetry seminar I was giving, "Why do women feel threatened by men?" "They're afraid of being killed," they said. Atwood, Margaret, Writing the Male Character (1982) (reprinted in Second Words: Selected Critical Prose from a Hagey Lecture on February 9, 1982, at the University of Waterloo)








































270
429