Thursday, June 28, 2007

Did we go too far?

The latest element of our Evil Mastermind advertising campaign is a Flash banner ad which is currently running over at DotNetJunkies.  It should appear at the top of the page, but our ad is just one of several in a rotation, so you may have to hit reload a few times to see it.  Or, spare the DotNetJunkies people the extra server load and go see the ad on our website.

I have a serious question about this ad, but you need to see it first.  So go watch it now.

And if you haven't read our full-length comic book, you need to at least skim it.  Come back here when you're done.  I'll wait.

Done?

Good.  Now I have a question to ask, but I'm having trouble figuring out to phrase it.  Try this:

Did we go too far?

Wait, that question isn't specific enough.  Try this:

How do you feel about the way the female characters are portrayed in our comics?

Prior to the full-length comic book, I believe we were completely above reproach.  The only women in our comic were minions (the minions are the smart people).  All the minions dress the same, in T-shirts and jeans, regardless of their gender.

But the full length comic book is a little bit edgier:

• On the first page there is a character named London Hampton.  She's a spoiled celebrity heiress to a billionaire hotel fortune.  She's fully dressed, but her clothes are not exactly modest.
• Later in the story we introduce a character named Ada Deadlock.  Ada is an outside consultant brought in as a project manager to keep the minions in line.  She is a female counterpart to the Evil Mastermind.  Once again, she is fully dressed, but her closet is apparently devoid of anything with a high neckline.

These two characters have raised a few eyebrows.  Not everyone approves.

Background

Our industry isn't exactly gender-balanced.  I still remember the year that Julie Lerman scanned the Tech-Ed speaker list and noticed that the female speakers were outnumbered by the speakers named Brian.  I don't want our company to be contributing to the problem.

I have two daughters.  I bristle a bit when I think about the subtle ways that the world may be steering them away from certain kinds of opportunities.

So I get annoyed when I flip open a magazine and see a software company using provocative pictures of women in their ad.  If you're advertising a grid control or a reporting tool, show me the product, not the model you hired.

Back to my question

Anyway, I'm hearing people complain about our comic in exactly the same way that I complain about booth babes at trade shows.  Have I become a hypocrite?  I hope not.

Personally, I don't think SourceGear has crossed the line.

• We're dealing with female characters as part of a story, not a product ad with a completely gratuitous photo.
• Our stuff is extremely tame in contrast with what is typical of the comic genre today.
• I'll admit that London Hampton is cut from an unfortunate stereotype, but we're poking fun at a specific real-world celebrity who is apparently cut from that same unfortunate stereotype.
• Ada Deadlock is drawn as an attractive woman, but she is also smart and powerful.

So I'm pleading "not guilty", but I still consider this issue to be important.  I'd be interested in the opinions of my readers on this matter.  Am I wrong?  Did we go too far?  Feel free to post a comment here or send me an email.