The Four Color Media Monitor

Deodato was interviewed by Shoot The Breeze, and his very deliberate sounding bias against Comicsgate is still very apparent, as is the site interviewer's, though surprisingly enough, they at least had the audacity to admit one interesting thing about the movement:

The group was formed under a group of, largely, conservative men and women that felt their political positions and opinions were being mocked and “leftist ideals” and politics were being propagandized and pushed on them by certain creators as well as companies like DC and Marvel. Many have referred to this as the “SJWs [Social Justice Warriors] taking over of comics.”

There really is no one moment that can be defined as the definitive start of Comicsgate, but their message is clear: “Keep the leftist politics out of comics.”

Well at least they admit there's women backing Comicsgate as much as men, though the claim they're all conservative in every sense is certainly off. However, they perpetuate some pretty ludicrous leftist standings:

However, the movement has become associated with harassment and hate speech exampled in the cases of the harassment of Marsha Cooke (widow of creator Darwyn Cooke) and the hate speech lobbed against Mags Visaggio respectively.

Marginalized creators, liberal women, and “SJWs” are favorite targets of members of Comicsgate that engage in online harassment such as prominent Comicsgate supporter Richard Meyer who once suggested a female member of the comic industry had “sucked her way to the top” and, multiple times, referred to a trans woman as “a man in a wig.”

So if it's a biological man in question, that's not a man in a wig? Okay, gotcha. So long as the left keeps pushing this kind of thinking down everyone's throats despite evidence to the contrary, social cohesion will remain a mess. And what harassment of Cooke do they speak of? All I know is she reopened her Twitter account and and condemned the movement out of the blue.

Anyway, here's what Deodato's telling them, and from the start, it sounds like he's intentionally attacking based on trumped up accusations:

You’ve recently been very vocal about the recent movement that has risen up called Comicsgate. In your own words, what do you think this movement is about?

Deadato Jr: First of all, I have to say that I am not the best person to talk about all of this. I live in Brazil, my English is not too good, and I am also not too familiar with the history of social movements in the US neither its politics. My only real good ability is to draw. I don’t have the arguing skills either the intelligence of several other creators that have been battling this movement way before me. That said, I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to speak out against Comicsgate with this interview. The more people know about it, the better. People have to know what they really are: A horde of bigots, misogynists, transphobics, racists, and homophobes whose purpose is to harass comic book creators that oppose their view.

I think he's just summed up the flaw of the anti-Comicsgate crowd - they don't care about coherence of argument, only lambasting a movement they see as an obstacle to their twisted beliefs that came to a head over the past years. And anybody who dares criticize their "art" - which is not the same as harassment - is nonetheless a harasser, and leftists are entirely above criticism, plain and simple. In their minds, you must be predisposed to favorability, similar to the Emperor's New Clothes.

What was your first interaction/when did you become aware of Comicsgate?

Deadato Jr: I have heard the name a couple of times last year but never paid much attention till my friend Jeff Lemire tweeted about it. I have been working with him on a creator-owned for over a year and during this time I learned to respect and like him as a brother, so when I read his words about it, I knew the thing was serious and that I had to help some way. I started retweeting stuff but it was when one of their minions tweeted me insulting Magdalene Visaggio that I started getting more involved. I was so impressed with the intelligence and courage that her and others like Gail Simone, Renfamous – just to mention a few- were dealing in a daily basis with the attacks, that I felt that the least I could do was to lend my voice to spread the word

Yes, he just has to help any way he can, no matter how tasteless the visions of the people in question are. Tell us about it. Simone might've been okay up to a point when she first began her writing career in the early 2000s, but she's gone downhill ever since.

Many of the movement itself have said they feel comic books have shifted politically to a way they do not wish to remain. What is your opinion of the current political comic book landscape?


Deadato Jr: I think comics as all other art forms reflect the world we live in. The world is changing and so comics. In any case, there are comics for all tastes. Not agreeing with the direction a comic is taking doesn’t give anyone the right to attack their creators. Criticism is valid as long as it isn’t personal or violent.

And he hasn't really presented any clear examples it ever was. But say, wasn't this the same guy who just a moment ago accused Comicsgate of "harassment" without offering definite proof, and tried to equate criticism with the same? And as for all art forms, let me make a point that even movies can cross a red line in terms of leftist politics, and have. "Non-Stop" is one example of a film overtaken by sick leftism and pro-Islamist propaganda that compounded the insults by making the relative of a 9-11 victim into a terrorist.

Do you think the current political standing of comic books has harmed the storytelling?

Deadato Jr: Not at all. We are in a great age for comics. I have been doing comics for the American market since 1991 and I have never seen so many great books being created. The current level of writers and artists is outstanding.

Does that include Rick Veitch's The Big Lie? Because any comic, mainstream or independent, that turns to such revolting propaganda only contradicts the notion everything's paradise. The politics put in most comic adventures may not have been heavy handed years before, but for nearly 30 years now, there's been an increase in the levels of disturbing leftist propaganda we've seen, particularly since 9-11, and the Marvel Knights take on Captain America was one of the worst examples of that era. Even metaphorical stories can turn out to be very horrific if you look at them under a microscope. That's why it's ill-advised to superficially claim everything's fine, yet Deodato's doing just that.

There have been reports that leaders of Comicsgate have verbally harrassed comic creators through social media and through youtube videos. Can you speak on what you’ve heard from your fellow creators?

Deadato Jr: I haven’t heard from them directly but I know their stories through the news and it is revolting to hear what they have been through. This movement has ruined lives, traumatized innocent people. That is something I can’t understand. WHY isn’t the police involved? There is not a law these people are infringing? Why aren’t they in prison? They are hurting innocents, making a profit of it and nothing happens to them? I don’t know American laws but here in Brazil, we have laws against racism that actually works. The leaders of the movement should be held accountable for their crimes.

Wow, so he considers undemocratic measures perfectly acceptable. In his mind, laws as presented in the US Constitution are worthless, and above all, he's again failed to provide any concrete proof Comicsgate said/did anything to warrant a police investigation or a prosecution. In addition, he hasn't checked directly with any creators to see what exactly was said, so what's his point? A complete jump to conclusions, and surely deliberate.

Despite verbal attacks on creators, Comicsgate has said one of their goals is to promote “organic introduction” to women, people of color, and LGBTQA+ individuals into comic books. How do you feel about this?

Deodato Jr: That is a lie. They are an alt-right group. They want nothing of that sort. The racist and homophobic attacks on social media are enough proof.

Because Deodato says so! He believes his liberal viewpoints are more valuable than entertainment that doesn't push ultra-leftist positions. In that case, why even bother to work in showbiz?

Recently we’ve seen reports of Comic Book creators who are pro comicsgate attempting to attend conventions however they have been reported and removed. What is your standing on this practice?

Deadato Jr: I already said loud and clear on Twitter that I would not work with anyone who supported the movement neither would attend a convention where they were invited, so I am very in favor of that.

Is he also in favor of an alleged board games retailer assaulting Jeremy Hambly at Gen-Con, yet the latter was banned from the convention as if he was the problem? If he's got no issue with a leftist physically attacking a rightist over something he doesn't agree with, then IMO, he's just pretending to be offended, or engaging in fauxtrages.

Many creators have spoken out and said they will boycott conventions that host Comicsgate supporting creators, how do you feel about this?


Deadato Jr: I am glad more and more creators are standing up against the movement. Comics must be a safe environment for all. There is no place for hatred.

Then worry about your leftist crowd's own first, please. Hatemongering against conservatives does nothing to improve an already financially dire situation, nor does acting like corporate owned comics are solely the property and playground of liberals. In fact, if he believes in safe environments, why doesn't he make a call for ousting anybody as deranged as Gerard Jones turned out to be? In fact, why doesn't he call out DC and Marvel for producing atrocities like Identity Crisis and Avengers: Disassembled? His logic is just so faulty.

Anyway, it'll be such a delight if ignoramuses like Deodato kindly remain afar from conventions, because anybody there could be a Comicsgate supporter anyway, and conventions would be all the better off without these know-it-alls sullying the environment so badly.

Labels: conventions, moonbat artists, politics