AskHistorians

Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne aren't sexualized? I guess those are athletic cups in their costumes then.

Not a historian. But from the start men have also been sexualized and overtly misogynistic in comics as well. It appeals to the target audiences fantasies of body image and power, you may not have noticed because you have been desensitized to it.

For example; all of the male heros are buff, tall, handsome, charismatic, seemingly trustworthy, always happy, always gets the girl, loves hardwork, act modest, and generally don't wear a lot of clothing. The male villains are usually short, big egos, nerdy/geeky, even if they're buff their ugly or disfigured.

You really think men in comics weren't sexualized? And it was always about the body and the power to change things.

Sexualization of women in media predates comic books, by a lot.

Why not the sexualization of men?

Comic books are mostly made by men for a male audience, so it's to be expected that male comic book characters don't get sexualized as much as female characters.

This just makes me wonder how you even would sexualise men ?

I'm a lesbian, so I have no inherent understanding of what makes a man attractive, and society doesn't really spell it out... Men are supposedly attractive "per se" just by being men, which doesn't make any sense to me 😅

I would post some comics to help answer your questions, but that is not allowed.

I think it became ridiculous with Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld