Figuring it out: ‘confusing’ non-binary gender in Runaways and The Order of the Stick

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn this article we engage with the representation of non-binary gender in two sci-fi/fantasy comics (Runaways and The Order of the Stick), and metatextual discussion surrounding them. In our analysis we focus on how non-binary gender is represented, and ways in which the comics reveal implicit anxieties around non/human characters who are non-binary. The idea that non-binary gender is ‘hiding’ a true, binary, gender is present within and beyond the text: rather than accepting these characters’ non-binary gender as a fact of their species within the narrative, it is treated a puzzle to be solved. We explore how texts, and fans, focus upon the body and subsequently sexuality as a locus of gender ‘truth’, even though as drawings these bodies cannot be further revealed beyond the page or screen. We argue these comics ‘confuse’ gender in different ways: at times by purposefully confounding the possibility of pinpointing a ‘true’ binary gender for non-binary characters, while at others taking a more conservative path of displacing such ‘confusion’ onto the non-binary characters themselves to imply that it is they who are ‘confused’ – while reflecting broader social patterns, this characterizes non-binary gender as though it were not a valid way of being.KEYWORDS: non-binary gendercomics/graphic novelsfandomThe Order of the StickMarvel’s Runaways Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.DeclarationsThe authors report there are no competing interests to declare.Ethical ApprovalThis research was conducted within Ruhr-Universität Bochum’s Code of Good Scientific Practice, which obliges researchers connected to this institution to abide by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)’s Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Research Practice: Code of Conduct (2019). The research methods used comply with guidelines referring to the respectful use, and anonymizing of non-personal and non-sensitive data, gathered in public spaces, including online spaces, and have been approved by the head of the research unit.Notes1. The fan forum we focus upon here is Giant in the Playground. This is a publicly accessible site where fans would not have an expectation of privacy, and there is no personal or identifying information about the participants. This means there is no demographic information about the fans whose posts we quote – including their own forms of identification – however the focus of our analysis is on the interpretations made of the gender and sexualities of the fictional characters, particularly the extent to which, regardless of the fans’ identities, there was a tendency to read these characters as binary. See the Declarations for discussion of the ethics procedures followed for this research.2. Runaways has been adapted by Hulu (beginning in Citation2017). Xavin did not appear until Season 2, and is played by cis-female actor Clarissa Thibeaux. Here we focus upon representation in the comics.Additional informationFundingThis research was not supported by any funding.