Like Thor, only with boobs...

Hollywood (for our purposes defined as the collective "they" that decide what hits the big screen) puts its own spin on things. More violence, they say. More sex, they tell us. These are the things that seem to sell well.

And the older I get, the more disturbing I find this trend.

It's not that I abhor violence. I love a good, ole fashioned shoot-em-up. Nor that I dislike sexiness. I am, after all, an avid romance genre reader. But when the action/hotness becomes the only redeeming features of a film lacking in story, characters, or emotional connection...

Well, it's just plain sad.

My biggest beef with Hollywood is the lack of a Superhero flick featuring a woman of quality.

Sure there's been Catwoman (blech) and Elektra (sigh) to headline the silver screen. There have also been a plethora of side-characters and love interests (Black Widow being the most recent/decent of the bunch). But when it comes to titular superheroines, the showing has been less than stellar. These few attempts have resulted in hyper-sexualized heroines lacking in story-arch or dimension.

You can say, "They're just being true to the comics," where heroines have long been scantily clad objects. Or that, "There just aren't any good superheroines," which is a dirty lie. But these are excuses for the problem not a remedy thereof.

There are writers out there now, creating comics with strong characters that only differ from their male super-counterparts in that they have boobs. Unfortunately, most of these are lesser known comics and haven't received any major motion picture options. (DC's New 52 Supergirl and webcomic Girl Genius come to mind.)

Little boys get to watch Batman, Superman, Thor, Iron Man... need I continue? They pretend to be them, idolize them, imagine growing up and saving the world with them. Little girls get... bondage-clad Catwoman? This is not a female superhero your little sister can admire.

I can only hope that someday I'll be able to sit down and watch a badass Wonder Woman save the world with my (hypothetical) daughter. Maybe she won't be in underwear and heeled boots (hey, I can dream), but I'll let that slide at this point. Even male superheroes get sexified (Thor certainly provided enough beefcake and smashy to keep me riveted) by Hollywood.

But I do need a super-heroine of quality. She doesn't have to be non-sexual or non-violent. She doesn't have to be ultra-feminist or a proper lady.

Really Hollywood, she just needs to be like any other superhero. Like Thor, only with boobs.