Marvel introduces new Bikiniverse lineup

Buoyed by the runaway success of the revamped and not at all hyper-sexualized Daughters of the Dragon, the new White Tiger and terrified that DC Comics will gain market share with their Minx line of comic books targeted to fangirls and fanboys looking for cartoon pre-teen girls drawn wearing short skirts, Marvel announced that they will also be specifically courting female readership with an expanded universe line of their own starting mid-2007.

Marvel will use the tried and true concept of alternate universes popularized in their What If? series. In the various titles, under the collected banner of the tentatively titled Bikiniverse imprint, female versions of Marvel characters will meet up with their male counterparts in a summer blockbuster multi-issue story arc that will variously connect forever all the Marvel, Ultimate and Adventure universes in a mega-crossover event.
After sales reports are in, Marvel will launch all-new on-going titles featuring all the Bikiniverse characters such as Shang-She and Iron Sis (see exclusive preview art above). Marvel also reports that most, if not all, of the new characters will be lesbians who are editorially-mandated to kiss another woman at least once per issue (twice per issue in the Bikiniverse MAX line).

Marvel doesn't have very many male counterparts to their heroes and I find it would be fascinating to see how writers and artists would explore issues of pregnancy and other feminine ickiness while engaged in life-and-death pillow fights battling against the Latverian health care worker and monarch-in-exile Nurse Doom. I can hardly wait!

Tags: Marvel Comics Minx DC Comics