We’ve already spoken a few times about the super-proportioned physiognomy used to draw female characters. But Andrew Wheeler (“Why Big Superhero Muscles Aren’t the Same Thing as Sexy Curves,” comicsalliance.com, September 25, 2014) turns the tables and wonders if a similar phenomenon isn’t also affecting male superheroes. He asks female readers for their opinion. One replies: “Heroes tend to be drawn with tons of bulky muscles and weird proportions that I find unappealing.” It’s hard to disagree when we look at the illustration of Captain America.

We’ve stated it before in our Axioms, but we want our characters to have athletic physiques, like a cyclist or a soccer player, rather than a bodybuilder who spend 20 hours a day at the gym.