Wizard Alternate Covers

So there were 3 covers that I saw and this is the issue I got. Notice there is no banner across the top that proclaims this is a man's magazine. The cover with the banner is one of the alternates. The content seems pretty much as usual, but I haven't read the issue yet.

It would be nice for them to do an alternate cover sometime proclaiming Wizard is tops among female magazine readers, but I'm not gonna hold my breath waiting. Still, the fact that there were viable choices for me to choose from made this less annoying than I'd expected.

I'll be away for a long weekend starting tomorrow, so I probably won't be blogging here. Reviews to resume after I return home on Monday.

Wizard's Folly

So, Wizard is claiming to be the number one men's magazine? I read it first here, and then again, here. And both make valid points. But to be honest, I'm not sure I would've even noticed. Sure, it's a big banner across the top, but I would've seen the latest Wizard on the rack, checked to see what alternate covers there were, and picked the one I wanted. I like Wizard. Not because it's a great magazine -- far from it -- but because it's got nice illos and updates on books, with some useful reviews. There have been good interviews, too, especially with DC creators about upcoming projects. Should I not buy it because of the asinine, sexist proclamation? Should I not buy it because they're proclaiming something that writes off their female readership? Do they even realize or care that they have a female readership?

I might not have ever bought Playboy, but I've read it. I remember my mother asking my father to pick up the recent issue on his way home from work, so she could read the Mel Brooks interview. I've read many issues of Playboy over the years. The interviews were topnotch and the cartoons were mostly funny. And of course, there were plenty of laughs in the advice columns.

But, you say, Playboy is designed to appeal to men primarily, while a mag covering comics is designed to appeal to comics readers and these days, that's both sexes. Should I boycott Wizard because of this foolishness on their part? Would a boycott change their mind, hit them where it hurts, be noticeable? Would they care? Because, after all, I and my fellow females, aren't the intended audience, because, after all, *everyone* knows women don't read comics.

Or do I continue to read what I want, regardless? Because tomorrow when I pick up my comics, a new Wizard will be waiting and there will probably be an article or two in it I'll want to read and I don't know any men who will have it for me to borrow.

*sigh*