Abstract
Abstract Be it Pride of Baghdad (2006), Ex Machina (2004), Runaways (2003), The Private Eye (2013) or Saga (2012), the comic book author Brian K. Vaughan is renowned not only for the scope of the projects in his oeuvre but the nuance with which he portrays his characters, many of which are of types that usually receive less mainstream attention than their white, heteronormative, superhero counterparts. This paper will perform a close reading of Agent 355 as she appears in Vol. 1-10 of Y: The Last Man. As an analytical framework through which to parse the character, it will make recourse to the literary, cultural, and theoretical concepts associated with the magical negro. In doing so, this paper will analyse and explore the ways in which Vaughan’s writing simultaneously countermands and reinforces these stereotypical stock character arrangements in a precarious balancing act. Strong, intelligent, and determined in her expression and use of agency, 355 often fulfils the function of the magical negro, sanctified, and infused with black girl magic. On the other hand, Agent 355’s entire characterisation is also simultaneously circumscribed within the strong black woman stereotype replete with noble suffering and enduring perseverance.
Highlights
This essay will argue that though Vaughan’s characterisation of 355 may seem progressive, the character still represents and reinforces certain stereotypical portrayals of black womanhood
Scholars including Diana Mafe argue that 355 is powerful but vulnerable, intelligent but unassuming, sexual but not hypersexual, familiar but enigmatic, and a black woman who is never defined by her race, gender, or class, 355 is unusual, especially as a comic-book figure [serving] as a nuanced model of black womanhood in an industry where such models are almost non-existent. (Mafe 47)
My circumspection in this regard is predicated on the ambiguity of the ideological consequences of the gendercide Vaughan imagines in the series
Summary
This essay will argue that though Vaughan’s characterisation of 355 may seem progressive, the character still represents and reinforces certain stereotypical portrayals of black womanhood. Another important point to consider in terms of the ways in which 355 conforms to stereotypical racial and sexual tropes used historically in the mainstream media representations of black women is the tension between notions of positivity, progressiveness, and the Magical Negress/Negro her/himself.
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