Sorry but there's really not much that's sexy about the Faith book. It may be self-affirming
for plus-sized women who need to "see themselves" in a visually depicted heroine (rather than just being happy with the body they have..and maybe do body-positive cosplaying without any set role model, which I'm all for!) but it ain't hot. It's entertaining if you want to read about the adventures of a nerd who tries to be a heroine, but personally I'd rather see the nerd transform and become hot (a la Vampblade) since transformation is one of my big things. Your mileage may vary.
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So, back to Birds of Prey. I actually found what may be one of the sexiest BofP tpbs out there, and it's not even from the original run. There was a brief Vol. 2 run in 2010 before Vol. 3 started up in 2011. On Vol. 2 Gail Simone returned to the fold, and once again, you had the consummate female writer at the helm who can expertly balance feminist power with visual cheesecake, as evidenced by "End Run", the tpb which collects Vol. 2 issues 1-6.
This gives the lie to third-wave feminist claims about representation of the female image in comics: here, there's nothing "disproportionate" or "distorted" about the artistic rendering..everyone is just really, really beautiful. (or like Garrison Keillor used to say about Lake Wobegon: "all the women are above average".) Because, y'know, it's not the real world and it doesn't have to reflect the real world, it's a comic book. Nobody's hiring ugly people to star in their superheroine fetish videos, are they?
Gail knows how to tell powerful stories, but she doesn't get in the way of letting artist Ed Benes' almost preternaturally sexy art, with such detail, shading and contouring that it almost seems 3-D or at least realistic. What's most telling is this collection's inside front pages: the second title page has an incredibly perfect rendering of Lady Blackhawk, Black Canary, Huntress and Dove standing confidently, and then on the next page they are writhing in a come-hither, I'm-about-to-have-an-orgasm pose. Dove even has her hands on her breasts looking like she's about the pleasure herself..it's pretty hot (see below).
Inside, we have great stories about Canary rescuing a girl from terrorists; Hawk & Dove joining up and trying to deal with the very sexy Asian villainess, White Canary (think of Executive Assistant, or 90s ninjettes like Shi) and her erstwhile partner, The Penguin (who has a dream sequence of what he'd like to do with Dove...don't we all). There's also a side story about Barbara Gordon as Oracle (and despite being in a wheelchair, she is still drawn incredibly beautiful and shapely) as she deals with the betrayal of former associates Savant and Creote (who have a light homosexual relationship..that's sweet).
The latter issues in this tpb are apparently drawn by two other artists, Adriana Melo and Alvin Lee, but neither of them tamp down the sexiness of the figures and costumes, and the story (a continuation of the White Canary arc, where Dinah tracks her down to Asia) still remains at fever pitch. Huntress follows Dinah, and gets a very sexy beatdown from their other Asian adversary, Lady Shiva..it's almost like a SHIP video.
If you're looking for possibly one of the last mainstream remnants of the "90s" aesthetic (but done in the best style possible, without visual distortion)..look no further, because "End Run" is highly recommended in that regard.
this is how you draw women. good job, Ed!
panel after panel Ed just keeps givin' it to you:
White Canary and Oracle
damn, ladies!
Dove: Damn right Penguin's got you!
Quit staring at Dinah's perfect ass. I mean it.
Penguin fondles Dove in his dreams.
They're gorgeous up close, too.
Now let's see some of that beatdown from issue 6:
first, the sexy buildup, as Huntress puts on her costume. Then Shiva pulps her:
You think Gail Simone didn't know what she was doing?
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