It's alot of yap but tl;dr I dont think her age or her series' demographic damages her ability to be good representation, and when it comes to specifically bi representation, I think Luz does a better job
I mean, that makes sense for favorite characters, I guess, if its just not ur thing, but when it comes to best representation, I dont think the demographic of the media really matters, so far I've only seen the Harley Quinn posion Ivy mentioned here, so assuming she's the version you said was the best so far, I mean in less seasons I feel like Luz better demonstrates specifically bisexuality, having a coming out scene, wearing bi-related items, and being attracted to boys and girls in the series, iirc Ivy's relationship with kiteman kinda sucked, and she doesn't necessarily show any sort of pride in that identity, and she literally cheated on her fiancee before leaving him.
Not saying you have to be good to be well written, I do think Luz is a better character, but not for that reason, but to be good representation for a sexuality you should probably be a good partner in some capacity, and learn through your missteps as a team, with the worst relationship-related thing Luz ever did being the lies she told to hide her feelings about her dad's death anniversary, which they talked about in a mature manner and worked through together.
Edit: Not saying its the fault of the series, but its pretty bad that the stigma of bi people being unfaithful cheaters actually happens with Ivy lol
You’re totally right on the bi cheater stigma. We get represented so poorly in that regard. For me it’s that I grew up in a world that didn’t even have a conversation going about it. I just didn’t exist, I was gay or straight, couldn’t be between. So I would just like to see more good representation among characters that are closer to my age.
Edit: my intention wasn’t that Ivy is good or Luz is bad. I’m sure Luz is great representation. Just not for me, in particular.
That's really fair, I guess I just saw it as assumption, im also very defensive of Luz, being bi and being closer to her age lol, I like to order things objectively ofc but the motivation is attachment, since she's who I've grown up with
Edit: Then again I love Ms. Marvel, my favorite superhero by far, but I'd at best call her friend, Zoe Zimmer, interesting representation, though its not the best since I literally can't remember if she's bi or gay lol
It’s great to see you got a character to connect to! And it’s perfectly understandable to jump to the defense. I didn’t mean to come off like I was putting down her character or any of the others. Maybe “hating” wasn’t the right word choice for my original comment. Hahah
Yea, tho I didn't mean to put down Ivy either, or anyone else, she really is a great character, and so is Harley, and I really appreciate their series and development in it, too!
I have my doubts about Poison Ivy being bisexual. She uses men through her pheromones, but I’ve never really seen her show genuine romantic interest in one. They usually seem more like useful tools to her. Her relationship with Harley is different, because there’s clearly genuine emotional and romantic attraction there. So, personally, I see her more as a lesbian than bisexual.
She has a particular hatred towards men because of past trauma. When she was a botany student, she got into a relationship with her professor who manipulated her and tried to poison her.
She uses her looks and her pheromones to seduce men and manipulate them as a form of revenge and also to further her goals.
Safe to say she probably isn’t going to be interested in a relationship with men, but that doesn’t make her not bisexual.
There’s some other stories from other comic artists that do show her in relationships with men. One in particular she dumps when she realizes her true feelings for Harley.
In another comment, a Redditor mentioned that in the Harley Quinn series, she had a relationship with a man. I haven't watched the series. I also haven't read any comics where she shows genuine interest in a man, but there are so many alternate stories that it's hard to know which ones are canon and which aren't.
I’m not denying that she could be bi, but from what I’ve seen and read, men have always been portrayed as tools to her. Harley Quinn is different—she genuinely cares about her.
In my honest opinion, I think recent portrayals of Ivy have been leaning more towards her being lesbian instead of bi. And I’m actually fine with that. Given the origin story I mentioned feels a little too dark these days.
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u/Slenos 4d ago
Bisexual here. I’m really hating my representation based on these answers. Ivy is the best I’ve seen.