Incompetence is not a defence
Here’s a hint for the defenders of comic books against accusations of anything.
Incompetence is not a defence.
Now I know this is a complex concept, so I’ll explain it again.
Incompetence is not a defence.
Here’s the detailed explanation
If somebody writing or drawing a comic book has shown, over time, a demonstrable inability to draw different female characters, this is not something you defend by saying “Well, what do you expect? The artist is talentless and incompetent”. This is something where you say “We would like the artist replaced by someone with the appropriate skills required for the job”.
In the same manner, when faced with yet another storyline with a poor portrayal of female characters, justifying the portrayal as “bad writing” and saying “Well, this author is known for their low quality work, poor characterisations, and general inability to create female characters that are equally realistic as the male characters” is not a justification. It’s a reason to request the removal of the author and replacement with the requisite skill set to do the job properly.
Defending misogyny, racism, sexism, homophobia, discriminatory writing, abusive writing, or any other criticism of a text by saying “What do you expect? The author/artist is incompetent” is not actually a defence. Incompetence is not a justification, it’s a request for the person you are allegedly defending to be stood down from their position until they acquire the requisite skills and abilities to do their job properly.