'Men's Fitness' Ribs Overweight Con "CosPlayers". Nerds Overreact.

Fanboy Rampage: Comic Con Vs Mens Fitness
Submitted by Rich Johnston on October 24, 2011 – 8:00 am

Jordan Burchette wrote for Men’s Fitness

“Comic book conventions are among the few remaining refuges of sincere, unaffected fun in an otherwise odious leisurescape of extreme binge drinking set to techno or gun claps. They’re enjoyed by people of literally every age, ethnicity and economic disadvantage in celebration of the stories and characters on which they were all raised. It’s a bully-free zone in which underwear is in no danger of violently wedgie-ing its wearer and freak flags are free to fly. Nowhere is this more evident than in the practice of costume play, or cosplay.

“This year, attendees all appear to have colluded in advance to imagine the most popular heroes and villains of comics, movies and anime as doughy, sickly, weak, infirm or, in the most impressive examples, morbidly obese. What we observed was a testament to the imagination and resourcefulness of the comic book fan, a live “What If?” comic, if you will, contemplating how our heroes would look close to death.”

It was accompanied by rather unflattering photos of New York Comic Con atendes that Jordan took when he went along. This is not the first time he’s been down this road, he also wrote similar for Maxim

“For those of you not currently attending high school or working in NASA office services, and lack access to persecutable nerds on a daily basis, the comic book industry stages regional conventions where you can see all the fat versions of your favorite fictional characters.

“New York Comic Con was no exception, showcasing only the most ample of future college campus gunmen flossing their muffin-topped costumes like pimps at a players ball. There was Fat Colossus, Awkward-Fitting Cobra Commander, and Dumpy Slave Leia among countless others, all united under the banner of involuntary celibacy.

“We would have vigorously applied wedgies, noogies, and whirly bowls to these socially-mutated permavirgins, but our Master Chief armor was far too restrictive.”

With similar photos. But the mocked are fighting back, in a series or articles and a boycott.

Geek’s Mom tells us;

“A con should be a bully-free zone. It is the one place where anyone can be a superhero. You don’t have to have six-pack abs nor do you have to be tall, dark and handsome. And honestly, no one really cares if you’ve got the physique to perfectly replicate Thor or Slave Leia. Well, the bully at Mens Fitness cares, but his words and his attitudes have only the power we allow them.”

Nerd Reactor led with;

“Yet the entire concept of this articles harks back to high school in every sense, with the jocks clashing against the nerds. How exactly is it the place of Men’s Fitness to deride convention-goers who want nothing more than to have a good time? And It actually makes very little common sense on their part, if you think about it. Perhaps some of the individuals featured in the article actually want to get into better shape, or have been trying to do so for some time. How exactly does Men’s Fitness expect to inspire and encourage men of all shapes and sizes to get active and lead healthy lifestyles when they are outright attacking people who don’t live up to their chiseled-abs ideal? Humiliation is more likely to cause distance and anger, not motivation to make lifestyle changes.”

Nerd Bastards joins in;

“It is in that spirit of “sticking up for myself and others” in which I am writing this piece about Jordan’s article and attitude. I find it surprisingly depressing to have the Digital Site Director of Men’s Fitness Online making the snarky, bullying comments above. I don’t want to start a movement to get Jordan removed from his position at Men’s Fitness. I would like to give him the opportunity to review his article and make any changes he feels are needed. A public apology to the people featured in his article would not be out of line as well.”

Reimagined Reality concluded;

“The whole article and incident is disappointing and pretty horrified. Stick with your shirtless front cover pictures and fat burning articles and stay away from events you don’t get. All you’ve done is prove that you’re that guy right now, the one who pokes fun at others to look superior and only comes out looking like the jerk who never grew up. I encourage folk to voice their displeasure with this nonsense and I hope that in the future, some editors will vet the hell out of their content a little better.”

The Mary Sue summed up;

“I never gave too much stock to Men’s Fitness before (being a lady and all) but mine and other peoples opinions have certainly been lowered as to their legitimacy as a news source. Several people are calling for a boycott of the publication and I don’t blame them. A magazine that would that would willingly post an article making fun of individuals who were in their comfort zone and having a great time is despicable. Just like the entirety of the population, cosplayers come in all shapes and sizes. Going to an event meant for celebration and turning it into a high school campus shows us you never left school. We have and we’re happy where we are now, are you?”

Comic Book Therapy created a medly of headshots of the man in question;


While iFanboy gave possibly the most concise summation;

I would like to begin today’s missive by formally inviting Men’s Fitness Magazine and writer Jordan Burchette to feast on a giant bag of dicks.

Of course the main event has been on Twitter. Where Jordan has tweeter more in the last few days than in the last few months combined. Rather that list the tweets sent in his direction, here are his replies…


Almost makes me feel sorry for him. Almost.

thecolorsblend wrote:As aggravating as some fanboys might find this, at least Men's Fitness is qualified to issue an opinion on the matter. It's a bit of a different matter when you have Kevin Smith at a con making fun of people for a Leno segment (which has happened).