Part of an ongoing series revisiting graphic novels and collected editions from days gone by....

I liked Dazzler: The Movie a lot more when I first read it, shortly after it came out in the mid-1980s. Now, nearly 40 years later, the story not only feels dated but uncomfortably sexist. This book wouldn't fly in the "me too" era.

The book features Alison Blaire, aka Dazzler, a dance-aerobics instructor and wannabe singer/actress in Los Angeles. (She's also a mutant, with the ability to absorb sound and generate light, and she is a sometimes-member of the X-Men.) She is of course beautiful and perfect in every way; as two characters remark, in a phrase that was hackneyed even in the '80s, "every woman here would give anything to look like her ... and every man would give anything to be with her."

Early in the book, she runs afoul of Eric Beale, a movie producer who comes on strong and doesn't take rejection well -- to the point of buying the gym where she works just to try and force her to date him.

And then there's Roman Nekoboh, a famous actor, singer and notoriously successful womanizer (loosely based on Frank Sinatra) who also devotes all of his energies to wooing Alison. Of course, while she must always look perfect, he is a sham from top to bottom, concealing his true form with a toupee, a full set of dentures and a gut-cinching girdle. When he feels the need to exercise, he blithely instructs his butler to do it for him.

Although she briefly appears to be a strong-minded and independent woman, Alison quickly succumbs to Roman's blandishments, letting him buy her clothes and jewelry and a fancy new home in Beverly Hills as he attempts to use her as his co-star in a movie he hopes will restore his flagging fame and fortune. He even outs her to the public as a mutant, at a time in Marvel continuity when the mutant community is despised, in hopes it will generate publicity for the film.

Despite his complete lack of sincerity, she falls completely in love with him, although the romance between them never feels real, or even remotely justified. Nekoboh is arrogant, condescending and manipulative, and Alison -- who is supposedly a strong female character -- eats it up with a spoon. She allows herself to be thoroughly dominated, even picking up his habits of smoking, heavy drinking and being rude to the help.

The artwork pushes the limits of nudity, depicting Dazzler as naked as she can possibly be without becoming a mature-audiences book. Of course, even though she's drawn in all her cheesecakey glory, she complains that she's becoming too fat. Roman's sagging potbelly is fine, but she needs to work out ... so add body image issues to this book's growing list of sins.

When she finally retakes some control over her life, it's written as if it were some big step forward for female empowerment. On the contrary, it's kind of sad how easily she succumbed to gifts and flattery, and how much she allowed herself to be changed and taken advantage of without even noticing.

Dazzler: The Movie has good art going for it, and the story marked a sea change for the character as her identity became widely known and her power levels shifted -- becoming more focused and powerful -- during one key scene at an airport. However, Alison, who is usually a fairly likable character, is a disappointment here.