In comparing the magazine Men’s Health and the cover of the video game Tomb raider we can identify various ways gender is represented in both radical and reactionary terms. By considering the use of print language and signs we can infer how gender is represented to the audience. 

The magazine Men’s Health portrays a mostly reactionary image of masculinity. This can be seen on the front cover where the main image is one displaying the subject’s stance which accentuates his muscular frame and shows him with a serious expression on his face. This image is classically what the readership wants to attain, and this is emphasised in the magazine by the quote “Diesel’s [the subject] slant is one to aspire to”. Furthermore, this quote hints at the idea of the creators of Men’s Health creating a myth around the iconic sign of Vin Diesel as the ideal male physique. This image also accentuates how the audience views the topic of their health seriously since this magazine is marketed to men wanting to become healthier and lose weight. This is further reinforced via the subjects of the subheadings on the front cover, which allude to weight loss regimes detailed within the pages of the magazine. The colour palette used of muted colours such as blue, grey and black also conform to the reactionary stereotype of colours associated with the male gender. Also, the use of blocks of colour rather than patterns or designs reinforce the masculine nature of the magazine. However, the magazine is radical in its portrayal of age and gender in the interview with Phillip Howells, a 69-year-old “marathon man”. The subject’s body type does not fit in with the previously established aspirational physique of Vin Diesel, which suggests that Howell’s physique is less traditionally masculine. Instead of portraying him as less masculine, the magazine implies through the interview and captions that he just as masculine as Vin Diesel, making it a radical portrayal of the male gender. 

Similarly to Men’s Health, the game cover of Tomb Raider portrays a reactionary and radical depiction of a woman. The reactionary element is present in the fact that Lara Croft, the main subject of the game cover is heavily sexualised to appeal to the target audience of male teenagers and young men. She is also made this way to appeal the male fantasy which enforces a reactionary view on women established by men. Lara, however, challenges the reactionary views on female combatants and independent women by being shown defeating monsters and performing stunts while exploring tombs on the back cover of the game. Another radical view promoted by the game is how Lara Croft’s stance on the game cover highlights her holding pistols and standing in a way that asserts she is confident, which again challenges the reactionary view on women being unconfrontational and weak. 

In Conclusion, Tomb raider represents a much more radical view on gender, with many stereotypes of women being challenged, compared to Men’s Health, where reactionary views on masculinity and gender are often presented as ideals men should aspire to.