Bic Pens 'For Her' Draw Amazon Flames
A new pen introduced by Bic has the Internet buzzing-and biting. The "Bic Cristal for Her" is a ballpoint pen that comes in pastel colors and boasts an "elegant design-just for her!"
Shoppers have taken to the reviews section of Amazon to write hundreds of snarky, and often sarcastic, "reviews" of the pens.
One reviewer, writing under the name breemeup, is highlighted as "the most helpful favorable review" on Amazon since she gave the pens five stars. The title of the review is, "I am writing this in the kitchen."
"Finally! For years I've had to rely on pencils, or at worst, a twig and some drops of my feminine blood to write down recipes (the only thing a lady should be writing ever)," the reviewer wrote. "I had despaired of ever being able to write down said recipes in a permanent manner, though my men-folk assured me that I "shouldn't worry yer pretty little head". But, AT LAST! Bic, the great liberator, has released a womanly pen that my gentle baby hands can use without fear of unlady-like callouses and bruises. Thank you, Bic!"
The Bic website notes that the pens are available in Europe, but Amazon makes the pens available in the United States.
Bic's list of the pen's "key benefits" includes a tinted barrel that is thinner "for a better handling for women" and the "plug color matches ink color," making the pen aesthetically pleasing.
Reviewer Tracy Hamilton wrote:
"Someone has answered my gentle prayers and FINALLY designed a pen that I can use all month long! I use it when I'm swimming, riding a horse, walking on the beach and doing yoga. It's comfortable, leak-proof, non-slip and it makes me feel so feminine and pretty! Since I've begun using these pens, men have found me more attractive and approachable. It has given me soft skin and manageable hair and it has really given me the self-esteem I needed to start a book club and flirt with the bag-boy at my local market. My drawings of kittens and ponies have improved, and now that I'm writing my last name hyphenated with the Robert Pattinson's last name, I really believe he may someday marry me! I'm positively giddy. Those smart men in marketing have come up with a pen that my lady parts can really identify with."
Men too are commenting on coral-colored pens.
Reviewer Dan Kaufman wrote, "Men, don't stand for this. Aren't there enough products specific to women already? First it was tampons, now these pens? What other products will I have to suffer the indignity of being unable to purchase just because I'm a male person?"
And Jason S. Wilson wrote that he prides himself in being "a fairly masculine guy" who watches football, grunts, exercises, drinks beer and believes "a pickup truck is the highest evolution of vehicular technology." Or, at least, he did.
"Then … I used The Pen," Wilson wrote. "Now I'm arranging flowers, buying clothes in pastels and enjoying the way my pants fit now that my man parts have shrunk to doll-size."
Bic's spokeswoman Linda Kwong responded to a request for comment with the following statement: "We appreciate hearing honest feedback from all of our consumers, whether it is regarding a promotion, advertising campaign, or product. As a global consumer products company, BIC wants to hear these important comments."