Elmore is a great artist. He has done a lot of work that includes things besides scantily dressed women. Dragons and landscapes by Elmore make fantasy worlds come alive for me. I much prefer the work that he has done which includes more action, like a chase scene, or when there is some suspense and drama involved. This particular picture is really just a posed, static picture of two girls.
The new 3rd edition artists have been unmemorable. Lockwood is the only one I can name, but he only makes me think of PHB character illustrations, not images of fantasy worlds.
I agree that there are issues of believability when it comes to armor that doesn't cover vital body parts. But scantily clad, beautiful women always make for good sales. It's called sex. And marketers love it. As long as it doesn't become the dominant focus of every Dragon Magazine cover, I have no problems with it. Using beautiful women to sell magazines happens all the time. I don't expect Dragon to be so politically correct that they won't allow the occassional suit of Elmore-style plate mail.
Compared to any Cosmopolitan magazine cover, which is available at every supermarket checkout line in America, I have no problem with Elmore's take on painting female figures. It's still fantasy to me.
With that in mind, I also have no problems with equal treatment of males. Conan would look pretty cool on the cover too, but I'll bet a standing pose would be pretty boring. We need some action. A fight, the suspense of an ancient ruined temple gate, or SOMETHING that summons suspense. In that regard, I think this cover has room for improvement.
The Dragon covers since 3rd edition have been nothing but bland portraits, and this cover is a good change.
