It may not surprise you to learn that essentially all of the original superheroines dreamt up during the ’40s and ’50s—including characters that would later become icons like Wonder Woman and Supergirl—were created by male writers and artists for a primarily male audience. And as with all art, since comics are a reflection of the time in which they are made, this occasionally led to some not-so-flattering portrayals of these first female superheroes.
In the ’60s and ’70s, though, thanks to second-wave feminism, we began to see some improvements to women’s representation on the page. There was Marvel Girl’s transformation into Phoenix (from the weakest to the strongest member of the X-Men) and founding Avengers member Wasp’s sudden intellectual prowess. And despite the overwhelming lack of female creators and a perceived disinterest in comics from female readers, over time we’ve seen all kinds of inspiring female superheroes grace our comics, from disco queen Dazzler to former Wakandan queen Storm.
“DESPITE THE OVERWHELMING LACK OF FEMALE CREATORS, OVER TIME WE’VE SEEN ALL KINDS OF INSPIRING FEMALE SUPERHEROES GRACE OUR COMICS.”
But just because we’ve come a long way since the days of “every woman is naturally the weakest member of her super-team,” doesn’t mean that the comic book industry (like, you know, most industries) has overcome its bent for sexism. For example, despite Marvel’s mostly-successful push toward diversity and inclusivity, they once hired an erotica artist to draw a variant cover for the first issue of the new Spider-Woman. Not to mention when the current creative team on DC’s New 52 Wonder Woman turned her into an infantilized, pouty bobblehead who was depicted carrying a teddy bear into battle. Not exactly the best way to bring lady readers on board.
For all their missteps in representation, though, major comic publishers are making big strides forward. Marvel in particular has a huge range of female-led titles at the moment: Thor! Spider-Gwen! Elektra! Black Widow! Gamora! Silk and Storm feature women of color; Angela: Asgard’s Assassin has a trans woman in a major role. Also hugely important is the fact that many of these female-led comics have women on their creative teams, since diversity only *truly matters* if changes are occurring both in front and behind the page. That’s to say nothing of the fact that all those comics are being spearheaded by IRL superhero Sana Amanat, Marvel’s new Director of Content and Character Development.
Marie Claire editor-in-chief Anne Fulenwider with Ms. Marvel co-creator Sana Amanat for the 2016 MAKERS Conference.
So how are you to know which comics out there tick the lady-boxes you’re looking for? And if you’ve never picked up a comic book in your life, where do you even begin? Below, a helpful ranking of the most feminist superheroes on the market, complete with easy-to-find starting points. You can pick up these trades (that’s the term for a “book” of comics, usually comprised of about six single issues) at any major bookstore or online retailer these days—but I would recommend you do a quick search online and find your local comic book store.
10 best female superheroes:
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Sam Maggs is an Associate Editor for The Mary Sue and was named “Awesome Geek Feminist of the Year” by Women Write About Comics. Her first book, The Fangirl’s Guide to the Galaxy, will be published by Quirk Books this May. Talk to her on Twitter @SamMaggs.
From: ELLE UK
