The Super-Heroine

[kybearfuzz]

(Cross-posted to comicbookbears)

I think a lot of us have a great affinity for the superheroine. While male superheroes may punch their way through things, female heroes generally have to use a bit more wit and ingenuity, which I think often led to more development. The two major comic book companies have a lot of female superheroes, but only Wonder Woman stands out as being the cornerstone female superhero.

I think the development of the female hero has largely been left to two types: the sole female member of a team or a female counterpart of an already established male hero. I believe Marvel has long tried to conjure a successful stand alone female character. Unfortunately, many of them, like She-Hulk and Ms. Marvel, were copies of male heroes and had strong ties to them in their origins. Original characters like Storm, the Invisible Woman, and the Wasp were the only female members of their respective superhero groups and I wonder if they could sustain a comic book series of their own long-term.

The one heroine I can call out of Marvel's stock as being original was Spider-Woman. While she shares a name and a couple of abilities with Marvel's flagship character, the two characters were completely separate in their origins and had significant differences in their powers. She was mysterious and dark, lost but driven. She also had her own animated cartoon in the 1980's. Her original comic book series lasted around 50 issues, but I've read that a new series starring her is in the works.

I draw some parallels between Spider-Woman and Wonder Woman. The obvious one is that in both of their comics, the ladies seem to often find themselves in various stages of capture and bondage. Not sure why, perhaps it's the idea of the damsel in distress saving herself for a change.

Are there any other female heroes that could have or did reach the level of being the recognizable heroine of Marvel Comics? What kind of character would it take, if not?

Comments

[mikiedoggie.livejournal.com]

I remember that particular Wonder Woman comic; I loved how there was a tie in with the JLA (or at least at the JLA satellite) and a brief discussion on how Earth could not have teleportation technology because it didn't have the necessary power infrastructure, unlike Hawkman's homeworld.

Why I remember details like this from over 20 years ago, but I can't remember where I put my keys is simply mindboggling.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

OMG! I am amazed you remember the story that well. I do, but I just read that issue a week or so ago.

I just remember how cool that cover was!

[jprtoronto.livejournal.com]

The females of the X-Men have always stood out for me. Emma Frost, Kitty Pryde, Storm and Jean Grey -- all four are very powerful and unique individuals in their own way.

I liked Ms Marvel's comic along with the old She-Hulk. I thought the Wasp's leadership of the Avengers was very interesting as everyone thought she was flighty but was going through a tough time with her husband and abuse.

There's a new Black Widow comic coming out from Marvel that sounds interesting. What I hate from Marvel is that they only seem to be able to do one female book at a time. She-Hulk is cancelled, enter Ms. Marvel. Ms. Marvel is cancelled enter Black Widow. At least DC has three ongoing (Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Power Girl) not to mention Birds Of Prey coming back.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Birds of Prey is coming back? I didn't know that! Awesome!

I do wish that Marvel would develop and launch a strong female character from scratch. They used to introduce individual characters in "Marvel Premiere," which I thought was a good springboard for characters to get noticed and maybe become popular.

[sunbeam-bears.livejournal.com]

Hi, Frank responding,
I had to comment about a female character I loved as a kid in the DC Comics Metal Men series. Tina, the female platinum robot that was in love with her inventor. She quite often helped the male robots (Gold,Tin,Iron, Mercury,etc) out of whatever trouble they were all in. Not a top superheroine, but I liked her.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Howdy Frank!

I loved the the Metal Men too! I loved how each had their own distinct personalities. And I agree that Tina is probably the best of the bunch.

In the newest incarnation of the team, they've added a new female character, a sarcastic girl called Copper!