Drawn to Comics: The 10 Best DC and Marvel Comics Featuring Women Superheroes

While many of the comics I read are comics from publishers other than DC and Marvel, and a ton of them aren’t about superheroes, those types of comics were the very first ones I read. Ever since I started reading comics in the 90s, I’ve read a ton of them, especially comics from DC and Marvel, as at first I only had access to what was at my local library. So now, I’d like to take a look back at my absolute favorite superhero comics from DC and Marvel that star women. In all actuality, I’m pretty sure that this is just plainly my top ten superhero comic list, but there might be some comics starring men that I like. For the purposes of this list, I’m counting runs by an author or writing team on a book.

One common thread you’ll notice throughout a lot of these comics is that they’re a lot of fun. While I love some dark comics, when it comes to superheroes, I usually look for ones that are lighter and filled with hope and adventure. I want comics starring women who love what they’re doing and not be punished for being women. While I love comics that comment on the real world, and many of these do, I also want my superhero comics to be an escape where I can get away from the horrible reality of life for women in the real world.

Now, I know there are a TON of things I haven’t read; for someone who writes professionally about comics there are lots of things I don’t know about. So, what are your favorites that I missed? What are your top ten lists?

Art by Matteo Buffagni

Team Spider Lady. Art by Matteo Buffagni.

10. Avengers Assemble by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Kelly Sue DeConnick is going to show up again on this list, but I also want to give this series, the first series of hers that I read, a shoutout. There’s this part in her run where Black Widow, Spider-Woman and Spider-Girl (Anya Corazon) team up and it is just straight up delightful. They’re the only issues I’ve ever read featuring Spider-Girl and she’s easily one of my 10 favorite super heroes just based on these few issues. DeConnick really knows how to make superheroes fun, and here she does it with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Warren Ellis joined her on writing some of these issues, and honestly, I wish the Avengers movies were more like these comics.

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Art by Adrian Alphona.

Art by Adrian Alphona.

9. Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan, Adrian Alphona, Takeshi Miyazawa and more

I’ve written extensively on my feelings about Runaways before, so I won’t talk your ear off about it here. Runaways is often brought up in discussions about the history of queer comics and comics that are about teens that actually seem like they’re about real teens. This series features a team full of women, people of color and queer characters, and actually largely does a good job in portraying them. After Vaughan left the series, it took a bit of a downward turn (I don’t think anyone really captured the same magic until Noelle Stevenson and Sanford Greene), but it can be fun to read the complete story.

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Art by Javier Pulida.

Art by Javier Pulida.

8. She-Hulk by Charles Soule, Javier Pulido and Ron Wemberly

Soule took this character I had previously liked to the level where I absolutely love her now. This series was smart, funny, exciting, weird and above all, distinctive. There’s no way you could read She-Hulk and then the rest of your pull list that week and have this series get lost in the shuffle. It stood out in a perfectly wonderful way. Soule, who’s also a lawyer in real life, injected just enough of that lawyer knowledge to make Jen Walters’ (She-Hulk’s) law profession interesting and hilarious. Plus, Pulido’s art on the series perfectly matched the weird tone that Soule was writing for the book, making it stand out and stand above other comics even more. The corner of the Marvel Universe that Soule created here was wonderful and I just wish we had gotten more issues of it.

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Ms. Marvel art by Adrian Alphona

Ms. Marvel art by Adrian Alphona

7. Ms. Marvel by G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona, Jacob Wyatt, Takeshi Miyazawa and more

Seriously, I was so excited for this book before it came out. I mean: a brown, teen Pakistani-American Muslim girl whose hero is Captain Marvel? What’s not to love? Then, when it actually came out, I loved it even more than I expected to. Thanks to having a Muslim woman as a writer and a man of color as the original artist, this series really accurately portrayed Kamala Kahn as a brown, Muslim teenage girl. She’s so great and fun, girly and hopeful and enthusiastic. This series isn’t only wonderful, but it’s also super important, for all the reasons I just explained. Ms. Marvel is probably the most exciting new superhero to come out from Marvel or DC since Batwoman.

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Art by Erica Henderson

Art by Erica Henderson

6. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl by Ryan North and Erica Henderson

This comic has set the comics world on fire with its fresh new take on superheroes. It never takes itself too seriously, but also it never tries to be pretentiously ironic or self-aware. It’s just fun and perfect for readers of all-ages. I wish there were a dozen more comics like it. It’s welcoming an entirely new demographics into the comics fandom, or rather, more accurately, it’s giving a demographic that was already there a bigger seat at the table. It’s saying to all the young girls and young-girl-at-hearts “Here, this book is perfect for you and I’m not going to let the comics fandom ruin it for you.” Doreen Green (Squirrel Girl) goes off to college and has a fun school life while also fighting off foes like Dr. Doom, Kraven, Girl-Squirrel and even Galactus. I love this series to death, and I’m sure I’m going to love it even more as the years go on. Everyone needs to buy this book.

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Art by Jamie McKelvie and Matthew Wilson.

Art by Jamie McKelvie and Matthew Wilson.

5. Young Avengers by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie

Earlier I talked about how great Young Avengers and Ms. Marvel were at capturing the voice of teenagers, well, this series is great at capturing the voice of teenage millenials. This run had the team made up of gay couple Hulkling and Wiccan; the bisexual Black teen Prodigy; the queer Loki (who’s in kid form at first and then in teen form); queer Noh-varr; the lesbian Latina America Chavez and Kate Bishop who is ostensibly a white straight girl, but is often read as East Asian and bisexual by fans (like me). Not only is this team super queer, but it’s super amazing. These teens are on a very teen-centric adventure, one that’s all about their families and figuring out their identities and where they fit in the world. The art is absolutely stunning and the writing is too, with hilarious jokes, cultural references that seem like they were actually made by teens on tumblr, solid emotional moments and absolutely great character developments. I mean, honestly, America Chavez alone makes this book worth reading.

Art by Jamie McKelvie and Matthew Wilson.

Art by Jamie McKelvie and Matthew Wilson.

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Art by David Aja.

Art by David Aja.

4. Hawkeye by Matt Fraction, David Aja, Annie Wu, Javier Pulido and more

While I think it might seem like this title was named after Clint Barton (who is actually terrific in these comics, as opposed to the boring version of him the movies) it’s also very, very much named after Kate Bishop Hawkeye, the co-star of this series. Whether she’s paired up with Clint or going off on her own, as she does in the LA Woman arc, Kate Bishop is a force to be reckoned with in this series. The art is absolutely perfect, no matter who’s doing it, and it always fits the story perfectly. It just has so much heart, and that in turn makes the emotions and relationships feel so real, and the jokes feel so hilarious, and the stakes seem so high, and all of it comes together in a truly wonderful way. Honestly, Kate Bishop in this book is perfect. She’s a wonderful combination of no-nonsense when it comes to other people and lots of nonsense when it comes to herself. She can make and take jokes, but she never wants to let people down or let people do anything other than their best. While I love Kate in Young Avengers, I started worshiping her because of this series. This was a legendary run that’s sure to go down in comic history books.

Art by Annie Wu.

Art by Annie Wu.

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art by JH Williams III and Dave Stewart.

art by J.H. Williams III and Dave Stewart.

3. Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III

This is easily the most beautiful superhero comic I’ve ever seen, and plainly one of the greatest of all time. The layout of the panels and the bold colors and lines and shadows of the art are — I want to say heavenly, but they seem like they came straight out of hell, so maybe I’ll just say otherworldly and supernatural. It’s pure genius, and the story is just perfect. This run on Detective Comics helped cement Batwoman as the highest-profile lesbian superhero in comics, so a lot was hanging in the balance, but Rucka knocked the writing way out of the park. And Williams III didn’t just knock the art out of the park, he knocked it out of the galaxy. I also want to make sure to mention the absolutely wonderful run that Williams III and W.H. Blackman did with the character when the New 52 started; that’s a run you shouldn’t miss as well. Honestly, with what these three creators have done in crafting this new character, DC should give them free rein to do absolutely whatever they want for the rest of their careers. Plus, Rachel Maddow wrote the introduction for the trade paperback.

Art by JH Williams III and Dave Stewart.

Art by JH Williams III and Dave Stewart.

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Art by Lee Garbett.

Art by Lee Garbett.

2. Batgirl by Bryan Q. Miller

All the time I feel so conflicted about how I ended up with one of DC’s half dozen generic blonde-haired, blue-eyed white teenage girls (Stephanie Brown, Star Girl, Supergirl, Wonder Girl and Arrowette all look pretty much identical when they’re out of their costumes) as one of my top five DC superheroes. But then I think back on Bryan Q. Miller’s run on Batgirl, which starred Stephanie Brown as the title character, and I remember exactly why. This series has everything I love about comics. It builds a strong, fleshed-out world and commits to it; it gives its title character and all the side characters really solid and consistent characterization; it tells a compelling story with a great emotional arc; and it’s fun and absolutely cheesy in just the right way. The third volume might actually be my single favorite trade paperback of any superhero comic ever. This book is perfectly feminine; it really seems like it’s about a college age girl who’s out fighting crime and trying to make people proud. Plus, there are terrific guest appearances by Supergirl, Oracle and Proxy, Knight and Squire, Klarion the Witch Boy and Damian Wayne. This series is made out of fun and joy and spirit and, most of all, hope. To me, it’s exactly what superhero comics should be.

Art by Pere Perez.

Art by Pere Perez.

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Art by Filipe Andrade

Art by Filipe Andrade

1. Captain Marvel by Kelly Sue DeConnick, David Lopez, Dexter Soy, Emma Rios and more

I really debated a lot about the order of these top two. They both made me fall in love with characters I didn’t really care about before, they both make me cry every single time I read them, I think about both of them at least a few times a week, no matter how long it’s been since I’ve read them — but ultimately, Captain Marvel won out. This series isn’t only a great superhero story, but it’s one of the most inspiring things I’ve ever read. DeConnick has a way with words that just magical, and with Captain Marvel she found someone who was a perfect vessel for her messages of girl power, optimism, hard work and reaching for the stars. There’s a part in Higher, Further, Faster, More where DeConnick writes out Captain Marvel’s thoughts and to me, it perfectly captures what the series is about.

Have you ever seen a little girl run so fast she falls down? There’s an instant, a fraction of a second before the world catches hold of her again… A moment when she’s outrun every doubt and fear she’s ever had about herself and she flies. In that one moment, every little girl flies. I need to find that again. Like taking a car out into the desert to see how fast it can go, I need to find the edge of me… And maybe, if I fly far enough, I’ll be able to turn around and look at the world… And see where I belong.

That makes my heart leap every single time I read it. It’s amazing. And the comic is filled with moments like that. It’s endlessly quotable, endlessly inspirational (and aspirational) and endlessly tearjerking. I love everything about this series. It’s my favorite super hero comic of all time. This is what comics are meant to be.

Art by David Lopez.

Art by David Lopez.

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There’s also a new comic out written by Brendan Hykes, with Sean Rhineheart on letters and MJ Barros on art called Campaigners that I was the editor and trans consultant on. It would be awesome if you could check it out and buy it, it has a pretty cool trans girl character and a pretty great story and art. Check out what the twitterverse is saying!

New Releases (April 6)

Chainmail Bikini: The Anthology of Women Gamers (Alternative Comics)

Archie #7 (Archie)

Bee and Puppycat #10 (Boom!)

Giant Days #13 (Boom!)

Giant Days Vol. 2 TPB (Boom!)

Goldie Vance #1 (Boom!)

Angel and Faith Season 10 #25 (Dark Horse)

Batgirl #50 (DC)

Harley Quinn and the Suicide Squad April Fool’s Special #1 (DC)

New Suicide Squad #19 (DC)

Suicide Squad Vol. 3 Rogues TPB (DC)

Wonder Woman Earth One Vol. 1 HC (DC)

Vampirella #2 (Dynamite)

X-Files Season 11 #8 (IDW)

The Wicked + The Divine #18 (Image)

The Wicked + The Divine Vol. 1 Year One HC (Image)

Black Widow #2 (Marvel)

Ms. Marvel Vol. 2 HC (Marvel)

Scarlet Witch #5 (Marvel)

Spider-Women Alpha #1 (Marvel)

Mighty Zodiac #1 (Oni)

Welcome to Drawn to Comics! From diary comics to superheroes, from webcomics to graphic novels – this is where we’ll be taking a look at comics by, featuring and for queer ladies. So whether you love to look at detailed personal accounts of other people’s lives, explore new and creative worlds, or you just love to see hot ladies in spandex, we’ve got something for you.

If you have a comic that you’d like to see me review, you can email me at mey [at] autostraddle [dot] com.

Before you go! Autostraddle runs on the reader support of our AF+ Members. If this article meant something to you today — if it informed you or made you smile or feel seen, will you consider joining AF and supporting the people who make this queer media site possible?

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Mey

Mey Rude is a fat, trans, Latina lesbian living in LA. She's a writer, journalist, and a trans consultant and sensitivity reader. You can follow her on twitter, or go to her website if you want to hire her.

Mey has written 572 articles for us.

36 Comments

  1. The art in Batwoman: Elegy is so beautiful that sometimes I just want to take apart all the pages, frame them and put them on display.

    Or, IDK, donate them to a museum or gallery, like THEY ARE MEANT TO BE.

    Anyway, got carried away. Thanks Mey for the article, I really love it!

  2. I’m not really big on comics from DC and Marvel, but I do have all the Batwoman series + Elegy. I have a lot of lesser known comics though.

    One correction to the list above, Goldie Vance #1 isn’t out until the 13th according to my info. However, there is Star Wars: Poe Dameron #1 out this week which I will be getting (along with Batgirl, The Wicked and the Divine and Giant Days).

  3. there are so many things to love on this list! plus a few things i haven’t read, which is the most thrilling. Squirrel Girl and Ms. Marvel are up there in my top five favorites. And She Hulk is great. I’m loving seeing her in Hellcat these days.

    I have Goldie Vance on my calendar as next week? Either way, I’m SO EXCITED about it. I loved the preview that was in the first issue of Jonesy, which releases its third issue next week aaahhhhhh!!!!

  4. I tried so hard to read She-Hulk but Pulido’s faces and I just don’t get along. There is something about them that makes my brain scream. I forced myself through his sections of Hawkeye because I was already invested, but I couldn’t get into She-Hulk. :( Which is a shame, because she seems awesome in everything I’ve seen her in, and I have a soft spot for lawyers because my fiancee is one.

    I’ve only read the first volume, but I loooove Black Canary by Brenden Fletcher and Annie Wu. I just really love Annie Wu’s art. And while I don’t know shit about Dinah Lance outside the book, the story is just fun and weird and full of women.

    I think my favorite of all time is either Ms. Marvel or Batwoman: Elegy. It’s so hard to decide! But Ms. Marvel is what got me into comics at large and for that I owe it a huge debt of gratitude. And while I love Kate, Kamala found a little niche in my heart and made it her own, and I don’t think she’s ever leaving.

  5. I have So Much Love for America Chavez, honestly, and the whole of Young Avengers seem like if my high school friend group got super-powers, in honesty

  6. Mey I never used to read comic books but you convinced me to try Ms. Marvel and I LOVE IT. I’ve read the first three issues and it’s so so good !!!

  7. Lol, there “might” be some comics starring men that you like. Your vision is that narrow and you call yourself a fan?

    • I can’t speak for Mey, but I “call myself a fan” of both TV and literature despite the fact that I am not generally drawn to stuff focusing on the cis male journey…probably because our culture already centers those stories, so they are less interesting to me.

    • I mean, I mostly meant that as a joke, I’m a big fan of Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, Jason Aaron’s Wolverine and the X-Men, Chip Zdarksy’s Howard the Duck and Giffen and Rodgers’ Blue Beetle.

      But also, i’ve seen dozens of lists by men of their top ten all time superhero comics that don’t include a single book starring a woman superhero, and they never get called out for not being fans.

      • You hit it right on target, Mey. If a male writer said there, “might be some comics starring women I like” no one would bat an eye.

        People read all sorts of kinds of comics for many different reasons too. No one should ever criticize someone else for having different taste. It’s absurd. Am I not a movie buff because I don’t like certain kinds of movies? It’s an illogical, slippery slope.

      • It’s more that you specifically called it out, not that you happen to love these superheros. Also, I don’t think the response to only reading comics about men, as a man, is to be I’m only going to read or like comics about women, as a woman. It’s responding to ignorance with ignorance.

        • I don’t think there’s anything ignorant about personally centering the voices of/stories about women, or lgbtq+ people, or people of color. Autostraddle does that every day.

        • So it’s ignorance to not have a strong an interest in cishet/white/male stories? I’m not really sure what you’re arguing here. What’s your real problem?

  8. Young Avengers and Runaways look quite good! I love Brian Vaughan’s storytelling (and Noelle Stevenson’s everything <3) and Jamie McKelvie's art so I might give these a try. Thanks again, Mey, your recommendations are always welcome.

  9. These are great recommendations, Mey. And darn, Kamala Khan for the win (though sometimes the art gets too campy for my taste), always loved the utilization of hadiths and phrases from the Quran to power up and motivate Ms. Marvel. American Chavez is also pretty sweettttt

    But… Despite these wonderful female representation in comics, I wonder if we can trully call these comics feminist? Because the super hero genre is, really patriarchal in its views of power and violence. Nor do all these lovely ladies stand up and actually fight the systematic oppression – or le patriarchy – that causes the crimes and evils being inflicted upon the citizens they’re protecting. In fact, rarely do they question the status quo and in the Super hero narrative, even if they do, they still end up defending the system and the status quo because to do so would be’evil’ it ‘villainous’.

    If the corrupted nature of the system or the society or the government in which the superhero operates in is brought to light, it results in the superhero’s self imposed alienation – vigilantism. The superhero takes it upon herself to protect the people and uphold justice – without fighting the corrupted system. She liberates herself, but not the people. In fact, she perpetuates the myth that for as long as someone strong enough exists to protect the ‘weak’ and oppressed, there’s justice. Essentially a fascist concept and fascism is anti feminist in every respect.

    I get it though: it’s about female representation in comics. And yes, it does matter. But I do find myself questioning the nature of the Superhero narrative.

    • Woah, thanks so much for this comment ! It gave me a lot to think about.
      One question though : if female superhero at least have stories of empowering themselves (vs. Men), is it not still part of the larger feminist narrative ?
      I understand that if they only empower themselves while keeping other women bound to the status quo, it can’t be read as feminist, but what’s the tip off point ? How many do they have to empower vs. Keeping others dependant on “saviours” to be read as feminist?

      (This is not an attack on your magnificent comment, I’m purely being rethorical / playing devil’s advocate)

      • Well that’s an interesting point of view!

        My opinion is that the self empowerment narrative is a common story in the larger superhero narrative. In fact, the Super hero often starts out as a disempowered individual – she or he only becomes super later on. Even male superheroes often start off with this narrative: Superman is a snotty farm kid, Batman is an orphaned, ptsd suffering dude, Kamala is a geek girl who is still perceived as the ‘other’ because she’s brown and Muslim (she even assumes the facade of the white Captain Marvel in her first fights).

        In the case of female superheroes, they, unlike male superheroes, struggle as an addition to the burdens of class and race, the burden of femininity in a patriarchal society. I don’t even need to point of how horrible it us for us, zeh LGBTQ PEEPS. Batwoman has been subjected to sexism and homophobia in the military and it has scarred her for life. And it’s true, Kate, awesome as she is, has risen from the systematic oppression society imposes on us gay girls, and that feat in itself is indeed a narrative of self empowerment.

        But does Kate do anything to actually change this corrupted nature of the military? I don’t think she does. In fact, even if she’s a vigilante, shes still on the side of the hegemon – the patriarchal state; Fighting whowever threatens the existence of this patriarchal state. Why doesn’t Batwoman, Super girl, or Ms. Marvel use her powers to dismantle a systematic horror that practically TERRORIZES the citizens that they are all hell bent on defending?

        Because to do so would be anti-hero, like in V for Vendetta. Thus V, an anarchist – and for. Very good reasons – is considered an ANTI-HERO. Which leads us to the next issue then: is it proper to call someone who operates within the state structure – an exploitative capitalist patriarchal neo-Imperial state – a HERO? Isn’t that nefarious? Whose concept of justice are they upholding?

        Even when superheroes actually turn anti government or go against the corrupt structure, they don’t attempt to dismantle it. They just want to rid it of its bad elements despite the fact that the entire damn structure could very well be the problem! Hence in Ironman, Stark goes after American military imperialism, but still continues to be capitalist jerk – when it’s profit oriented, consumerist, and resource hoarding nature that drives the capitalist system which makes imperialism an outcome of capitalism (you gotta have that oil,the raw materials, and the cheap labor to build factories! ) . In fact, government antagonisms in superhero narratives is so frustratingly limited to MILITARY INTERVENTION OR WAR, it ignores the more insidious and far more sinister nature of the evils of imperialism by governments – that of NEO IMPERIALISM in the form of control of the economies of the poor developing world. Incredible Hulk RUNS AWAY FROM THE imperialist government that wants to use him as a war weapon. Do not even get me started on Batman.

        The empowerment of the Super hero and her struggle to become the hero that she, is too agency related, too individualistic.

        So while I agree with you that her self empowerment appears to be part of the larger feminist narrative, I think it is a ‘false’ form of empowerment. Because there can be no empowerment of the individual without any structural change.

        The moment Batwoman takes off her costume, she’s still going to be treated like the second class citizen that the rotten patriarchal system deems her to be. So the ’empowered’ self, is a false self.

        I don’t think it’s a matter of empowering a handful, or hundreds, even thousands, of fellow women. What matters is the superheros’ treatment of the structures that she, as an agent, operates in along with other characters similarly situated as her in terms of sex, gender, race, class, and yes, her being an lgbtq person.

        I think then that the superhero narrative DEPOLITICISES liberation and empowerment for the women. Hence, the Super hero narrative is not feminist.

        • God this is the best catnip, your comment is wonderful and smart and I wish I could have a real live conversation with you about it.

          I love how you sum it up as depoliticising empowerment, But you’re also talking about structure and superstructures (capitalism, military industry complex). What about microstructures? Can these female superhero not be symbols of micro-acts of feminism? Or are you saying that there can be no feminist ACT if it doesn’t go explicitly against capitalism/the greater structure of society?

          I’m thinking back to debates I’ve read on Beyonce’s legacy as a feminist, and I remember reading a few commenters here criticizing her forstill upholding capitalism/her feminism only being about making money, and people replied that as a WOC, her making this much money WAS a radical act in itself because capitalism was also made for white people on the back of people of color.

          So in the same vein, could we see these female superheros as feminist icons if we think about what in their narratives can be read as radical ? (which I am not even sure exists as I don’t know enough about these comic books).

          Again thank you so much for your amazing comments, I know I would totally read an essay arguing this !!!

          • Aw gosh. I would love to hang out with you too! Yeah, American comic books are pretty difficult to follow because they just run for AGES and are pretty inconsistent in their plots and even in their characterizations. That’s why I’m glad Autostraddle has a column for comics! They give good recommendations

            Hmm… These are tough questions that I myself am still grasping with.

            Indeed, what constitutes a feminist act? Or in the realm of super heroes, what constitutes feminist heroism? Chloe, I confess that I am very careful with labeling things as feminist, because neoliberal subversion and patriarchal subversion of feminist ideas and principles is rampant. Indeed,

          • *this is a continuation of my reply. I accidentally pressed the send button

            Patriarchy is organic; it changes shape. Ages ago, it was chivalry, a century later it was to protect women from black men, and now it’s the suffering of the world’s boys due to a void in their ‘identity’ (whatever the hell that means). It evolves, inasmuch as the capitalist system (for the two microstructures are so interwoven) evolve: apple does environmental rights these days, McDonald’s ‘cares’ about carcinogens. But they’re still the same oppressive system.

            I think this is best seen in the election of female politicians. Thatcher’s election was labeled as a feminist act. But Thatcher was no feminist. Florence Nightingale also harbored very anti-feminist sentiments, but her image has preceeded her politics it appears. Indeed, Nightingale’s acts have helped open the door for employment in medicine.

            So what makes a feminist act? Id say it would depend on its goal. So if it aims at the structural oppression, then it is feminist. How about if, as with nightingale, it doesn’t aim for female emancipation or equality of the sexes (she just wanted work for women but didn’t want them within the political sphere of Victorian life. She thinks women are weak), but which RESULTS in something feminist, is the act feminist? I say with regard to the latter, it is the end which is feminist, not the act.

            Going back to superheroes, if reading about She Hulk makes the reader want to end slut shaming and kick the patriarchy’s but, then good for the reader. But I still think it doesn’t make She hulkvs narrative a feminist narrative. She’s still a white (err…green?) lawyer, fully capable of physically and mentally challenging the system, but she doesn’t act on it.

            I also think the Beyonce is feminist thing back then was a subversion of black feminism (which practically has socialist feminist roots! So they’ll be about dismantling the capitalists patriarchy, not reinforcing it)

            I’d love to hear all your thoughts about this issue because really, I’m still wondering about the super hero narrative.

  10. Angela: Asgard’s Assassin and Angela: Queen of Hel!!! There are also so many amazing X-Men runs… Magik: Storm & Illyana immediately comes to mind.

  12. I’m a big fan of a lot of these, especially Captain Marvel (clearly), but I’d totally throw a shout out to “Bitch Planet” by DeConnick and Rat Queens.

    Personally, DeConnick is my favorite writer out there right now. =)

    • Oh yeah, Bitch Planet is my favorite non-superhero comic right now. And I also totally love rat queens

      • I seemingly fail at reading comprehension. I didn’t catch the “superhero” part of the list. XD

        I recently canceled all my superhero monthly subscriptions, but DeConnick’s Captain Marvel, Batwoman, and Kamala Khan will always be dear to my heart.

  13. I saw Giant Days on the release list. Could we get a review of that one? I actually just want to know if it has queer characters because I see it all the time at the comic store and I like the art, but for the most part I don’t waste time on comics that aren’t at least a little bit queer.

  14. Batwoman started out so good and ended so terribly when the new writer took over. I’m still mad about that. It’s still a great series overall but those last few issues are not good. I’m glad they’ve at least brought Batwoman back for a series with the rest of the Batfamily.

    I haven’t read Captain Marvel as I’ve always been more of a DC girl but I might just have to check it out. Wasn’t she supposed to get her own movie? Whatever happened to that?

    • Yeah, she is supposed to get a movie, but they’ve pushed back the release date twice, so who even knows

  15. I’m fairly new to comics and this column has been great for recommendations, so thanks for that!

    My favorites so far are Ms. Marvel and Captain Marvel. I actually found myself tearing up at Ms. Marvel, when Kamala finally tells her mother about being Ms. Marvel and her mother just says, “I know.” I often read superhero stories as metaphors for queer stories (having a secret identity, “coming out,” etc.) and this exchange really hit home when read that way. I also enjoyed the first volume of She-Hulk and Young Avengers and have the rest of those series on request from the library. And I’ve been buying the new “Patsy Walker: AKA Hellcat” series (because of Trish Walker on the Jessica Jones Netflix series, not gonna lie), which is really cute so far.

    On the DC side, I’m a little bit obsessed with Harley Quinn, maybe or maybe not because of Margot Robbie in the upcoming Suicide Squad movie. I haven’t actually read many comics about her, but the first issue of the “Harley’s Little Black Book” series, where she kidnaps Wonder Woman, is the funniest comic I’ve read in my short time as a comics reader.

    Speaking of Wonder Woman – any recommendations for a good series about her? I’ve been told that the most recent WW books are not that good, and am wondering if there is a good one to start with.

    • They were probably talking about the New 52 WW, which I heard was absolutely horrible and had WW and Superman get together romantically and it was so bad that they had to kill that version of superman off.

      But the Rebirth: Wonder Woman that just started is really great, the artwork and story telling is beautiful. And bonus it’s heavily implied that WW has had relationships with women, and Hippolyta and Phillipus might finally be a canon couple!

      I also recommend George Perez and Gail Simone’s run of WW (if you’ve never read any WW comics I think George Perez’s run might be the best place to start it goes in depth about WW origins)

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