Sunday, February 23, 2020

Superheroines: An Appreciation


This post is going to be similar to one I did a while back on asexual characters, though it won’t be as exhaustive (the media I consume has more superheroines than asexuals, so I’m not going to attempt a complete list.) Today, I’m celebrating female heroines, mostly those with powers, along with a few costumed vigilantes who don’t have any, talking about what makes them special to me.

Natasha Romanoff a.k.a. Black Widow

She’s not the first female superhero I ever saw onscreen – the X-Men came first for me – but she’s the first that I really connected with, the first that it made me feel empowered to watch. Though Natasha hasn’t always been treated well by the MCU, I love her sick fighting skills, her solidness and determination, and the way she balances both pragmatism and heroism. It may be coming way too late, but I can’t deny that the first trailer for Black Widow got me excited.
Daisy Johnson a.k.a. Quake

I wasn’t huge fan of Skye in season 1, but seeing her go through Terrigenesis and discover her Inhuman powers, as well as learn her family history and reclaim her real name, is really neat. The TV format allows the space to show a really difficult adjustment period, more than a typical origin story would have room for in a movie. It’s great to watch Daisy go from being afraid of her own power to harnessing it.
Jessica Jones

Peggy Carter was the first comic-book heroine I saw headlining her own show (as usual when it comes to representation, TV was ahead of movies by a mile,) but Jessica was the first superheroine. Name in the title, protagonist with powers and inner demons – I devoured the first season like I’d been in a desert and didn’t know it. It’s fascinating to see Jessica wrestle with her trauma and fight back against the superpowered predator (just thinking about Kilgrave still makes my skin crawl) who violated her.

Wanda Maximoff a.k.a. The Scarlet Witch

This is a smaller role than most of the characters in this post, but I still love me some Wanda. Her shift from villain to ally in Avengers: Age of Ultron is one of my favorite parts of that movie, and I love seeing her come to terms with the implications of her tremendous power and how others see her as a result of that. “I can’t control their fear, only my own.” Amazing! I have no idea what WandaVision is going to have in store for us, but I’m eager to find out.

Kara Danvers a.k.a. Supergirl

Oh, my wonderful Kara. I love them all, but she’s my favorite. Her motto is “Hope, Help, and Compassion for All,” she’s known from the start that she can’t do this without her friends by her side, she loves movie nights and potstickers, and she never backs down from a fight. She’s my superhero, 100%.
Kamala Khan a.k.a. Ms. Marvel

The initial Winter Soldier story in Captain America was the first superhero comic I ever read, but Ms. Marvel was the first comic where I started at the beginning and followed it along (and in turn followed Kamala to other comics like The Totally Awesome Hulk.) Kamala is such a great teen superhero. Her powers are so interesting, and I love that she’s a total superhero fangirl who’s developed powers of her own. Her comic has put her through the wringer, but she always manages to keep going.

Diana Prince a.k.a. Wonder Woman

The first female-led superhero movie I ever saw. I love Diana’s warmth and belief in goodness just as much as I love her strength and fierce fight for justice. I bawled in the theater when she walked across No Man’s Land, not realizing how badly I needed to see a scene like that until that movie was made. I love Natasha and Wanda, and heroines can absolutely shine in supporting roles, but Wonder Woman is Diana’s movie, and there’s something about that that’s just special.

Valkyrie

I love a good disgraced-samurai-style character arc, and Valkyrie has a good one, magnified by her Asgardian longevity. Once among Asgard’s most legendary warriors, she left her home after losing everything and has tried to drown herself in drink ever since. There’s a lot to love about Thor: Ragnarok, but seeing Valkyrie slowly come out of her stupor and rediscover her honor ranks very highly on the list.

Gwen Stacy a.k.a. Spider-Gwen

This one’s kind of a twofer. I was first introduced to Spider-Gwen in comic form through The Edge of Spider-Verse, then enjoyed the heck out of her in the kickass animated film Into the Spider-Verse, which gave me a nudge to go further into her comic story. I like that she’s kind of a mess and still figuring things out. She may not be as damaged as Jessica Jones or Valkyrie, but she’s dealing with some serious personal crap while at the same time trying to save lives, and that’s admirable.

Carol Danvers a.k.a. Captain Marvel

Wow, do I love me some Carol! Totally focused on getting the job done with determination for days, but also dryly sarcastic and clearly in love with her powers. Seeing her really unleash in her first movie is so, so satisfying, and I really can’t wait to see what happens next for her.

Anissa Pierce a.ka. Thunder

I love Jen too, but she’s still very much in-process on her superhero journey, while Anissa is far more on her way. In addition to fighting to keep the streets safe as Thunder, Black Lightning’s right hand, she also does heavier vigilante freedom-fighter work under the name Blackbird. Two heroes for the price of one! I love how gung-ho she is about jumping into superhero work to start with (raiding a fetish shop for costume ideas, hehe!), and it’s cool to see her fight to make own name for herself separate from what her dad is doing.

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