Continuing our "Greatest Of" series, we turn our attention to the ladies of the genre, asking simply:
Discussion -- and images! -- to follow.
-
Batgirl/Oracle (Barbara Gordon): Although directly derivative of a male character, over the years Barbara Gordon has evolved into a truly fascinating, independent individual. Not even being paralyzed could crush her spirit, as she continued to fight crime in her identity as the Oracle. It became clear that while her super-heroic identity was based on a man, her identity as a human being was most definitely not. And ultimately, it's what you have inside that determines how great of a hero you are, not what you look like or what powers you have.
-
Hawkgirl: I chose an image of Hawkgirl from the "Justice League Unlimited" series, because that's where I know her the best from. I find it fascinating that the series barely had Hawkman in it at all -- Shayera was her own woman right from the get-go in that universe. Despite basically just having the power of flight, she was often on the front lines, taking down bad guys twice her size and unimaginably stronger with just sheer guts and a handy power mace. She's one of the few female characters who threaten to overturn the dynamic, and make people think maybe the male aspect was named after the woman.
-
Invisible Woman: On the one hand, the old bromide about the only female character on the FF having the power to be unseen fitting right in with a woman's proper role has merit. I mean, you can't get much more stereotypical than a woman who can only hide and have defensive powers. On the other hand, as time went on Sue definitely grew into a much more assertive, interesting, and independent person. The dynamic of having her be married to a teammate makes for interesting stories, her ongoing flirtation with Namor adds spice, and her increasing command of her frankly devastating powers has made her fascinating to watch.
-
Jean Grey: Name another character on this list who at any time in their career actually wiped out entire galaxies. I didn't think so. From Marvel Girl to Phoenix and every "plain old Jean Grey" stop in between, Jean has always been able to hold her own in a group dominated by mutant men. I think her "Dark Phoenix" storyline probably had the biggest impact on her publishing house of anyone on this list, one of the few adventures to truly count as An Event.
-
Power Girl: The definitive leader in Pinups, I think it's easy to dismiss Power Girl as just another Superman knock-off with giant boobs. Which is good, because that's pretty much what I'm going to do here. If you want to defend her as the Greatest Ever in comments, bring it on!
-
She-Hulk: Again, we have a female character directly based on a better known male. But love him or hate him, John Byrne took her "meta" and elevated her into the upper tier of comics. Smart, gorgeous, and super-strong, she's the best thing in green skin since Kirk hit the pleasure planet.
-
Storm: It's hard enough being a woman in today's world, much less a Black woman, much less a Black mutant woman. But Storm always manages to retain a sense of class and royalty seemingly lacking among a lot of the characters in comics, much less the females. Sexy because of her guts and never-say-die attitude more than for her body, Storm is one of the truly great late-comers to mutantdom.
-
Supergirl: Originally a lame Superman knock-off for girls, Crisis on Infinite Earths helped catapult Supergirl into the group of front-line heroes. Like Wonder Woman, only moreso, she's always had the challenge of trying to differentiate herself from her better-known male template.
-
The Wasp: I've always loved the Wasp because she seems like the only person on the Avengers who ever has fun. It's easy to dismiss her as a fashion-loving spoiled brat, but she's been able to lead the likes of Thor and Iron Man while still retaining her own sense of what she likes and who she is. That's an impressive achievement.
-
Wonder Woman: We all know Wonder Woman was based on Superman, ok? And her early days were, unquestionably, heavily influenced by themes of bondage, submission, and putting women in their place -- break her bracelets and she went wild because women can't be trusted with too much power, it drives them insane. But for good or ill, she's the only one on the list with what I think is an unquestionable place among the Big Hitters of her line. You can say
"Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman" without getting laughed out of the room, a claim I think it'd be hard to make about any other female comics character.
