Hope Nicholson chronicles the superwomen of comic book history.
HOPE NICHOLSON CHRONICLES THE FEMALE COMICS HEROES YOU KNOW AND MANY MORE THAT YOU DON’T
The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen: Awesome Female Characters from Comic Book History By Hope Nicholson Quirk Books 240 pp; $ 26.95
Imagine the daunting prospect of going through a museum that covers the history of women and feminism ( or lack thereof ) in comics. You don’t know where to go, or where to start. The emergence of independent publishing and wider representation in webcomics? The soap opera stylings of the romance comics genre? The dichotomy of the all- powerful superheroes and stereotypical damsels- in- distress? What about—?
Then a guide appears, and with a wink and a smile, says, “Want a special tour? Follow me.”
Your guide is author Hope Nicholson, publisher of Winnipeg- based Bedside Press, and your personal tour culminates with The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen: Awesome Female Characters from Comic Book History. Nicholson, a fangirl and historian who organized the Prairie Comics festival in Winnipeg, has dedicated her career to developing new comics works and new talent. While Spectacular Sisterhood does not pretend to be a final, comprehensive look at females in comics, Nicholson celebrates strong female protagonists in all forms. Popular heroes and the lesserknown women lost to history are articulated with pinpoint precision in this collection. The author also highlights some uniquely Canadian characters such as the eponymous Survivalwoman by Margaret Atwood (Nicholson is a consulting editor for Atwood’s graphic novel series Angel Catbird).
Whether feminist icons, damsels in distress, or victims of the male gaze, the superwomen profiled here are products of their time: the women you, your parents and great- grandparents, may have enjoyed. Honestly and respectfully represented, with featured artwork to match, they are reflections and celebrations of the potential and progress — even including the “one step forward, two steps back” type of progress — of feminism and women in comics.
The book is organized by decade, from the 1930’s to the present, each highlighting a particular icon and featuring a decade- specific introduction that lays the groundwork for understanding the roles of women as writers, artists and editors, and the comics culture that created these characters. What makes this tour unique and of a quality far beyond a basic “top comics characters” listicle, is the care with which Nicholson treats each of these signifying women, and the author’s understanding of the times in which they were developed. These women are not always perfect, and that’s what makes them perfect for this book.
With a tongue- in- cheek, conversational style with which Nicholson’s readers and social media followers are already familiar, she highlights 100 heroes ( and not- quite- heroes), unafraid to address the characteristics that might make a modern- day feminist cringe. There’s Starlight, featuring a Huron warrior with a strong personality but still a vague depiction of multiple indigenous cultures, nonetheless celebrated for its representation of one of the few native characters in all of comics history. Pauline Peril is a dim journalist and daddy’s girl who is constantly put in danger by her editor because she’s next in line for his job, but at least she’s surrounded by other dim- witted characters, too. Barbarella’s uniqueness as a character is often overshadowed by conversations about her sexuality as its own object, rather than her character’s embrace of sexuality.
The history uncovers genre tropes but treats them with care. Heroines of the past might have been nurses — so many nurses! — trying to find love and get ahead in their careers. Move over, Betty and Veronica: the blond/ brunette frenemy trope existed well before they came on the scene. While betterknown characters such as Brenda Starr from the syndicated newspaper comic strip aren’t featured, you’ ll discover new tales of intrepid Girl Fridays who paved the path or deviated from it. Meet Friday Foster, an adventurous black female photographer whose life in print was short-lived but inspired a 1975 film. Then there are females as marketing devices: Marvel’s Dazzler may originally have been conceived as a pop music crossover character, but has still made her mark in the publisher’s history.
Spectacular Sisterhood caters to the curious and encourages the reader to continue exploring beyond the book, providing tips on where to find collections or single issues for further reading.
Nicholson manages in brief to call out what makes each character instantly appealing, or at worst, sadly fascinating. Discovering that these stories are out of print ( RIP, Ultra Violet, Sindi Shade and others), can lead even a casual comics reader to wonder if they know a friend of a friend who just might have a dusty collection hidden in their attic containing little known gems Nicholson decided to shine under a light.
The profiles in Spectacular Sisterhood can be read as a stand- alones in random order, but the real joy comes from reading the book like a comic itself, absorbing each of the decades and their profiles sequentially. This curation is the highlight of Nicholson’s storytelling, and it builds a momentum that buoys our current decade with the hope of even more awesome superwomen to come.