Last weekend was International Women’s Day. The one day a year when all of the pathetic men out there can go on social media and say “er… but when is International Men’s Day?” Yep, you can really see why the patriarchy has thrived for so fucking long, can’t you? It’s such a fun time. Still, the day is always a good excuse to celebrate women and their impact on the world. Reading books by female writers or watching films directed/written by women. This week I’ve been reading the final part in Alexis Marie Chute’s fantasy trilogy. I’ve also been watching some fantastic female superheroes. So, I decided to carry on the comic book theme and discuss some of my top female characters. Most of them will be very obvious because I’m an obvious person and I’ll miss out plenty I’m sure. There are just too many of them!

Ororo Munroe (Storm)

Storm is an absolute legend and one of the most powerful characters in the X-Men series. None of the films have got her quite right but Halle Berry got close in Days of Future Past. She has powers that have, so far, gone unexplored on film. We can only hope that this will happen now that the X-Men are coming to Marvel. Hopefully, she’ll take her rightful place as the wife of Black Panter and rule over Wakanda. She deserves it.

Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk)

She-Hulk is such a great symbol for women. She has the physical strength to (almost) match the Hulk, she has intelligence, she has a sense of humour, and she has an active love life. She’s what would happen is Ally McBeal was funnier and had a run-in with some radiation. She-Hulk also broke the 4th wall well before Deadpool came along. She made her own path and I bloody love her. This upcoming Disney+ series better do her justice… but it definitely won’t.

Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel)

I was excited when it was announced that the Ms. Marvel comic books were coming. When I was still getting a weekly order of comic books through my door, she was one that I couldn’t wait to read. Kamala is important for so many reasons but she’s such a realistic example of a girl. She’s a bit of a geek and struggles to deal with both sides of her life. The comics mix the traditional style of comic books with a more contemporary feel.

Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch)

Want to talk about super-powerful female characters then you can’t really beat Scarlet Witch. Look at what she’s done. She changed the universe and got rid of mutants. Yes, she has her problems but her father is Magneto. She’s hardly had the greatest upbringing. I think that Elizabeth Olsen is perfect to play her on-screen and I’m getting a Disney+ subscription just so I can see WandaVision.

Barbara Gordon (Batgirl/Oracle)

Babs. What a gal. As Batgirl she was a phenomenon and did some great things. After being injured by the Joker, she didn’t let her disabilities stop her. Becoming Oracle meant that she could continue helping Batman and use her other skills to keep people safe. It’s no wonder that the daughter of Commissioner Gordon is such a legend. Barbara is an inspirational female character who shows tenacity and the strength to carry on against the odds.

Gwen Stacey (Spider-Gwen)

The best thing to come out of the Spider-Verse series of comic books was definitely Spider-Gwen. An alternate reality where Gwen Stacey was bitten by the radioactive spider and had to deal with superpowers. In this universe, Peter Parker injects himself with a homemade formula he hopes will make him special. Instead, he ends up dead and Spider-Gwen is branded a killer. She’s fab and I’m glad that Into The Spiderverse made everyone see that.

Harleen Quinzel (Harley Quinn)

How could I not include her? I know that there are some great female villains/heroes in the Batman series but Harley Quinn is basically the Queen of them all. She is crazy but weirdly relatable. Her backstory is tragic but she’s super ballsy. The fact that she wasn’t meant to be this popular. Harley is imperfect and changeable. It’s no wonder women have warmed to her.