Portrayal of women in American comics
The first known female superhero is writer-artist Fletcher Hanks's minor character Fantomah, an ageless, ancient Egyptian woman in the modern day who could transform into a skull-faced creature with superpowers to fight evil; she debuted in Fiction House's "Jungle Comics" #2 (Feb. 1940), credited to the pseudonymous "Barclay Flagg". The first widely recognizable female superhero is "Wonder Woman", from All-American Publications, one of three companies that would merge to form DC Comics. In an October 25, 1940, interview conducted by former student Olive Byrne (under the pseudonym 'Olive Richard') and published in "Family Circle", titled "Don't Laugh at the Comics", William Moulton Marston described what he saw as the great educational potential of comic books (a follow up article was published two years later in 1942.) This article caught the attention of comics publisher Max Gaines, who hired Marston as an educational consultant for National Periodicals and All-American Publications, two of the companies that would merge to form the future DC Comics. At that time, Marston decided to develop a new superhero. In the early 1940s the DC line was dominated by superpowered male characters such as the Green Lantern, Batman, and its flagship character, Superman. According to the Fall 2001 issue of the Boston University alumni magazine, it was his wife Elizabeth Hollowy's idea to create a female superhero. Marston introduced the idea to Max Gaines, cofounder (along with Jack Liebowitz) of All-American Publications. Given the go-ahead, Marston developed "Wonder Woman" with Elizabeth (whom Marston believed to be a model of that era's unconventional, liberated woman). In creating Wonder Woman, Marston was also inspired by Olive Byrne, who lived with the couple in a polygamous/polyamorous relationship. In a 1943 issue of "The American Scholar", Marston wrote:
Electra Woman and Dyna Girl (web series)
Electra Woman and Dyna Girl are powerless superheroes in Akron, Ohio. They get discovered by CMM (Creative Masked Management) after a video of them taking down two robbers in a convenience store goes viral. They drive to Los Angeles and take the deal, working with their agent, Dan, to enhance their image and power. They meet Frank, the engineer that created their suits and gear. They fight bank robbers outside of a news studio, gaining more publicity. They deal with Major Vaunt, a superhero with a huge ego, and he and his ego ultimately gets killed by the first supervillain, the Empress of Evil, since the Shadow War. After a fight between Electra Woman and Dyna Girl, the Empress of Evil kidnaps Dyna Girl and Electra Woman has to save her. They find out that the Empress of Evil is their annoying neighbour, Bernice, from back in Ohio. With the help of Frank, Electra Woman and Dyna Girl escapes the kidnapping and prepare to fight the Empress of Evil. Frank reveals the secret project he has been working on, the Electra Car. Electra Woman and Dyna Girl face the Empress of Evil for a real fight in the streets of Los Angeles. The two defeats the Empress of Evil with a peanut from a fruit stand, remembering that Bernice has a peanut allergy.