Gender in speculative fiction
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 1940 in Fiction Houses "Jungle Comics".
Ann Brewster
"Sheena, Queen of the Jungle" quickly became Fiction House's lead heroine and is credited as the first female super-heroine with her own titular comic. Though considered an important milestone for women in comics, Sheena's character is also largely problematic for her depictions of nonwhite characters. More recent versions of the character aim to rectify the character's past by avoiding the "jungle girl" stereotypes and focusing on environmental issues. Brewster was a featured artist in 15 issues of "Sheena", the most she contributed for any one comic book title.