Girls embrace superpowers. They love to fight imaginary criminals and save people just as much as boys do. Last Halloween, my 8-year old granddaughter was Catgirl, a character she created herself. As you can see, she enjoyed being fierce:
Super Kitty Zombie Killer
In addition to being fierce on Halloween, her favorite game when she visits me is playing Super Kitty Zombie Killer. The game goes like this: I use a house phone to call her on my cell phone while she’s in her “office,” which is another upstairs bedroom. I ask (in a shaky voice), “Is this Super Kitty? I have a zombie problem! I think I have zombies under my bed! Please help!” Then I cower in the corner.
“I’ll be right there,” she purrs. She leaps with practiced stealth into the room, jumps around while making ferocious cat-fight sound effects, then proudly slinks out, invisible zombies carried in her mouth the way a cat carries a mouse.
She drew me a quick picture of Super Kitty the other day. That zombie took quite a beating.
DC Comics Creates Girl Superheroes
Yet, just two years ago I remember lamenting the fact that it was hard to find a superhero costume for girls. It seemed little girls were destined to be fairies or princesses. Not very exciting.
Things have sure changed. DC comics has repacked a line of a line of female superheroes just for girls, including Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Batgirl, Harley Quinn, Bumble Bee, Poison Ivy, and Katana. Aren’t they fabulous?
These will be superheros (and villians) in their “formative years, prior to discovering their full super power potential.” Diane Nelson, the president of DC Entertainment calls this part of a long-term strategy to harness the power of our diverse female characters, hoping to “offer relatable and strong role models … just for girls.”
Of course, this will include the full range of products to DC to sell, such as graphic novels, action figures, TV specials, online-only content, toys, and apparel. But that’s okay. What counts is that everyone else is catching up to speed with what we’ve known all along:
Girls are fierce.
Linda K. Sienkiewicz is the award-winning author of In the Context of Love: an empowering story about love, lust, and family secrets.
Angelica Schirrick had always suspected there was something deeply disturbing about her family, but the truth was more than she bargained for.
“Linda K. Sienkiewicz’s powerful and richly detailed debut novel is at once a love story, a cautionary tale, and an inspirational journey. It should be required reading for all wayward teenage girls, and their mothers, too.” ~ Bonnie Jo Campbell, author of National Book Award Finalist, American Salvage, and critically acclaimed Once Upon a River, andMothers, Tell Your Daughters
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