If Not Wonder Woman...Then Who?

[RoJoHen]

I guess what I was getting at with my post is the Marvel has more female characters that I would be interested in seeing having solo projects, not so much that they already have popular solo female characters. Ms. Marvel, for instance, I would love to see developed as a solo franchise, or at least introduced in the next Avengers movie. I think Marvel has some fantastic female characters that have a lot of potential to be far more popular then they are.

 

[Christopher]

^Ms. Marvel is called Captain Marvel these days, and she's got a solo title that's apparently been quite well-received critically, though I'm not sure how it's selling.

 

[RoJoHen]

Well, good. Honestly, if they don't introduce her in any of the movies, she sounds like a great character to include in the new SHIELD TV show.

 

[Professor Zoom]

^Ms. Marvel is called Captain Marvel these days, and she's got a solo title that's apparently been quite well-received critically, though I'm not sure how it's selling.

it IS a great book. Sadly, I've heard rumblings it's going to be cancelled. Sales...

 

[Hound of UIster]

It's already past the magic cancellation number. So unless Ultron War boosts sales, it's a goner.

Fearless Defenders won't make it past 20 issues.

 

[Greg Cox]

You know, Mystique might have movie potential. A shape-changing mutant spy could work, especially since the character is very familiar to movie audiences at this point.

 

[Nerys Myk]

^Ms. Marvel is called Captain Marvel these days, and she's got a solo title that's apparently been quite well-received critically, though I'm not sure how it's selling.

it IS a great book. Sadly, I've heard rumblings it's going to be cancelled. Sales...

I've found it to be poorly written. Not too keen on DeConnick's Avenger's Assembled either.

 

[stj]

I can acknowledge that Whedon was at least trying to do something interesting with Black Widow. Unfortunately it didn't work. Nolan's didn't even try to do anything with Catwoman, she just falls for Batman. Most of the other females mentioned in the thread are unfamiliar or were never very good characters.

It seems to me that an original is the most likely and the most desirable. But an original has the same problem as Wonder Woman adaptations. Hot chick playing badass because it's sexy, or a real woman who might appeal to female audiences? The fear, irrational or not, that real women won't get the boys in, will make an acceptable script a really tough call for Hollywood.

Since it's so tough, shouldn't an indie production tackle it? Maybe they could go dark, like a boy stumbles onto a magic ring that gives him superpowers...and breasts.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Hmm, I thought Catwoman was shown to be quite capable, played men's preconceptions against them, and even took out the big heavy. She was a hottie, yeah, but Christian Bale doesn't look like the average guy either.

 

[JD]

And she strikes me as Marvel's equivalent to Wonder Woman.

Ever since I became familiar with the characters, I've thought of Ms./Capt. Marvel as Marvel's equivalent to Wonder Woman.

 

[Hound of UIster]

I can acknowledge that Whedon was at least trying to do something interesting with Black Widow. Unfortunately it didn't work. Nolan's didn't even try to do anything with Catwoman, she just falls for Batman. Most of the other females mentioned in the thread are unfamiliar or were never very good characters.

Nolan just doesn't understand Batman period as TDKR demonstrates. The same goes for Whedon and the Avengers, but at least Whedon had the bare bones of Millar's Ultimates story to work from.

 

[C.E. Evans]

I can acknowledge that Whedon was at least trying to do something interesting with Black Widow. Unfortunately it didn't work.

I believe it did work for the majority of move-goers, especially for those not familiar with geek culture.

 

[stj]

Well, a woman in her twenties who has been a Shield agent for some years after other years when she was a Russian assassin must have started her career in murder when she was twelve? And this was supposed to be in the new democratic Russia too, when the main people being attacked were Chechens. Or was Yeltsin's secret imperialist assault on the West foiled by Shield before it got into the papers?

I don't know is the Romanov story actually contributed to the popularity of the Avengers movie or not. I suspect the spectacle and some one liners did far more. But it is painfully obvious that it shouldn't have. Wasn't the most crowd thrilling moment for her when she was called a "mewling quim," which is Whedon-speak for "whining cunt?" Speaks for itself, I think.

 

[Thestral]

Well, actually about 30 seconds later.

And her recruitment as a child was established when she went to enlist Banner, yeah.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Black Widow and Banner were the two break-out characters in the movie I watched. I have a suspicion that many other people saw something similar.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Well, a woman in her twenties who has been a Shield agent for some years after other years when she was a Russian assassin must have started her career in murder when she was twelve? And this was supposed to be in the new democratic Russia too, when the main people being attacked were Chechens. Or was Yeltsin's secret imperialist assault on the West foiled by Shield before it got into the papers?

I don't know is the Romanov story actually contributed to the popularity of the Avengers movie or not. I suspect the spectacle and some one liners did far more. But it is painfully obvious that it shouldn't have. Wasn't the most crowd thrilling moment for her when she was called a "mewling quim," which is Whedon-speak for "whining cunt?" Speaks for itself, I think.

I think the majority of people saw a different movie than you did.

Black Widow and Banner were the two break-out characters in the movie I watched. I have a suspicion that many other people saw something similar.

Essentially this.

 

[Guy Gardener]

In an Uncanny X-men comic, 256ish (1990)... Back when Jim Lee was just beginning and Claremont was really on form... It's 1942 when Captain America meets Wolverine in Mandipoor while fighting Ninja's to see who can be in control of a 6 year old Kung-fu prodigy named Natasha Romanov.

She called Wolverine "Uncle Logan" from time to time but I wonder if there was some transitional period ever where she had to phase out the name "Uncle Steve"?

Natasha either had some Russian version of Nick Fury's Infinity Formula, or like her boyfriend "Bucky" she might have spent decades in suspended animation while she wasn't in use by the state... But as far as the comics are concerned, the Black Widow was conceived in the 1930s.

(Spider-Woman too, but that's a completely stranger story indeed.)

 

[intrinsical]

My idea is probably going to sound strange since she did not start out as a comic book superheroine, but if you want a silver screen superheroine that the masses can accept, I say look no farther than Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Not the teenage Buffy who protected Sunnydale, but Buffy in her mid-thirties or early forties. Buffy the longest surviving vampire slayer, a mature and confident leader. The advantage is that masses already know her, a portion of the current generation of women has grown up with her as a role model, and she has an entourage of BFFs which I consider as crucial for a super heroine.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Longest surviving?

Buffy died twice.

On my hard drive I have three Disney Cinderella Cartoon movies.

In the third one she uses fairy magic to go back in time.

 

[Hound of UIster]

Natasha either had some Russian version of Nick Fury's Infinity Formula, or like her boyfriend "Bucky" she might have spent decades in suspended animation while she wasn't in use by the state... But as far as the comics are concerned, the Black Widow was conceived in the 1930s.

The Black Widow project was conceived during the Cold War. She was given the Infinity Formula by the Winter Soldier not long after the Claremont story.