13 Greatest Female Comic Book Characters in History
From trouble-making kids like Nancy to fashionistas like Katy Keene to superheroines like Wonder Woman, powerful, compelling, and entertaining female protagonists appeared in comic storylines for the first time in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Although there have been continued missteps since the first appearance of women in comics, there are still many fabulous femmes who grace the pages of the medium
Read on to check out the greatest female comic book characters in history (or should I say herstory)? Let’s get started!
13. Michael Burnham (IDW Publishing)
Conceived by Star Trek: Discovery co-creator Bryan Fuller in homage to Nichelle Nichols’ cultural impact (see: “The Uhura Effect“), the first human to attend the Vulcan Learning Center and Vulcan Science Academy turned mutineer xeno-anthropologist turned starship captain and Federation diplomat Michael Burnham, Jr., played by Sonequa Martin-Green, was the show’s main character, being the only character to appear in every episode of the series. Although Burnham’s onscreen story ended with season 5, fans of the franchise’s first black captain who desire to learn more about her can always check out the comics published by IDW.
12. Jen (Fantagraphics)
Simon Hanselmann’s Megg, Mogg, and Owl graphic novels often top the bestseller list, having a large, dedicated fandom because of the creator’s unapologetic social commentary and diverse cast of less-than-perfect queer characters, including multiple trans femme characters: Desi, an equality-minded child with an addict, sexaholic father; Booger, a cute underwear obsessed trans femme; and Jen, an unapologetically flawed non-passing trans woman who doesn’t have any reservations about expressing her perspective on herself or anything else. In the story’s pandemic-era entry, Crisis Zone, Jen truly shines for her notable, unapologetic decision to live authentically as herself after the passing of her unaccepting mother.
11. Katy Keene (Archie Comics)
Created by American illustrator Bill Woggon, Archie Comics’ fashionista/model, actress, and singer Katy Keene debuted in 1945’s Wilbur Comics #5, published by MLJ Magazines (subsequently renamed Archie Comics). A 21-year-old Bettie Page look-alike, Archie marketed the initially minor character as “America’s Queen of Pin-Ups and Fashions,” who, by 1949, was popular enough to headline her own series, which ran for 12 years until 1961.
Woggon’s unique call to fans to submit their ideas for Katy’s fashionable looks and commitment to including those designs in issues of the comic established a large, loyal fanbase, including notable fashion designers Anna Sui and Betsy Johnson. Since the ’60s, Archie has revived America’s Dream Girl several times, most notably in 2020 for The CW’s Katy Keene.
10. Tomie (Viz Media LLC)
Thanks to Junji Ito’s accessible, approachable demeanor at 2019’s Toronto Comic Arts Festival (his first North American appearance) and Crunchyroll Expo (his first US convention appearance), the Eisner Award-winning master of horror manga has become a household name. The manga-ka, known for his grotesque imagery and profound analysis of human nature, has significantly influenced the horror genre worldwide. But it all started with Ito’s first published work, the psychological horror masterpiece Tomie, about a beautiful succubus with the ability to enter men into killing or dismembering her.
9. Fantomah (Lev Gleason)
Because of the different definitions of a “superhero,” two fictional women are arguably deserving of the first female superhero title: Sheena and Fantomah. Although Guinness World Records acknowledges this debate, it declares that “the first female character to appear in print as a superhero” was the shape-shifting Egyptian princess Fantomah, AKA the “Mystery Woman of the Jungle,” who defended the African jungles from poachers and slave traders, created by Fletcher Hanks/Barclay Flagg for Jungle Comics #2, published in February 1940 by Fiction House.
8. Ms. Marvel (Marvel Comics)
Although the Big Two’s early efforts to introduce BIPOC characters often slipped into exoticizing clichés and many BIPOC-led projects were short-lived, Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel, represented a diverse, new direction for mainstream comics when she debuted in 2014. Created by Sana Amanat, Stephen Wacker, G. Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona, and Jamie McKelvie, the Jersey City, New Jersey-raised Pakistani-American teen became the first Muslim character to headline an ongoing Marvel series (and, though individual issues of the series don’t top best-seller lists, her trade paperback volumes do).
The Ms. Marvel series explores Kamala’s internal struggles with the Islamic faith and the identity-based labels imposed on her, not only as a Muslim girl but also as a fresh-faced Inhuman with embiggening abilities who was given Carol Danvers previous superhero moniker, Ms. Marvel, in honor of the character’s superhero idol (who is also the frequent subject of Kamala’s fan fiction).
7. Sailor Moon (Kodansha Comics)
First printed from 1991 to 1997 in the Kodansha magazine Nakayoshi, Naoko Takeuchi’s award-winning shōjo manga series Sailor Moon is about the quintessential magical girl, a middle-school student named Usagi Tsukino, who, after befriending a talking black cat named Luna, is given a magical broach that gives her the ability to transform into the manga’s titular guardian of Earth.
A year after its debut, one of the best-selling manga series of all time (having sold over 46 billion copies worldwide and $2 billion worth of merchandise) was picked up for an animated adaptation by Toei Animation, adding to the character’s universal appeal. Across animation and comics, the character has had a significant impact worldwide, inspiring numerous creators.
6. Misty (Rebellion)
Originating in the 1950s success of D.C. Thomson’s Bunty, one of the best-selling and longest running comics aimed at girls with 800,000 readers per week at the height of its popularity, UK publishers invested in a couple decades of comics innovation targeting young, female readers. In the 1980s, UK publisher Rebellion decided to try to resurrect the girls comics trend with its horror anthology series, Misty, the name of the Raven-haired beauty who hosted the sinister extravaganza of dark stories that often saw characters dealing with and overcoming a lot of hardship.
Although Misty’s initial run (the character was revived in 2024 by icons Gail Simone and Tula Lotay) was short-lived, being published from 1978 to 1980, the Misty anthology foreshadowed things to come. It significantly influenced future creators, leading to even more innovation in the girls comics market Despite her limited originating run, the character demonstrated that comics appeal as much to girls as they do boys.
5. Scarlet Witch (Marvel Comics)
First appearing in 1964’s X-Men #4, Wanda Maximoff, AKA Scarlet Witch, initially debuted as a reluctant villain and member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Chaos-magic wielding character joined the Avengers only a few years following her initial debut, making her a long-standing and integral member of Marvel Comics’ flagship superhero team.
While she’s saved Earth using her witchcraft, she has had a difficult time being accepted by the rest of the publisher’s superhero roster. Like many witchy women (see: Agatha Harkness), she has been unfairly maligned by her male counterparts as too powerful for her own good, making her a threat to humanity (though, it’s really just their fragile male egos). However, the currently ongoing Scarlet Witch run has finally put the master of probability in her proper place as one of the Marvel Universe’s strongest.
4. La Borinqueña (Somos Arte)
Named after Puerto Rico’s national anthem and wearing a Puerto Rican flag-inspired costume, La Borinqueña is the commonwealth’s first superhero. Created by Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez, La Borinqueña’s powers come from the Taíno gods of her Puerto Rican ancestors. Recognizing the character as a groundbreaking addition to the genre, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History added a La Borinqueña costume to the Superheroes exhibition in 2019, making her the only independently created and published character displayed at the exhibit about American comic books and graphic novels influence on Western culture.
Another groundbreaking character from the creatives behind the seminal La Borinqueña who is worth checking out (if you can find copies of her debut book) is the first comic heroine with endometriosis, making her most significant battle a fight with her own uterus, not the rogues’ gallery of villainous enemies that she’s acquired. With one in ten people assigned female at birth diagnosed with chronic and painful conditions, Lúz La Luminosa is a step forward in female representation in comics.
3. Wonder Woman (DC Comics)
Princess Diana of Themyscira, AKA Wonder Woman, debuted in 1941’s All-Star Comics #8 by H.G. Peters and William Moulton Marston, whose wife Elizabeth Holloway convinced him to write a female heroine about a liberated woman, based on the couple’s polyamorous life partner, Olive Byrne. Although a man created Wonder Woman, he wanted the character to be a political hero known for more than her model-like good looks. Thus, the Amazonian princess, a founding member of the Justice League who teaches her teammates about a progressive feminist agenda, is one of the most popular female superheroes to date, having been adapted for radio, television, and film.
2. Miss Fury (IDW Publishing)
Although women characters were regularly found in early American newspaper comic strips, the panther-suit-clad adventurer Marla Drake, AKA Miss Fury, was the only Golden Age costumed heroine. Created by one of the first significant woman cartoonists, June Tarpé Mills (writing under her gender-neutral middle name to conceal her sex), the Sunday strip Miss Fury was about a Nazi-fighting heroine whose suit gave her cat-like powers. Appearing in newspapers from 1941 to 1952, millions read the strip weekly at its height, even voting it a Chicago Sun fan-favorite. Notably, Miss Fury is the first female superhero created by a woman.
1. Nancy (Andrews McMeel Publishing)
Dedicated to the art of the Perfect Gag, Fritizi Ritz’s niece Nancy has appeared in American newspapers for almost 100 years. Created by Ernie Bushmiller in 1933, Nancy has been a popular comic strip for decades, though it hasn’t always been taken seriously by critics, the character is now considered one of the medium’s most influential characters, with Bushmiller being lauded for his craft and humor. After Bushmiller passed in 1982, other cartoonists took over the strip, but Nancy’s current rise in popularity is thanks to Olivia Jaimes (a pseudonym), who became the first woman to write and illustrate the classic and seminal metafiction strip in 2018.
(featured image: Andrews McMeel Publishing, Archie Comics, DC Comics, Marvel Comics, IDW Publishing)
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