Women of Marvel: Celebrating Seven Decades

Women of Marvel (Collected Editions)

by Cory Levine

Collection of tales showcasing Marvel's most powerful women, including Firestar, Namora, Dazzler, Pepper Potts, Lady Deadpool, Valkyrie, Sif, Spitfire, X-23, Galacta, Medusa, Enchantress, the Black Cat, Satana, Shanna the She-Devil, Invisible Woman, Songbird, and the Savage She-Hulk.

Contains material originally published in magazine form as Firestar #1, Lady Deadpool #1, Namora #1, Valkyrie #1, Rescue #1, SIF #1, Spitfire #1, X-23 #1, Galacta #1, Dazzler #1 and Women of Marvel #1-2

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics

344 pages, Paperback

First published November 17, 2010

Reviews

[Jenn]

This was a pretty enjoyable read. There were some parts that bothered me by means of sexism, however I got over it upon reminding myself that those certain parts were written a long time ago when it was very common. I also wasn't very fond of the few romance comics that this graphic novel contained. But other than that, I had fun reading "Women of Marvel." For the most part, it had a lot of characters that I have either now learned about or learned more than I previously knew about. Overall, not a bad read at all.

[Brenda]

It was fun reading Marvel stories from seven decades.  Although, since artwork is one of the biggest reasons I read comics, I have to say I'm glad to see the artwork evolve so much.  This is a great collection, and I always love seeing women featured in comics because it just doesn't happen enough.

Full review here: http://marvelreader.blogspot.com/2011...

[Colleen]

I had expected a book of essays (due to not taking a close look in the Half-Price before snapping it up); what I got was full reprints of seminal (and ... not so seminal) issues of Marvel comics which introduce or illustrate female characters.

Once I adjusted to this, I really enjoyed it. As a reader who came in to comics in the 90s, it was great to be able to see some of the earlier moments in Marvel without having to buy innumerable TPBs. Other than that, however, there's not much I can say about this volume. It doesn't provide a lot of information about the comics themselves, nor about Marvel's editorial directions during the years. If you enjoy older comics and have gaps in your collection, this is a nice "flight" of comics. If you're looking for something more coherent, you'd probably be better off hunting down the TPBs or subscribing to Marvel Unlimited.

(But seriously ... Black Widow had a partner named Boris? Someone thought that was a good idea? Oh, comics, never change.)

[Samra]

Great collection. I was exposed to many amazing ladies and their stories.

[Jax]

Boy, some of those romance 1950's female lead comics were just...wow. yeah. i'm so glad i wasn't alive back then.

[Megan]

If ever there was a comic compilation to give five stars to, this would be it! As a female and a comic book fan, you come to know that most comics are geared towards young males and that there are far fewer female super heroes than male super heroes. However, this collection celebrates the Women of Marvel and spotlights many of the comic powerhouse's most beloved female super heroes, as well as giving us some looks at the super heroes and women driven comics of yesteryear. You get to relive some of these women's best moments from Jean Grey using the Phoenix Force in the M'Kraan Crystal to the introductions of Black Widow and Mary Jane Watson.

I believe there are two other anthologies in this series and if they are anything like this one, I'm going to be picking up copies as soon as possible! I'd definitely recommend Women of Marvel to other female comic fans who like to read about empowering female super heroes. I'd also recommend this to the general comic book fan who likes to collect things of this nature. Lastly, I'd definitely recommend it to those who are curious about comics and want a sort of primer into the genre. This anthology picks the best of the best, and so it would be an easy starting point for all who are interested. Plus, it gives a taste of several different series (X-Men, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Fantastic Four, etc.) so a newbie could get a feel for the styles of different comics.

Five stars all around for this one. It's a definite pick up!

[Nico]

This was great because I'm having to re-learn basically EVERYTHING over again and this showed the beginnings of a lot of the major characters; as well as (re)introducing me to some of the characters I had forgotten and LOVED being reminded of. I am, of course, talking about X-23 AKA Laura AKA Wolverine's Clone/Daughter/Sister. Whatever they are, I loved their relationship, and I'm definitely going read that whole series as soon as I can get my hands on it (WHY DOES THE LIBRARY REFUSE TO CATALOGUE COMIC BOOKS SO I HAVE TO AIMLESSLY GO FROM LIBRARY TO LIBRARY IN HOPES I FIND THE RIGHT ONES?!?!) *sigh* Alright, now back to the land of reality, I also liked seeing some older comics just to mix it up a little. Also, STAN LEE. I forgot how epic this guy is.

Overall, this was one that had some great comics, and some ones I just skipped over because they either had little to no plot development, or they just couldn't hold my ever-shrinking attention span. Not bad Marvel, not bad.

[I would not be the proud female I truly am if I didn't give a little shout out to feminism *throws confetti in the air for female geeks+nerds+comic lovers everywhere*]

[Jaq]

Oh how far and yet not so far have we come in the race to equality. From the time when an independent broad was deemed to be dangerous, to the now modern super heroes (whose busts just seem to be getting bigger and bigger???)this collection of comics is an interesting example of how the mostly male comic writers and illustrators view women.

I found the really early comics very difficult to read, the entrenched stereotyping was difficult to deal with, but I wonder now, how far we have actually come and how far we have to go, til Female super heroes are dealt with the same degree of care and allowed to grow without having to fall back upon old stereotyping.

[Redparrot]

Excellent cross section of Marvel women. We have come so far and in some ways hardly at all.

There is a site "drawing" male superheros in female poses. I wish they would also do the converse. I wish there was more commentary about the portrayal of women in comics - consisting of what their "powers" are, their dress/uniform, how they are drawn and their story lines. Compare and contrast to men.

[Vivian Zenari]

Interesting to see changes over the years in art and story. I was struck by the sameness of it all, though, the wisecracking hero and the dull evil of villains.