There are no arguments about who is the first superhero: unless you really want to be a contrarian, Superman codified what a superhero is with his first story.
But that’s just for the guys.
PROGENITORS
1936
Domino Lady
Creator: Lars Anderson
First appearance: Saucy Romantic Adventures (May 1936)
The earliest comic book masked heroine. We looked at her for the superhero progenitors, but I wouldn’t consider her a super-heroine… she’s still in the transition between pulp heroes and superheroes.
1937
Olga Mesmer
Creator: Watt Dell (maybe?)
First appearance: Spicy Mystery Stories (September 1937)
Part of the transition is also the first comic strip woman with superpowers, also already discussed.
Notably, this little-known character not only debuted before Superman, but had both X-Ray vision AND super-strength!
1938
Sheena, Queen of the Jungle
Creator: Will Eisner & Jerry Iger
First appearance: Wags #46 (January 1938)
Since we don’t consider Tarzan a superhero, I don’t think his female counterpart should count. However she IS notable for being the first female character to star in her own book (starting in 1942).
1939
Magician from Mars
Creator: John Giunta & Malcolm Kildale
First appearance: Amazing-Man Comics #7 (November 1939)
Another case of something more akin to a pulp heroine.
Jane 6EM35 or Jane Q-X3 (the name is changed in the second story), was born on Mars as the name implies. And she has vaguely defined mental powers based on the thoroughly debunked idea of “using 100% of your brain”.
At least initially, because she immediately moves to be able to do anything.
She only lasted 5 issues.
1940 is a big year for women in superhero comics. As we have already seen, the two likeliest candidates for the “first super-heroine” title are from this year.
Fantomah
Creator: Fletcher Hanks
First appearance: Jungle Comics #2 (February 1940)
She is sometimes referred to as the first superhero in comics. She certainly beats the others when it comes to the publishing date.
I disagree on calling her “the first female superhero”, however, since I believe she should be classified as an anti-heroine.
The Woman In Red
Creator: Richard E. Hughes & and George Mandel
First appearance: Thrilling Comics #2 (March 1940)
While she certainly has a lot in common with pulp heroes, I think the Woman In Red qualifies as the first true super-heroine.
She has a secret identity and she has a mask.
But there are other heroines that, while not receiving a full review, ARE worth mentioning.
Lady Luck
Creator: Will Eisner & Chuck Mazoujian
First appearance: newspaper strips (June 2nd, 1940)
Another Will Eisner creation and another one who has more in common with pulp heroes than superheroes.
Nick Cardy of DC Comics fame also worked on the strip.
She fights crime, she has a secret identity (SOMEHOW), and while she doesn’t have a traditional costume her green outfit is close enough. So I count her as a superhero, and she would be the first if The Woman In Red didn’t beat her by a few months.
Invisible Scarlet O’Neil
Creator: Russell Stamm
First appearance: newspaper strips (June 3rd 1940)
Another newspaper hero, this time even with actual powers. Her strip started ONE DAY after Lady Luck’s!!!
Her strip lasted from 1940 to 1956.
You wouldn’t always consider her a superhero, considering her strip tends to be light-hearted…
…but she DID fight crime.
And she was one of the earliest heroes to get powers by a lab accident!
Black Widow
Creator: George Kapitan & Harry Sahle
First appearance: Mystic Comics #4 (August 1940)
If Fantomah is questionable as a hero, the original Black Widow can only be charitably considered an anti-hero considering SHE WORKS FOR SATAN.
Red Tornado
Creator: Sheldon Mayer
First appearance, as Ma Hunkel: All-American Comics #3 (June 1939)
First appearance, as Red Tornado: All-American Comics #20 (November 1940)
Probably the most unusual of all the women I’m talking about, but Red Tornado is unquestionably the first DC super-heroine.
Bulletgirl
Creator: Bill Parker & Edwin J. Smalle Jr.
First appearance, as Susan Kent: Nickel Comics #1 (May 1940)
First appearance, as Bulletgirl: Master Comics #13 (April 1941)
Another character that should be counted with different appearances, because she doesn’t become a superhero until April 1941.
Miss Fury
Creator: June Tarpé Mills
First appearance: newspaper strips (April 1941)
She holds the distinction of being the first super-heroine created by a woman, for a newspaper strip running from 1941 to 1952.
Her civilian look is supposedly based on her creator June Tarpé Mills. I can see that.
Considering Catwoman has moved to be more frequently a hero than a villain, you could be forgiven for mistaking Miss fury as the Golden Age Catwoman. Despite the fact that Catwoman IS a Golden Age character!
Her influence doesn’t stop at Catwoman. She’s also TECHNICALLY a Marvel character, because Marvel reprinted her strips in comic book format from 1942 to 1945.
That’s not the only Marvel connection, because John Romita based the new Black Widow look on Miss Fury.
I did the costume on the Black Widow. One of my favorite strips from when I was a kid was Miss Fury. They had done a Miss Fury book at Marvel, and when I found out they had the rights to her, I said I’d love to do a Miss Fury book sometime. I had done an updated drawing of Miss Fury, and Stan said, “Why don’t we redesign the Black Widow costume based on Miss Fury?” So I took the mask off her face, and made the Black Widow the one in the patent leather jumpsuit. That was why the Black Widow changed.
JOHN ROMITA
Being a public domain character, new stories have been created by several publishers. Most notably, Dynamite has given her more than one limited series.
Also in April 1941, Silver Scorpion becomes what is unquestionably the first legit superhero in what will become the Marvel Universe.
July 1941 is the debut of Hawkgirl. She’s an interesting case: her civilian identity debuted in the first Hawkman story, which is from January 1940.
If I counted her from the first time her character appear, she WOULD beat both Fantomah and The Woman In Red… but I don’t think it would be fair.
She doesn’t become Hawkgirl until July 1941.
August 1941 is a notable month, because no less than FIVE heroines debuted in the same month!!!
These include Black Cat, Miss America (the DC one), Miss Victory, Phantom Lady…
… and an obscure one I will cover soon: Nelvana Of The Northern Lights.
Spider Queen barely misses being from that group, debuting September 1941.
As does the incredibly obscure Blue Lady, debuting in October 1941 on the pages of Amazing Man Comics #24 from Centaur Publications. Created by Frank Frollo, she only lasted three issues.
She is SO obscure I couldn’t find ANYTHING interesting about her.
I should point out that ALL OF THE ABOVE ladies are older characters than Wonder Woman, who debuted in December 1941.
So to recap, this is the chronological order of these milestones:
- First anti-heroine: Fantomah (February 1940)
- First super-heroine: The Woman In Red (March 1940)
- First super-heroine with powers: Invisible Scarlet O’Neil (June 1940)
- First Marvel anti-heroine: Black Widow (August 1940)
- First DC super-heroine: Red Tornado (November 1940)
- First super-heroine created by a woman: Miss Fury (April 1941)
- First Marvel super-heroine: Silver Scorpion (April 1941)
- First woman to star in a comic book: Sheena (Spring 1942)
- Wonder Woman: December 1941
Some other milestones, just for fun:
- First DC super-heroine to star in her own series: Wonder Woman, 1942
- First Marvel super-heroine to star in her own series: Miss America, 1944
- First DC super-heroine to lead a superhero team: Saturn Girl, 1963 (Adventure Comics #304)
- First Marvel super-heroine to lead a superhero team: Black Widow, 1976 (Champions #6)
- First DC married super-heroine: Hawkgirl, 1961
The Silver Age version of Hawkman and Hawkgirl had them as already married before they took their superhero identities.
But if you’re looking for marriages we see…
- First DC super-heroine to get married: Mera, 1964
- First Marvel super-heroine to get married: Invisible Girl, 1965
I think Mera qualifies enough as a superhero to count; if so, she actually pre-dates one of the most famous superhero marriages.
But if you don’t think Mera qualifies as a super-heroine, and if you ignore imaginary stories, I guess you have to wait 1974 for Duo Damsel to get married in Superboy #200.
- First DC super-heroine to give birth: Mera, 1965 (Aquaman #23)
- First Marvel super-heroine to give birth: Invisible Girl, 1968 (Fantastic Four Annual #6)
If you don’t think Mera qualifies, however… and discounting the Adult Legion stuff…
Fury, the daughter of the Earth-2 Wonder Woman, shows up in 1983.
Saturn Girl gives birth in 1984. Considering Fury is a teen when we see her, the first DC heroine we “see” giving birth might be Saturn Girl.
