Sometimes it’s okay to celebrate the wins…or at least evolution. A Threads post by writer/producer Shea Fontana gave a bird’s eye view of her work on DC Super Hero Girls, and it brought up a lot of good points. Reprinted with permission.
My latest DC Super Hero Girls graphic novel was released this year. The one prior was released in 2019. The first one was released in 2016. The way the industry has changed in ten years is absolutely stunning.
First, the comics journalism/review landscape is completely different. Most (if not all) of the reviewers/outlets I spoke to I 2016 are gone.
Second, graphic novels publication for middle graders have increased exponentially in that decade and more middle graders than ever are reading graphic novels. Kids no longer have any association of comics = superheroes.
Third (on a very positive note!), parents seem much more open to their boy children reading books with female leads! I have had several parents at signings buy the book for their sons. (Granted, almost every store I’ve signed at has a pride flag, so it’s not exactly the same con circuit I did in 2016.)
Fourth, non-comics reading parents now know what a “graphic novel” is. I spent a lot of 2016 defining but generally people get it and are more accepting of it as a form of reading. It’s become increasingly common for picture books to use comic storytelling tools like word balloons, so kids are totally at ease with the format.
Mainstream comics sphere and kids books spheres seem even more separate. At the start of the kids graphic novel boom, the mainstream folks seemed more interested/willing to broaden their bubble but now it feels just about impossible to get the mainstream sphere excited for a middle grade title.
Things that are still the same: People (usually men) saying as a real gotcha: “If it’s DC Super Hero GIRLS, why is Beast Boy there?” I dunno, why is there literally any other character in a book called Batman? Are titles supposed to be fully inclusive of every character?
Fontana definitely knows her stuff. She’s been the showrunner/executive producer/developer on shows like Mermicorno: Starfall, Monster High, Polly Pocket, Action Pack and much more. She also wrote the DC Super Hero Girls animated shorts, and in comics has written Justice League, Wonder Woman, Batman: Overdrive, Catwoman/Looney Tunes, and so on.
I remember when the first DC Super Hero Girls graphic novel came out following a toy line from Mattel. In fact Iwrote about it here! I remember the series getting a big push at that year’s SDCC, and there was even a DC Super Hero Girls tote bag giveaway. I was carrying it when I met a former colleague from DC Comics and I remarked, “What would you have said if I told you that years later I would be standing here with this bag?” and he replied (honestly) “I would have probably injured myself from falling over laughing.” But we both agreed that the evolution of making a girl-focused line based on DC’s many excellent female characters was a good idea and a sign of the times.
The DC Super Hero Girls project wasn’t without some evolution on its own – the original, more “comicky” designs for the first shorts/toys were redesigned for a more action packed Lauren Faust reboot, but that reboot lasted for two years and the animated characters have established themselves in the DC universe.
While the acceptance of female superheroes has had even more bumps in the road, that a new DC Super Hero Girls graphic novel has come out is still a good idea. That parents are more open to boys reading them is also a wonderful thing. A good story is a good story.
And Fontana’s observation that the world has embraced comics and middle-grade graphic novels whole-heartedly since then is equally valid. As I’ve been going to shows and events and hanging out and chatting people up, of late, I really never have to explain what I’m doing or why any more. When people ask what I do I say “I run a website about comic books,” and they say “How cool!” not “They still publish those?” When I say I am going to Comic-Con, people don’t say “What’s that?” they say “Oh man, I want to go someday!”
A large part of this is the MCU/Batman effect, and the monoculture dissolving into vapor has also had an effect, but comics, manga and anime have become part of the every day discourse. They don’t have to explain themselves any more.
As for the lack of outlets to promote comics and books in general….well, I’ve written about that ad nauseum. For today, I’m just going to enjoy a glimmer of progress.
DC Super Hero Girls: High School Reunion by Shea Fontana and Yancy Labat is on sale now.
