Check out this page regularly for updates and additions to the lists below! We’ll link to our blog posts and reviews on these titles if applicable, and if not, we’ll link to whichever external site gives the best overview of the comic. There will be some age-group overlap. Also, if you have any recommendations, please contact us and let us know what we should include.
Unless Disney does something crazy different, you won’t find any Disney Princess-types here.
Comic Books for Girls: 9 and Under
Comic Books for Girls: 10 to 13
Comic Books for Girls & Women: 14+
While I generally believe that teenage girls can handle it, I’ll warn you that these comics may contain highly sexual content in some issues.
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Batgirl (New 52)
- Orchid
- The Huntress (New 52)
- B.P.R.D. Hell on Earth: Monsters
Why Make a Distinction?
Hey, idiot (you’re thinking), girls can read any comic book that boys can, so why even bother making a distinction? Isn’t it sexist to assume that girls can’t read normal comic books?
Yes, you’re right! Girls can read any comic book that they want to, and it is sexist to assume that girls wouldn’t like a comic book because of a certain set of factors that we’ve invented and are now imposing on all comic books and all girls of all time, forever and ever.
But! There are a few things that we will consider when evaluating comics, and for the sake of The Comic Book Review, we’re going to stick to them.
Comic Books for Girls: Criteria
- Subjectivity: are female characters given subjectivity on an equal level as male characters, or are female characters objects, in relation to male leads?
- Action: are female characters active or passive? Do they respond to circumstances imposed on them by male characters, or is the action driven by their own volition?
- Appearance: are female characters more than boobs and ass? While we understand that superheroes are usually physically impossible representations of human beings, we will examine how female characters’ bodies are presented in comparison to male characters.
Keep in mind that there are a whole lot of other things that we’ll consider when reviewing comic books: is the story well written and engaging? Is the art compelling? Also, each comic book reviewer will have his or her own likes and dislikes, and we’re pretty sure you won’t agree with us about everything.
