This has been a month for me to catch up on my superheroine history. I first read Chicks Dig Comics and then watched Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines, an independent film scheduled to air on Monday, April 15, at 10 p.m. EST as part of PBS' Independent Lens series.(Check your local listings.)
Watching this movie made me feel awesome about being a female superhero fan and it also made me aware of the vast community out there that feels the same.
The film focuses on the creation of Wonder Woman, her comics history, and her importance as a role model. It includes also other early role models for women, including Jaime Sommers, the Bionic Woman, and I adore the filmmaker for including Jaime as she was a favorite of mine growing up, even more than Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman.
The first half of the documentary includes interviews with Lynda Carter, Lindsay Wagner (who played Jamie), writers, Gloria Steinem. and a number of prominent comic historians and writers talking about the history of Wonder Woman from her creation by William Moulton Marsdon to her depowered stage and her appearance on the cover of Ms. magazine.
The comic history was enjoyable but familiar to me, so it was the second half, focusing on the new generation of Wonder Woman fans, that riveted my attention. I loved the story of Katie Pineda, a young fan inspired by Wonder Woman's strength and compassion. Katie made me relive why I love superheroes. In honor of her, I wore my Wonder Woman sweatshirt to my local romance writer's meeting last week.
Not only did the other writers love it, on the way home, as I stopped to get milk at the grocery store, I passed a little girl shopping her her dad. As I turned the corner, I heard the little girl whisper "Daddy! That's a *superhero!*"
Well, not quite. But I think, like Katie, we can all aspire to live up to Wonder Woman.
The director of film, Kristy Guevara-Flanagan, and the producing team behind it, have done a terrific job showing how and why superheroes inspire people. I highly recommend watching.
