SUPER VISIBLE

An homage to pathbreaking women.

Stohl, along with Stephens, producer and co-creator of the Women of Marvel podcast, and editor Schaefer have mined 800 pages of transcripts, 300 hours of interviews, and over 130 conversations to create a lively history of female artists, writers, editors, proofreaders, and colorists who forged their careers at Marvel. Bursting with anecdotes and illustrations—photos, drawings, comic book pages—the book traces the advent of women into what was then a domain of straight white men who assumed that females didn’t read comics, sci-fi, or fantasy. The women’s pluck, talent, and mutual mentorship , though, led to their rise from entry-level jobs to leadership positions. Although voices from a cast of 127 characters and contributors sometimes result in cacophony, more than a few emerge as major forces in the industry: Louise “Weezie” Simonson, for example, joined the Marvel editorial staff in 1980 and helped build the X-Men universe. She recruited new female talent—not because they were women, she said, but because they were “people who were good at what they did.” Kelly Sue DeConnick pitched the idea of a female Captain America: Captain Marvel. Recalling controversy about her concept of the superheroine’s costume, she had asked herself, “Is this a hill I’m going to die on, or am I just going to make progress?” She made progress, to be sure. The first issue of Captain Marvel sold out in 24 hours. Many women attest to being the only woman in the room; others, to being the only minority or woman of color. All, the authors found, “have made a habit of throwing open every door they can find, and, when they run out of doors, stocking up on dynamite to bring the walls down.”

Vivid testimony of resilience and grit.