Favorite Female Superheroes | Fandom Friday

Welcome to another installment of Fandom Friday! Last week, I posted a video discussing why I chose to break up with JK Rowling, so I decided to take a different approach for this week’s blog post. Today, I’m talking about my favorite female superheroes – those badass women from comic pages and movie screens who embody that iconic Nicki Minaj lyric: “you could be the king, but watch the queen conquer.” I almost exclusively read comics about female characters, so these ladies are the real heroes in my book.

1. Gwen Stacey, Spider-Gwen. One day I will write an ode to Gwen Stacey properly explaining why I love her character so much, but suffice it to say that Spider-Gwen is one of my all-time favorite superheroes. She’s sassy and tells bad jokes, but at the heart of this character is a young woman who’s struggling with who she is, both with and without the cowl. Plus, she’s a drummer in the band The Mary Janes (yep, fronted by good ol’ MJ herself!), and Gwen was definitely the star of the Spider-Women crossover event, although I do have a spot in my heart for Cindy Moon and Jessica Drew now.

2. Natasha Romanova/Romanoff, Black Widow. An assassin turned Avenger, Natasha may not scream superhero at first glance. But for me, it’s always been Black Widow’s character arc that’s the most intriguing. Natasha is concerned with redemption, erasing some of the red from her ledger. Since I’m a big MCU fan, I can’t mention Black Widow without giving a shout out to how excellently she’s played by Scarlett Johansson (except that weird romance in Avengers: Age of Ultron, which we will not speak of). I’ve only read the first volume of Nathan Edmonson and Phil Noto’s series, but I fully intend to read that entire arc, plus the current story.

3. Diana Prince, Wonder Woman. Come on, I can’t talk about female superheroes without mentioning the feminist icon that is Wonder Woman. I admittedly am new to the Wonder Woman scene, and have never read a solo WW comic. DC Bombshells and the forthcoming WW movie next year have convinced me that needs to change. If you have recommendations of a great series to start, let me know! I’m insanely excited for the Wonder Woman movie in 2017, and the fact that Leigh Bardugo (of Grisha & Six of Crows fame) is writing a Wonder Woman YA book that’s out August 2017! Could you imagine what damage the patriarchy would sustain if Diana waved her lasso of truth around at a Trump rally these days? Just saying. Plus, it was recently announced that Diana is bisexual, so all the yes for LGBT representation in comics!

4. Barbara Gordon, Batgirl. I’m very new to the DC game, so I don’t have a lot of exposure to these characters and their storylines. But I did read Batgirl of Burnside this year, and I loved this modern reimagining of Babs Gordon as Batgirl. Babs is a STEM genius, and I really appreciated how much focus the writers put into that, to the point where Babs is pretty much a nerd and that was amazing. The art style in this new series is absolutely incredible, and the ways bodies are drawn is such a refreshing break from the overly sexualized, porn-level comic art that dominates this medium. I’m definitely excited to learn even more about Batgirl.

5. Kamala Khan, Ms. Marvel. Kamala Khan is the first Muslim, Pakistani-American character to headline a superhero comic, and she’s basically amazing. I enjoy how realistically Kamala is portrayed – she’s a teenager adapting to these new, crazy powers, not a seasoned veteran. I think it’s incredibly important that Marvel is including more diversity in their comics, especially since Ms. Marvel is Own Voices (writer G. Willow Wilson is a Muslim woman). So many superheroes are of some indiscriminate age, usually 20s – 40s, but Kamala is young, and she acts appropriately for her age. She’s worried about her shape shifting abilities, AND the boy she’s got a crush on. I think Ms. Marvel is an excellent entry point for new comic readers, especially younger girls who want to see themselves represented.

There are so many amazing female superheroes that I adore, so I’m going to name a few honorable mentions: Kate Bishop/Hawkeye, Jean Grey, Cindy Moon, and Jessica Jones.

But of course, I have to give a special shout out to my OG favorite female superheroes…the Sailor Scouts! Moon prism power make up!

Who are some of your favorite female superheroes? Let me know in the comments!

Top 5 HP Ships | Fandom Friday

Ok, so plans got a bit derailed after my first Fandom Friday post, but things are getting back on track with today's post - my top 5 Harry Potter ships!

Anyone familiar with fandom will inevitably know that the term "ship" is derived from relationship, and means that there are two characters you want to be in a relationship of one form or another. Shipping is a widely popular part of the fandom experience, and is a huge part of fanfiction. As someone who's been in many fandoms over the years, I've gone through my fair share of ships. Some have sailed, others have sunk, and still others were cracks hips that would never see the light of day and left me trawling AO3 for whatever I could find. One of the fandoms that I've been a part of the longest is of course Harry Potter, and my longest standing ships inevitably come out of the wizarding world. Since Harry Potter is largely what got me into fandom in the first place, I thought I'd share my top 5 HP ships with you today.

1. Hermione Granger + Draco Malfoy (Dramione)

Oh, the angsty ship of my dreams. Hermione punching Draco in Prisoner of Azkaban was a watershed moment for my young shipper self, and no one writes hate-to-love quite like Dramione shippers. This ship is also A+ when it comes to Draco Malfoy redemption arcs, and I'm here for it. Also, literally no other character can hold their own against Hermione when it comes to being witty and whip-smart like Draco can, and so their ship has the best banter by default. There is, admittedly, little to no canon evidence to support this ship but I honestly give no fucks about what JKR thinks anymore so I WHO CARES NOT ME. Basically I just love this ship and have read entirely too many fics where they're Head Girl & Boy and have to share a dormitory. 


2. Hermione Granger + Harry Potter (Harmony)

Arguably one of the most controversial ships in the HP fandom, I've always been a Harry/Hermione shipper and still to this day pretend that Hermione didn't end up with Ron. As much as I hate JKR retconning all over the place, even SHE acknowledged that Hermione should have ended up with Harry instead of Ron. I also don't like the fact that literally everyone ends up a Weasley at the end of the series, so Harry/Hermione breaks that up nicely. Plus, they just have a much closer relationship and the best H/H fics really highlight that. Hermione and Harry were my very first ship, so I have strong nostalgic feelings about this pair. Plus the films definitely play up their relationship, which is one of the best things about the adaptations. Also, that whole "I'll go with you" scene? Kills me.


3. Lily Evans + James Potter (Jily)

One of the most divisive issues in the HP fandom is easily Jily shippers verses Snily (Snape + Lily) shippers. Personally, I hate Severus Snape and think that Snily is a steaming pile of abusive trash, but that's a topic for another day. James and Lily, however, are everything. They embody the "hate-to-love" relationship trope, and I am yet to read a quality Jily fic that didn't have amazing banter between the two. Plus, James/Lily obviously takes place in the Marauders Era, which is my favorite because I really adore fandom about the war during Voldemort's first rise to power. This is a hard ship to explain why I ship them so much, but trust me...I do.


4. Albus Severus Potter + Scorpius Malfoy (Scorbius)

Literally the ONLY GOOD THING to come out of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is that I now ship Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy, no matter what that queer baiting piece of trash play says. I've never been interested in the Next Generation, but Cursed Child made me realize that there's some prime ship material here. Scorpius, especially Cursed Child Scorpius, is an actual ray of sunshine and Albus Severus is angsty AF and together they make my new OTP. I just love the idea of Harry's troubled middle son and Draco's only child falling in love, forever forcing their fathers into awkward holiday dinners. 

5. Luna Lovegood + Neville Longbottom (Luneville)

This ship is 100% the fault of the movie adaptations. When suddenly-very-attractive Matthew Lewis says "I'm mad for her. I think it's about time I told her, since we'll probably both be dead by dawn!" in Deathly Hallows Pt. 2, the proverbial lightbulb went off. This is definitely a ship I prefer to read about as a secondary pairing in another ship's fic, but I still love them all the same.

What are your favorite HP ships? Let me know!