We’re all still snug at home, so let’s keep digging into female and non-binary creator stats at the Big Two! But first, a reminder: Support your local comics shop if you can. They’re facing a tough time right now, and while we’re self-isolating and avoiding the shops, if you’re able you should consider shooting some money their way. Buy a gift certificate for when you can make it to the shop again, or just pay them via credit card for what’s currently in your account and pick it up down the road. Keep them afloat through this difficult period, if you can! And now let’s take a look at who’s doing what at Marvel this April:
- Alyssa Wong: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #1 (writer), Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #2 (writer)
- Amy Chu: Aero #10 (co-writer), Sword Master #10 (co-writer)
- Ashley Witter: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #1 (variant cover)
- Becky Cloonan: Dark Agnes #3 (writer)
- Carmen Carnero: Miles Morales: Spider-Man #17 (interior art), Star #4 (cover)
- Claire Roe: Nebula #3 (interior art)
- Dana Schwartz: 2020 Rescue #2 (writer)
- Devin Grayson: Widowmakers: Red Guardian and Yelena Belova #1 (writer)
- Elena Casagrande: Black Widow #1 (interior art)
- Emanuela Lupacchino: Black Widow: Widow’s Sting #1 (cover), X-Factor #1 (variant cover)
- Eve L. Ewing: Champions #1 (writer)
- Jen Bartel: Lords of Empyre: Emperor Hulkling #1 (variant cover), Star #4 (variant cover), Nebula #3 (cover)
- Jenny Frison: Spider-Woman #2 (variant cover)
- Karla Pacheco: Spider-Woman #2 (writer)
- Kelly Thompson: Black Widow #1 (writer), Captain Marvel #17 (writer), Deadpool #6 (writer), Star #4 (writer)
- Leah Williams: Amazing Mary Jane #7 (writer), X-Factor #1 (writer)
- Margaret Stohl: Spider-Man Noir #2 (writer)
- Marika Cresta: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #1 (interior art), Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #2 (interior art)
- Meghan Hetrick: X-Men/Fantastic Four #4 (variant cover)
- Mirka Andolfo: 2020 Rescue #2 (variant cover)
- Natacha Bustos: Runaways #32 (interior art)
- Peach Momoko: Marvel Zombies: Resurrection #1 (variant cover)
- Rainbow Rowell: Runaways #32 (writer)
- Sana Takeda: Marvel’s Spider-Man: The Black Cat Stikes #4 (cover)
- Sara Pichelli: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #2 (variant cover)
- Seanan McGuire: Ghost-Spider #9 (writer)
- Stephanie Hans: Dark Agnes #3 (cover), Marvel Zombies: Resurrection #1 (variant cover)
- Tini Howard: Excalibur #10 (writer), Strikeforce #8 (writer)
- Torunn Grønbekk: Valkyrie: Jane Foster #10 (co-writer)
- Valentina Remenar: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #1 (cover), Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #2 (cover)
- Vita Ayala: 2020 Ironheart #1 (co-writer), Children of the Atom #1 (writer), Morbius #6 (writer), Nebula #3 (writer)
All together, there are 31 different female and non-binary creators set to work on 31 different books at Marvel in April, three more creators and four more books than in March. It’s a small step upward that brings Marvel back into the 30s across the board, though the publisher remains noticeably below its recent highs.
Marvel also has a very busy month ahead of them, with 97 new books on the docket. With female creators on 31 of those books, that equals representation across 32% of the line, a minor gain from March’s 31%. The low 30s has become pretty much standard for both DC and Marvel as of late.
It’s a quiet month for new creators, with the entire roster above consisting of names we’ve seen at Marvel before. However, there are a lot of new-ish names that are back again, which is good to see. Creators like Alyssa Wong, Marika Cresta, and Valentina Remenar have worked for Marvel previously, but not extensively, and I’m glad to see them return on new, exciting gigs for the publisher. Sometimes new names are never seen again, so retention should be celebrated.
We’ve got a few books with female characters coming this April, starting with Marvel’s big Empyre event. I have no idea what it’s about, but it seems to be universe-spanning so expect some of your favourite female character to show up there. There’s a new Champions book as well, with Ms. Marvel at the forefront. The relaunch of the Star Wars line is also continuing, and it brings us a new Doctor Aphra series with an all-female creative team. And finally, with the Black Widow book on the horizon we’ve got a slew of new Black Widow titles. Kelly Thompson and Elena Casagrande are launching a new solo series for Natasha, which should be great. That’s a fantastic team. There are also a couple of Black Widow one-shots and minis in the mix this month.
Overall, April looks to be a relatively average month for representation of creators of marginalized genders at Marvel. The raw numbers look better, but it’s also a very busy month. Should the overall number of books drop, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a commensurate drop in female and non-binary creators. The numbers seem to be relatively steady currently, rather than growing in any consistent way.
TIM HANLEY 