The superheroine is no stranger to the comics narrative, nor is she unique to a specific time period. Emma Frost. Batgirl. Firestar. Hawkgirl. Huntress. Witchblade. Wonder Woman. Ms. Marvel. Invisible Woman. The Magdalena. Liberty Belle. Mirage. Zatanna. Nightshade. Oracle. Phoenix. Liberty Girl. Velocity. And, of course, Supergirl.

But this isn’t a post about superheroines, it’s about the films and why they’re often poorly received. Here’s a great post that speculates Why Aren’t There Any Good Girl Superhero Movies?. I really liked this list, because it highlights there’s a problem with both standalone and ensemble movies. Neither one seems to get the job done, the question is why?

Hence, the reason for my post today.

Often, I feel the way superheroines are characterized is either toned down or hyperfeminized in the live action films. Sure, they are hypersexualized in the comics to the point where their bodies aren’t realistic or anatomically correct, but so are the men! There is, however, distinct differences in the way they’re portrayed in the films. They’re not the same type of heroic character. In fact, I’d even go so far as to say that female superheroes really aren’t “super.”

In a movie, a woman isn’t allowed to kick all kinds of ass unless she has an over-the-top emotional response that justifies her need to be violent. In other words, in order for her to “be strong,” she has to be the spirit of vengeance (Ultraviolet, Aeon Flux), the token female (Fantastic Four, X-Men) or the girl power comic show (Charlie’s Angels).

The evidence for this is in the ending. Do you remember what happens when the heroine’s deed is done? In stand-alone films the problem I see, is that the story arc reduces the heroine to the life of an everyday character. Neither Ultraviolet or Aeon Flux are heroines after the film ends, because they save the day. Problem solved. We imagine that they can finally retire because there is no reason to kick ass anymore. Arguably, the same is true of Elektra and Catwoman (e.g. the Halle Berry version). Once the bad guy/girl is taken care of, many of these heroines drop what they are doing and either unmask or are “redeemed.” This, I’m sorry to say, breaks their character and the role of what a superhero is all about. For me, superheroes are supposed to be iconic. They fight bad guys, but after one villain is done, there’s another one around the corner. So they keep on fighting because the world needs them.

In the animated films, this isn’t as much of a problem for me. Hulk vs. Thor was an excellent example of how the female characters make sense in an ensemble cast. Even though it had a love triangle between Sif, Thor and Amora, the writing was fantastic. Amora is a villainess who teamed up with Loki because she wanted revenge, but when she saw the damage she caused, she had a change of heart. However, her core personality didn’t change. She was still a villain, even after the fact. There’s this really tense scene where she shows up to defend Odin alongside Sif as penance for her crime. That one scene shows she hasn’t irrevocably turned into a namby pamby good girl. She will be who she is regardless. Sif, on the other hand, is a really fierce heroine. We do see her tender side, but she dons the role of defender even through impossible odds. While there’s not a lot of romantic tension between her and Thor, the movie isn’t about the two of them, so this makes sense.

Yes, there are a few live action movies where the main character is a superheroine, but we either have to look outside the comics industry to find them or go to a smaller press. Kick Ass. I’m still laughing about that movie. It was tongue-in-cheek, but Hit Girl doesn’t stop being who she is, even after the death of her father or her attendance at a school. Phil Elmore on Twitter mentioned Aliens. Ripley is a great character and an excellent example of how it is possible to have an ensemble cast with a female at the helm; even though she’s not a superhero in the traditional sense, she’s still iconic, in part because the real bad guy, the corporation, will never go away. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series NOT the movie…) and Liz from Hellboy are two other examples. They’re the reluctant heroes, but they do the job because they have to, not necessarily because they want to.

All right, so all these complaints are fine, well and good. Let’s come back to reality for a second. Would a mainstream audience respond well to a superheroine rather than a superhero? Sure, marketing is a big part of this, but so far none of the films have been that successful. Is it because the public doesn’t want a mainstream superheroine film? Can we really say that with a straight face?

Here’s what I would look at for a stand-alone film:

Her character needs to be iconic. None of this emo glitter crap. Seriously. Comics have proven time and time again that there is absolutely nothing wrong with an iconic female superhero. That can resonate in the films, too.

The character needs to resonate with the time period. One of the reasons why I feel Iron Man is such a great film, besides the fact that Robert Downey Jr. was made for that role, is because his backstory in the movie is contemporary. So, a stand-alone film would work best for female characters that fit within our time. So, while I think a The Magdalena movie would be pretty cool, I feel we need an exemplary modern film before we move into other eras.

Give us a character we can all relate to, regardless of the audience’s gender. It is an absolute myth that women only relate to female characters and men only relate to male characters. If that were the case, then only female authors would write female characters and vice versa. Instead of amping up all her feminine qualities, amp up her heroic side.

Build a story that’s crucial to her heroic deeds. Okay, here I’m talking about movies where the token female is kind of thrown in. She doesn’t really have to be there for the story to continue. In a stand-alone film, if you remove the main character, the world should fundamentally change for the worse.

Introduce her character in other films so you don’t have to have an origin story. One of the biggest challenges with female superheroes, is that they can’t stand on their own. They’re not popular, so they’re not supported, so they’re not popular. By picking a character with a stronger origin within the context of other superheroes, you’d have an easier time of it. Black Widow may be going that route, but it’s hard to say. We’ll see.

So who would I nominate for a stand-alone film? Find out next time! Don’t forget to nominate yours below or add your thoughts.