Marvel Plays Up Storm Series As Part of a Larger Trend of Female-Led Superhero Books

While neither Warner Bros. nor Marvel Studios have managed to put together a timetable for a female-led superhero movie, Marvel Comics is eager to make sure fans know they're pushing for better representation of women in their monthly comic book series. "And Storm makes seven," said Editor In Chief Axel Alonso in the official launch statement for the series, whcih was announced this weekend at the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2).  "Starring for the first time in her own ongoing series, and joining the wave of new series anchored by female characters — a list that includes Black Widow, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Elektra, Ms. Marvel and the all-female X-Men — comes one of the world's most popular mutants....It's about time." Of course, this is the first time the character has had an ongoing series to call her own, and the real test won't be whether audiences are accepting of female characters (seven books at Marvel and entire publishers populated principally by them at places like Zenescope will tell you there's a market for it) but how writer Greg Pak handles Ororo Munroe. "If you tell Storm she can't go somewhere, that's exactly where she's going to go," said Pak. "She's got an incredibly strong sense of justice and empathy earned through years of hard experience. And her empathy isn't limited to whatever group she's standing with at the moment. Storm will do the right thing--as she sees it--without apology. That's incredibly strong--and potentially very costly for her." The series launches in July with art from Victor Ibanez.