15 Characters That Will Make 2016 the mwaka of the Female Superhero 

After years of female superheroes being overlooked by directors and producers, 2016 is shaping up to be a breakout year for female heroes (and villains) of every sort. It’s no secret that many in the film industry have voiced skepticism about the marketability of female protagonists. Female-led comic book movies like

 have frequently been brought up as proof of this idea, ignoring the fact that those movies were just plain bad, regardless of lead’s gender. Meanwhile, the Fantastic Four films have consistently gotten negative reviews, and yet received three chances to disappoint. And the massive disappointment that was 

didn’t exactly scare off its studio from taking another crack at the web-slinger. But even after a reboot of the character yielded two more less-than-stellar films, Spider-Man has been given yet another shot to get back on the horse with an appearance in

, which will be followed by another reboot starting next year. Hell, even an (arguably) one dimensional character like the Punisher has been given

separate shots at big screen stardom, with a fourth live-action iteration on the way.

Regardless, it’s great to see female heroes finally getting more opportunities, with many of them proving popular with fans. It means more big roles for actresses, and more chances for fans to see some of their favorite heroes and villains come to life. Some have had a tougher road to adaptation than others, but all of them are set make history over the next few months. Without further delay, here’s our list of the women of comics who are making their presence felt in movies and TV — and will help make 2016 the year of the female superhero.

Let’s start with the obvious. Man or woman, of all the heroes making their big screen debuts this year, none are more deserving than Wonder Woman. She’s one of the most recognizable and powerful heroes in comics, right alongside her fellow Trinity members Superman and Batman. It’s fitting that she’ll soon be sharing screen time with the Last Son of Krypton and the Dark Knight, and it’s just a shame it’s taken this long for her to finally get the chance.

Nothing against heroes like Ant-Man or Rocket Raccoon, but when such obscure names (to general audiences) are headlining films before an iconic character like Wonder Woman, larger issues need to be discussed. The Amazonian warrior princess has been waiting over 70 years for her opportunity at a film, so expectations are justifiably high.

had a lot of critics, but the sequel has brought enough to the table to get people excited, and no small part of that is the long overdue silver screen arrival of one of DC’s biggest stars. Let’s just hope her debut is as “fearsome” as early reports suggest.

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