by Hanley, Tim
Wonder Woman completely eschewed a damsel in distress role by instead being a superhero of unparalleled skill, and the inversion of the typical gender roles didn’t stop there. Like her superhero peers, Wonder Woman had her own damsel in distress, a fawning love interest who always got captured and had to be rescued. “Her” name was Steve Trevor. A major in the US Air Force, Steve was a highly decorated pilot who was often called on to perform important secret missions. He appeared to be the quintessential American hero and was drawn that way by H. G. Peter, with a strong jaw, muscular build, and handsome face.
However, the man was entirely inept. No matter the mission, he’d end up ambushed or captured and Wonder Woman would have to save him. When Steve was taken by Nazi gangsters, Wonder Woman raided their boat and knocked out the Nazis with a large anchor, rescuing the bound and helpless Steve. When the not-yet-reformed Baroness Paula von Gunther was about to shoot Steve at point-blank range, Wonder Woman’s lasso stopped her in her tracks. Whenever Wonder Woman was in trouble, Steve was no help. He showed up too late, was knocked out and woke up to find Wonder Woman had set herself free, or was captured as well so Wonder Woman had to free herself and Steve.
One of the few times Steve did anything helpful, stealing keys and freeing himself from his cage on the planet Eros, Wonder Woman took charge as soon as she was released. The panel showed Wonder Woman at the head of a large group of angry women, and the text read: “Tearing off door after door from the prisoners’ cells, Wonder Woman leads her army of imprisoned Eros women to freedom!” Steve just ran along behind. Wonder Woman was the undisputed star of the book, and Steve existed solely to show off her strength and skill.
He ably played the role of love-struck admirer as well. Steve often declared that “Wonder Woman is the most gorgeous being in the world!” Whenever Wonder Woman bounded off to another adventure, he was prone to call out, “Wonder Woman—my beautiful angel! Don’t leave me. Stay with me always!” Although flattered by Steve’s professions of love, Wonder Woman rejected his advances, as her mission was of paramount importance.
Wonder Woman was adamant in her rejection of Steve and wouldn’t even let him touch her. A panel description in Sensation Comics #13 read: “Steve, overjoyed at having the case solved and finding Wonder Woman alive, throws his arms about her and is repulsed violently!” The panel showed Wonder Woman shoving Steve to the floor while he says, “Oh, my beautiful angel, I adore you—oof—unf!” In another issue, Steve tried some smooth talking, saying, “Look, angel—this plane can fly by itself … why don’t you let it, and pay me some attention.” He was promptly rebuffed. Wonder Woman’s identity was, in short, completely independent of Steve. While Steve was madly in love with her, Wonder Woman seemed to treat Steve like she was his babysitter. Diana Prince, on the other hand, saw Steve very differently.
Wonder Woman’s secret alter ego, Diana Prince, was everything Wonder Woman was not. While Wonder Woman was strong, Diana was weak. While Wonder Woman was colorful and bold, Diana was a dull wallflower. They even looked completely different; Wonder Woman was flamboyant and agile, with long flowing hair, while Diana was reserved and bespectacled, with her hair tied up neatly in a bun. Diana’s relationship with Steve was entirely different too. She acted as Steve’s nurse after Wonder Woman returned him to America following his crash on Paradise Island, and when Steve left the hospital she cried, “Oh, Steve is going! I’ll never see him again! I can’t bear it!” and begged Steve, “Will—(sob) you—(sob)—let me be your secretary?” Diana couldn’t handle being apart from Steve and did whatever she had to do to be close to him.
Being in love with Wonder Woman, Steve wanted nothing to do with Diana. When she tried to warn Steve that he was about to be betrayed, he answered, “Ha! Ha! Diana the sleuth! You’d better go back to nursing—I know my own business!” not realizing that the secretary he treated so derisively was in fact the woman he loved.
Diana was ignored not only by Steve but by the rest of the world as well. Unlike her superhero alter ego, Diana was inept and hapless, much like a damsel in distress. During one of the rare times Diana actually tried to take a stand, she ended up bound in chains and about to drown before she transformed into Wonder Woman and escaped. Afterward, she lamented, “I’m almost jealous of myself as Wonder Woman—nothing I do as a normal woman, Diana Prince, ever impresses anybody—I have to become the sensational Wonder Woman before any body notices me!” Diana was a far cry from her superpowered alter ego, and such a contrast suggests that Diana Prince was more than just a secret identity.
In a soliloquy in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill: Volume 2, Bill discusses Superman and states:
Superman didn’t become Superman, Superman was born Superman. […] What Kent wears—the glasses, the business suit—that’s the costume. That’s the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. […] Clark Kent is Superman’s critique on the whole human race.
The same can be said of Wonder Woman. Princess Diana of Paradise Island was Wonder Woman; it was a title and role she earned before entering man’s world. But Wonder Woman was not Diana Prince.* Diana Prince was simply a way for Wonder Woman to get inside knowledge on the war and to be close to her protectee, Steve.
Wonder Woman was the embodiment of strength, independence, and assertiveness, while Diana couldn’t accomplish anything and was hung up on a man who ignored her. Wonder Woman once stated that “[Diana] will have to go on mooning over Steve Trevor, while he goes on mooning over Wonder Woman,” essentially declaring that those two hapless characters could engage in typical gender roles but Wonder Woman wouldn’t be a part of such an inane system. Wonder Woman even described Steve as “the man Diana loves.” As her true self, she was fully detached from these romantic shenanigans. The personality of Diana Prince exemplified what an Amazon princess thought of American women. It was a harsh critique, and no character was the target of this analysis more than the Golden Age’s archetypical damsel in distress, Lois Lane.
Lois Lane
The modern Lois Lane is the Daily Planet’s top reporter, a brash and adventurous journalist who gets the stories no one else can. In the Golden Age, however, things weren’t going as well for Lois. Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, she appeared alongside Superman in his first comic, Action Comics #1, in June 1938. Lois Lane and Clark Kent were both reporters, but at the Daily Star instead of the Daily Planet. Clark was the top reporter while Lois was a minor writer, frequently out-scooped by Clark. Though unabashedly determined, her big plans rarely got her recognition at the Daily Star. Instead, she’d end up captured by a villain, trapped in a burning building, or caught in some kind of jam from which Superman would have to save her. And, of course, she adored Superman for it.
Whether he was rescuing her from kidnappers, catching her as she plummeted to her doom, or proving that he actually was faster than a speeding bullet, saving Lois was a full-time job for Superman, because her ambitious investigating always resulted in trouble. Once endangered, Lois was the perfect damsel in distress, wholly incapable of saving herself.
Lois, in the classic love interest role, was head over heels for Superman. Describing him to Clark, she exclaimed, “He’s grand! He’s glorious! He’s terrific!—He’s everything you’re not! Brave, bold, handsome—superb!” The love-struck Lois praised Superman at every turn and was the Man of Steel’s biggest fan. When Superman zoomed off after saving her, she would cry, “Don’t go! Stay with me … always.” But Superman didn’t reciprocate her feelings.
In fact, Superman was downright mean to Lois. When he saved her for the first time he told her, “I’d advise you not to print this little episode.”* If she asked Superman about himself, he’d say, “Save the questions!” Even though he knew that news of Superman would be career-changing for her, he refused to help Lois. Superman had all the power and Lois had none.
This dynamic continued with Clark Kent in the workplace. Lois faced considerable sexism at the Daily Star that held her back in her career. Striving for
big stories, she was often told by the editor that they were “too important!—This is no job for a girl!” She was instead relegated to a job the editor felt was far more suitable for a female reporter: the lovelorn column, where she gave relationship advice to the women of Metropolis.
However, sexism couldn’t hold back the ambitious Lois Lane. Her persistence sometimes paid off and she’d finagle her way into a potentially good story, but Clark Kent would steal it out from under her. When danger arose, Clark ducked out, leaving Lois alone and confused, and Superman would show up to save the day in spectacular fashion. If there wasn’t a phone booth nearby, Clark often knocked Lois unconscious with a nerve pinch so he could change into Superman. After all of the action, Lois would rush back to the Daily Star only to find Clark there already, story in hand. In Superman #3, after this had happened several times, Lois realized something was amiss and stated, “Oh, how I hate Clark Kent!—I tell you, he deliberately set out to take my job from me!” Later in that same issue, Clark took Lois out to console her, only to steal her big revelation about jewel smugglers and take the front-page story.
While a normal man wouldn’t have been able to keep the ambitious Lois so thoroughly restrained, Lois was dealing with a super-powered Kryptonian with the patriarchal values of 1930s America, furthering his career and holding back hers. Trying anything outside of her damsel in distress role only led to failure for Lois.*
Comparing Lois Lane and Wonder Woman isn’t really an accurate reflection of their roles in their respective comic books. Wonder Woman had far more in common with Superman, while Lois, Diana Prince, and Steve Trevor were very alike. Wonder Woman and Superman saved their particular damsels in distress, with one significant difference: Superman was an antagonistic rescuer, while Wonder Woman was benevolent. Lois’s interactions with Superman weren’t pleasant, even though she was in love with him. Superman was curt with Lois and refused to let her write about their encounters, and the only reason Lois needed rescue was because she got into dangerous situations trying to out-scoop Clark.
Steve, on the other hand, was saved from bad situations, but he wasn’t demoted or antagonized. In fact, he was regularly praised for helping to incarcerate the spies and criminals Wonder Woman captured. She singlehandedly stopped the Japanese invasion of South America, yet Steve was recommended for the Distinguished Service Cross even though he showed up after the fact. With her inherent moral superiority and loving nature, Wonder Woman was created as a response to the dominant traits of male superheroes, and her dealings with Steve demonstrate the contrast Marston was trying to make.
While Wonder Woman was a criticism of superheroes like Superman, Steve and Diana were a commentary on the typical female gender role demonstrated by Lois Lane. But where Diana was all an act, Lois was no act at all and wasn’t in her situation by choice. She didn’t have a superhero alter ego to turn into. Lois tried to escape her circumstances, but in doing so she only became more firmly entrenched in them.
Lois and Steve fulfilled similar roles and the way they each saw their rescuer was virtually identical. “Don’t leave me. Stay with me always!” and “Don’t go! Stay with me … always,” are pretty much interchangeable. But Steve benefited from his connection with Wonder Woman, while Lois Lane was only suppressed in her relationship with Superman. Marston’s approach to gender roles was not only flipped but also more beneficial for everyone involved.
Robin, the Boy Wonder
In Detective Comics #38, published in April 1940, Bruce Wayne attended a circus that featured the Flying Graysons, a family of trapeze artists. During the performance, the ropes mysteriously snapped and John and Mary Grayson plummeted to their deaths, leaving their son, Dick, an orphan. After the show, Dick overheard some men taking credit for their deaths, but as he was about to call the police he was stopped by Batman. Batman told Dick that his parents’ deaths were orchestrated by Boss Zucco, a local mobster who was trying to extort money from the circus. Dick wanted to help Batman avenge the crime; seeing something of himself in the young boy, Batman agreed and trained him to be his assistant, Robin. Bruce Wayne took on the boy as his ward, and together they became the Dynamic Duo. Created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson, Robin was an instant hit with young readers and has remained a staple of the Bat-canon for decades.
Although Robin was male, he often fulfilled a helpless damsel in distress role, frequently being captured and subsequently rescued. A subordinate role was common among the damsels, and Robin’s character was both a child and a sidekick to Batman. Robin also replaced an actual damsel in distress. Before Robin came along, Bruce Wayne had a fiancée named Julie Madison. She appeared in a few issues of Detective Comics, and Batman saved her from the clutches of an evil vampire known as the Monk. After Robin showed up, Julie was mentioned a few times and appeared in one issue, but then less than a year after Robin’s debut she called off the engagement with nary a protest from Bruce. Instead of Julie, it was Robin who fulfilled the companion role in Batman comic books by serving as someone Batman could care about and save from perilous situations.
In the first twelve issues of Batman, Robin was knocked out, detained, or in some other way debilitated no less than fifteen times. Most of these situations required Batman’s help; the Caped Crusader had to stop chasing a villain to tend to an unconscious Robin, independently dispatch a group of thugs while Robin sat tied in a corner, or give up and allow himself to be captured because the bad guy threatened Robin’s life.
Despite his general inability to stay conscious or untied, Robin’s relationship with Batman wasn’t a subordinate one for long. The Dynamic Duo operated more as a partnership than an unbalanced power relationship. Initially, Batman tried to take charge, and was annoyed when Robin challenged him. In Robin’s first issue, he attacked Boss Zucco and his men by himself, prompting Bruce to later say to him, “You reckless young squirt. I ought to whale you for jumping those men alone. Why didn’t you wait for me?” But by the end of the story, Boss Zucco was captured and both Bruce and Dick smiled in celebration of their success.
In the following issue, Batman told Robin to stay behind while he went out, but his young ward disobeyed. Batman’s only response when he saw that Robin hadn’t listened and was instead fighting a group of thugs was “Well doggone! All I can say is, he certainly is an apt pupil!” Batman’s attempts to corral Robin lasted all of two issues. Although not quite as skilled as Batman, Robin was certainly a capable crime fighter and was eventually treated almost as an equal by Batman.
As a male embodying several aspects of a typically female role, it would seem that Robin might have had a lot in common with Steve Trevor. Beyond their uncanny knack for getting captured, however, the two shared very few traits. Despite his military rank, Steve was useless and couldn’t do anything on his own. Essentially, Steve existed to be captured. In contrast, Robin could actually do things. He had to be rescued often, but he could also be a good rescuer himself. Batman trusted Robin with solo missions and regularly gave him opportunities to demonstrate his combat abilities.
Robin more resembled Etta Candy and Paula von Gunther, Wonder Woman’s female companions. They were taught the Amazon way of life and Wonder Woman led them, but she treated them as if they were her sisters and her peers. They constantly helped Wonder Woman; a well-placed distraction by Etta’s Holliday Girls or some invention of Paula’s often played a key role in Wonder Woman’s plans, and when Wonder Woman was incapacitated it was usually Etta or Paula who came to her aid.
In conventional comic books, the gender roles were very rigid. As much as Robin appeared to have the qualities associated with a typically female role, he actually ended up as a sort of junior Batman. Marston was equally committed to his inverted approach, and Steve was never anything more than a damsel in distress while Wonder Woman mentored several junior Wonder Women.
Catwoman
Catwoman is one of the most varied and continually changing characters in comic book history. In a literal sense, h
er appearance changes all the time; Catwoman has had more costumes than she has lives. The character herself changes too. In current DC Comics continuity, Catwoman is a wealthy socialite named Selina Kyle, rather ambiguous in her aims. Sometimes she works with criminals and breaks the law and other times she allies with Batman or the Justice League and enforces it. Her domain is Gotham City’s East End, and she protects its residents through whatever means she sees fit.
The 1960s live-action Batman TV show demonstrated Catwoman’s proclivity for change by having three different women portray Catwoman: Julie Newmar and Eartha Kitt played Catwoman on the show, and Lee Meriwether played her in the 1966 film. Change was also the hallmark of the Golden Age Catwoman. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, Catwoman first appeared as the Cat, a notorious cat burglar, in the first three issues of Batman, but she wasn’t given a proper name. In Batman #10 she was called Cat-woman or Cat Woman and was identified as a wealthy socialite named Marguerite Tone. Eventually, as a beautician named Elva Barr in Batman #15, she arrived at Catwoman. After numerous other secret identities, she became Selina Kyle in 1952 and it stuck. Despite these variations, throughout the Golden Age Catwoman was a classic femme fatale, a woman who used her sexual wiles for personal gain, and who was punished for violating the social order. Catwoman represented the bad girl, a woman who refused to be defined by a man and who worked for her own goals. In the world of superheroes, that made her a villain.
