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DC Comics and Mattel team up for superhero action figures for girls

Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Supergirl, Harley Quinn and more will soon be available as a new line of action figures and comics targeted at girls.

Michelle Starr Science editor
Michelle Starr is CNET's science editor, and she hopes to get you as enthralled with the wonders of the universe as she is. When she's not daydreaming about flying through space, she's daydreaming about bats.
Michelle Starr
2 min read

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DC Comics

Earlier this year, an 11-year-old girl named Rowan wrote to DC Comics.

"I remember watching Justice League cartoons when I was really young with my dad. There are Superman and Batman movies, but not a Wonder Woman one. You have a Flash TV show, but not a Wonder Woman one. Marvel Comics made a movie about a talking tree and raccoon awesome, but you haven't made a movie with Wonder Woman," she wrote.

"I would really like a Hawkgirl or Catwoman or the girls of the Young Justice TV show action figures please. I love your comics, but I would love them a whole lot more if there were more girls."

We don't know if this latest announcement is in direct response to Rowan, but it's certainly a step in the right direction: in the third quarter of this year, DC and Mattel will be releasing DC Super Hero Girls -- a line of digital comics and other digital content targeted at girls aged six to 12.

So far, the confirmed protagonists include heroes Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Batgirl, Katana and Bumble Bee, and villains Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, starring in comics that explore their lives as teens discovering their powers for the first time -- and learning how to use them.

"DC Entertainment is home to the most iconic and well-known superheroes including Wonder Woman, Supergirl and Batgirl," said DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson. "DC Super Hero Girls represents the embodiment of our long-term strategy to harness the power of our diverse female characters. I am so pleased that we are able to offer relatable and strong role models in a unique way, just for girls."

The action figures are due to arrive a bit later, in 2016, and the announcement promises a line of "fashion dolls featuring strong, athletic bodies that stand on their own in heroic poses". Print editions of the comics will also arrive in 2016.

DC's recent female-oriented efforts include the 2017 Wonder Woman film, an upcoming animated series starring superhero Vixen, the upcoming Supergirl TV show and Vertigo TV series "iZombie".