DC Suddenly Realizes Girls Like Superheroes
As deep a grave as DC upper management has been digging itself lately, you at least have to give them credit for this: they’re introducing a new line of products starring their female superheroes, targeted at girls. Things that are cool are not exclusive in appeal to men — whoda thunk? Marvel’s merch team, meanwhile, is still cutting Black Widow and Scarlet Witch out of Avengers-branded products.
Warner Bros. described their full plans in a press release today: “Developed for girls aged 6-12, DC Super Hero Girls centers on the female Super Heroes and Super-Villains of the DC Comics universe during their formative years—prior to discovering their full super power potential. Featuring a completely new artistic style and aesthetic, DC Comics’ icons such as Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Batgirl, Harley Quinn, Bumble Bee, Poison Ivy, Katana and many more make their unprecedented teenaged introduction. Each character has her own storyline that explores what teen life is like as a Super Hero, including discovering her unique abilities, nurturing her remarkable powers and mastering the fundamentals of being a hero.”
DC Super Hero Girls will be a multimedia experience, with a series of Random House books, toys, figures, apps, LEGO sets, TV specials and T-shirts. If there are really going to be TV specials (presumably on CN), I have to wonder why they didn’t pull the trigger on Lauren Faust’s “Super Best Friends Forever,” which was very close to this and had the ability to appeal to a larger section of the market than little girls.
The line is still deep in development and won’t noticeably penetrate the market until 2016. The quality of the products being delivered is yet to be determined, but even if it ultimately fails, it’s a step in the right direction. Maybe Marvel will take notice.