Valiant Comics recently announced that Faith Herbert, flying superhero, will be saving the world on a monthly basis. Zephyr, Faith’s superhero pseudonym, first appeared for several years of comics in the early ’90s, and was recently reintroduced for a limited edition series. Her character was so popular among fans that Valiant decided to open up a monthly series for Faith!
This kind of representation of different bodies and identities is very new to comics, especially for female heroines. The classic female crime-fighting trope is generally reminiscent of Catwoman; leather-clad, takes-no-BS and possesses inordinate powers of not just the super variety, but the sexual.
For a comic book character like Faith to not only be created and distributed but popular speaks volumes about the expanding diversity of the industry. Its readership will now likely expand as well, proving that entertainment only has more to gain from portraying its characters realistically and representatively.
Faith’s greater audience appeal has been highly acclaimed, and fans have explained how the character has opened up space for women of diverse sizes in comics and other media and made otherwise underrepresented individuals feel like superheroes themselves.
According to Valiant, Faith now stands as a “‘true pop culture phenomenon.’” This summer, Faith, who was created by former editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, will return to the “Harbinger” comic series. According to The New York Times, we can also expect to see Faith in a 2017 superhero film!
Faith’s first monthly iteration will be released July 20th, 2016, and will hopefully bring with it more varied comic stars!