8. Created to broaden the appeal of comic books beyond a male audience, Tigra was one of the earliest mass-marketed standalone female comic book characters
Introduced as part of an effort by Marvel Comics to widen the appeal of comic books and attract more female devotees in the 1970s, “The Cat” was initially a non-superpowered crime fighter. Lasting for only four issues, each with a separate art team due to the lack of desire to work with the character, despite the stated design to reach beyond the traditional audience demographics the male illustrators, defeating the purpose somewhat, depicted her in an immensely sexualized fashion. Rebooted a year later in 1974 as “Tigra“, the character became her iconic form as a super-powered and part-animal heroine.
Serving as the protector of a secret race of humanoid Cat People, who had suffered persecution during the Dark Ages and gone into hiding, the duties of “Tigra” are akin to those of Black Panther in his role as the defender of Wakanda. Abandoning her former appearance entirely by choice, Greer Grant-Nelson resumes her crime-fighting career to greater effect. Becoming affiliated with the Avengers as well as the Fantastic Four, Tigra’s narrative offers writers the chance to pair a unique and interesting mythos with powerful real-world political allegories regarding social exclusion and segregation that, whilst forming a part of comic book story-lines, have thus far been overlooked by their cinematic adaptations.