Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman: How They Relate to Both Contemporary and Second Wave Feminism

In Ms. O’Connell’s presentation, she used television and film as a gage for gender equality. She placed special emphasis on the juxtaposition between the antiquated representation of women in the 1960s and the more modern (yet still flawed) depiction of them in the 1970s. However, Ms. O’Connell took the analysis one step further: she related this period to the present, where women once again are receiving new representations and exposure in film and television. The examples she cited were three different movies, “The Hunger Games”, “Wonder Woman”, and “Captain Marvel.” In particular, she put most of her focus on “Wonder Woman” and “Captain Marvel” and directly compared the two; while I strongly agreed with most of her points, I strongly challenged that specific assertion. As an avid superhero fan, especially of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I feel that “Wonder Woman” offered a much stronger portrayal of a strong female heroine than “Captain Marvel” because of the organic nature of her character.

Generally, Captain Marvel’s role as a super powerful interstellar heroine feels incredibly forced. In other words, Marvel expects the audience to sympathize and root for her simply because she is a woman. In the words of Nathaniel Rodgers from the review website “the Film Experience”, “Women and fans of female heroes deserved better than Captain Marvel (a mediocre entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe) … within the context of this heretofore excessively masculine universe.” Throughout the movie, Brie Larson’s portrayal appears rigid and unnatural. As well, her lack of meaningful dialogue and outrageous super powers (in respect to the other superheroes in the MCU) compound the issues with the character. While I applaud Marvel's attempt to integrate another heroine into the MCU, they already had many great examples of complex and natural-feeling heroines. For example, Marvel nailed: Ayo, a Wakandan Dora Milaje with epic spearsmanship, Scarlet Witch, an emotionally conflicted sorceress with magical power, and Black Widow, one of the core members of the Avengers with a deeply nuanced character. Ultimately, I feel that Marvel pushed too hard on her femininity and not on creating a new, interesting, and relatable character.

On the other hand, Gal Gadot’s nailed her performance as Wonder Woman. In the words of Grethe Kamp of Channel 24 “ Diana is vulnerable but strong, compassionate but fierce, good-hearted but no pushover.” We clearly see what Kamp refers to in a romantic snowfall scene between Prince and her romantic interest, Steve Trevor. There is a lot of implicit sexual and emotional tension as Trevor tries to explain to Diana what society is like when there are no wars (she is the queen of the Amazons who live on a remote island off the coast of Greece). Through this relatable awkwardness, it becomes very easy to sympathize with Diana. However, she is not sexually objectified or made out to look foolish at any point in the scene. In the context of the DC Cinematic Universe, “Wonder Woman” stands out among a group of mostly subpar films. Their lack of strong heroines, beside Harvey Quinn, further amplifies the franchise’s inequities.

Returning to the rise of feminist ideas between 1960-1979 in television and film, the reason so many individuals still view “Laverne & Shirley” and “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” so fondly is their relateability. The audience didn't like these characters because they were women; they liked them because these characters were funny, interesting, and emotionally complex. When the writers of a television show or film define a character based on her gender, such as Captain Marvel, people see the character as forced and a token attempt to appeal to new demands for diversity. Conclusively, if the portrayal of women in television and films is going to continue to progress, writers need to look back to television and film from the Second Wave of Feminism in order to rediscover the importance of organic character development.