Lady Liberators

The Lady Liberators, also called the Liberators, is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original team's only appearance was in Avengers volume 1 #83 (December 1970), written by Roy Thomas, with art by John Buscema and Tom Palmer. The original team was a one-off group, lasting only a single issue and meant to satirize what was perceived to be extreme feminism, though it is also now seen as an early example of the Scarlet Witch as a feminist character. In 2008, the international intelligence and counter-terrorist organization S.H.I.E.L.D. recruited She-Hulk to form a team of powerful heroes to battle the Red Hulk. This team, consisting only of women, did not have a name in-story but was referred to by the narration and cover copy as the new Lady Liberators. Publication history The Lady Liberators were created in 1970 for a single-issue story in Avengers volume 1 #83. Feminism was strong at the time, but the creators at Marvel Comics and superhero publications in general were still overwhelmingly male. They also considered their audience to be primarily male. Writer Roy Thomas created the group as a caricature of extreme feminism. The story introduces a new character called Valkyrie and gives her an origin story that involves gaining great power after experiencing constant sexism and dismissal from men. The Valkyrie's story is later revealed to be a lie and the character is actually Amora the Enchantress, a recurring foe of Thor and the Avengers. The design and name used for Valkyrie was later applied to real heroes in the Marvel Universe who worked alongside Thor, as well as the Avengers and the Defenders. The story ends with hero Clint Barton as Goliath lecturing the women Avengers that feminism and "women's lib" is not something to follow or take seriously. Scarlet Witch, who was able to see through Amora's deception and was able to single-handedly defeat her, argues that Barton is wrong and if sexist views don't lessen then the Lady Liberators may one day return. Though this finale scene is likely not meant to be taken seriously, Scarlet Witch's defense that Amora's argument about sexism had reason and only her methods were wrong led later readers to see this as one of several examples of her acting as a positive feminist character.