I get to talk to Heroic Girls about the return of The Unstoppable Wasp – which the site lists as one of the Best Graphic Novels of 2018 for Kids and Teens. We discuss the importance of diversity in comic representation.
Heroic Girls: One of the core ideas of Heroic Girls is that by providing better and more varied role models for girls, pop culture can have a positive impact on the real world. Looking over your body of work, is it safe to say that you share that belief?
Jeremy Whitley: No doubt. That was part of my motivation for creating Princeless in the first place. I was looking to create a comic with a heroine whom my daughter could see her self in. Adrienne is a princess, but she is also a warrior. She doesn’t need a prince to save her.
Marcotte, John. “Interview: The Unstoppable Wasp’s Jeremy Whitley”. Heroic Girls. 8 Jan. 2019
Unstoppable Wasp as a book had largely the same mission statement. We had Nadia and Janet (the original Wasp), but we also introduced a cast of other girl geniuses that reflected the real world population of New York City. We have Taina (our Puerto Rican engineer and robot maker), Shay (our African-American physicist), Ying (our Chinese chemist), and Priya (our Indian American botanist). The group reflects both a diversity of experiences and a diversity of expertise. Everybody is a bit different, but they have two shared passions: science and saving the world.
Check out the entire interview over at Heroic Girls. You can also get a peek at the fabulous Unstoppable Wasp cosplay from Tamara Robertson – real life Science Hero and Agent of G.I.R.L.