By Clay Pauley
That’s right ladies and gentlemen, you didn’t read the title wrong, I’m about to give 616 Things about Squirrel Girl! Sure she may be a laughable concept of a character, but over the last decade Squirrel Girl has gained a faithful following of fans that can’t get enough of her. And I’ll admit that I myself have jumped on the “squirrely bandwagon” and I’m not ashamed to say it. I believe there is good reason why her popularity is on the slow rise and I’m super excited about it! So my fellow Marvelites, without further ado, here are 616 Things about Marvel’s favorite bushy-tailed super heroine Squirrel Girl:
6 Things You Should Know About This Character
* Created in 1991, Squirrel Girl was originally developed by Will Murray and Steve Ditko as a “joke” character with the actual purpose of depicting a bad concept of a super hero.
* Squirrel Girl’s real name is Doreen Green. However, due to the incredible list of villains that she’s beaten, Squirrel Girl has accumulated a few other nicknames that are quite hilarious; names like “The Anti-Life” and “The Slayer of All that Breathes”.
* It’s learned in Squirrel Girl’s origins that she did not simply jump on the super hero scene by a radioactive squirrel bite, nor was she the last survivor from a planet of squirrel people. But in fact, Squirrel Girl is a mutant, even though she’s never been an official member of the X-Men.
* Speaking of teams, in Squirrel Girl’s first appearance, she tries to become Iron Man’s faithful sidekick. Even though she is reluctantly denied the position (hint of sarcasm anyone?) Iron Man gives her a glimmer of hope for the future as a potential member of the Avengers if she chooses so when she’s older. Thus she becomes an honorary “ally” to Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. While that dream has yet to be realized as an Avenger, a decade after her debut, she was temporarily the leader of the not-to-be-taken-seriously Great Lakes Avengers.
* With such a unique power set at her disposal, Squirrel Girl’s powers include enhanced strength and agility, superior leaping and climbing abilities, a knuckle spike that’s sharp enough to carve through wood, the ability to communicate with squirrels, a prehensile tail, and a regenerative healing factor.
* This is going to blow everyone’s mind! The list of villians that Squirrel Girl has accumulated over the years is absolutely amazing! She has single handedly defeated villains like Deadpool, Dr. Doom, MODOK, Terrax, and the mad titan himself, Thanos! No joke, Marvel Comics even had the Watcher confirm that she indeed whooped these baddies.
1 Thing You Might Not Know About This Character
* There’s never been much information regarding Squirrel Girl’s relationships, but we have seen her have a crush on Speedball and hit on Daredevil. What fans might not know, is that in New Avengers Vol 2 issue 15, fans discover that Squirrel Girl and Wolverine have tension due to a past relationship. Completely implying that they’ve dated. (NEVER saw that coming Bendis!)
6 Things I’d Like to See Happen With This Character
* The number one thing I want to see happen with Squirrel Girl is for her to get her own running title with Marvel. In my opinion, nearly all the leading ladies in Marvel’s female lineup are super stagnant and honestly uninteresting, which is one of the main reasons why I believe Squirrel Girl can solve that problem with her rare mix of comedic appeal and serious fighting abilities. (If Rocket Raccoon can get his own title, then so can Squirrel Girl)
* In light of her getting her own title, something that I feel is vital to the increasing popularity of Squirrel Girl is for her to get an updated costume. Part of the reason no one takes her seriously is because her costume can’t be taken seriously. This update to her wardrobe should stay true to the fur that’s always made her so fun yet it needs to include a new tactical feel that makes her look relevant as a crime fighter and nothing revealing! Squirrel Girl has the opportunity above the other 90% of female heroes and emphasize her character instead of her curves. (Save it for marriage SG!)
* Since the majority of comic readers are males, something that I think is critical to attract new female comic readers is to have a character that is both fun and relatable – not just in a traditional comic book method where she’s fighting Juggernaut and late to pick up eggs for Aunt May, but on an emotional level that empowers women to be women. How cool would it be to have a female character that dresses modest and actually saves sex for marriage instead of flaunting herself to every Joe with a cape!? Comic girls deserve a good role model and I believe that Marvel still has a chance to do that with Squirrel Girl.
* One thing that Squirrel Girl hasn’t had the chance to do yet is simply shine. Her membership with the Great Lakes Avengers isn’t exactly credible and her babysitting for Luke Cage and Jessica Jones won’t catch any press. One thing I believe she needs is an opportunity to show what she can do. You’d think owning Wolverine and whoopin Thanos would be enough, but I guess not. Make her play an important part in a crossover or something. The bottom line is that her presence needs to be made known.
* I’m not too serious about this one, but I still think it would be fun; I think it would be great to see Squirrel Girl make a big screen appearance. Maybe not on the silver screen but at least on television. Marvel has quite a few shows in the works right now and I imagine it would be super fun for SG to play a small role. Even if she was just for comedic support I think comic fans would love her.
* Lastly, I think that Marvel needs to bring Squirrel Girl in on the animated series universe. Sure she made a ridiculous cameo on the FF animated series, but personally I feel like doing this for real would be the catalyst for all the other things I’ve thought should happen with Squirrel Girl. With powers that could rival Spider-Man and a respectful yet girlish attitude that could be filled with cute puns, I think she’d fit right in with the Marvel animated family. (Editor’s note – since this article was written, Squirrel Girl has made an appearance in season 3 of Ultimate Spider-Man – good call Clay!)
So, there you have it Body Politic, I present you with 616 Things about Squirrel Girl – Marvel’s hidden furry secret that’s either waiting to explode on the scene for comic fans everywhere or to continue to remain in a predetermined box of super hero jokes.
