March is Women’s History Month. I’ve been pretty vocal since starting to write about comics about the struggles of being a woman in the heavily male-dominated industry of comics. So I figured this would be a good time to do some brief spotlights into the characters, creatives, and movements that sparked my passion for comic books and the pop culture industry.
At this point in my life (and my writing/academic/comics career), it’s no secret that the Women in Refrigerators movement and theory have hugely shaped and impacted me. But there’s another female-centered comics movement that actually pushed me toward the path I’m pursuing now. This time, it was one I saw unfolding with my own two eyes, playing out in a span of 120 characters.
In 2017, Marvel editor Heather Antos posted a selfie alongside six of her female co-workers out getting milkshakes after work. Together, they were celebrating the life of Marvel legend Flo Steinberg.
Steinberg was one of two original full-time Marvel employees, handling the fan mail letters and responses, as well as working with freelance creatives who came to the Marvel offices. She was the first social media liaison, in a way. After leaving Marvel in 1968, she worked in various other publishing roles both in and out of the comics sphere before publishing Big Apple Comix, an independent alternative comic anthology that featured future comic icons Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams. In the 1990’s, Steinberg returned to Marvel as a proofreader before her death in 2017.
Heather Antos and her “Marvel Milkshake Crew” went out for a sweet treat, tagging “#FabulousFlo”, Marvel’s moniker for Flo Steinberg. Rather than celebrating the life of a Marvel legend, Antos became the target of brutal harassment, violent threats, and a social media backlash from men who believe that women don’t have a place in the comics industry. (I guess these men decided to ignore the fact that Marvel’s fan foundation pre-digital social media era was built by the very woman these ladies were celebrating.)
At this point in my life, I had already faced some of the misogyny and gatekeeping that female comic fans face after having a comic shop owner refuse to sell comics to me because “girls are only buying comics because they think Captain America is hot.” (I was shopping for the O’Neil and Dixon Nightwing run, and not even Captain America, SIR.) Luckily, I’d found a wonderful shop run by a husband and wife team who had been super supportive and encouraging. I’d stopped in to pick up my comics that week when he handed me his phone and said “Have you seen the Milkshake stuff?”
Over the next few days, I watched, horrified, as Antos faced threats, bullying, and harassment… and then watched as support swelled out from other publishers, brands, creatives, and fans. Taking inspiration from Marvel’s Bullpen Bulletin catchphrase “Make Mine Marvel”, comic lovers began posting photos of themselves having a milkshake with the hashtag #MakeMineMilkshake. It was the first time I’d seen others take up digital arms against bullying and harassment in the comics industry, and I felt a sense of community and belonging. Suddenly, comics went from being something that I could enjoy to being something I wanted to be part of. I wanted to get milkshakes with the girls and drown out the bad attitudes of the men who kept saying we don’t belong. Because Fabulous Flo Steinberg, Heather Antos, Gail Simone, Kelly Sue DeConnick, and so many other women have shown me I do belong. Just like every single person, no matter their gender, who posted a photo of their milkshake, showed me that I belong, without even knowing it.
Embarrassingly enough, before #MakeMineMilkshake taught me about Flo Steinberg’s role as a proofreader, I’d never even considered the editorial path in the industry. While my background is in creative writing, I’ve never felt that I had the creativity needed to formulate a comic story from scratch. But in the time since #MakeMineMilkshake, I’ve been working to improve my writing and editorial skills to follow my passion for storytelling and comics. I recently applied for an Assistant Editor position at Marvel, and you can bet I’m absolutely hoping to celebrate with a milkshake toast. I’m absolutely certain now that my calling is to edit and work with writers and artists to tell stories and give future generations of comic enthusiasts- male, female, or non-binary- those same feelings of inclusion and comradery I felt watching comic fans from across the world join together to celebrate a unifying love of this art form.
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