The historical past of Squirrel Woman’s absence from the live-action MCU is tumultuous and in the end disappointing — and we have gotten so shut! The Unbeatable rodent-based hero has obtained some reputation in mainstream comics for her old style optimism, unorthodox method to crime preventing, and fourth-wall-skimming tone. But as of this writing, Squirrel Woman has neither a tv nor a function movie debut within the MCU, at the same time as her fanbase calls for it.
Whether or not you’re scratching your head making an attempt to know why anybody might love a Squirrel based mostly hero otherwise you’re a die-hard fan who debates the deserves of Tip-Toe vs. Monkey Joe, you’ll uncover quite a bit from this dive into the disappointing historical past of Squirrel Girl and try to clarify why she’s by no means gotten her likelihood to shine.
Who Is Squirrel Woman?
Doreen Inexperienced, aka Squirrel Woman, was created in 1991 by comedian author Will Murray and well-known artist/author Steve Ditko within the Marvel Super-Heroes series. Her first look reveals the 14-year-old greenhorn singlehandedly defeating Physician Doom as a approach to show her viability as a sidekick to Iron Man. Since then, her powers have been fleshed out over time to incorporate an inherent means to talk squirrelese, knuckle spikes, metallic chomping tooth, and squirrel-like energy, pace, agility, and leaping means, along with her fluffy tail. For over 20 years afterward, the character would bounce round team-up comics and one-off appearances, typically inexplicably defeating immensely highly effective enemies. This stays unexplained and largely was an inside joke about how inconsistent comedian superhero writing could be.
However the principle purpose followers have demanded her adaptation on the massive display comes from her comedian collection run from 2015 to 2019. The collection, titled The Unbeatable Squirrel Woman after the protagonist’s penchant for taking up foes that seemingly outclass her, initially had a heaping scoop of meta jokes atop its whimsical humor, letting the character wink at her oddball historical past with out going full Deadpool. Following Doreen Inexperienced and her furry animal sidekick Tippy-Toe as the previous navigates faculty life, The Unbeatable Squirrel Woman utilized traditional Marvel villains equivalent to Thanos, Kraven the Hunter, and Galactus to showcase a hero that used her peace-focused wit and empathetic voice to defeat enemies as typically as her fists and powers. As her collection obtained extra fashionable, the writers let go of the extra meta components of Squirrel Woman, utilizing them solely as a lightweight sprinkle and thus preserving her sense of enjoyable whereas taking her character severely. This comic series’ depiction of the character would change into the premise for fan calls for that she enter the MCU.
Squirrel Woman Nearly Received Her Due in a New Warriors TV Present
For a second, this demand appeared like it will be happy. After months of rumors, together with assumptions that the chipper Anna Kendrick may tackle the mantle, Marvel lastly introduced a casting. In 2017, Marvel created a pilot for Freeform that includes the character performed by Milana Vayntrub. The totally produced but unaired episode was for a half-hour comedy present known as The New Warriors, using the titular staff from Marvel Comics alongside our fuzzy-tailed pal. Everybody concerned with the present made it as clear as potential that the character can be closely based mostly on her solo comedian e-book run quite than the beforehand unstable historical past of the character. The pilot featured Squirrel Woman main a preferred group from Marvel Comics generally known as The New Warriors, with the potential for anybody character to spin off into their very own collection.
The pilot examined very nicely in screenings however, sadly, resulting from scheduling conflicts and lack of curiosity, Freeform bumped it off their schedule and canceled their 10-episode order. For the following yr and a half, Marvel and the present’s artistic staff shopped round to different Disney-owned networks together with Disney+ and Hulu, solely to discover a full lack of curiosity. The present was formally thought-about useless by late 2019.
The one lasting legacy from the present’s cancellation was Vayntrub. Showrunner Kevin Beigel has launched a single picture of Vayntrub suited up on-set, however in any other case, the actress has solely had her performances within the position aired in voice appearances. The made-for-Disney-XD tv film Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors featured the actress returning to the tights and tail in a vocal efficiency. She would go on to voice that character in comparable initiatives and animated shorts, however maybe the most important method wherein she has change into inherently tied to our Unbeatable pal was in 2022’s Marvel’s Squirrel Woman: The Unbeatable Radio Present! Launched as a story podcast, miniseries follows Doreen as superhero antics intervene together with her work on a university radio recommendation present. This canonically continued The Unbeatable Squirrel Woman comedian run, with Vayntrub voicing the titular character.
Squirrel Woman Is the Pure Subsequent Selection for a Marvel TV Present
Since then, there have been no new developments for the present or any Squirrel Woman undertaking within the MCU. In actual fact, The New Warriors’ unaired pilot included superhero Mr. Immortal performed by Derek Theler, whereas the Disney+ present She-Hulk has its personal model of the character portrayed by David Pasquesi, killing any chance the pilot as filmed might nonetheless be thought-about a part of the MCU canon. Like The Inhumans and plenty of different superhero initiatives earlier than it, The New Warriors is destined to stay part of Marvel Studios’ historical past that it will quite neglect. Plainly the one clarification for this beloved character not reaching the MCU is an unsatisfying however however true one; she merely had unhealthy luck.
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