The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1

History

In July 2014, Marvel trademarked Squirrel Girl, sparking speculation about media plans, and by October 2014 Entertainment Weekly had broken the news that the character would receive her first solo title. Editor Wil Moss, who had previously worked with Ryan North on a Young Avengers story in the Original Sins anthology, reached out to both North and Erica Henderson separately via email — without the two creators initially knowing about each other — pitching the project as an all-ages, accessible book that would not require deep Marvel Universe knowledge. North, best known for the webcomic Dinosaur Comics and his choose-your-own-path Shakespeare adaptations, designed the series around maximum accessibility, while Henderson submitted multiple contrasting character-design sheets that gave the visuals their signature expressive bounce; colorist Rico Renzi rounded out the core team. Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso oversaw publication, and North published a detailed writer's commentary on the finished first issue on December 24, 2014 — weeks before it hit stands — notes that were later reprinted in the letters section of Vol. 2 #42 in 2019.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published January 7, 2015 (cover-dated March 2015) as part of the Avengers NOW! initiative; written by Ryan North, interior art and cover by Erica Henderson, colors by Rico Renzi.
• First solo ongoing series ever for Squirrel Girl (Doreen Green), who had been created by Will Murray and Steve Ditko in Marvel Super-Heroes Vol. 2 #8 (Winter 1991) and spent over two decades as a supporting/comic-relief character.
• Issue #1 marks the first appearance of Nancy Whitehead, Doreen's college roommate and best friend who becomes a central recurring character throughout the entire 58-issue run.
• The story opens with Doreen moving out of the Avengers Mansion attic to enroll at Empire State University as a computer science major — establishing the college-student civilian identity that defines the whole series.
• Kraven the Hunter is the primary antagonist of issue #1; Squirrel Girl resolves the conflict by redirecting his goals rather than defeating him in combat, establishing the series' signature empathy-over-violence approach.
• The issue ships with multiple variant covers, including covers by Art Adams, Skottie Young, Siya Oum, and a hip-hop variant by Phil Noto, as well as retailer-incentive variants by Chris Bachalo and Ben Caldwell.
• The collected trade paperback Vol. 1: Squirrel Power (which packages the first four issues of this volume) includes a reprint of the original 1991 Marvel Super-Heroes #8 debut story, giving new readers direct access to the character's origin.
• The series was nominated for a 2016 Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story (Vol. 1: Squirrel Power) and won the 2017 Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best Publication for Teens; it also became a New York Times bestselling trade series, sustained primarily by strong sales in school book fairs and libraries.

Full credits

Variants (3)