The reactionary Comicsgate campaign against alleged "forced" diversity in superhero comicsrevealed the extent to which comics have become a key battleground in America's CultureWars. In the first in-depth scholarly study of Marvel Comics' most recent engagement withprogressive politics, Superhero Culture Wars explores how the drive towards greater diversityamong its characters and creators has interacted with the company's commercial marketingand its traditional fan base.Along the way the book covers such topics as:Major characters such as Miles Morales's Spider-man, Kamala Khan's Ms. Marvel,Jane Foster's Thor, Sam Wilson's Captain America and the Secret Empire series'turncoat Captain AmericaCreators such as G. Willow Wilson, Jason Aaron, Nick Spencer and Michael BendisMarketing, the Marvel Universe, and online fan cultureSuperhero Culture Wars demonstrates how the marketing of Marvel comics as politicallyprogressive has both indelibly shaped its in-world universe and characters, and led to conflictsbetween its corporate interests, its creators, and it audience.Blatino Spidey. Muslim-American Ms. Marvel. Queer teen Hulk. For some, these and othersuperhero reincarnations ring the death knell to Western civilization. For others, they reflect avitally attentive response to today's social make-up and the spirit of our times. With dazzlingscholarly dexterity, Monica Flegel and Judith Leggatt take us on the rollercoaster ride ofMarvel Comics: how its socio-politically alert contemporary stories entertain, inciteincendiary debate, reveal deep sociopolitical chasms, and act as agents of change. SuperheroCulture Wars forcefully reminds: Comics matter! Frederick Luis Aldama, Eisner Awardwinning scholar and Distinguished University Professor, Ohio State University, USAWith its starting point that superhero comics are and have always been political, SuperheroCulture Wars is a welcome examination of Marvel's moves toward diversifying its charactersin the 2010s. It illuminates not only the tensions between fans and storytellers, but also thetensions inherent in a company's neoliberal strategy of marketing its products and itself asprogressive in order to increase its profits. Carolyn Cocca, author of Eisner Award-winning Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation (Bloomsbury 2016), SUNYCollege at Old Westbury, USA