I grew up during the Captain America matinees and was amazed to see how each week - Captain America would save the world for freedom! I liked comic books and wondered how some people got lucky with super-powers. I watched Under Dog, Super Man, Batman and occasionally saw Bat Girl and Cat Woman. So I was exposed to some strong woman super-heroes and villains but Wonder Woman for me demonstrated that a woman super-hero did not have to ride the capes of her male counter-parts! Yes when Wonder Woman first aired, I saw women in an entirely new light!
I wondered if women could really win in a fight against a man. It was kind of interesting, back in the day, seeing Wonder Woman fighting men and still keeping a beautiful figure! Society was a male dominated at the time and they (men in general) did not want to see muscle women (my guess - too threatening). I figured that a super-hero-woman could take a guy but in real life - guys were stronger and better fighters (this is before I was enlightened with karate). Lynda Carter played Wonder Woman fantastically! She was a tall woman that made it believable (from my young mind influenced by Batman and Robin fights) that a woman could beat a man! Well now I would like to explore how far women have come in this endeavor to (at least in self-defense) even up the battle of the sexes and tell some true life stories of a couple of truly courageous woman fighters I have known.
