Five comic book heroes from around the world

Superman is an iconic cape-wearing character who first appeared in a comic book in 1938, paving the way for the comics and characters we know and love today – think The Flash, Wonder Woman, Captain America.

But despite the domination of star spangled shields and costumes, not all superheroes hail from America.

In a move Avenger assembler Nick Fury would be proud of, BBC Bitesize have scoured planet earth to put together a list of the finest superheroes out there who, just like their American counterparts, reflect particular aspects of their countries’ history and culture. Here’s our fantastic five…

Nelvana of the Northern Lights (Canada)

Ask any comic book fan for the earliest female superhero and they’ll probably answer Wonder Woman, who made her debut in October 1941.

But a handful of female superheroes debuted before her including, two months earlier, one who wasn’t American, but Canadian.Nelvana of the Northern Lights - created by Canadian artist Adrian Dingle.

He had been inspired by stories of the Inuit people relayed to him by fellow artist Franz Johnston, who had travelled to the Arctic in the late 1930s.

In Dingle’s stories, Nelvana is the daughter of a mortal woman and Koliak The Mighty, King of the Northern Lights.

Her superpowers include telepathy, invisibility, metal melting and the ability to travel along a ray of the Northern Lights.

Nelvana continues to be a popular figure in Canada with fans previously campaigning to republish the original comic books decades after their first release. She’s also been spotted travelling the country, not by Northern Lights, but on mail envelopes, having featured on a postage stamp.

The Burka Avenger (Pakistan)

The Burka Avenger is Pakistan’s first home-grown female superhero and the star of a very successful series of animated adventures. The alter-ego of mild-mannered school teacher Jiya, the Burka Avenger battles bad guys while clad in the traditional, full-body garment.

Her main superpower is her skill in a fictional martial art which involves throwing pens and books at her enemies – all school hating villains who try to shut down the girls’ school where Jiya works.

The Burka Avenger was the brainchild of Pakistani pop star Aaron Haroon Rashid, who created the series in 2013. “She doesn’t punch, she doesn’t kick, all she does is clonk people on the head with books,” he said when the show launched. “The underlying message is the importance of education, that the pen is mightier than the sword.”

Kalimán (Mexico)

Kalimán is a Mexican superhero who began life as the star of a popular radio series broadcast in his native country starting in 1963. The series was so popular that a comic book adaptation began two years later and ran for 26 years.It was one of the most successful comics in Latin American history, selling 3.5 million copies at its height.

The character’s origins are deliberately mysterious, but we know he has sworn an oath to defend justice. He tends to avoid violence wherever possible. Because of this his superpowers are mostly mental, including telepathy, astral-projection and levitation.

Two Kalimán movies were in 1972 and 1976, starring Canadian actor Jeff Cooper as the iconic superhero.

Adèle Blanc-Sec (France)

Adèle Blanc-Sec was created in 1976 by acclaimed French comic book writer Jacques Tardi, and fast became one of the country’s most popular comic book heroes.

Tardi’s stories are set in a heavily fictionalised version of France before and after World War One. They follow the adventures of Adele, a novelist and investigative journalist, as she battles mad scientists, evil cults and even awakened Egyptian mummies.

In 2010 director Luc Besson adapted the comic books for the big screen, casting Louise Bourgoin as the feisty heroine.

The Monkey King (China)

The Monkey King is a mythical figure in Chinese culture who first appears towards the end of the 16th Century in one of the classics of Chinese literature, The Journey To The West by Wu Cheng’en.

In many ways The Monkey King (whose ‘human’ name in the novel is Sun Wukong) really is an early superhero. He’s roguish, charming, unpredictable and battles evildoers with a magical staff, often while flying around on his personal cloud. He can also take other animal forms and shrink himself.

Many Western audiences were introduced to the character by the Japanese TV series Monkey, which was released in Japan in 1978 and on British television in 1979.

But he is also the star of a hugely popular comic book series by Wei Dong Chen, which has been translated into English. The character also has featured in novels, advertising campaigns and even in an opera with music by Blur singer Damon Albarn.

This article was published in July 2025, and updated in November 2025