List of superhero debuts

A superhero is a fictional character "of unprecedented physical prowess dedicated to acts of derring-do in the public interest." Since the debut of Superman in 1938 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas — have dominated American comic books and crossed over into other media. A female superhero is sometimes called a "superheroine."
By most definitions, characters need not have actual superhuman powers to be deemed superheroes, although sometimes terms such as "costumed crimefighters" are used to refer to those without such powers who have many other common traits of superheroes.
For a list of comic book supervillain debuts, see List of comic book supervillain debuts.

1900s

Despite its short run, Hugo Hercules is seen as the earliest superhero fiction comic.
The Scarlet Pimpernel cited as perhaps the earliest superhero akin to those to become popularized through American comic books.
L'Oiselle is noted as the first superheroïne overall.

Character / Team	Year Debuted	Creator/s	Media
Maximo the Amazing Superman	1940	Russell R. Winterbotham, Henry E. Vallely and Erwin L. Hess	Big Little Book