Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke is set to debut a new comic book starring a single mother who gains her superpowers through her menstrual cycle.
MOM: Mother of Madness follows Maya, a busy single mum who can "swing like Spider-Man from her armpit hair" and gains "superhuman strength" when she's angry.
Maya deals with "the bloating, the hair growth, the mood swings, the [acne], all of it," Clarke explained to Variety - but she discovers her powers manifest from her period.
"We hate that when it happens, speaking for myself and everyone I've ever met who has had a period. What if we turned that around and made the period something that we can feel as this unique, crazy, superhuman thing that happens in our body?" Clarke said.
According to Variety, Maya uses her "inflated boobs" to thwart a human trafficking ring in one edition of the upcoming three-part comic miniseries.
"She's so ashamed of her powers at the start. It's mental. Even today, if your tampon falls out of your bag, it's embarrassing. Why?" Clarke asked.
Clarke explained that the idea for MOM: Mother of Madness was born out of the concept that "single mothers are superheroes" and aims to normalise the conversation around menstruation.
"In doing my research, I found that 16 percent of comic book creators are female, according to a 2019 study, and only 30 percent of comic book characters are women," Clarke added.
"On the other hand, roughly half of comic book buyers are female. Something did not sit right with me in that exchange, and all these signs were telling me to go make my own," she said.
The comic book's publisher describes the tone of the series as "Deadpool action meets Fleabag comedy", and it is due to hit stands on July 21.
