On July 25th, 2012, Marvel Comics released the first issue of the ongoing series Captain Marvel. Writer Kelly Sue DeConnick and artist Dexter Soy have been tasked with guiding Carol Danvers return with a new solo series and a new name. Her previous adventures ended with Ms. Marvel #50 in 2010. It is a good read and easily recommendable. With this book on shelves, Marvel is publishing exactly one female-led series. That number is depressing because it’s so low and there are a number of female characters who could easily hold their own in a monthly book. We know Marvel isn’t the only game in town and that’s great. Here are books some of the other companies are publishing as listed in solicitations for August 2012.

Image Comics, along with Top Cow Productions, has quite a few books starring female characters. Some of them are very young and should be easy to catch up on. In Witchblade, leading lady Sara Pezzini has taken the supernatural weapon and set up shop in Chicago as a private investigator. With issue #150, writer Tim Seeley, and artists Diego Berhard and Fred Benes took over the title which previously won over fans, including myself, thanks to the talented Ron Marz and Stjepan Sejic. Issue #160 ends the “Saviors” storyline.

The indie publisher will also release Hack/Slash #19 written by Steve Seeley and Michael Moreci and drawn by Emilio Laiso. Mind the Gap #4 continues writer Jim McCann and artists Rodin Esquejo and Sonia Oback’s mystery tale. What pieces of the mystery will the creative team present to readers?

DC Comics is no stranger to connecting readers and their superheroines. Writer Brian Azzarello and artis Cliff Chiang keep Wonder Woman going as the DCnU hits its first birthday. Expect big things in the Bat-family with the long-time Justice Leaguer makes an appearance in Batwoman, while she herself lands in Batgirl. J.H. Williams III (pulling double duty as he returns to art duties) is joined by fellow writer W. Haden Blackman in Batwoman. If you really appreciate the art in your comics, this book will definitely appeal to you as the series has consistently used unique layouts in the storytelling. Over in Batgirl, writer Gail Simone is joined by artists Ardian Syaf and Vicente Cifuentes.

These are just some of the books expected to be released during the month of August in 2012. There are many more books available with strong female leads. Of these, Batwoman is my favorite but Captain Marvel looks as if she wishes to take that spot and she just might. Join me in the forums to discuss these as well as the other books of August 2012.