Batgirl is getting a new look, and apparently a new
personality to match. It was reported last week that Gail Simone has stepped
down as the writer of Batgirl (#34 will be her last issue). Taking her place
will be Cameron Stewart and Brendon Fletcher (along with new artist Babs Tarr).
Simone is probably one of the most well known and beloved names when it comes
to female comic book writers, and deservedly so. Her departure from the comic
was bound to result in some pretty significant story changes as the new (male)
writers attempt to establish their own voices and direction, but this overhaul
is as drastic as it is unnecessary and out of touch. According to an MTV interview with the new creative team, an apartment fire will prompt Babs to
leave literally everything behind, move out of Gotham proper, and into a
“hipster” neighborhood to pursue a more fun, free, and flirty lifestyle (complete
with superhero selfies). Stewart explains, “She wants the opportunity to have some fun
and live the life of a young, single girl in the city, so she packs up and
moves to Burnside, the cool, trendy borough of Gotham, to focus on grad school.”
In the same interview, Fletcher refers to TV shows ‘Veronica Mars’ and ‘Girls’
as their inspiration, “with a dash of ‘Sherlock’ thrown in for good measure”
(I’m really not sure why they feel the need to throw in that dash of ‘Sherlock’
since Veronica Mars was a damn fine detective all on her own, but I’ll let that
go for now).
I’m not going to tear apart the logistical nightmare they’re creating
for themselves (exactly how old do they think Barbara Gordon is, and how much
free time do they think one gets while in grad school??), because we are
talking about a fantasy setting where superpowers are the accepted norm so I
suppose logistics can be an after thought. I’m not even going to go into the
fact that Cameron and Fletcher, for all their claims of Babs being a fun,
flirty single gal in the city, have essentially described a traumatized young
woman attempting to navigate a serious psychological break with little to no
outside help, because if I thought for a moment that was intentional I would
find it intriguing. I don’t think it was intentional. I think what they’re
trying to do is appeal to a demographic that has not traditionally embraced
comic books en masse: the 20-something party girl hipsters. Now, don’t get me
wrong, I’m not disparaging a decision to court a virtually untapped demographic
(especially one consisting of women). What bothers me so much about this is
that they’re using an established character with an established fan base that
does not (by and large) include 20-something party girl hipsters. This move
could very well alienate the comic’s current fan base, which already had a
rocky start during the 2011 New 52 re-launch when Babs ditched the wheelchair
and suited up as Batgirl once again.
Despite regaining the ability to walk, the New 52 Batgirl has been dark.
Super dark. So dark, in fact, that Gail Simone herself made mention of the need
for a change of tone in a tweet after her exit was announced: “…I am sad to
leave, but glad they are finally allowing Batgirl to not be so grim every
issue.” Now, I am not arguing against the new creative team’s decision to
lighten the mood of the book, and I’m even a fan of Babs’ new costume. (Screaming
yellow Dr. Martins and a leather jacket? Yes, please!) What I am saying,
however, is that this jarring change in direction is not a welcome reprieve
from the unyielding shit-storm poor Babs has been caught up in. Rather, it is
an abrupt, nausea inducing, 90 mph, 180-degree turn. It feels forced. It feels
fake. It feels wrong. The Batgirl that Stewart and Fletcher have described
sounds more like a stereotype than a character with any depth. To me, this
change feels very out of touch with reality, and I don’t anticipate that it
will be received well by the fans. I really do hope that come October, when
Batgirl #35 is released, this (otherwise impressive) creative team can prove me
wrong.
No comments:
Post a Comment