If you haven’t already heard, on May 31st, and then officially on June 1st, DC announced a huge revamping of its entire DC Universe. So what is in store for the women of DC? Today, DC released a sneak peek at the creative teams of Batwoman, Batgirl, Birds of Prey and Catwoman.
The goal of this huge DC change up, according to Bob Wayne, SVP of Sales, is to,
“…introduce readers to a more modern, diverse DC Universe, with some character variations in appearance, origin and age. All stories will be grounded in each character’s legend – but will relate to real world situations, interactions, tragedy and triumph.”
Over the next couple of months, DC will be releasing updates on just what fans can expect to see when the DC change starts on August 31st with the release of Justice League #1. Today, DC unveiled some of its changes and updates to what I think is one of DC’s strongest appeals, and that is the women of the DC Universe.
Though I deal in comics as a hobby and recently, by trade, there are only a few series I collect regularly. My pull list consists of Zatanna, Gotham City Sirens, Birds of Prey, I Zombie, and when Top Cow manages to get it done, the Magdalena. Notice the theme? I love the female hero. She is an iconic counterbalance to the machismo of the traditional superhero that when well done, extols a unique type of hero.
So what does DC have in store with their heroes? According to the Source, we get some glimpses into what to expect come September. And like many others, I trepidatiously await these announcements.
Batwoman
Batwoman begins her new series with the team of J.H. Williams III, Haden Blackman, and Amy Reeder. Williams has a lot of experience with DC’s Batman and Batwoman comics as well as Justice League of America. It will be interesting to see what changes are made to the character. Of note, Batwoman was re-made to appeal to a more diverse population and is probably one of the most notable gay characters to appear in DC Comics.
Catwoman
Catwoman will start off right with her own title, though her write up sounds more like a write up for a bad ‘B’ movie, or based on the cover, a playmate.
“Meet Catwoman. She’s addicted to the night. Addicted to shiny objects. Addicted to Batman. Most of all, Catwoman is addicted to danger. She can’t help herself, and the truth is – she doesn’t want to. She’s good at being bad, and very bad at being good. Find out more about what makes Catwoman tick in CATWOMAN #1, written by Judd Winick and illustrated by Guillem March.”
Here is my concern. I loved Gotham City Sirens. With Catwoman having her own title, and Poison Ivy off to work with the Birds of Prey, where does that leave poor Harley Quinn and the Gotham City Sirens?! So will Selina no longer be involved in helping Harley and Ivy do the right thing, and will she still be the woman who loves Batman, but knows to stay away because the guy just has issues? Or will she just be addicted to Batman? Blech, maybe she will tweet her crush as she stalks him.
Birds of Prey
Birds of Prey has been a phenomenal series for me, largely due to the writing of Gail Simone. In this revamp, Duane Swierczynski teams up with Jesus Saiz to bring a new Birds of Prey that looks to ditch the Huntress and Oracle and will instead include Katana (yawn), Poison Ivy (Wha?!), Black Canary and another unyet revealed character.
Batgirl
The biggest news is the revamping of Batgirl, and the announcement of Gail Simone as writer. The series returns with Barbara Gordon as Batgirl. This is a huge change to the DC canon as Barbara Gordon was Batgirl, but was paralyzed after being shot by the Joker. Rather than retire or quit, she reformed her identity as Oracle, and now works as a central figure for the Birds of Prey and has been essential in helping out the Justice League.
Oracle was a unique and an inspirational hero. Even after her tragedy, she struggled to re-form her identity, becoming Oracle so she could carry on the fight against evil. Jill Pontozzie (AKA the NerdyBird), wrote a stirring response to the news.
The only real plus is putting Gail Simone on the project. This is what Ms. Simone had to say about the Batgirl #1 announcement,
“Barbara Gordon is pretty much my everything. Because of the Batman TV show, she was the reason I fell in love with superheroes. Because she was a redhead who could kick ass, she is the reason I fell in love with comics. She was always forward-looking as Batgirl, a girl who was smarter than the male characters, who had class and elegance and style, as well as tough-as-nails grit. For a long time, there was simply nothing else like her in comics, and for me and a lot of other readers, her every appearance was joyful and explosive.
For many years, I got to write the character as Oracle, and there is to this day, no character who means more to me. This is classic Barbara as she was originally conceived, with a few big surprises. It’s a bit of a shock, to be sure, but we’re doing everything we can to be respectful to this character’s amazing legacy, while presenting something thrilling that a generation of comics readers will be experiencing for the first time…
…Barbara Gordon leaping, fighting, and swinging over Gotham. Now, when citizens of that city look up, they are going to see BATGIRL.
And that is absolutely thrilling.”
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Have to say the only series here that get me excited at all is Batgirl, and that is only because of Gail Simone. Birds of Prey without Oracle or Huntress! Basphemy!
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I agree with Batgirl being the real hit for me, but so sad on this revamping thing so far. I am hoping Catwoman has more substance than the crap description they gave.
This is way more helpful than atynihng else I’ve looked at.