The Week In Geek: The Latest SF and Fantasy News - October 2012

Things change rapidly in the world of geek and popular culture - but to guide you through this maze of rumours, spoilers, high pitched squeeing and angry rants, SF Girl will be presenting a weekly look at what's hot in the genre-verse. From the newest fiction releases to TV show and film rumours and the latest developments in the world of comics.

If it's science fiction and fantasy or something beyond your imagination - we'll be covering it with our own special brand of commentary. So let's get started. *shuffles paper in a reasonably serious manner.*

COMICS 

 Marvel Launches Its "Marvel Now!"titles this coming week:

Coming off another big summer crossover event - Avengers vs X Men - Marvel launches its "Marvel Now!" initiative this week. 

Described as a "soft reboot" at this year's San Diego Comic-Con and by Marvel Editor-in Chief Axel Alonso as "Not a reboot, but a new beginning." Marvel Now will see many established titles relaunching and many ending for good.

 It has been seen by some detractors as an attempt to mirror the sales success of DC Comics' "New 52" last year. A company wide hard reboot that saw Marvel's rival DC re-envision all of their iconic characters from Batman to Wonder Woman to create 52 newly numbered titles.

"The New 52" caused a real stir in 2011 amongst comics fans and some speculated whether Marvel would do something similar and grab their piece of the pie. They haven't had to wait long.

Following the events of Avengers vs X Men where: HIGHLIGHT TO READ SPOILERS:  Five X-Men were accidentally imbued with the Phoenix Force (Emma Frost, Colossus, Magik, Cyclops and Namor) leading to a full-scale conflict between the X Men and the Avengers. The African nation of Wakanda was destroyed by Namor and the mutant island of Utopia was left in ruins. The event ended with Cyclops possessing the full Phoenix force, going Dark Phoenix and killing his life-long mentor and leader of the X Men - Professor Charles Xavier. Mutant messiah and originally intended Phoenix host Hope Summers and exiled Avenger Scarlet Witch teamed together to end the Phoenix's destruction, which resulted in the rebirth of the dying mutant race. Cyclops was arrested and imprisoned by the Avengers and Captain America pledged to work with the X-Men to create a better future. Leading to the launch of the Uncanny Avengers - a newly created combined team of Avengers and mutants/X-Men. END SPOILERS  A new era of combined Avengers and X-Men titles has been created.

The Marvel Now initiative will be pairing new creative teams for several newly numbered titles and ending long established Marvel titles such as X Men Legacy (which has run since 1991) and Silver Age titles Uncanny X-Men (which has run since 1975 and been one of Marvel's flagship titles for decades) and Amazing Spiderman (which has run for 700 issues since the early 1960's). It's fair to say it's the end of an era for Marvel and the start of something very new.

Marvel will be launching a new title each week from October 2012 to February 2013, whilst still keeping some older and newer titles on their rosters.

This change to the status quo of the Marvel Universe will be most clearly seen in Uncanny Avengers.  A brand new Avengers title that will see Avengers characters working directly alongside X-Men characters for the first time in Marvel's 50 year history. (Feel free to nit-pick with me as to whether Wolverine already counts!) 

Written by Rick Remender with art by John Cassaday, the new superhero team will see Avengers Captain America, Thor and Scarlet Witch pairing with X-Men Rogue, Havok and Wolverine. The first issue launched this Wednesday (October 10th) and as a big fan of both Scarlet Witch and Rogue, I'm excited to see what the writers do with the variety of characters on the team and how they will interact.

The Uncanny Avengers team line-up.

Another upcoming Marvel Now! title causing controversy is Brian Michael Bendis' All New X-Men. Having wrecked merry havoc on the Avengers since 2005, Bendis is now being given the reigns of Marvel's new X-title. The premise of this new beginning for the X-Men is that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's original five X-Men (Beast, Angel, Iceman, Cyclops and Jean Grey/Marvel Girl) will time-travel from their time to the future. Once there they will encounter the current X-Men and learn the shocking end result of Xavier's dream of mutant equality. 

Bendis told Comic Book Resources:

"It's not a time-travel story like 'Back To The Future.' It's a time-travel story like 'Pleasantville," adding: "Here's the big question that they original X-Men are gonna be faced with: "We're gonna grow up, and this is what we're going to get? That is not acceptable."

All-New X Men also sees the return of Jean Grey - a character that has a long and controversial legacy. Eternally popular and eternally killed and brought back again, Bendis knows this character comeback will be watched keenly by comics fans:

"It’s the one thing X-Men fans have always asked for is: They want Jean Grey back. But they want Jean Grey. Not reincarnated Jean, or the ghost of Jean. Well, you’re getting Jean back. And Jean is gonna be looking at a world that rattles her."

For this writer - who has been an avid Jean Grey fan (and a fan of the X-Men) since childhood, I'm both keenly excited at what Bendis will do with her and the original X-Men and full of anxious trepidation as to whether it'll hold up to everyone's high expectations. We'll know more when All New X-Men #1 hits the shelves on November 7th.

The original Sixties X-Men time travel to our future in All New X-Men.

Expect in-depth reviews of both new titles over the coming weeks right here on the SF Girl blog and let us know in the comments what you think about "Marvel Now!"

FILM

 Black Widow and Sharon Carter to star in Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier: 

It’s looking increasingly certain Scarlett Johansson will be reprising her role as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff in the next Captain America film: Captain America: The Winter Soldier. 

Deadline Hollywood confirms.

The sequel to 2011’s Captain America will see the focus being placed on Steve Rogers’ friendship with Bucky Barnes. Known in Marvel comics as The Winter Soldier – Bucky was presumed dead in World War II (and died on screen in the first Captain America film.) In reality, Bucky was captured by the Soviets and reprogrammed as a master assassin. With Black Widow’s shared history of mind-wiping and Russian espionage and the two characters already written as an established couple in the comics, it seems fitting Natasha would have a role to play.

Having been impressed by how Joss Whedon developed the character in The Avengers (2012), I’m looking forward to potentially seeing some of her origin story onscreen in 2014. Though I’d still sell my soul for a solo Black Widow movie (with added Hawkeye).

Also rumoured to be in the mix for Captain America: Winter Soldier is love interest Sharon Carter, an ancestor of Steve’s wartime sweetheart Peggy Carter (played by Hayley Atwell) and SHIELD field agent.

At least five actresses are being considered for a female part in the sequel including Emelia Clarke (Danerys in Game of Thrones), Jessica Brown-Findley (Sybil in Downton Abbey), Theresa Palmer (Warm Bodies), Imogen Poots (Fright Night) and Alison Brie (Mad Men and Community).

Whilst Sharon Carter hasn’t yet been confirmed as the part in question – with the comics’ characters strong ties to Captain America, it looks increasingly likely.

Casting rumours suggest Ms Marvel may be appearing in Avengers 2: 

Former US Airforce pilot, imbued with Kree superpowers – Carol Danvers has been kicking up a storm in her newly launched solo comics series “Captain Marvel” and if rumours circulated by the Daily Mail are to be believed she may be the next female star of The Avengers 2.

Both Emily Blunt (who narrowly missed out of the part of Black Widow to Scarlett Johansson) and Ruth Wilson are being hotly tipped for the potential part.  Avengers 2 director Joss Whedon has gone on record in previous interviews as wanting to even out the gender balance of the cast and bring a few more female Avengers into the fold for the sequel, mentioning founder Avenger Janet Van Dyne (Wasp).

While nothing has been confirmed yet, SF Girl is hopeful we’ll see a few more female Avengers added to the team alongside Black Widow and Ms Marvel has a strong enough fan following to make a real impact on the big screen. Hopefully we’ll hear some positive news on this soon.

Katee Sackhoff to star in "female Expendables" action film and play Karen Gillan's mum in new US horror film Occulus.

SF fan favourite actress Katee Sackhoff, best known for her career defining turn as hotshot headstrong pilot Kara Thrace/Starbuck in Battlestar Galactica, has been cast in a new all-female action movie version of The Expendables.

Film project leader Adi Shankar has this to say about his casting choice:

“If you spend five minutes with Katee it becomes blatantly obvious that she would pwn most male action stars.”

We whole-heartedly agree and whilst an all-female action film isn’t something this blog would normally cover genre-wise, it’s definitely a source of great excitement. Here’s hoping they ask Sigourney Weaver and Linda Hamilton to appear in it too!

Sackhoff is currently filming a part in horror film “Occulus” in Alabama, where she will be playing the mother of former Doctor Who companion Karen Gillan’s character in flashbacks. Occulus is a horror film in which Gillan’s character Kaylie is convinced a haunted antique mirror is the real perpetrator of the murder of her parents, a crime her brother has been put in prison for, and wants to prove that the mirror was responsible for destroying her family.

Fans of Sackhoff will also be able to see her kicking butt and taking names alongside Vin Diesel in the new Chronicles of Riddick film due next year. It’s a good time to be a Starbuck fan!

TELEVISION

X Files creator Chris Carter is developing a new sci-fi series:

Chris Carter, creator of iconic 90’s show The X Files is returning to television. It’s been a decade since Mulder and Scully left our screens, but Carter’s new show “The After” seems to hit on similar themes.

Georgeville CEO Marc Rosen has pitched the show (currently being shown to networks) as:

“[A] thriller which revolves around a mysterious, unexplained event. In the vein of The X Files, The After incorporates elements of science fiction, suspense, and real-world fear and paranoia. Chris has woven his mythology magic within a very human, grounded story about the moment when we realize all of our worst fears about the world and its future."

The description is suitably vague – but feels much like the “big global event” sci-fi shows we’ve seen in recent years such as “The Event” and “Flashforward.” What’s funny is that this style of “sci-fi conspiracy” TV arguably stems from The X-Files’ success and we’d argue shows such as J J Abrams’ “Lost” wouldn’t have existed were it not for the twists and turns Carter created and used to dramatic effect on The X Files.

If Carter’s back to doing what he does best, then this could be fantastic, but this writer wonders whether sci-fi viewers have become jaded in recent years by these types of shows and whether Carter can bring something new and innovative to the table. Time will tell, but we’ll be looking at this show’s progress with interest.

Blade Runner star Rutger Hauer to appear in True Blood Season Six:

He’s seen things you wouldn’t believe and this time he’s making a trip to Bon Temps. Legendary Blade Runner actor Rutger Hauer has been cast in a new role as a series regular on True Blood’s sixth season.He will play Macklyn, a mysterious and sinister figure with deep ties to both Sookie and Jason Stackhouse. Colour us intrigued.  

Sharp-witted cult fans will recognise this is not the first time Hauer has been in a supernatural production – he also played vampire villain Lothos in the original 1992 Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie.

The sixth series of True Blood will begin filming soon, but won’t air until June 2013. Waiting definitely sucks.

Red Dwarf's Comeback Nets the 3rd highest UKTV audience ever:

Smegging hell! Red Dwarf’s back and you’d have to have been living under a rock to miss all the excitement this comeback has caused.

The beloved sci-fi sitcom made its return on UK channel Dave last week and netted the channel 1.43 million viewers. Making it the third highest UKTV audience ever, only being beaten by the two episodes that made up the Red Dwarf mini-series ‘Back to Earth’ in 2009.

Red Dwarf X reunites Lister, Rimmer, Cat and Kryten for their first full series in 13 years. The series has a six episode run, but judging by the audience figures it’s looking likely we’ll be seeing more from the boys from the Dwarf very soon.

BOOKS

Stephen King and son Joe Hill release e-book "In Tall Grass" on Oct. 9th:

Horror maestro Stephen King and his son Joe Hill (writer of the fantastic horror comic Locke and Key) have collaborated on a new e-book “In Tall Grass” released this week.

The eBook will retail in the UK for £1.99 and the audio book for £9.99.

The story begins with a sister and brother who pull off to the side of the road after hearing a young boy crying for help from beyond the tall grass. Within minutes they are disoriented, in deeper than seems possible, and they’ve lost one another, while the boy’s cries are growing more and more desperate . . .

It’s a story with all the suspense, twists, scares and masterful storytelling people expect from both writers.

“I loved working with Joe, ” says King. “Our styles mesh pretty well. Maybe it’s the similar DNA. Certainly we feed on each other’s energy, and as the old man of the combo, I’m impressed with Joe’s narrative drive and narrative clarity. Working with your kid is an amazing gift.”

His son Joe Hill says writing with his Dad is like “…buckling up for a ride in the meanest, fastest, baddest eighteen-wheeler on the roads. He’s got a V12 engine under the hood; all the rest of us writer-types are stuck with little sewing machine motors. Been learning from him my whole life and I doubt I’ve picked up a tenth of what he knows.”

The eBook also includes an exclusive extract of Joe Hill’s forthcoming novel NOS4R2 and an extract of Stephen King’s forthcoming novel Doctor Sleep.

Sir Terry Pratchett Launches His Own Production Company Narrativia: 

Sir Terry Pratchett, author of the endlessly popular and ridiculously prolific Discworld series has launched his own production company.

NARRATIVIA is a new multimedia production company with exclusive worldwide rights to all of Pratchett’s work across film, television, merchandising and digital media.

Based in London Soho and run by managing director Rod Brown alongside NARATIVIA directors, author Rhianna Pratchett (Sir Terry’s daughter) and Pratchett’s business manager Rob Wilkins, the company will ensure that projects will stay true to the author’s unique vision whilst bringing the Discworld to new media platforms and audiences.

NARRATIVIA is already working on a number of Pratchett-related television and film projects, with high profile production partners and scriptwriters, details of which will be announced in due course.

One, which many may be aware of is a TV adaptation “The Watch” - a Discworld based fantasy “precedural” based on the books’ Night Watch.

Sir Terry says: “This is an exciting and natural development for me and my works, and I look forward to working closely with the team to develop new stories in areas other than just print and ebooks and, of course, seeing my first Big Screen project come to fruition.”

The Avengers - How Fan Reaction Changed Black Widow's Marketing.

I admit it. I've been totally psyched about The Avengers as a movie for some time now. Firstly, because it is directed by one of my favourite writer/director/creators for some time: Mr Joss Whedon. He is pretty much geek catnip as far as I'm concerned. Anyone reading this blog knows that I've been a Whedonverse fan for many years - Buffy, Angel, Firefly, even Dollhouse. If he's involved, I'm there. Why? Because he's not just there to make things blow up for no reason (I'm looking at you Michael Bay!) - although Joss has teased in interviews that he's keen to get to blow up stuff - No.

The reason I'm excited is because Joss Whedon understands characters, he understands character development and he has the ability to mix lighthearted funny moments with intense, gut-wrenching pathos. He can make you laugh one minute, then have you sobbing your eyes out the next and you never know how things are going to play out. You just know he's going to both make and break your heart at the very same time and that's what I look for in a storyteller. A blockbuster can be a big spectacle, but if you don't care about the plot or characters, it's just one big fancy light show with no substance. I'm excited because I know Joss can deliver so much more than that and I know it's going to be great. I have faith!

Secondly, IT'S THE AVENGERS!!  Marvel comics' greatest heroes are teaming up...or dare I say it, assembling! It's a huge marketing gamble for Marvel, as we saw many films in 2011 - Thor, Captain America and 2010 - Iron Man 2 - paving the way for The Avengers. They've invested a lot in getting the audience to this point. Do I worry that there might not be anything there for the casual viewer or non-comics reader? Slightly - but I think even if you managed to see at least one or none of those movies you won't feel lost. There's going to be plenty of action and great quip-y dialog and who doesn't want to see Iron Man, Thor,  Hulk,  Hawkeye,  Black Widow and Captain America square up to each other and team-up?  I sure do!

Finally, I have to say how much I adored Thor as a movie last year, it was definitely up there as one of my faves of 2011. I'm a total comics and mythology geek and I wasn't sure how Thor would translate to the big screen, but Kenneth Brannagh did a superb job of balancing the lofty "mythic" elements of the story with a lot of fun and humour. The tone was pitched just right, the special effects for Asgard were just out of this world stunning and can I get a round of applause for Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth who were just perfectly cast as Loki and Thor. I'm so excited to see the plot threads seeded in Thor weave their way into The Avengers - and see more of Loki as a great Machiavellian villain. It's going to rock. If you don't believe me check out the teaser trailer below:

I honestly adore this teaser trailer - nothing gives this girl a shot of adrenalin more than watching epic comic book action to a Nine Inch Nails soundtrack. Iron Man, Thor AND Trent Reznor singing? Awesome sauce. It definitely promises a lot of fun come 27th April when The Avengers opens in the UK. I can't wait.

So why my post? Well...I wanted to talk about the awesome female Avenger - Black Widow and how her character was treated in Iron Man 2 and how she was originally marketed for The Avengers.


The Portrayal of Black Widow In Iron Man 2:

I really wanted to like Black Widow in Iron Man 2 and I did - but it could have been so much more. On a shallow level it helps that she is played by Scarlett Johannson, an actress I admire a lot (She was amazing in Lost In Translation) and let's face it most of the male (and female) population think is damned gorgeous (and she is - but she is so much more than just a pretty face). So what didn't I like about the way Black Widow was portrayed in Iron Man 2?  She was barely in it for a start. Whilst, I realise Iron Man 2 was very much Tony Stark's movie and things were being laid in place for The Avengers - it was made very obvious in the script and in the way scenes were filmed, that she was there to be an undercover "secretary" and her role was to stand there and look pretty for most of the film. She was there to be the male eye candy and that bugged the hell out of me.

Secretary mode Black Widow.

Black Widow or Natasha Romanoff is a Marvel comics heroine, who is a Russian super-spy. She's a flame-haired martial-arts trained livewire, who can kick your ass sideways and take out a target with a sniper rifle fairly efficiently. She usually was equipped with plenty of high-tech weaponry and her trademark skin-tight black leather jumpsuit. She was originally portrayed in comics as working for the Soviet Union, but later joined S.H.I.E.L.D. (Marvel's fictional secret American defence organisation) and became a member of the Avengers. In many ways, Black Widow is much like a Russian Bond girl/femme fatale that would sooner shoot Bond than kiss him.

In many ways, the movie Black Widow doesn't stray too far from that concept, the red hair and the catsuit is there along with her proficiency at espionage, computer hacking, weaponry and martial arts. So what was missing for me? Apart from the fact we never see Scarlett speak in a Russian accent? The fact that she spent most of the film simpering around Tony Stark and Pepper Potts and having Tony perv on her slightly. She was there purely as a perceived threat to Tony and Pepper's romantic relationship and wore a dress/tiny pencil skirt and heels for the most of it. It was so annoying! Again, I realise that she's meant to be undercover, but could we please have a little dignity and subtlety in portraying the character maturely. Please? Having Stark leer at an underwear shoot photo of her, putting her in that little skirt, followed by the lingering shots of her butt is NOT IT. I think my point can be illustrated best by this clip from the film:

 

*sigh* Oh Marvel movies how you disappoint me with your unthinking sexism. I fully realise that Black Widow is meant to be a femme-fatale character, but there are ways to make a character attractive and sexy where it's clear the character has ownership of that sexuality and is not defined by it. It honestly can be done. Admittedly it probably doesn't help that Black Widow's catsuit is utterly ridiculous. It took me ages to find a comic book portrayal/image of her that didn't make her look like her boobs were about to fall out of her outfit. Pretty sure you don't want to be that exposed in a life or death fight situation Miss Romanoff!

Black Widow in her own Marvel comic. Kremlin-a'licious.

Having said that - after the film teasing us for ages - finally seeing Natalie in action as Black Widow was worth the wait and a lot of fun. Plus she uses what I'm now going to patent as her "trademark killer vagina move." What is that exactly? Well, her fighting style in the films seems to involve her jumping onto a guy's head, scissoring her legs around him and flipping the poor schlub's ass to the ground. But mostly it looks like she's taking people out with her vagina. Do I find this amusing as a style choice? Yes. Am I going to stop typing vagina? No! Because it's funny and I can. Not only that, but one of the sole clips of her in The Avengers has her doing the exact same thing. So yeah - Black Widow kills people with her vagina. You heard it here first. I don't really know how to feel about it. Is it sexist? Maybe. Does it amuse me. Yes. So I'm going to go with amusement for the time being. Feel free to judge for yourself by watching the clip below:

 See? I told you! She's a total ninja. With her vagina. A vagina ninja, if you will. I'll stop now before I completely lose the point I was trying to make. Right. Black Widow and my concerns about her portrayal. Right. Well, I had my concerns about whether the character would be just as sidelined in The Avengers. I knew Joss Whedon, champion of multi-faceted strong female characters was involved, so I had a lot more confidence that Natasha wasn't going to end up being a piece of throwaway eye candy again. Joss has even gone on record saying that he'd have liked to use more female characters in his film, namely founder Avenger "Wasp" a.k.a Janet Van Dyne, who was the original female Avenger. Someone really should have sold that idea of pro-female empowerment to the film's marketing team though.


The Marketing of Black Widow for The Avengers and The Amusing Fan Backlash:

The original teaser posters for The Avengers did not fill me - a female comics fan - with joy. Why do you ask? Because this is what they originally came up with:

Can you spot the difference? Apparently Black Widow's super-heroine power is flashing her arse, whilst her male comrades stand around looking cool and not at all flashing their bums in a derogatory fashion. Seriously what is this? 

The sheer gender difference in portrayal is so obvious that once you see it, you can't unsee it. Yes, if you are feeling particularly boorish you could say: "Well, it's Scarlett Johannson. She's an attractive woman. Why can't we show a shot of her bum?" That's all well and good, but every single male character in this promotional banner isn't being treated in the same flippant manner. They're allowed to stand there looking cool and not flashing their back-side for no apparent reason. I think sci-fi journalist Jayne Nelson said it best on the SFX website: "I can't believe the only bottom on display is Scarlett's. It's bloody sexist, is what it is! I demand pert man-bottoms to even the balance!" And she's not the only one besides me who cottoned onto this discrepancy, the Mary Sue covered it too here. 

One artist decided to reverse the trend, Kevin Bolk - who decided to portray all the Male Avengers in a rather "manly" fashion in the same pose. His reasoning was: "I couldn’t help but notice that in most of the ad material, the guys are all in heroic stances but Black Widow is almost always in an impractical, curved-spine ‘booty shot’ pose. Figured I’d flip it around for my lady friends out there. Seemed only fair.”

So yeah. I can't try to caption this without giggling. I really can't!

I admit. It's pretty funny and only serves to highlight the often ridiculous poses many women are drawn or depicted in in the media.  We're not all uber-boobed contortionists dudes. Lay off already! But personally, I loved the positive response to Bolk's artwork and the annoyed reaction of the geek community to the naff marketing the Avengers marketing team originally came up with. Many of us were annoyed by it, but dammit, we were going to have a sense of humour about it too. It was refreshing to see this reaction in a jaded internet world where casual sexism in advertising seems to be brushed off as quickly as blinking these days. So when it was time for them to unveil the UK "Avengers" promo banners I had a not-so-small amount of trepidation. Were we going to see more of the same? Thankfully someone seemed to have seen the light-hearted backlash online and this was what they changed Black Widow's UK poster to this:

Much cooler and more balanced don't you think?

 This change definitely left me feeling a lot happier and having seen a second equally gorgeous, non-gratuitous poster, also posted below, I'm doubly pleased. Here we have Black Widow being kick-ass and gorgeous and tough without flashing her bum. HURRAY! See film marketers, here's how you promote a movie without alienating and annoying your potential female audience. Bravo. Let's hope the film continues that trend!

Even more awesome is the news we Brits might be getting to see the film first for a change. The UK release date is set for April 27th , whereas the US release date has been promoted as May 4th (Star Wars Day!).

Let's be clear: I don't want my heroines to be stone-faced butt-kicking automatons, but at the same time I don't want them to be scantily-clad brainless eye candy either. Where do we draw the line? How about giving us a beautiful (or rocking the boat further - less anatomically perfect and/or physically implausible) heroine who is emotionally relatible; who is flawed; who has problems, but solves them. Who can be fragile and strong at the same time? If anyone can write and portray that it's Joss Whedon. He created Buffy Summers, who was very much all those things. So do I hope that Black Widow can be a fully realised member of the Avengers, rather than being perceived as the "token female?" Absolutely. There are so many characters being carried into this movie and screen time is precious, but I have faith that Joss and his writing/production team will be able to show Black Widow as a worthy and equally important member of The Avengers team.

 Although I'm still sad to discover the complete lack of Black Widow merchandise tie-ins announced so far. I guess they are going for the more recognisable characters, but still. Such a missed opportunity. I want there to be Black Widow action figure dammit!   

**AWESOME NEWS UPDATE**: There IS going to be a Black Widow action figure.
SFX Magazine have just posted shots of Hasbro's announced action figure range and Black Widow is included. HURRAY! Check them out here

**FURTHER AWESOME NEWS**: Marvel have also announced Black Widow will get a three issue comics mini-series tie-in with The Avengers film (recently renamed 'Avengers Assemble' in the UK to avoid being mistaken with the 60's spy franchise with the same name) called 'Black Widow Strikes.' The Black Widow comic series will see Natasha team up with fan favourite Agent Coulson in Russia. Sounds fab! Find out more here

Gorgeous new poster art for Black Widow.

But if anything positive can be gleaned from all of this, the fact that the marketing was changed to reflect fan reaction to the sexism gives me hope for humanity!  So as an additional thank you to all of you who have read this far, here's the all-new Avengers Super Bowl Trailer than premiered yesterday. Apparently they have a Hulk:

Weekly Comic Reviews Part 2 - Batgirl Issue 1

         
       Batgirl Issue 1 (DC's New 52) - "Shattered."

DC Comics

Written by Gail Simone.

Pencils by Ardian Syaf. Cover Art by Adam Hughes.

  
Characters: Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, Commissioner Jim Gordon, Mirror*,, Graham Carter, The Brisby Killers, Mr and Mrs Otega, The Joker (brief flashback cameo), Alysia*, Heidi, Theodore Rankin and two Gotham Police Detectives - Mel McKenna* and her partner. 

 The Plot: A mysterious villain called "Mirror" is targeting the lone survivors of horrific accidents who by some miracle survived their ordeal and Barbara Gordon is next on the list. He kills Graham Carter in his back garden, showing him his "true face." Meanwhile in another part of Gotham, Batgirl swings into action to take out the Brisby Killers - a gang of horror-masked criminals that break into homes and torture their victims. Batgirl interrupts the Brisby Killers threatening Mr and Mrs Otega and takes out the gang leader with taunts and a swift batarang to the hand. Despite the fact that she is back in action, we learn that she's nervous about being back in the field and she's still physically and emotionally fragile.

Old memories run deep for Barbara Gordon.

We cut to Barbara at home, reliving her ordeal with the Joker. She reveals she was brutally shot by him and left paralysed and in a wheelchair for three years, until a miracle happened and she was somehow, slowly able to walk again. We have a brief and touching scene between Barbara and her Dad, Commissioner Gordon. Her Dad is protective of her, but she announces she's ready to find a place of her own again and get back on her own two feet - literally and figuratively. We see Babs show up at a new apartment and get shown around by her new quirky room-mate Alysia, who quickly gives her a new nickname "GBG" and announces that she is an activist and paints by day and tends bar by night. Some girl-bonding ensues! Yey! Unfortunately followed by Alysia noticing the wheelchair ramp on Barbara's moving van and making an inadvertent "ableist" comment. Barbara can't begin to tell her new roomie about her recovery and condition and so keeps silent, feeling awkward.
Meanwhile two Gotham cops Mel McKenna and her partner are at Sacred Hands Hospital keeping watch over Rankin - the injured leader of the Brisby Killers. We see Mirror enter the hospital and punch a receptionist - he's here to see Theodore Rankin - and he's prepared to shoot security guards who get in his way. Barbara has been taping into Gotham Police's text alerts using her phone and sees that there's trouble going down. In true super-heroine style, she makes her apologies to Alysia, grabs her Batcycle from the back of the van and gets her costume on to ride to the rescue. Mirror enters the room holding Detective McKenna and her partner, shoots McKenna's partner dead and turns on McKenna. Apparently Rankin is on Mirror's list and must die.  Batgirl races to the door and finds Mirror's gun trained on her spine, she has a horrific post-traumatic flashback to the Joker's shhoting of her and completely freezes up, unable to act. Rankin pleads with her to help, but she is frozen in place as Mirror launches Rankin out of the 14th floor window in his hospital bed. Mel McKenna trains her gun on a horrified Batgirl - accusing her of murder.

                   DAN DAN DAN! EPIC CLIFF-HANGERY MUSIC!
 

Best Lines:  Gail Simone writes amazing interior monologues for Barbara and that's where her writing really shines. I've highlighted a few examples I loved in this issue:

"I'm not Batgirl. Not tonight. Not Batman's former star pupil, as I used to be. Not the girl who did everything right...who danced through Gotham and dazzled everyone she met. Tonight, I am Barbara Gordon. She of the eidectic memory. She who never forgets. Never. Except how to breathe sometimes." - Barbara/Batgirl.

"I panicked every time I heard a doorbell for months after. But I survived. The Joker never beat me. The bullet never beat me." - Barbara/Batgirl.

 "It's tempting to stay where you are most loved. But as with everything...sometimes you have to let go." - Barbara/Batgirl.
  
I love Simone's take on Barbara - She's smart, possesses an absolute steel core of emotional and physical strength and tenacity and yet there's an emotional fragility and a quiet wisdom to her that makes her endlessly relatable. Also, I'm a bit of a Daddy's girl myself and the relationship between Babs and her father is one of the most touching parent/child dynamics in comics. Having just left home to try to stand on my own two feet myself - I can relate to that need to get out into the world and make a difference, yet being nervous about what could happen. Moving from safety to independence. She's not superhuman, she's just a girl trying to make the world a better place and that's what makes her so easy to warm to.


"Come on. I'll help. Then I'll make some tea and we can discover what things we both hate." - Alysia
"Really? That'd be...that'd be nice." - Barbara/Batgirl
"But, just fair warning okay? I'm kinda an activist. All good?" - Alysia
It took a while, after the shooting, to let strangers back in. It'd be nice to have someone to have tea with. - Barbara/Batgirl.
  
I admit it. I'm a sucker for well-written nuanced female friendships in comics and entertainment in general. Buffy and Willow are my OTF (One True Friendship - it's a phrase. I'm coining it.) and I would really like to see more relatable female friendships in comics. It's something Simone does really well. I really like Alysia, she has a strong voice and I love Barbara's tentative hope that she can make a new friend. Plus tea? Who doesn't love tea and good conversation right?

"That's my biggest fear, being trapped in a chair like that. Can you imagine? Like prison." - Alysia
 "She doesn't mean anything by it. I know she doesn't. She doesn't know what the chair helps you do. And I guess I don't feel like explaining that to her able-bodied-but-well-intended-self right now." 
- Barbara/Batgirl.
  
These lines made me so sad for Babs. It's so hard when people judge or misread without thinking. The comment comes off as insensitive, but unintentioned. I still winced though. I'm really glad they didn't write off Babs' struggles as if they never happened. It's far more respectful to the character and I expect physically disabled people have to deal with off-the-cuff unthinking comments like this every day. It sucks.

  
The Artwork: Adam Hughes' front cover art is gorgeous. This is a dynamic portrayal of the new Batgirl and the use of bats in the background art reminded me of the recent Christopher Nolan Batman films. I really like the new Batgirl costume and that they've kept purple in the colour scheme. It still has that classic feel. I also love the new Batgirl logo. Everything about this cover makes me happy.

I think what really helps me key into Batgirl as a character is that she's not as heavily sexualised in the way she is drawn, unlike Power Girl's infamous "boob-window" and Catwoman. As much as I enjoy Catwoman as a character, Selina Kyle is a character that is defined by her sexuality and depicted in artwork as a highly sexualised character. I'm fine with healthy expression of sexuality, but not when its expression overwhelms a female character's depiction to the point where that becomes all I can see and no substance. There's a fetishistic subtext to Catwoman's whip and leather cat-suit that's hard to ignore. She's a dominatrix in appearance and a femme fatale by nature and it's hard to get away from that in how she is drawn. Selina is a compelling and interesting character to me, but the way she is drawn is often incredibly male-gazey.  If you don't believe me, take a look at the fervour surrounding the first issue of the"New 52" Catwoman and the craziness its artwork and storyline caused online recently. (It depicted a softcore sex scene between Catwoman and Batman that wouldn't look out of place in R-rated fanfic and the first image you see of Catwoman is not of her face, but of her breasts and then her arse.  No. Really. There are no words.)

One LJ blogger "drvonfangirl" heavily critiqued the direction of the new Catwoman first issue and I'm inclined to agree with her. Check out her detailed response here.

The "New 52" Catwoman cover.  I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

 Getting back to Batgirl. Adain Syaf's pencils render her beautifully. She is womanly, youthful and dynamic, without being over-exposed or posed in any anatomically impossible positions. Barbara is drawn as an appealing young woman and I have to say I really like the artwork. One thing I love is that he's not bad at drawing detailed backgrounds. So many comic artists are great at drawing faces, anatomy, you name it - but phone-in their backgrounds and make them really shabby and it takes me out of the story, so thumbs-up for Syaf for giving us a better view of Barbara's world. His art is expressive and dynamic. I look forward to seeing more of both artists! 

Batgirl swinging into action.

Reflections and Verdict: There has been a lot of controversy surrounding DC Comic's 'New 52' reboot this September. In a nutshell, the company has taken all 52 of their comic's titles (including Action Comics and Detective Comics - which have been running since the 1930's and 40's) and rebooted many character's origins and story-lines. There's been a huge amount of changes - some which have hit long-time DC Comics readers hard - mainly in the pursuit of gaining new younger readers in a difficult economic market. I'll admit I'm one of those readers who has used the New 52 line-up as a great "jumping-on" point, but I'm determined to honour the growth of these iconic characters and intend to read what has gone before as well.

No change has been more controversial than the decision to make Barbara Gordon Batgirl again; to give you an idea of the controversy, I'm going to give you all a little background, not only into the history of Batgirl/Oracle in comics, but also what she meant to me growing up.

Barbara Gordon as Batgirl:
Barbara Gordon has always been a smart and capable female character in Batman comics.  Her character actually originated in the 60's Batman TV series as a way to attract female viewers, but her popularity was such that she soon became part of Batman/Detective comics canon in 1966. Played by the - quite frankly gorgeous - Yvonne Craig in the TV show, she high-kicked her way across the screen and into my tiny little heart. You see, even as a child of the Nineties, I grew up on Sixties Batman re-runs and Batman: The Animated Series.  Gawky, bookish nine year old me was desperate for any kind of female ass-kicking role models to emulate and look up to. In that sense, Batgirl was a goddess-send. I used to put on my brother's Batman costume and run around our house and garden fighting imaginary criminals - socking and kapowing them into oblivion. I wanted to be Batgirl. She was amazing and inspiring to me! Plus, I look good in purple okays?

Yvonne Craig - The Batgirl of my childhood.

Barbara Gordon was Police Commissioner Jim Gordon's daughter and Head Librarian at Gotham Public Library by day and put on her cape to fight crime as Batgirl by night. Her popularity was such that she became one of the iconic female heroines of the Silver Age of comics. She was an independent crime-fighter, not a side-kick.

The turning point for her character came 20 years later in 1988 with Alan Moore's The Killing Joke. This saw the Joker enact a horrifying act of violence on the Gordon family, shooting Barbara in the spine, stripping her near-naked and photographing her many times as she cried out in agony. The injury to her spinal-cord left Barbara paralysed and in a wheelchair. Her career as Batgirl had seemingly come to a traumatic end.

The turning point in Barbara's life.

One Batgirl fan who was outraged by the physical and sexual violence perpetrated on her favourite character at the time and on female characters in comics in general was Gail Simone. In the Nineties, she created a website called Women In Refrigerators - to critically challenge the ways in which female characters were mistreated and made victims of violence as a recurrent plot device in comics. 
 An incredibly worthy cause in this fan-girl's eyes. 

Through that one act of genuine moxie, Gail managed to her getting a gig writing a comics column and then getting into writing comics for the characters she loved like Wonder Woman and created a career-defining run writing DC's premier female crime-fighting team Birds of Prey. She's now writing the new 52 Batgirl. Not bad for a Batgirl and comics fangirl (and a great writer).

 Barbara Gordon as Oracle:  
Luckily there were others besides Simone who objected to the sidelining of one of DC's most beloved heroines. In 1989, a year after Barbara's devastating accident, writer Jim Ostrander and editor Kim Yale reinvented Miss Gordon as Oracle - a brilliant computer hacker and information broker. Despite being in a wheelchair, Babs was able to save the world by using her research skills and her sense of empathy to catch criminals and mentor heroes. She also trains in eskrima, a form of martial arts that enables her to fight even whilst in her wheelchair.

Creating and co-commanding her own team of female heroines - the Birds of Prey, through her friendship with Black Canary, Barbara was able to find new meaning in her life.  The comic in its original incarnation became the longest running female team-up series in comics history, running for 16 years from 1995-2011. Over the past 22 years, Oracle has become a beloved character in Modern Age comics and an icon for disabled and handi-capable readers. Framed as Batman's intellectual equal and the key source of information and tech support for all DC heroes and heroines, Barbara became a formidable presence in Gotham City, despite the cards life had dealt her.

Oracle. Comics' original Net-Girl Extraordinaire.

On the New 52 Reboot Controversy:
This September the announcement came that Batgirl and many other titles were to be rebooted and Barbara was to become Batgirl once again. Oracle was to be no more. The main argument being that Barbara Gordon has always been the most recognisible  Batgirl in popular culture and as a disabled female heroine in a comic-book world where miraculous healing Lazarus Pits exist and even Batman could be seen to recover from a broken spine, it seemed illogical that Batgirl never recovered from her injuries. A cynic might say the main idea for the change was reckoning on nostalgia and character familiarity to sell comics. It's no secret that despite the recent comic book blockbusters, the industry is still struggling right now and DC's decision to go back to the drawing board every few years is a symptom of that. I'd argue Marvel's "event" grand-standing every few years is for the same reason.

Many perspectives on Babs were bandied around online and many were rightly vocal about these changes to a beloved character and a symbol of hope for disabled readers that life doesn't have to stop as a result of an illness or handicap. One very poignant commentator was Jill Pantozzi - a female comics blogger and writer for both her own blog  Has Boobs, Reads Comics and geek girl go-to site The Mary Sue - who wrote an impassioned post for her Newsarama column about her love for Oracle. Jill has Muscular Dystrophy - a condition that means she has to spend a lot of time in a wheelchair. She even been known to dress up as Batgirl at conventions. Her love for Oracle is clear in her post, which you can check out here. 

The response was so vocal that Gail Simone herself responded by arranging a two-way interview between herself and Jill about the character changes and they both raised some interesting points. 
Check it out here.

Is really as simple as walking away from Oracle?

My own perspective is this. I have a genuine love for Babs and will follow this character where ever she goes as long as the writing stays true to the essence of the character. As far as diversity representation goes, Oracle's absence as a mentoring figure and a beacon for the disabled community is a real blow. It's a shame the two aspects of her character can't co-exist, so I have to make them do so in my own mind.

Author's note: I recently read all of Bryan Q. Miller's run with Stephanie Brown as Batgirl with Oracle as Steph's mentor and really enjoyed the character dynamic between the two. I really hope they find a way to bring Stephanie back, but fear it'll be an undoing of some great character development. Also, the "New 52" Birds of Prey line-up isn't really clicking for me without Oracle and Black Canary's friendship at the helm. The Birds were very much part of Barbara's path in making something of herself after her accident, so it seems weird to see the Birds team-up without that being the guiding factor in their origins.

  

I can see why Batgirl commentators and genuine fans such as Jill Pantozzi feel short-changed at Oracle's loss. I feel the only way I can really compartmentalise the two aspects of the history of Barbara as a character is to treat this new incarnation of Batgirl as an "alternate reality - what-if?" tale. What if Barbara had recovered from her injuries over time? What if she did return to fighting crime as Batgirl after suffering such trauma? How would it affect her? Where would it take her as a person and as a heroine? These are the questions the new Batgirl comic will hopefully answer and I trust that with a strong female writer such as Gail Simone at the helm, who has a clear genuine love of the character, she is in safe hands. For me, Oracle still exists out there as another side of the coin. Another path Barbara's story could've (and has) taken. I can still pick up my old Batgirl and Birds of Prey trades and see her saving the day. 

Either way, this is a woman who would never let the horrific hands she has been dealt beat her - whether in or out of a wheelchair - and that's what makes her so compelling. She never gives up. So I'm not giving up on reading about her.

 Score - 4/5  A compelling new beginning, that still remains true to Barbara and Batgirl's emotional journey.

Speculation:  This issue ended on a real cliffhanger where it was clear Barbara had not fully gotten over her ordeal at the hands of the Joker. I'd like to see her becoming strong again and putting these bad memories to rest. I'm sure she will, but it'll be a tough road getting there. What I love so much about Simone's writing of Barbara is that she keeps the emotional centre of the character at the forefront of her actions. I'm just as interested in Barbara's life outside of Batgirl as I am in her kicking ass. I really like Alysia - Babs' new roommate and hope there's room to develop a budding friendship between the two women.  I like Mirror as a villain and love that his motivation is so strongly tied into Barbara's emotional issues. I look forward to seeing them clash and finding out his origins. I predict that the consequences of Batgirl's inaction will be felt and I can't wait to see where this comic goes.  
I think I both discovered and rediscovered a heroine I'm going to love for a long time to come.