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2016 is the year of Hope Larson.

I love the character and attitude that artist David Lafuente puts into his comics pages! This week saw the release of the fifth and final issue of Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. Assassin, which features another deliciously dynamic cover by Lafuente. David Lafuente is from Spain and currently lives in London where he’s working on his next big project, a creator-owned series for Image Comics called The Ludocrats with fellow creators Kieron Gillen and Jim Rossignol.

Lafuente first cut his teeth in the mainstream comics world on the 2008-09 Hellcat mini-series with writer/artist Kathryn Immonen, then worked with Brian M. Bendis on the Ultimate Spider-Man relaunch. Some of my favorite art by David Lafuente is his interior work on the All-New Doop series in 2014 with Doop’s creator’s Peter Milligan & Mike Allred; check out those beautiful pages above!

Other notable works include Batman Eternal, Batgirl, Neli Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, and The Runaways.

You can follow David Lafuente and see his art process on his tumblr page here.

For more comics related art, you can follow me on my website comicstavern.com – Andy Yates

On my lunch break today, I decided to catch up on a few books I had fallen behind on.  Among them was Silk.  I picked up the latest issue, branded with the “Last Days of…” banner given to all Marvel mainline Secret Wars tie-ins, and while I missed the cleanliness of regular artist Stacy Lee’s lines, I found […]

Actress/dancer Yvonne Craig has passed away at age 78, following a battle with breast cancer. Her official site has her obituary. Of course, she will always be known for playing Batgirl in the Batman TV series, but she was also a dancer (as shown by her role as the Orion slave girl Marta in Star Trek) and a lovely person who made many appearances at conventions over the years. Reading her obituary makes it clear that she lived a very full life.

Bengal is a comics artist residing in Reims, France. His published work includes Naja, Luminae, and Meka published in the US by Magnetic Press and Batgirl: Endgame and Batgirl Annual #3 (not published at the time of this interview). On the last day of San Diego Comic-Con 2015, I had the good fortune to chat with Bengal, tucked in the back of the very busy Magnetic Press booth.

At SDCC '15 I talked with the Burnside Batgirl crew about their creative origins, how the look that launched a thousand cosplays came to be, how to handle creative criticism, and their earliest con experiences.

WB Games have confirmed what will be the first piece of downloadable content for their blockbuster Batman: Arkham Knight. If you’ve already 100% completed the game and are hovering around aimlessly waiting to activate the Knightfall protocol, fret not; season pass holders will be able to play a prequel Batgirl story at no additional cost on July 14. Batgirl: A Matter of Family will be a story of the Barbra Gordon version of the character before the events of Arkham Asylum.

Taking place in a new location and just as with Arkham Knight’s story, parts of this prequel DLC will see Batgirl tandem brawl alongside Robin and include a new hacking mechanic. Don’t worry about getting a one-round sized DLC like the Harley Quinn launch pack; the Batgirl DLC will include several side quests.

If you want an idea of what the DLC’s story may be about then look no further than the main game itself. When inside the clock tower, and a few other parts of Gotham, several newspapers can be found with a headline that reads “Batgirl Saves Police Commissioner”.

It should also be noted the DLC is credited to WB Montreal and not Arkham Knight developer, Rocksteady. If you recall, WB Montreal were the studio behind the Arkham Origins game.

Season pass holders will be able to download the new pack for free on July 14. A week later on July 21 the content will be available as standalone for $6.99. Currently the only platforms listed are PS4 and Xbox One.

What Batgirl skins would you like to see in the game?

Here we go, it’s the final week! Let’s cut straight to the chase and talk DC’s Week 4 of their “DC You” initiative.

After last week, I’m feeling pretty good, and ready to read! What do they have in store for me?

Side-note: my LCS didn’t get Teen Titans this week, so it is omitted from this list. I didn’t want to buy it anyway, to be honest.

Aquaman #41: My second shot with a Cullen Bunn book after Lobo landed with a thud. The last time I tried this Aquaman title was when Jeff Parker was on board, and I had trouble getting into even then, and I often enjoy Parker’s writing. Conceptually, Bunn is doing something interesting: the usage of a flashback-dual narrative structure isn’t new but it remains somewhat enticing, though the idea of it probably grabbed me more than the story itself. I don’t think Bunn is a particularly gifted dialogue writer, and I still generally find Aquaman mostly a bore, but if it keeps up this format, I’ll be down for another issue maybe….maybe. I’m at least curious to see if both threads pick up steam, provided that they continue to exist and it wasn’t just a first issue thing (I’ve read no interviews to know either way). There’s a bit of this new Aquaman tonally that also somewhat reminds of Kurt Busiek‘s far too short-lived Conan inspired run. I like that, on the other hand Trevor McCarthy‘s art was rather messy, and somewhat unclear, reminding me a bit of his rushed Batwoman arc where he took over for Amy Reeder.

Verdict: On the fence

Batgirl #41: I legitimately think Batgirl gets better every single issue, which for a mainstream superhero comic, is a pretty rare feat. This installment was another winner and provided one of the best looks at the new Batman status quo, while still relaying a “big” story through the lens of what Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr have laid down from the beginning of their run. Also of note, this is the first issue that Stewart did not provide layouts for Tarr, so what we get here, and in subsequent issues to come, is all Tarr. There’s one moment of male gaze that’s probably going to catch some ire, and it’s a weird miscalculation. But outside of that one panel, I’m a big big big fan.

Verdict: Already on my pull and staying there 

Deathstroke #7: Yikes, what a disaster this book is. Sub-Image 90’s garbage. To add insult to injury, Hephaestus is completely out of character from how he was presented in the Brian Azzarello/Cliff Chiang Wonder Woman run, one of the best New 52 launch titles. This book is representative of the kind of stuff that people accused the New 52 of being: obsessed with EXTREME storytelling. Tony Daniel is a gifted artist, and at times (“Batman R.I.P.”) produces really nice looking work, but as a writer…well, at least he’s relegated to a book I don’t care about at all, and have no reason to at this point.

Verdict: Stopping here

The Flash #41: Good lord, the exposition! It had been a minute since I’d read a Robert Venditti–Van Jensen co-written comic, but wow, was this an awkward read! I’m not sure if previous issues of their run tried as hard to tie into The Flash television series, but they’re really bending over backwards here to shoe-horn in not only the “father wrongly imprisoned” subplot, but also a Joe West stand-in. Brett Booth, who I am decidedly not a fan of, doesn’t help much, but the painfully overwritten narration and dialogue isn’t his fault. Perhaps for those who have been reading this run regularly, this issue pays off better, but I found myself rolling my eyes more often than not.

Verdict: Stopping here

Gotham By Midnight #6: A decent read, and I think Juan Ferreya makes for a slightly clearer if somewhat duller artist for this “supernatural side of Gotham” series than Ben Templesmith. Ray Fawkes, whose creator-owned work I generally enjoy, really hasn’t quite grabbed me during his DC tenure and this issue doesn’t do much to change that. This is basically a book I like more in theory than in actual execution, having tried a couple of different issues at this point. I want to like a Jim Corrigan/Spectre series so badly, but I’m just not sure this is ever going to be a book that scratches that itch for me. I sure liked the ghostly imagery though!

Verdict: Stopping here

Grayson #9: Remember how much I liked Batgirl this week? I think I liked Grayson even more. I know I go on and on about it, but the Tom King scripted issues of this series are absolutely some of the best adventure comics DC has released in years. From the hilarious opening bit that takes a different angle on the first issue’s train sequence, to the introduction of a new cabal of spies that has pretty big ramifications to DC’s larger espionage picture, to more tongue in cheek moments between Dick and Agent 1, this is basically the DC comic that I never knew I needed in my life. Now that I have it, I never want to let it go. I’m also glad to see Mikel Janin on a book better suited to his talents, as King gives him some wonderfully cinematic moments here. That two-page spread of the necklace heist was my favorite action beat of the week.

Verdict: Already on my pull-list and staying there

Green Lantern: Lost Army #1: Now here was a surprise! I really don’t care about Green Lantern much at all, and I generally checked out of the character about a year into Geoff Johns‘ New 52 run. I’ve dabbled here and there since, but I’ve never felt much of an urge to return. Even this month’s opening chapter to the “Renegade” storyline only somewhat intrigued me enough to probably pick up next month’s offering. Here, Cullen Bunn does the flashback thing again, but it works a good deal better this time, playing with the story tropes of LOST (which in turn was riffing on Watchmen). These “stranded in an unknown galaxy” stories can either go really well (Legion Lost) or really badly (Star Trek: Voyager), but Bunn has produced a solid enough cast to start out with, that I think this is a title with stronger promise than anything else he’s working on right now. It’s nice to be excited about a Green Lantern book again, and if they can capture the wonder and unknowns of space exploration, this’ll be one to keep an eye on. I already somewhat think that’s the case already.

Verdict: Going onto the pull-list

Justice League 3001 #1: Totally impenetrable, good Howard Porter art though. I really don’t have much to add here, as I find this book about as shrug-worthy as I did when I picked up the first three issues of Justice League 3000. I just don’t think it’s a strong enough title for me to tough out its learning curve, and this new Justice League simply doesn’t engage me at all.

Verdict: Stopping here

Superman #41: Good, though maybe a little stiff, as I’m finding many of the recent better DC runs’ first issues have been. I’m fascinated by how this story gets to where Superman is in Action Comics, and I think Gene Luen Yang is going somewhere cool with the character. I especially like just how human Clark is when faced with a threat that his powers can’t do anything about. You can’t solve everything with your fists, and that sort of existential crisis is just the kind of tale that can get me re-engaged with Superman again. For the first time in a long time, DC has two worthwhile Superman titles, I’m very glad to see it.

Verdict: Going to the pull-list

We Are…Robin #1: Badly conceived teenage dialogue masks what could have been a pretty enjoyable read. I like the fact that Duke Thomas is the star of the book, but I found everything that came out of the character’s mouth to be cringe-worthy. I bet if you took the dialogue balloons away, you’d have a pretty enjoyable tale of teenage rebellion in the face of a city-wide catastrophe. It’s amazing how badly one aspect of a story can drag the whole thing down, but there it is. How funny is it that 58 year old Paul Levitz can better capture that youthful voice than not-even-40 Lee Bermejo was able to?

Verdict: Stopping here

So that’s it! I’m done! What did I think of the DC You launch month on the whole? The Batman line is stronger than ever, with a number of great titles under its belt, Superman is off to a cracking start, both Justice League books are pretty enjoyable and DC’s has a number of titles on the fringe that are must-reads. I’d say on the whole, DC’s commitment to creator vision this time around has led them to a much more successful launch than the New 52. Will sales show it? Who knows, but I sure had a great time reading these books (for the most part) and I’m so glad that I’m finally re-energized about DC Comics again.

The Essential New Titles: Black Canary, Constantine: The Hellblazer, Doctor Fate, Green Lantern: Lost Army, JLA, Midnighter, The Omega Men, Prez, and Starfire.

And, of course if you’re not already reading Batgirl, Grayson, or Gotham Academy, you’re really missing out.

Thanks for sticking with me on this journey!

Bruce Timm’s Original Design

Livewire, the ass-kicking electro-magnetic supervillain is coming to the DC You next month in Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr’s Batgirl #42.  The character, who was created by Bruce Timm for Superman: The Animated Series, has received the Tarr hip-to-streets redesign treatment.  She tweeted out a set of costume sketches earlier today.

I’m pretty partial to the bottom center design, as I love me some Heathers-style shoulder pads, but I also love the asymmetry of the top center design as well.  Note the lightning bolts on her boots in all the designs, which range in conspicuousness from almost non-existent to beating you over the head with their symbolism.  She has an interesting Cinderella thing going on on the bottom right as well.



It looks like we’ll be getting the bottom left design.  Here’s the cover to issue 42:

Fights and free comics weren’t the only things dropped Saturday night. WB Games, who are set to release the highly anticipated Batman: Arkham Knight game responded to fan and media criticism about their recently announced season pass option by giving away a few more details on their forums.

We now know a few more things about what your $40 will get you:

Batgirl: A Matter of Family
An all new prequel story expansion in an entirely new location where you play as Batgirl for the very first time in the Arkham series – check out the first render of Batgirl.

The Season of Infamy
Play as Batman in all new story missions featuring legendary super-villains invading Gotham City, with new story arcs, missions and gameplay features.

Gotham City Stories
Play as Batman’s key allies in narrative missions extending their storylines, from both before and after the events in Batman: Arkham Knight.

Legendary Batmobiles with Themed Tracks
Drive the most iconic Batmobiles from Batman’s 75-year history, on custom-built race tracks, each themed to that Batmobile’s specific era. Every Batmobile will be drivable across every race track.

Crimefighter Challenge Maps
Engage in a series of new challenge maps utilizing the unique play styles of Batman and his allies.

Character Skins
A variety of skins from across the eras for Batman, Robin, Nightwing and Catwoman.

No word on how the content will be spread out over the 6 month period they previously announced. The game’s developer, Rocksteady, did mention that they’re still working on developing even more add-on for the game which will be announced as soon as the studio “ramp on” development of the content.

Batman: Arkham Knight is set to release June 23, 2105 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

Babs Tarr is a core member of the new Batgirl creative team that has been making waves, lately, with their new interpretation of the character, and fresh, modern approach to superhero mythology. She works as the interior artist on the book, while artist Cameron Stewart provides story breakdowns, and cover art. Babs Tarr has drawn a number of dynamic comic book covers herself, like this week’s variant cover to another trailblazing book, Gotham Academy.

Babs Tarr is an accomplished painter, video game concept artist, and all around versatile freelance illustrator. Her many clients include Hasbro, Disney, DC Comics, Boom! Comics, The San Francisco Chronicle, and The Boston Globe. Tarr received her BFA in Illustration from Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD.

You can catch up with Babs Tarr’s convention schedule, and more artwork on her website here.

For more comics related art, you can follow me on my website comicstavern.com - Andy Yates

So, June is Joker month in the DCU, with variant covers for all the books featuring the lovable scamp once portrayed by Cesar Romero.

And last Friday, the variant cover for Batgirl #41 was revealed, by artist Rafael Albuquerque.

The image is a call-out to The Killing Joke, the story by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland where the Joker kidnaps Barbara Gordon, strips her, shoots her through the spine, paralyzing her, and send pictures to Batman and Jim Gordon to make them feel bad.

It’s a powerful story, but also very much of its time in that superhero comics were just proving how dark, grim, gritty and painful they could be. And Barbara Gordon paid the price.

Now, however, she’s the chipper star of a cheerful superhero book, written by Cameron Stewart and Brendan Fletcher and dawn by Babs Tarr, and the book has become the flagship title for a new kind of DC. A new, more inclusive DC.

And on those ground alone, the cover was rather inappropriate. As an image of the star of the book being physically and psychologically assaulted, it was even more disturbing. It’s a tribute to Albuquerque’s talent that the image clearly captures Batgirl’s fear and terror at the hands of the Joker.

Over the weekend, there was great objection. I had already started a round-up post with this storify and DC Women Kicking Ass teeing off.

And things got even more out of hand today with the #changethecover hashtag going up against the #dontchangethecover and all manner of really inane insults, threats and misunderstandings going out. It was less amusing and more heated than the Spider-Woman cover, even, because at the end of the day, a woman being brutalized (possibly sexually) is way more disturbing than a sexy ass.

But in the evening, East Coast time, Albuquerque stepped up and said he had requested the cover be pulled in a statement to CBR:

My Batgirl variant cover artwork was designed to pay homage to a comic that I really admire, and I know is a favorite of many readers. ‘The Killing Joke’ is part of Batgirl’s canon and artistically, I couldn’t avoid portraying the traumatic relationship between Barbara Gordon and the Joker.

For me, it was just a creepy cover that brought up something from the character’s past that I was able to interpret artistically. But it has become clear, that for others, it touched a very important nerve. I respect these opinions and, despite whether the discussion is right or wrong, no opinion should be discredited.

My intention was never to hurt or upset anyone through my art. For that reason, I have recommended to DC that the variant cover be pulled. I’m incredibly pleased that DC Comics is listening to my concerns and will not be publishing the cover art in June as previously announced.

With all due respect,
Rafa

DC Entertainment also released a statement

We publish comic books about the greatest heroes in the world, and the most evil villains imaginable. The Joker variant covers for June are in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the Joker.

Regardless if fans like Rafael Albuquerque’s homage to Alan Moore’s THE KILLING JOKE graphic novel from 25 years ago, or find it inconsistent with the current tonality of the Batgirl books – threats of violence and harassment are wrong and have no place in comics or society.
We stand by our creative talent, and per Rafael’s request, DC Comics will not publish the Batgirl variant. – DC Entertainment

NOW, a few things about that. As laid out by Jude Terror, DC’s statement was incredibly badly worded and made it sound like Albuquerque had been threatened, when in fact PEOPLE OPPOSING THE COVER HAD BEEN THREATENED.

Series writer Cameron Stewart and Albuquerque made it clear on Twitter that Albuquerque had not received any threats.

Something to clarify, because DCs statement was a little unclear. @rafaalbuquerque did not get threats. People OBJECTING to the cover did.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

Ill talk more about it tomorrow but I was never threatened. just to make it clear.

— Rafael Abuquerque (@rafaalbuquerque) March 17, 2015

However, it also became VERY CLEAR, that the Batgirl creative team themselves had raised objections to the cover from the start. (Variant covers are produced outside the editorial department.) And Stewart was very clear about this on Twitter. There were a gazilliion tweets about this, the below is just a selection.

If you’re concerned about artistic integrity and creative vision – that’s what we’re doing. Keeping the integrity of our book intact.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart So you're basically saying that the cover being removed keeps your book's integrity more than if it was available?

— Macattack (@macattack50) March 17, 2015

@macattack50 given that it wasn’t approved by us and contradicts the work we’re doing, yes.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart I don't agree, but to each his own. I thought it was an evocative cover that depicted Joker at his most terrifying.

— Macattack (@macattack50) March 17, 2015

@macattack50 I’m the writer of the comic. I don’t want it on my book. Defend my vision and integrity, please.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@Akylle it’s not censorship. We the creative team never wanted it.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@GamingAndPandas no, I didn’t. I objected to that cover before there was any backlash.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

I stand behind Rafael as an artist and a friend, and think he made the right decision.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart Nothing can disturb anyone anymore ever.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally we don’t want our book to be “disturbing.”

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart That's the thing though. One variant cover doesn't make your book disturbing. No more than one Lego cover makes it silly.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally @cameronMstewart A cover, variant or no, represents the book to someone who picks it up (that's what they're for!).

— Matthew Southworth (@mattsouthworth) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart So you think every variant cover reflects the book? This would be awfully hard to reconcile with variants already existing.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally @cameronMstewart A cover, variant or no, represents the book to someone who picks it up (that's what they're for!).

— Matthew Southworth (@mattsouthworth) March 17, 2015

@mattsouthworth @cameronMstewart You do realize how many variants areout there that don't represent the book in the least though, right?

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally @mattsouthworth @cameronMstewart This is representing their book in a way they do not want. It offends fans. Respect that.

— Kates (@KatieScarlett94) March 17, 2015

@KatieScarlett94 @JoshCrewsReally @mattsouthworth @cameronMstewart 2 cents: I didn't agree with pulling it but the 'defenders' were monsters

— random-shane (@mprshane) March 17, 2015

@mprshane @KatieScarlett94 @mattsouthworth @cameronMstewart Agreed. I was never out there defending it myself. Just asking questions now.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart I don't blame you. I just wish the process could've allowed for it to be stopped sooner? Idk if that makes any sense.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally oh, believe me, so do we

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

@JoshCrewsReally @mprshane @KatieScarlett94 @mattsouthworth It is so important to understand that we didn’t want this cover though.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

Draw whatever the hell you want, but when they're not your characters expect the owners to protect their brand from losing $$.

— Pia Guerra (@PiaGuerra) March 17, 2015

@PiaGuerra Anybody who hopes to work for DC and doesn’t think people will be telling ‘em what they can and can’t draw are in for a shock.

— Kurt Busiek (@KurtBusiek) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart No, but he lost his JOB, and earnings.

— David O'Neill (@davejone) March 17, 2015

@davejone I can assure you he didn’t.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

um killing joke is a classic story of a clown who paralyzes a woman and takes all her clothes off to take pictures of her to show her father

— Chip Zdarsky, ok. (@zdarsky) March 17, 2015

Props to @cameronMstewart @babsdraws @brendenfletcher for sticking to their guns in the face of much outcry and twitter rage!

— Fiona Staples (@fionastaples) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart Nothing can disturb anyone anymore ever.

— Josh Crews (@JoshCrewsReally) March 17, 2015

@cameronMstewart You are correct about that. Everyone saw it. But now no one will get to own it.

— Macattack (@macattack50) March 17, 2015

I suggest all of you "Killing Joke" fans enjoy it like you enjoy Hall & Oates. Alone in your car.

— Henry Barajas (@HenryBarajas) March 17, 2015

Don't get put off by arguments over depictions/tone in comics lately. This means our industry is getting HEALTHY. GROWING!

— Jeff Parker (@jeffparker) March 17, 2015

https://twitter.com/andykhouri/status/577694801417498624

https://twitter.com/andykhouri/status/577695578009706496

I have a few observations about this:

• This isn’t censorship; it’s reversing a bad marketing decision that should never have been made. Why was it a bad marketing decision? Because Batgirl is the standard bearer for a new view of DC and its characters. I wasn’t kidding about Cesar Romero. Before there was all this psycho sadism, face removal, fear of a homosexual relationship between Batman and the Joker, Heath Ledger in a dress and so on, The Joker was a character who used joy buzzers and exploding cigars as weapons, and tried to take over Gotham with a flying saucer.

• The point is, when character run as long as Batman and the Joker and Batgirl have, their portrayal changes to reflect the times. The Killing Joke is a good old story from another era. I know we all like all backs and tributes and homages, but this one was not the right image for a new initiative at a publishing company.

• To the people saying they aren’t going to read DC Comics any more…pandering to the base hasn’t worked for comics for a long time.

• If you really love that cover, download a high res jpeg and make yourself a handy little print of it for you own use in your own home. No one will tell on you.

• The abusive nature of the internet is a blight on our society.

Meanwhile, this may be the truest thing that was said about the whole thing:

Batgirl is the most challenging thing I’ve ever worked on, and not because of the art or story

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) March 17, 2015

This is obviously prefaced with a heaping helping of “what the hell does a straight white male know about these issues?”. The simple truth: I don’t know anything. I likely never will – or at least not in a way that can be internalized. At best, I can gather other people’s feelings and memories and keep them in my brain for reference, paging through as I react and respond, because… well, I might not know anything about this, but I think that reaction and response is important instead of choking the fire of discussion dead through inaction.

So. Batgirl #37.

The new creative team on Batgirl arrived with a certain amount of pomp and circumstance. Briefly bringing my experience as a retailer into the fray, the fervour was created almost entirely by the creative team themselves, and not the company publishing the book. A book lives on finding an audience and marketing to that audience, and while DC did eventually run a house ad steeped in current social media trends, it was the creative team that was actually out on social media sites stirring the fan base and building a culture. At the time, I remember thinking that this was something important – not only in the way the creatives were interacting with the fans, but in the way that the reaction seemed to transform into a small movement of sorts, one that would boost sales of a series through actual interest in tone and content. This week, it seems as though the shine is off that apple with the release of the team’s third issue, Batgirl #37.

In the issue, Barbara Gordon is confronted with another Batgirl, one that is using social media and various forms of “art” to essentially take her branding identity away from her. Over the course of the book, you discover that the person under this fake Batgirl’s mask is in fact Dagger Type, an artist who is identified by characters in the story as male. Babs is taken aback by this and is left defeated as the issue’s villain continues with their nefarious plan to steal her public identity.

As the book crescendos, Dagger Type is portrayed as erratic, firing a gun into a crowd of essentially innocent bystanders. Babs eventually defeats the villain, and discovers that they’ve been doing this at the behest of a mysterious benefactor. The cops take Dagger away, and the book draws to a close. This reading of Batgirl #37 has dredged up accusations of transphobia. As with all art, this is a valid interpretation of fictitious events – a reaction to substance informed by opinion, experience and information. That’s a shame because… well, this book was meant to be something else. As stated before, it was something different than the norm, and marketed to a different and potentially new audience, and this misfire will probably do some damage. The only consolation, I would think, is that despite this valid interpretation of the comic, it isn’t something done with malicious intent, more than it was the unfortunate side-effect of the story’s plot.

Revisiting the plot again, using the same reference material, the plot is also about the nature of art, identity, and belonging. The book opens with the fake Batgirl going on a crime spree. Babs shows up and stops the crime, but not the fake Batgirl, who is said to have been up to these types of heists and behaviours for quite some time, chronicling these events on social media platforms. Babs is upset that she’s being defamed, which is compounded when she goes to a Dagger Type art show that features nothing but pictures of this so-called Batgirl, complete with a rendition of the heroine in a wheelchair, splashed with shadow and a bright red overlay. The presentation effects the characters present in different ways. It strikes Babs as demeaning and regressive. She makes a move to find Dagger Type, and soon discovers that the artist has been the fake Batgirl all along. The plot involves using art and social media to co-opt the Batgirl brand, and add it to the Dagger Type cache. When the reveal happens, everyone in the audience acts dismissive. Dagger waxes poetic about how they should relish in this moment, where they “begin to comprehend that the artist is really the subject. And the subject, his brand!” This elicits the greatest reaction from the crowd, who rejects this notion with lines like “why does everything cool turn out to be an ad?”

The intention – or at least my interpretation of the events as described – is a comment on art and commercialism, as seen through the lens of the modern superhero genre. It’s an ugly balance that comic companies (and retailers… hi!) have been trying to work with for years, taking art and using it for commercial gains. It’s an exploration of the kind of rejection that occurs when false notes are struck, and the commercial ends up bleeding into the art. It’s also about the pretension of craving attention, and the effect popularity can have on art and the artist. There’s a lot to dig into there, but at the core of it all, deep down in the nugget, I truly believe this book is about art, and the reactions to it. It’s typified by the scene where Babs and her friends are walking through the Batgirl gallery, and they all have different reactions to the presentation based off of experience. Babs’ very personal experience with the identity being explored in these photos elicits a very personal and valid response. I can only imagine that’s what many people felt as they read through this issue and experienced a similarly flawed take on identity. The issue essentially agrees with the idea of interpretation being in the eye of the beholder, and never once says that people who enjoyed the art installation in the pages of the book are wrong. It does cast judgement on intent. Dagger Type’s intent was self serving to a cartoonish degree, climaxing in rage when people didn’t understand his genius. I don’t think the creative team is doing that here. I think they wanted to turn in a story that commented on what they did, letting the art speak for itself. It may have said something things they didn’t intend, but they aren’t mad at anyone for it – as the issue implies, any reaction to art is valid.

Now, not long after I wrote this article (but a long while before it’s been posted), Cameron Stewart, Brendan Fletcher and Babs Tarr issued an apology.

Batgirl 37. We made mistakes. We’re deeply sorry. We will do better. pic.twitter.com/fCOEJPk0vP

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) December 13, 2014

I wish Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, Babs Tarr and Maris Wicks all the best as they continue to explore this character and produce art for us to consume. I hope that it continues to challenge us, and causes discussion. I hope that discussion comes from an honest place, and is not confronted with reductive reasoning. I also hope that, like all great artists, they will continue to grow and learn from previous experiences and new information, as even the best intentions can be flawed. The best artists take those noted flaws and learn to grow, instead of digging their heels in. These people are some of the best. Oh, and one more thing:

If you didn’t think an apology was needed, the apology wasn’t for you.

— Cameron Stewart (@cameronMstewart) December 13, 2014

Change can take a long time to happen. The mainstream comics market is no exception, but there have been some recent encouraging signs. Case in point, the newly redesigned, Doc Marten/iPhone sporting Batgirl by forward thinking creator Cameron Stewart, who co-writes, and sketches story breakdowns for the series. Stewart, a Canadian native, has been drawing comics for over a decade, and has worked with some of the most celebrated comics writers out there, including Grant Morrison, Ed Brubaker, and Jason Aaron.

In addition to the monthly Batgirl, he’s currently working on a comics sequel to Fight Club with writer Chuck Palahniuk, which he’s described as a dream project to be a part of.

Cameron Stewart won both an Eisner(2010) & Shuster(2009) award for his web comic Sin Titulo. You can find a lot more artwork to drool over at his website here.

For more comics related art, you can follow me on my website comicstavern.com - Andy Yates

One of the real breakout comics of 2013 was Bandette, from the husband and wife team Colleen Coover and Paul Tobin. A digital comic that is creator-owned and sold by Monkeybrain for only 99¢, the tale of young Parisian cat-thief Bandette and her team of accessories has been a hit both creatively and commercially. Awarded the Eisner Award for best digital comic, while nominated in three other categories, Bandette is a great example of the digital first/print second phenomenon in comics, with the first five issues released in hardback form by Dark Horse last November. Coover and Tobin, both of whom have long and esteemed resumes in comics where very kind to submit to an interview from me, to catch up on how things have gone for them and the title since the big Eisner win at Comic-Con in San Diego.

Colleen Coover and Paul Tobin, with Allison Baker of Monkeybrain

BRUCE: I got to speak with you guys in San Diego the day before the Eisners. How did it feel to win for Bandette, and has the award changed how people perceive you and your work? Did it have a noticeable effect on Bandette sales?

PAUL: It felt strange to win an Eisner. There was a moment after the announcement when I just froze in confusion, and then I apparently teleported up onto the stage, and it really wasn’t until I was looking at Colleen that I understood we had won. Luckily, even while still on stage I was able to reflect how wonderful, and how rare, it is to be holding an Eisner in my hands, and watching my wife accept an Eisner as well.  And it’s definitely heightened awareness (and sales) of my other works, and of course Bandette itself. It’s just great that of the four nominations, we won the first one announced, because that allowed us to be truly happy for our friends when they won. Our friend Chris Samnee winning best artist over Colleen? No problem, because we already have an Eisner on the table!

COLLEEN: The euphoria really was heady. The only drawback, if it can be called a drawback, is that since winning the award, I’ve felt an added sense of responsibility about making Bandette even more awesome. It’s like, “Okay, you’ve given us this thing and we like it, here’s your reward. Now what else have you got?” I should say that this sort of inner dialog is all part of the necessary balance between swagger and self-doubt every creative professional must have in order to keep motivated.

BRUCE. You guys are such a great example of the digital first-print second phenomenon with the release of the Bandette hardcover in November. How has that experience been? Are you happy with the reception of the hardcover, critically and commercially?

PAUL: Definitely happy. We chose Dark Horse because they’d done such a fantastic job on the Bucko hardcover by our friends Erika Moen and Jeff Parker, and they did an equally great job with Bandette. We wanted to make sure it looked like something that belonged on a shelf, or on display.

COLLEEN: Yeah, also, Dark Horse made it really clear that they wanted to be the print publisher for Bandette, and that they would work with us to make sure that it not only looked great, but came in at an affordable price point. I don’t know what the sales numbers are, but we hear from people every week who have picked up Bandette and love it!

BRUCE. While I’m sure there is no way to know with certainly, but what is your impression of the hardcover purchasers? Are they primarily the same audience as the digital purchasers, but now looking to own a tangible artifact? Or is it a whole new audience that was not interested in the comics as digital purchases?

PAUL: Both. We’ve had plenty of readers contact us and say that they loved the digital comic so much that they were thrilled to have a hardcover, and then there were others who wrote to say how happy they were to have the hardcover, because reading comics digitally either didn’t appeal to them or that they just didn’t have access. I think it was the right way to go for us; it’s not even a “best of both worlds” situation, because it’s “both worlds” straight up.

BRUCE: What have you guys learned from the hardcover experience so far? Is there anything you might do differently next time?

COLLEEN: Fortunately, Dark Horse has so much experience publishing good-looking books, all we had to do was sit back and make approvals. They were even able to accommodate a totally last-minute change I wanted to make to the frontispiece when I suddenly got the idea to put in a “This book belongs to…” bookplate.

PAUL: Really… we were quite happy. Sometimes the best thing to do is to relinquish a bit of control and let things happen. Of course, you can guide the process, and we certainly did that, because it still needs to feel like it’s “yours” at every step of the process.

BRUCE: Top Shelf just announced a program by which purchasers of select print titles can also get the digital version for a heavily discounted price. Is that something you might offer, or would it be too complicated with two different publishers, Monkeybrain and Dark Horse?

PAUL: Individual issues of Bandette are already only 99 cents, so I think that’s pretty cheap!

COLLEEN: And yeah, it would be difficult contractually, since Monkeybrain holds exclusive digital rights and Dark Horse has the print rights. I do think it’s a very good business model to include ebooks with the sale of print titles.

BRUCE: Are there plans for a paperback version? Do you have a longer term plan to release print versions for every 5 individual Bandettes? Are you contracted to return to Dark Horse for future print releases or can you make new partnerships on a book by book basis?

PAUL: We’ve talked about a paperback version, but it’s not something we think it heavily needed. We worked really hard to produce not only a great looking hardcover, but to keep the price VERY low, so it’s a 144 page hardcover for only $14.99, so a paperback isn’t a pressing need. There will be more hardcovers up-coming, but I’m not sure exactly how many issues will be in each one. Storylines will help determine that.

BRUCE: What kinds of things did you specifically do to keep costs down? Do you have advice for other creators looking to convert digital properties to print?

COLLEEN: That’s all secret Dark Horse economic jujitsu at work: Paper stock, book size, number of colors used to print certain pages– every little bit you can save without making it look like you’ve held something back adds up.

BRUCE: The hardcover is beautifully printed, and the colors especially pop out from the page. Has the experience of seeing Bandette in print changed anything in your approach to the digital production? Are you still wedded to the three panel page layout that you’ve done so far with Bandette?

PAUL: We love the three tier approach to comics, at least for this project, because it’s not only handy for digital, but also an homage to the comics we’re emulating to a certain degree… Tintin, for instance. And, it has such a clarity that I think it lends itself well to the stories.

COLLEEN: It ain’t broke, so I’m not looking to fix anything!

BRUCE: I really enjoyed Colleen’s work on Batman ’66. How did it feel to work with Jeff Parker as writer after having done so much work with Paul? Did you enjoy the experience of creating art for the Guided View style of digital comic, as you previously told me it would not work with Bandette? Did it change your mind on that?

PAUL: This question is not about me, and is therefore invalid.

COLLEEN: I’ve worked more with Parker than with anyone other than Paul, back when we were doing stuff for X-Men: First Class, so it was a very familiar place to be. We work together in a totally different way from the way Paul and I work: Paul will present me with a complete script, and then he steps back and I draw it. With Parker, we’ll spend time hanging around in the studio, talking about old comics, and ideas for the story he’s going to write for me come out of that. When Jeff found out he was getting the Batman ’66 job, we spent hours reminiscing about watching the TV show when we were kids in the 70s. A lot of the stories he’s written springboard directly off those conversations.

As for the enhanced view, Jonathan Case, who was the first artist on Batman ’66, and is also in our studio, did a lot of the legwork on figuring out how to make it happen without driving himself crazy, and I picked up some tips from him. For starters, we both drew our stories digitally, so that the little changes that happen in each panel match up precisely. The kicker is that no matter what additional “action” we put in the story for the digital product, there has to be a final printable version that makes sense when they publish the story in the comic. It’s a real storytelling challenge, and it was a ton of fun!

BRUCE: In San Diego you told me that a Pixar version of Bandette would be a dream come true. Have had any more thoughts or approaches to put Bandette in other media? I believe there are Bandette T-shirts for sale, but merchandise could be a way to further monetize your digital property, I imagine?

PAUL: So far we’ve done very little on the merchandising front, mostly because we haven’t had time to set everything up, but we do have some thoughts about Bandette in other media. I guess, for right now, we’re just trying to really get our own feet on the ground and establish Bandette, before we start looking to expand.

COLLEEN: Yeah, I set up some tees and mugs and phone cases on Café Press and on Zazzle, which is about the bare minimum of effort you can make to provide mech. Merchandizing is a lot of work, and requires monetary investment, so we’re going to wait and see what opportunities come up from people who do that sort of thing for a living, rather than try to do it ourselves. I’m still very open to Pixar doing a Bandette film. Or really, any other studio.

BRUCE: I know Paul has the new Prometheus comic scheduled for release in June. I would assume Dark Horse is kind of feeling the heat in regards to licensed properties now that Star Wars is no longer theirs. How has the experience been so far? It must take quite a change of mental pace to go imaginatively from Bandette‘s whimsical Paris to the rather grim planet LV-223! And that is not a cross-over I would want to see! ;)

PAUL: It’s going to be later than June, because we want to match some things up, but… yeah, it’s been a blast. I’m working with three other local writers on the project, each with our own book. There’s me on the lead title, Prometheus, and then Chris Roberson on Aliens, and Josh Williamson on Predator, and Chris Sebela on Aliens vs. Predator. It’s great because we’re all local, and all friends, so we can get together a lot, talk about the project and eat cake. As far as the change of mental pace between projects, I’m really all over as a general rule. I just finished an Adventure Time series, a Plants vs. Zombies project, a whole bunch of writing for Angry Birds, and of course Bandette, and that’s all fairly light-hearted material. At the same time, I’m working on my Colder horror series, and Prometheus, and the Witcher comics for Dark Horse… all much darker. My upcoming novels are much the same: you’ll see some humor titles, and then some darker material. I actually find it easier to work in several areas. It keeps my brain bouncing, moving from one project to the next, so that I don’t grow stale and predictable.

BRUCE: Do you have a philosophy or even rule of thumb that you use to guide what projects you take on, specifically in the realm of balancing personal/independent projects with more commercial properties? Does the success of Bandette allow you more freedom in pursuing your projects?

COLLEEN: Last spring, right as I was finishing up Bandette #5, I had two short projects I had committed to previously come due. Once those were done, I was going to get right back to Bandette, but then the Batman ’66 gig came available. Any other project, I would have turned down, but the Batman TV show was just too big a part of my early life to pass on that opportunity.  As a result, there was rather a long wait for Bandette #6. Now, I’m focusing entirely on Bandette. No other projects are being considered.

BRUCE: And one more question, with Bandette #6 out, when can we expect #7? Are you guys hoping to maintain a consistent schedule of issues in 2014? And the Urchin stories have been so fun, with #9 now available from the Monkeybrain site. Any artist names of future Urchin stories you want to tease your readers with?

COLLEEN: Bandette #7 is about a week from being colored and finished now, at the end of February, and then it takes several weeks for Comixology to get it ready to go live.  As for our schedule, we will continue to put out issues as quickly as I can draw them!

Urchin artists of the future include but are not limited to: Sheli Hay, Ron Chan, Dylan Meconis, Ron Randall, Cat Farris, Emi Lenox, Steve Lieber, and Juan Ferreyra.

Bruce: Thanks very much!

TweetFriday is art day! Friday is also the harbinger of the weekend, but who cares about that? Instead, take a look at all the pretty pictures I gathered for you from the shady, cob-webby corners of the Internet you dare not venture… (I can’t say more) FF by Mike Allred (you HAVE to click on this to [...]

TweetSome early morning ramble to go with your coffee. While all around us creators are struggling with editors, artists are flying from one series to another every three issues, books are chopped and movies are cut – there is a little oasis in the middle of the DC desert. Batman. When the New 52 started [...]

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Gail Simone has explained today on Twitter that, as of this week, she will no longer be the writer for DC’s Batgirl series.

On Wednesday of last week, new Batgirl editor Brian Cunningham informed me by email that I was no longer the writer of Batgirl.

— GailSimone (@GailSimone) December 9, 2012

Simone came onto the series as part of the New 52, controversially giving the Barbara Gordon character back the ability to walk, and putting her back in the cloak. The series has had solid sales since the launch.

This means that Simone, one of the more prominent and popular DC writers, now only has one other announced project left with DC at present, which will be a story in the upcoming Time Warp anthology from Vertigo.

While her DC work may now be concluding, Simone still has the successfully-funded Kickstarter project Leaving Megalopolis coming out next year, along with I’m sure a range of other projects.

I just couldn't resist this, since bats have become the theme of my week, again...

I know libraries attract all sorts of patrons, but didn't she think there was something weird about, um, four dudes in moth suits?