Because of everyone’s reactions to Batman #12, I broke my DC blackout and bought it. I LOVE HARPER. PLEASE let her be a recurring character! And yes, I can totally get on board the Cullen/Tim ship.

I have mixed feelings about introducing a gay character and then subjecting them to a homophobic attack. It’s realistic, of course, but it also seems to be that often gay characters exist only to be attacked and that wears thin after a while. Better than not existing at all, I guess. I do love seeing Batman protect the people who need it the most, though.

Sometimes I do love Bruce Wayne, when he’s genuinely trying to look after the people who fall through the cracks. I understand why people say he “beats up on the poor and mentally ill” because in the hands of bad or unsubtle writers (NOLAN), his love for the people of Gotham gets lost in the spectacle of BATMAN VS BAD GUYS. But Bruce is the guy who hands out scholarships and gives jobs to ex-felons. I think he really is trying to save the world one person at a time.

(Although even the best writers slip into classist, ableist and other problematic tropes and I’m not giving them a free pass here.)

Snyder said he created Harper after he wasn’t allowed to use Cass, so I hope that means Harper (and her brother) will be back for a longer storyline. Look, DC, if you put out more books like this, with smart, brave women, gay characters, excellent writing and lovely art by female creators, I will end up giving you my money. (A few more characters that are POCs wouldn’t hurt, either.) This is all I wanted, anyway. Good characters and good stories that don’t offend me. It’s not really that high of a bar.