Posts tagged Barbara Gordon

angergirl:

This might make no sense and be absolutely flawed, sorry, but here we go.

Now, I love Barbara Gordon as a character. I love her as Batgirl and I love her as Oracle. She’s fascinating, particularly because as Oracle she was able to stare down Batman and win. She could subvert him at every turn. She was smart, capable, and willing to learn from her mistakes and the mistakes of others. She could tear down empires with her clever twist of mind alone.

And she still can. But I think that as Oracle, she was more threatening to the status quo than she is as Batgirl. At face value, anyways. As I said, she could take down Batman without throwing a blow. Her team didn’t just go about beating up villains until internal stresses tore them apart forever—when she saw that one method of leadership didn’t work (the subplot with Helena comes to mind) she had to use compassion and mindfulness to regain trust. She wasn’t just wickedly powerful. She was adaptable. Not only that—she had the ability to make other heroes adapt. And I think all of that—Her compassion, her bravery, her strength of mind and her willingness to change—made her dangerous.

Because what is more dangerous to a patriarchal set-up where burly, grimdark superhero fellas reign supreme than an all-knowing, veritable powerhouse of a woman spreading her influence all over the globe? Where the ultimate patriarch—Batman—has to shut up, listen, and take a slice of humble pie from said woman? Where he respects her as an equal—or rather more. And the fact that Babs was disabled played more of a role in her threat to this system than almost anything.

As Oracle, she was…dare I say it? Toxic.

Better that Oracle disappear, then, that Batgirl return with a safe, less imposing title (and a miraculous cure for her paralysis) that gives one the illusion that she isn’t as dangerous as she once was. And if you compare the three Batgirls and try to find the one who is the least “toxic” in terms of being threatening to the powers that be, then Babs is the one.

Cass is toxic because of her race and her strength and skill. Steph is toxic because of her pregnancy and the resulting “bad girl” stamp of disapproval, as well as her class. They are also marked down because of their vocal following of women and POC. Such fans are not the type of people DC is looking for. Babs’ Batgirl has a devoted following of men as well as many women—but we know which group DC really cares about.

So in my mind, Cass and Steph being called “toxic” means that they pose a threat to a system that fears them (and the people who love them) so much that they must be branded poisonous. It means that Cass and Steph are characters who are as dangerous, as powerful, as influential as Oracle was. The toxic characters are the ones who are going to fuck shit up. They’re the ones who are going to challenge the way we think about heroes, about people, about our perceptions of people. You say they’re toxic, DC? Good. That means they’re worth supporting.

discowing:

angrysunbird:

Batgirl Corps #1

Because the fans demanded it you got it! The team-up you’ve all wanted. Can Barbara Gordon assemble the team of Barbara Gordon, Barbara Gordon and fan-favourite Gordon Barbara Gordon to meet the rising threat of the dastardly Barbara Gordon?

Will the team even survive when one Barbara Gordon dies? Which Barbara Gordon will betray the team? And who has romance on the cards in the shape of the recently returned Barbara Gordon? We ain’t saying! 

Writer: Barbara Gordon

Pencils: Barbara Gordon

Note: This book will be in print form only. Barbara Gordon does not do computers. 

The worst thing about DC’s reboot “one true Batgirl” policy is that this crap is making people resent Babs.

Which they shouldn’t.

She’s been harmed by this as much as Cass and Steph. This demotion from ORACLE WHO RUNS THE JLA to a junior hero is demeaning in every possible way. She was Bruce’s equal, and now she’s at best his occasional sidekick. Her maturity has been taken away from her, all her accomplishments don’t coun’t, the relationships she’s built over the years have gone poof.

So don’t hate on Babs.

I am trying very hard not to resent Babs. I wish they would bring back the Barbara Gordon I love.