Wednesday, March 26, 2003

So I was watching a "Birds of Prey" [BoP] episode that I downloaded today, the last one in fact, and i'm realizing how...important each of the supporting characters are in the whole batman family, hell the whole comic family, which makes me realize even more how insanely moronic it was to cancel these titles, and change the characters so drastically.

Alfred has been, slipping more lately. This probably means they will either kill him off or send him into the abyss. A small example of this is what they did with Commissioner Gordon. He and Alfred are some of the most important, underrated characters in all of comics. Alfred is the father figure in Bruce's life, not just the butler. Alfred has gone into the field for Bruce countless times, he has been the moral compass in the story, and it would be a shame to let him go.

The same goes for Gordon. He has been reduced to a second tier cameo character of late. A few years ago Gordon was all but leading Gotham City during "No Man's Land" and now he's all but alone in the back garden of his home. It's a sad waste. Gordon is the human side to the story and he needs to be brought back into the spotlight. Both he and Batman share a special kind of friendship(notably seen in the last part of the animated series episode "Holiday Knights") that needs to be shown more.

Also I look at Spoiler, who is mainly seen in Robin. Aside from being a personal favorite of mine, Spoiler showcases a bit of an Irony, I think. Who would of thought the sidekick would get his own sidekick? A lot of people show a great disdain for her, which I don't understand .People fear she will become the next Robin or Batgirl. That won't happen, I think, though it wouldn't be terrible. A new Batgirl has been created in Cassandra, and is well liked. They wouldn't mess with that.

Obviously I don't feel this way about all the supporting characters. Azazel,for example is a character who was flawed from the start. Why he was given as much attention as he had is beyond me. Another underrated Bat family member is Dr.Leslie Tompkins, whom, aside from being the family physician,also serves as the mother figure in the family. She may in fact have the same amount of emotional integrity, if not more then Alfred.

When people see Batman's supporting cast,firstly they see Robin, Nightwing, Oracle and Batgirl. They have grown into more then a supporting cast .People do realize that now, but for some reason, they fail to look into the characters I mentioned. So to anyone reading this, look deeper, You might find yourself surprised.



Friday, March 07, 2003

Well, Coming in a lil late on this one. Young Justice#55 came out Wednesday. And with it ends a comic that had probably one of if not the most devoted fanbases of any comic I've seen in ages.

The stories that Peter David created were among the best. Todd Nauck and Larry Stucker brought an art style unlike any other, and the fans loved it. The only reason DC has canned a book that sells as good as this is because of the damn cartoon that's coming out soon.

The entertainment companies are in too much control of the comic industry now. X-men is a prime example. If they hadn't worn the black leather in the movie they wouldn't be wearing it in the comics. They say that bright colors don't translate well on the big screen, claiming they, "don't look realistic." It's a fucking comic book!! It's not supposed to be real, its meant to give one a sense of wonder and amazement. People read them to escape for a while. If people wanted to see guys in black leather fighting in slo-mo they can watch the Matrix or a bondage movie.

It's great that they want to get new readers into the books,come on, friggin think of the original fans too dammit, we matter, but no, its always, "Screw the original fans, they don't spend enough money." Maybe it shouldn't always be about the bottom dollar. Ever think of that?