World's Finest #4 - Saving Steph

[perletwo]

The now-infamous "calling Steph fat" segment from World's Finest #4 - ah, Damian, classy even in point-scoring. The byplay between these two is officially my favorite part of the Batverse right now. Writing by Sterling Gates, pretty pretty pretty art by Phil Noto.









Why yes. They are twelve.

2 1/2 pages out of a 23-page comic, 2 and change have already been posted, so we're good on all posting limits.


tag wranglers: char: batman/dick grayson, char: batgirl/robin/spoiler/steph brown, char: robin/damian wayne, char: supergirl/kara zor-el, char: superman/clark kent, creator: phil noto, creator: sterling gates, publisher: dc comics, title: world's finest

Comments

[espanolbot]

Hm, they outright said that Hiro the Japanese Toyman was a robot last issue didn't they? :(

[jarodrussell]

Fuck them to hell!

[thokstar]

Given that the Schott Toyman who appeared in the last few issues was also a robot that was clearly programmed to play a role giving the illusion of one-dimensionality/mental illness, I don't think we can say anything about Hiro's humanity or lack thereof.

[auggie18]

Okay DC. You win. Between this post and Kara's response to the whole 'fat-girl' thing, I am seven different kinds of buying this now.

Although I do miss when there were non-blonde teenage girls in the DCU.

[jarodrussell]

It's DC trying to draw me in, because it knows I like blonds. I like all the blonds, though, because it's proof to myself that I'm more interested in good stories than drooling over pictures of hot women in spandex.

Or maybe it's that I have a DeviantArt account.

HAHAHA!

[mllesays]

I love Steph the mostest.

[bob_dylana]

For a moment there I was really excited because I thought that Dick was actually Tim rescuing Steph since there were no pointy ears in the panel. Obviously the comic book universe doesn't want me to be happy.

[ravenous_raven]

I had the same reaction. :(

[stubbleupdate]

Phil Noto > You

[scottyquick]

Wrong.

Phil Noto >>>>>>>>>>>> You.

[nevermore999]

Damian, of course she's heavy. You're ten, she's seventeen. GOD YOU FAIL BASIC LOGIC.

And doesn't Steph have a grapple line? It looks like she might be reaching one in her thigh pouch in the art, at least, before Damian swoops in.

I <3 Phil Noto, because he does draw Steph with an actual waist and stuff. The other explanation for Damian's "fat" comment is he's used to seeing girls who look like they're in tummy tuck city, and here's Steph looking almost normal! He can't help being confused.

[nevermore999]

I mean eighteen/nineteen obvs.

[mullon]

If this is supposed to get me to think Damian is funny or endearing in a cheeky way, it's not working.

[punishermax]

No. You're pretty much supposed to think he's an asshole.

[retro_nouveau]

Yuck x 2 -- saved by the squirt, and again her comeback is lame.

It kind of works for me... She's definitely "fat" only because it's the only thing he can put her down on, I think it's pretty clear from earlier issues that Steph's got a little hang-up about not being a perfect size, i.e. normal, as many people in the US do. Doesn't help that Cass eats whatever and lots of it and stays sinewy. Again, he wants to needle her for the attention. He doesn't know how to get on her good side, and bad attention is better than none. Works for me, but I still hate it. Like having guests for dinner and the chihuahua starts humping their legs. Down, boy! Bad! No!

Seeing the Batman-Beyond-Batmobile in the present is a little easier to take now. When it's firing the missile, it looks so like Ted's bug. Especially if Kord Industries is now a Waynetech subsidiary, it makes perfect sense. I hope this wasn't already said somewhere and I missed it because B&R is not on the pull list.

[auggie18]

I didn't see it before, but now every time I look it's like "Oh, look, the Bat-Bug!"

[righthondude]

Don't worry, Steph, you'll never be as fat as Ms. Marvel.

[thebigapricot]

In one of the first Batgirl issues, didn't Steph say "thank you" when some said she looked like she weighed 100 pounds?

So Steph has body issues and then they let someone call her fat? Okay it's Damian and he's a jerk, but it bothers me. On one hand young women Steph's age do have body issues so it's realistic. But so do boys or young men. And I can't recall, and please correct me if I'm wrong, in them making it an issue for a young male character.

I wish they'd just get off the body issue topic for her all together. She's given birth and was basically nursed back from death. The fact that her body is in the shape it is now should be praised.

[punishermax]

That's sort of a weird gripe. It's been well established that Damien's a little fucker and he talks shit on everyone. Calling her fat was probably something the DC writers figured he'd do. Plus, he's like 12 or so right? 12 year olds are usually dickheads about stuff like this, especially spoiled ones.

Steph looks more like she's pissed than shocked and hurt.

As for fat male characters.....hmmm....in Naruto Choji gets called fat a lot. But whatevs.

[iskander]

The waffle fetish is out of control these days...

[irrelevant]

*snickers forever*

She's, what, eight years older than you are, Brat Wonder?

Yeah, I think he a) knows that, and b) is just taunting his sis. Because they totally have that brother/sister vibe going on. Damian!Robin and Steph!Batgirl is my new sibling (and crime-fighting partners) OTP. GIVE ME MOAR, DC.

[scottyquick]

I think she's a good decade older then him, minimum.

[halialkers]

I keep hoping Damien Wayne gets made DisContinuity. >.>

He's Jerkass even by Bat-Family standards. And it doesn't help that Steph is a lot better looking than he is. Why yes I *am* shallow.

[zordboy]

So it's the return of the Batman/Superman composite robot? Wasn't the first one destroyed?

[perletwo]

This is a new one. Toyman and Freeze kidnapped the Kryptonite Man in an earlier issue, to use him as its power source.

[gamerguy]

I think he's less a jerk for being 10 than it's he's the son of Ra's Al Ghul and has an ego you couldn't haul around in an 18-wheeler. He can't conceive of not being physically capable of doing something Batman or Red Robin can do, so he comes up with the little jibe when his arm almost gets jerked out of the socket :)

[ravenous_raven]

being off-topic: that's an interesting icon you've got there. I assume it's BruceBats and DickRobin?

[psychopathicus_rex]

Is that a Composite Superman MECHA? Holy crap! Context, please?

[perletwo]

The Toyman built it, and kidnapped the Kryptonite Man to power it, in order to annihilate All Those Damn Kryptonians.

[team_mummy]

OH DAMIAN! YOU SO CRAY ZAY!

[iondan]

Wasn't there a panel of Damian leaning over the center console in the Batmobile like he was standing up, or was that in Batgirl?

Anyway does the Batmobile have only one seat? Shouldn't Damien be in a harness now that the batmobile is a cheesey flying car now.

[3goodtimes]

I love the artwork on Damian and Steph. It's weird that I'm so turned off by how he draws Dick and Clark.

I'm easily amused by mecha plotlines. They're just plain enjoyable.