Wondercon News: DC to Publish Batgirl Beyond And More...

[espanolbot]

First up, Batgirl Beyond! Written by Cass Cain co-creator and DCAU alumini Scott Peterson and drawn by Annie Wu, who exactly BB is in this series isn't established beyond her having a "healthy relationship" with Commissioner Barbara Gordon.


Hopefully it isn't Babs, if only because 1. in the Beyond Setting the ability to have new characters in classic roles is kind of the whole point, 2. Babs is like fifty at the time the series takes place, her going by the title "Batgirl" is a bit silly when she should be able to go for the Batwoman position by this point, and 3. IF Babs is Batgirl still, isn't having the head of Gotham City's policeforce personally going out to beat the tar out of criminals... more than a little unethical? Unethical like Marvel's proposed Punisher tv show from a while back, where Frank Castle was a cop who hunted criminals who escaped prosecution in his time off, in secret (they turned him into Dexter).

Secondly, Gates of Gotham co-writer Kyle Higgins will be taking over from Adam Beechen in the regular Batman Beyond series (yay), which will apparently be exploring the characters more within the context of the DCAU, rather than the bizarre mash-up of regular DC and DCAU stuff that Beechen was writing. Beechen had SOME good stuff there... but he also kind of threw a lot of the stuff that made Batman Beyond GOOD out in order to make room for his own stuff. Just saying.


Also, this cover is damn pretty.

In other news, Bruce Timm is leaving DC Entertainment, aw. He'll be missed. Though apparently he might be making another DCAU-based Justice League show but that remains to be seen.

And Guillermo del Toro says that his Justice League Dark movie, called Dark Universe at the moment, is underway at the moment, but it still hasn't been greenlit yet. He and the writer are sticking a bible for the movie's continuity at the moment, but considering the lack of success guys at Warner Bros have have getting a movie made of their more well known properties, like Wonder Woman, I somehow doubt that a film starring Constantine, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, Deadman and Madame Xanadu is going to see the light of day any time soon...

Though they did make a Jonah Hex movie before bothering to make a Wondie film, so there is that, I guess.
http://www.themarysue.com/del-tor-jl-dark-update/

Comments

[darth_cloudo]

I'm....actually...really excited for Batgirl Beyond...??? The creative team looks good and the concept is interesting. I thought I was over DC, but now I'm excited. I'm so confused.

[espanolbot]

I'd go so far as to suggest that it's Cass Cain based on the skintone and how her costumed seems to have adapted elements from her Titans of the Future outfit from Teen Titans and her Batwoman outfit from a future JLA...
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/197/jlaofthefuture.bmp/
http://img542.imageshack.us/img542/7605/teentitans534.jpg

But that would imply someone would allow her to exist in any form, 'cause as the case with Steph in Smallville shows, even parallel universes aren't allowed to house them! :D

[mrstatham]

I did joke somewhere else that it's likely to be some magical kid Barbara kept hidden from Bruce, just so DC can keep the 'Barbara rule' in place across their entire line.

But I'm not certain the skin tone seems to be an indicator of anything, given Barbara herself seems to be darker than usual. Could be the lighting, although I'd be pleasantly surprised if it turned out to be, say, Nell. From Steph's run.

But then that would mean DC would have to acknowledge Steph's series and existence in general, and... Excuse me while I observe these flying pigs.

[katya]

I'm actually pretty sure Steph has popped up in Beyond universe already. She wasn't named, but a few issues ago a blonde woman who knows about the Bat stuff made an appearance as Tim's wife.

[darkknightjrk]

Wait, so Batgirl Beyond is a literal series coming out? I thought that the Batgirl stuff was part of what Kyle Higgins was setting up for Batman Beyond.

[doodleboy]

Awesome, Annie Wu's doing a comic!

If you want to see why I'm excited by this check out her comic for Warren Ellis' blog http://www.warrenellis.com/?p=13306.

[bjornwilde]

This looks fun! I kept meaning to pick up Justice League Beyond also for Big Barda. I need to get on that.

[mrstatham]

Timm's actually only left his position in terms of overseeing the DTV movies that the animation department was producing, from what I remember reading; Although naturally, a lot of people took it to mean that DC had somehow pissed off someone who has zero dealings with them.

As for JLD - frankly, it's Del Toro. The guy was big enough to get the Hobbit's wheels going before MGM nearly crashed and burned, and the biggest problem with the regular JL movie is that DC/WB don't seem to know what the fuck they're doing - as in, does it involve Nolan's Batman and Nolan/Snyder's Superman, or does it not? JLD wouldn't have those kinds of problems, especially if given a Guardians of the Galaxy approach, because Marvel isn't particularly setting up those characters before their movie, from what I can see.

I also thought Cass was a Puckett/Scott creation?

[espanolbot]

People seem to be saying he was another co-creator, though I think that they probably mean that he wrote her series for a time.

[rainspirit]

"Before the new BATMAN BEYOND creative team takes over in late summer, readers will get a special treat when a new Batgirl joins the Beyond Universe for an upcoming arc starting in July. In this story, Police Commissioner Barbara Gordon meets a mysterious young girl with a familiar bat-symbol, who not only saves her life twice, but gives her hope that brighter days are ahead. The Batgirl arc will be written by Scott Peterson and illustrated by Annie Wu."

Found this off Annie Wu's own site. Find it pretty silly you're speculating it being Barbara herself, Ebot! And even if it was an alt universe, wouldn't Cassandra Cain and Steph be in her late thirties, at least?

I'm all for new characters taking up the bat symbol, personally. It worked well for Kate.

[espanolbot]

Being in their late thirties doesn't necessarily mean that they've stopped fighting crime. I mean, towards the end of Steph's series they had her in the future apparently taking up the Nightwing persona at some point.

[big_daddy_d]

You know, in a Batman Beyond rp I been in, I rp as an adult Roy Harper, but among the characters discussed to be brought in (well by me anyway, especially for a story we're doing involving Spellbinder and Babs), that Batgirl was it and she was going to be Stephanie's sidekick.

[icon_uk]

If it's an alt universe all bets are off as to how old people "have" to be if they haven't appeared already. Cass or Steph could easily be introduced as new characters.

It might even be one of the Batwomen from "Mystery of the Batwoman" I suppose.

[katya]

Names were not named, but a few issues back on Beyond, Tim got called in to assist in the Cave, and they showed him home with his wife - a woman with short blond hair who seemed to know all about the Bat stuff.

[icon_uk]

Yes, that woman is glimpsed in "Return of the Joker" too.

[katya]

Ah. I didn't watch the entirety of the Beyond cartoon or any of the movies before I started grabbing the comics. I've had to Google a few characters as a result to figure out backstories, but when she popped up I couldn't find anything, so I wasn't sure if she'd been in the toons at all.

[mrstatham]

Look, with DC's approach to 'YOU MUST HAVE BARBARA OR NOTHING', lately, in everything from the main books to stuff like Smallville and Ame-Comi, I don't think it's entirely wrong that Ebot's speculating this kind of thing.

Hell, DC could go for the reaaaaaaaaally lazy option of repeating Terry's origin; Take some of Barbara's DNA from various crime scenes, inject it into a blissfully unaware couple, hey presto; Mini-Barbara. The sad thing is I wouldn't put it past them.

[icon_uk]

Terry was created because of Amanda Waller's extreme, if warped, admiration for Bruce as a person. I'm not sure I see her holding Babs in quite the same regard.

[mrstatham]

Give DC enough rope -- I mean, ah.. Let them imagine the slightest way in which someone could overshadow Barbara, and they'll do anything to avert it. The whole Smallville thing combined with the really odd stuff surrounding that change in hair colour in Lil' Gotham taught me that.

I'm being stupid, yes, but given a large portion of the stuff DC puts out at the minute, I wouldn't be surprised to see them strangle themselves out of stupidity.

[rdfox]

My money's on Max. It would avoid having to actually introduce a new character.

[freezer]

I'm thinking it's that military pilot the show seemed to hint was Dick Grayson's daughter (who's name I can't remember and can't find).

[icon_uk]

What episode was that in?

[freezer]

I don't recall. And none of the episode synopses I could find mention a female fighter pilot. I'm starting to wonder if I've got this mixed up with another show...

[lbd_nytetrayn]

I'm skeptical until no sooner than tomorrow.

[q99]

I'd think Batgirl Beyond would pretty much have to be a new character.

Something I'm happy with.

[theflames]

It's... obviously not Babs? But yeah, it looks pretty cool.

Yeah...

[adam_sherman]

Calling it now. New Batgirl + Gates of Gotham co-writer? It's Cass.

...And seriously, there might be another DCAU show? AWESOME!!!

[maxisanacorn]

The blonde girl shown as Tim's wife in Return of the Joker was as per the DVD commentary an actual cameo or nod to Stephanie Brown. That was/basically is her. They just don't say the name.