Gail Simone's Blog, page 1121
December 8, 2011
alexandraerinr: " When people were going crazy promoting the relaunch,I was trying to say,readers, be aware,this is a great publishing...
Sigh, I was just about to write a similar note to you. I think I was being a little overreaching in my comments, and I'm sorry, too. You're a doll, no worries whatsoever.
Mutual apologising on the internet? UNHEARD OF!
By which I mean, thank you kindly! I default to optimism too, and I'm absolutely all for destroying barriers and reinventing stories. And yes, I much prefer ambitious failures to conservative failures.
QUIT BEING REASONABLE AND ARTICULATE.
alexandraerinr: " When people were going crazy promoting the relaunch,I was trying to say,readers, be aware,this is a great publishing...
I appreciate your comments here, Gail. While personally my opinions on the relaunch are very mixed, a lot of that comes from the fact I've been a dedicated reader as long as I can remember, and when this reboot happened I went from reading six books a month to maybe two (Animal Man, and Justice League Dark). And while I have an immense amount of love for the existence of these two books, I still find myself wary of the entirety of the reboot. I understand something had to be done. I accept that financially it seems to be a success.
Perhaps I'm just an old dog, reluctant to learn new tricks.
That being said, mainly I miss the writing teams of the old universe. And a few of the titles. It broke my heart into tiny little pieces when I found out that Zatanna's series wasn't being kept on, and by that same thread Paul Dini's name wasn't attached to ANY of the new books. It was confusing. It's really difficult to find selling info for the comics (at least for me it is) and it leaves the readers confused to find out that their favorite series was cancelled and its writer seemingly shouldered out of the company.
All in all, I think I just wish they'd explain things more. Yea, the business stuff might be boring to some people, but I think it helps some people understand what's going on.
I totally respect that, and of course, a part of me commiserates with you because I dearly loved some of the books that are gone now, and that stings.
However, stuff is getting attributed to the relaunch that really has very little to do with it. Paul Dini is one of my favorite writers, but he's an incredibly busy writer and in the past year, was not able to keep both his books in scripts. Paul is well loved at DC.
The other thing is, DC has made a serious promise and commitment to retailers to get books on a regular schedule. Some writers are either deadline nightmares (sometimes me!), or are so busy with other work that monthly books are impossible for them. The decision was made to put these people on books that didn't need a monthly deadline. The late shipping thing has gone from a HUGE problem to almost completely gone, with a couple exceptions, and that is kind of a big, big deal for retailers.
I understand missing books. But may I humbly say if you like Animal Man and JLDark, you might really enjoy Swamp Thing, Frankenstein, and Batwoman at the very least? Also Batman and All-star Western are fantastic books with a great weird element, two of my favorites. I'm really enjoying Men of War, as well. OH, and Demon Knights is an absolute blast, Paul Cornell at his manic best!
I'm sorry you feel left behind, that's something DC needs to address.
[private] Hi Gail, do you think you could make that question about marketing comics to women rebloggable? I would love to put it on the Geekquality tumblr!
I actually have no idea how to do that…make it rebloggable? How?
alexandraerinr: " When people were going crazy promoting the relaunch,I was trying to say,readers, be aware,this is a great publishing...
I don't believe I got into how problematic I think anything is or isn't. Though for the record, I can't count eliminating a character or relationships between characters or parts of their history (which goes hand-in-hand with eliminating relationships) as being inherently "problematic". We in comic book fandom (or Star Trek fandom, or whatever) get too attached to the in-universe thinking on these things but at its core a reboot is not any different from a retelling.
I'm sad that there won't be any more stories about the Oracle-formed/led Birds of Prey team any time soon. But I'm not particularly sad that there's a new version of the team that's getting stories. And while there are things that are problematic about the way that Oracle was removed from the slate, I'm not going to call the mere fact that Barbara Gordon's history has been "altered" problematic.
If anything, I'd like to see people being more free to take the characters back to different starting points and taking them in different directions. Sometimes this will mean ignoring a part of a character's history or a relationship they had that some people think are character-defining, but other people would look at the same character and see other elements of them as more important.
My ideal would be for the Big 2 and their corporate parents to get over the idea that audiences will be confused/fractured by different versions of the same characters and universes, and do more things like the All-Star and Ultimate lines.
(None of this is addressing how they treat female characters, but… that's not what I'm addressing here. The reboot contains the worst treatments of female characters I've read recently, but that's helped by the fact that before the reboot I wasn't reading any books I didn't "trust"… the reboot got me reading everything again. I think Voodoo and RH&TO probably are objectively among the worst of the worst in this regard, but I've also seen some great treatment of female characters after the reboot. So I don't think it's necessarily a unified trend.)
"Altering" Oracle's history? I would call taking a strong female character who is also handicapped but can still kick ass and aging her down (so she's younger than her male love interest who was previously younger than her) definitely problematic.
What'd I'd like to see is DC wake up and start using it's brain. And they're not just "ignoring" parts of a character history here, they're ignoring important parts of a character's history. Not to mention their new timeline makes no sense.
I wouldn't mind the reboot so much if it had been better thought and planned out. But reading it is like eating a pie that's only half baked. Poorly done and will probably result in making you sick.
The reboot was a great opportunity to bring in new reader's and provide new adventures for old readers and in my opinion they failed.
If they wanted to tell stories about a younger Barbara Gordon as Batgirl there was always this handy-dandy storytelling device called a FLASHBACK. They were doing that with they Justice League reboot, why not with her?
Oracle was never my favorite character but she was tough, she didn't let anything get in her way of being tough. Making her younger, making the explanation of why she can walk again be a random "miracle", and making her act more vulnerable and silly is just going to make people mad.
Wat I would have done is have there be several issues of Flashback so new readers could read her Batgirl self, then a little on her Oracle self, and then give a logical explanation of why she was regaining use of her legs. My idea would be to use technology, since there's so much of it around the DCU (future tech, alien tech, etc… she has friends from all kinds of places, why should she refuse help for so long?). Her legs wouldn't be magically healed… she's be as she was in everyday life… but she could have some outer armor that would be a bat-person shape and move through computer commands if she really needed to fight.
I've heard this a lot, about Zatanna or Green Lantern magically fixing Oracle. I have promised people that would never happen on my watch, and I'm sticking to that.
A flashback book would not be the story we are hoping to tell, of a character regaining her balance (no pun intended) after a serious, life-changing trauma.
I have a lot of sympathy for the position that she should have stayed Oracle, but I think the story we are building towards is important, as well, and will mean a lot to people who have been victims of serious trauma. Barbara was always an inspirational character in every form she's taken, we hope to keep that going.
alexandraerinr: " When people were going crazy promoting the relaunch,I was trying to say,readers, be aware,this is a great publishing...
Again, it seems like you're just making up an argument no one is actually making. If what you and the OP are saying is all correct, why was no one buying or supporting these wonderful books?
I'm not sure if you've understood what I said, in that case. I agree with you that a lot of DC's pre-relaunch titles were underperforming creatively, commercially or generally. It needed a relaunch. I think this one sacrificed too much.
I totally agree that it's a great achievement that DC has three female-led titles in the top ten, and this is Mightily Relevant as Marvel prepares to cancel their only two female-led titles.
Why were they consistently below the profit line? And it's not like people weren't complaining before the relaunch…everything always becomes a glorious golden age AFTER it's gone, which is pretty convenient.
It wasn't a glorious golden age, but the problem is partly that the same people who were behind the DC universe before are those who've relaunched it afterwards. And they've routinely made poor decisions throughout.
Not all of them, obviously. There are notable exceptions - DC does have great talent. But it also has a lot of executive meddling, and an apparent belief that writing isn't all that important to the books.
I mean no offence to anyone at DC here, but plenty of artists are allowed their first writing credits on really important titles, as though all that matters in comics is the artwork, so we might as well get the artists themselves to come up with what images they're going to draw. I mean, if the relaunch is so very important, shouldn't DC be looking for their most experienced and acclaimed writers?
I believe it's the message board distortion factor. To you, people aren't enjoying the books, that's the message you see, and if you just follow Tumblr or CBR or whatever, that seems valid. But reality, where the rubber meets the road, is telling a different story. People are buying these books in numbers not seen in a decade, and enjoying them. Ask any retailer.
My criticism wasn't of the marketing strategy. I think the marketing's been terrific. But comics are also pieces of art, and that's how most readers interpret them.
And I think that's perfectly fair, because it's clear that a lot of people bought the new #1s blind, with no awareness of the writers or artists, and I think there's a commercial advantage to ensuring that the Big Picture portrayed inside is as positive as possible. I don't feel DC did make the wisest possible decisions when it came to ensuring the best possible writing, and this is why I'm buying your book but ignoring mountains of comics elsewhere.
It's odd, why isn't it enough to say, "I don't like the relaunch?" That's fair, valid, and truthful. Trying to say it's unsuccessful based on„,what, sales?
I think you're arguing with Generic Internet Moaner rather than me here. I know it's successful. I know there are a few good books in the mix.
It's an adjustment. I wasn't down with it immediately and there are still aspects I don't like. But overall, I think it effected a huge change that has given the industry a much, much needed shot in the arm. So, let's just disagree respectfully, fair enough? ;)
Of course. I apologise immensely, again, for actually bringing the argument to you in the first place - and for my act of pretend mind-reading. I'm just being grumpy and uncharitable. I'll try not to do that.
Sigh, I was just about to write a similar note to you. I think I was being a little overreaching in my comments, and I'm sorry, too. You're a doll, no worries whatsoever.
I do have this thing, that I don't lie to readers. I'm an optimist by nature, creative stuff excites me, and talking to some of my favorite creators about what they had planned for the relaunch got me very jazzed and I am really enjoying most of the books. I'm a lifelong DC fan, and like a lot of the creators, I was very skeptical. I still have some skepticism, but I have a lot of faith in most of the creators involved and I really do feel it's paid off. The books DO have an air of enthusiasm, for the most part.
The ones I don't like, I don't read, but even they have at least some verve…some of the pre-relaunch stuff felt hidebound by hardcore fan expectation and tradition, like they were on auto-pilot. I'd rather people take SOME chances, you know?
December 7, 2011
Donate to the Transgender Emergency Fund this Holiday Season
"The Transgender Emergency Fund (TEF) first opened in 2008. Since then, we have distributed more than $26,000 of financial assistance to low-income trans people throughout the state of Massachusetts. We are one of the first funds of its kind in that our efforts are focused on providing relief to low-income transgender community members. The TEF is staffed by volunteers and is run with almost no overhead costs, allowing us to give all donations to people in need."
Damn It
Dobie Gray has passed away at the age of 69.
One of the great soul/pop singers of his time, he was best known for the mega-hit Drift Away, one of the most gorgeous male vocal performances of that era, later made into a hit again with Uncle Kracker and Dobie Grey singing duet.
Before that, he had a few hits, like "The IN Crowd," later covered by Bryan Ferry.
Dobie Grey probably never got the acclaim he deserved. He could outsing nearly all his peers, his taste and ear were flawless. He could stop you in your tracks with perfect phrasing. I was born well after his first hits but I've really loved his voice my entire life. Very, very sad bit of news.
thefingerfuckingfemalefury:
gailsimone:
eisuverse:
Today's...
Today's daily, Scandal in the Savage Land (ha ha, cos her name is Scandal Savage) even though she's a DC character and the Savage Land is in the Marvel Universe, but yanno, potatoes and bla bla… and the second one is a second entry in the Marvel Guys in Hot Pants (MGHP) series, Iron Man in hot pants! Whooo, bet you ladies love this one!
Wow, I missed this, somehow. LOOK AT THAT SCANDAL!
I would read the hell out of a story about Scandal in the savage land
She would be riding pterodactyls and kicking ass :D
I DID do a story like that…Scandal and the Six in Skartaris. I think it's in the Reptile Brain trade!
eisuverse:
Today's daily, Scandal in the Savage Land (ha ha,...
Today's daily, Scandal in the Savage Land (ha ha, cos her name is Scandal Savage) even though she's a DC character and the Savage Land is in the Marvel Universe, but yanno, potatoes and bla bla… and the second one is a second entry in the Marvel Guys in Hot Pants (MGHP) series, Iron Man in hot pants! Whooo, bet you ladies love this one!
Wow, I missed this, somehow. LOOK AT THAT SCANDAL!
Thank you for answering my question and i do agree that fans tend to unfairly blame DC or Marvel when a book gets axed(Sometimes even over tv shows, fans got angry at marvel for the last Spider-Man toon getting cancelled even though it ended because sony l
Thank YOU, and I hope my answer wasn't brusque…I just see the weirdest, most hostile things that are completely devoid of any reality, and am amazed that people actually believe that stuff. It's weird.
There are lots of things the major companies do wrong, lots that they have done wrong in the past that they should be held accountable for, that's all valid. Making up weird conspiracy theories is much less so, and I see it all the time. Someone says something awful, people agree with it no matter how silly, and soon, it becomes myth. I can't live life like that, it's false and empty, and anti-intellectual.
However, I didn't think your post was like that, you asked a perfectly fair question!
And your English is excellent!
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