Tim Hanley's Blog, page 15

Wonder Woman #44 Review: The Fight Rages On! And Remains Terrible/Nigh Unreadable!

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I had a really nice weekend, gang. I went to Chicago for C2E2, had a great time at the show, tried a poke bowl for the first time (it was DELICIOUS). It was excellent all around, and the fun started with a panel discussion about Catwoman at The Book Cellar with some super smart comic critics. Angelica Jade Bastien, Lauren Burke, Caitlin Rosberg, Katie Schenkel, and I spent the bulk of the time discussing Catwoman, of course, but every now and again the conversation would turn to the current run of Wonder Woman. And with that turn came utter bewilderment at what a mess the book is right now, partly in relation to its brilliant “Rebirth” relaunch and partly just on its own, entirely lacking merits. Everyone was utterly flabbergasted at the horrible depths the series has sunk to as of late. It was a cathartic conversation, with the general consensus being that James Robinson should perhaps consider a different career path entirely.

Anyway, there’s a new Wonder Woman out this week, so let’s talk about it. But first:

SPOILER ALERT!!

I am about to reveal the secrets of yet another painfully subpar issue of Wonder Woman!

They don’t make a lick of sense in terms of current continuity, though!

This book is dumb.

So this issue is mostly fighting, which I appreciated. The brawling meant that there weren’t long, drawn out conversations that lacked any semblance to normal human speech and simply regurgitated previously established facts. I’ve had enough of that with the past few issues. Now, the fighting wasn’t particularly good, nor were the quips and banter therein. The structure of the battle on the page jumped around a lot, seemingly at random, and the core brawl between Wonder Woman and Darkseid was the only one that actually mattered. Jason and Grail’s faceoff didn’t really go anywhere, while Steve and his Howling Commandos appeared to be entirely ineffective.

Like most of Robinson’s run, the battle was largely filler to get us from Point A to Point B without actually adding anything new or interesting to the story, revealing anything about the characters, or otherwise enhancing our reading experience. It was just a bunch of punches to burn through pages until Darkseid’s machine could be powered enough to open a portal to Themyscira. I do like a good fight. This is a superhero comic book, after all. But I like the fights to say something beyond “oh, this will fill up the issue until the dramatic reveal at the end.” This fight was entirely perfunctory. Any reader with any sense of how the story was unfolding would know that there were no stakes here at all. Darkseid’s plan was going to work, and no amount of brawling was going to change that.

And about this dramatic reveal. So Grail gets to Themyscira and turns some Amazons into parademons. I have two big thoughts about this. First, those Amazons would have DESTROYED Grail. I know she’s half Darkseid or whatever, but Amazons are Amazons and there were a bunch of them. Even with a surprise attack, the gal would have been taken down and hastily so. You don’t mess with the Amazons.

Second, this was framed as a homecoming for Grail after leaving the island years earlier, but here’s the thing: THIS IS NOT GRAIL’S PARADISE ISLAND. Remember when the New 52 relaunch messed up Wonder Woman and the Amazons so badly that DC brought in Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott to fix it? And that their solution was to explain that the New 52 Amazons were a fiction? Grail was created before this fix. She is a product of the fake Amazons, not the real Amazons. This Themyscira is not her home. Technically, her home doesn’t even exist and she is some sort of bizarre anomaly. The folks behind Wonder Woman don’t seem to care about any of this, and have decided to ignore the change in continuity entirely.

Continuity needn’t be a prison, of course, but these things were changed for a reason. The Wonder Woman mythos was fundamentally broken, and Rucka and Scott set in right in a way that resonated with scores of fans. But now, this run is undoing all of that. Rucka and Scott danced around Wonder Woman’s New 52, daughter of Zeus origin, giving DC an out for ever mentioning it again. This arc has made it a centerpiece of the story. Rucka and Scott wiped away the New 52’s terrible depiction of the Amazons, and this arc has brought back one of its oddest, dumbest choices with Grail. It’s mind boggling. Everyone did a very good thing with Wonder Woman: Year One. It’s easily one of the best Wonder Woman stories ever told! And now DC is letting this trash fire of an arc toss it all aside.

One bit of good news from this issue is that Emanuela Lupacchino is back. Even when she’s working on a tight schedule, which I suspect she may have been here, her art is always dynamic and enjoyable. She’s got a great grasp on Wonder Woman herself, and it was very fun to see her draw the Amazons, however briefly. It’s a shame that someone with such an obvious penchant for Wonder Woman and her world is being used for such a terrible storyline. I hope that she’ll get another shot at the book with a writer that actually understands and appreciates Diana. Romulo Fajardo Jr. remains on top of his game as well, like always. The richness of colour and the breadth of texture he brings to his work is just remarkable. It’s all so subtle and seamless, and remains the one thing keeping this entire run afloat. Luckily with Lupacchino he’s got some nice line work to enhance, but he’s definitely elevated several lesser artists in past issues and has maintained a consistent look for the title.

So yeah, we’ve got Amazon parademons now and more fights ahead, I assume. Good grief. There’s a few more issues of this foolishness, and then Robinson is starting yet another storyline. When will the horrors end?! Not anytime soon, it seems. Ugh.

 

My Chicago Schedule: C2E2 and Beyond!

I’m in Chicago this weekend, and here’s a quick rundown of where I’ll be and what I’ll be doing! First off, I’m talking Catwoman with Angelica Jade Bastien, Lauren Burke, Caitlin Rosberg, and Katie Schenkel at The Book Cellar tonight. Click the image below for more info:

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I’ll also be at C2E2 all weekend long, set up in Artist Alley at Table E7:

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You can click that image for more info as well, and also here is a handy map of where I’ll be at the show:

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I hope to see a bunch of you in Chicago this weekend!

Women & NB Creators at Marvel Comics Watch, June 2018 Solicits: 20 Creators on 14 Books

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We’ve got some good news and some bad news with Marvel’s June solicits. The good news is that for the first time in several months, Marvel’s number of female creators is out of the teens. Just barely so, but hey, the numbers have been so bad that we’ll take what we can get. The bad news is that the a sizeable amount of the gigs listed below are one-time outings, and thus won’t be back in a similar form next month. If Marvel wants to keep the numbers up, there’ll either need to be some big changes to the line or a lot more oneshots. Let’s take a look at who’s doing what at Marvel this June:

Ashley Witter: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #21 (cover)
Becky Cloonan: Moon Knight #196 (cover)
Devin Grayson: Marvel Rising: Alpha #1 (writer)
Elizabeth Torque: Dazzler: X Song #1 (cover)
Erica Henderson: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #33 (interior art, cover)
G. Willow Wilson: Ms. Marvel #31 (co-writer)
Gail Simone: Domino #3 (writer)
Gurihiru: Marvel Rising: Alpha #1 (cover)
Jody Houser: Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows #20 (writer), Star Wars: Thrawn #5 (writer)
Laura Braga: Dazzler: X Song #1 (interior art)
Magdalene Visaggio: Dazzler: X Song #1 (writer)
Mariko Tamaki: Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #2 (writer)
Natacha Bustos: Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #32 (interior art, cover)
Nik Virella: Infinity Countdown: Black Widow #1 (interior art)
Nnedi Okorafor: Wakanda Forever: Amazing Spider-Man #1 (writer)
Rainbow Rowell: Ms. Marvel #31 (co-writer), Runaways #10 (writer)
Stacey Lee: Marvel Rising: Alpha #1 (variant cover)
Stephanie Hans: Ms. Marvel #31 (variant cover)
Yasmine Putri: Infinity Countdown: Black Widow #1 (cover)

All together, there are 20 different female creators set to work on 14 different books at Marvel this June, 5 more creators than in May, though on 2 fewer books. As far as I can tell, there are no non-binary creators scheduled in this round of solicits. The gain is good to see. So far, 2018 has been a rough year for representation at Marvel, and while 20 women is still quite paltry, it’s nonetheless a step up from where the publisher’s been lately.

However, it seems unlikely to last. Of the 20 women above, 10 are working on one-time jobs. As cool as it is to see new books starring Black Widow, Dazzler, and the Marvel Rising team, these are all one-shots. These single outings combined with a handful of variant covers means that half of Marvel’s female creators in June are not working on sustainable gigs. Hopefully they’ll be back elsewhere next month, but such a strong reliance on one-off work is hardly a recipe for good long term representation at the publisher.

Things aren’t look great for female characters, either. We’ve got the aforementioned oneshots, which are fun and all, but Marvel is set to unveil a slew of new series in June and only one has a female character in the mix. Deadpool, Doctor Strange, Hulk, Iron Man, Muliple Man, the Sentry, and Thor are all headlining new books. Only Ant-Man and the Wasp has a female lead, and she’s a co-lead. This prevalence of dudes, real and fictional, is the hallmark of Marvel’s new line, and chances are this trend will continue as it keeps rolling out.

Overall, Marvel’s not in a very good place with female and non-binary creators right now. The numbers jumped this month, but there doesn’t seem to be any indication that this will last long term. Men seem to be the publisher’s focus right now, both on the page and behind the scenes, and much of their new line appears to be an attempt at appeasing conservative fanboys. Things might change at some point, but the current trend doesn’t bode well for women and non-binary creators at Marvel.

Women & NB Creators at DC Comics Watch, June 2018 Solicits: 19 Creators on 17 Books

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June is a huge month for DC, and the bulk of it is centered around their two superstar writers. Scott Snyder is relaunching Justice League, with Jim Cheung and Jorge Jimenez drawing the books, while Brian Michael Bendis is kickstarting his new Superman run with a Man of Steel mini-series featuring art from Ivan Reis, Evan “Doc” Shaner, Ryan Sook, Kevin Maguire, Adam Hughes, and Jason Fabok. You may have noticed that these creators have something in common, namely that they’re all men. It’s a fitting dude-fest given that DC Comics’ June solicits contain their lowest number of female and non-binary creators in nearly two years. As always at DC, when big things are happening, women and non-binary creators are few and far between. Let’s take a look at who is doing what this June:

Adriana Melo: Plastic Man #1 (interior art)
Amanda Conner: Plastic Man #1 (variant cover)
Aneke: Bombshells United #19 (interior art)
Becky Cloonan: Shade, The Changing Woman #4 (cover)
Brandee Stilwell: Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles #6 (co-writer)
Cecil Castellucci: Shade, The Changing Woman #4 (writer)
Gail Simone: Plastic Man #1 (writer)
Jenny Frison: Wonder Woman #48 (variant cover), Wonder Woman #49 (variant cover)
Jody Houser: Mother Panic: Gotham A.D. #4 (writer)
Magdalene Visaggio: Eternity Girl #4 (writer)
Mairghread Scott: Green Arrow #41 (writer)
Marguerite Bennett: Batwoman #16 (writer), Bombshells United #19 (writer)
Marguerite Sauvage: Bombshells United #19 (interior art, cover)
Marley Zarcone: Shade, The Changing Woman #4 (interior art)
Mirka Andolfo: Harley Quinn #43 (interior art), Harley Quinn #44 (interior art)
Nicola Scott: Future Quest Presents #11 (variant cover), Mera, Queen of Atlantis #5 (cover)
Rachael Stott: Motherlands #6 (inteior art)
Sandra Hope: The Silencer #6 (cover)
Vanesa Del Rey: The Wild Storm #14 (variant cover)

All together, there are 19 different female creators scheduled to work on 17 different books in June, 4 fewer creators than in May and 3 fewer books. As best I can tell, there are no non-binary creators set to work at DC in June. I’ve said before that in this day and age, with so many different, amazing women and non-binary creators working in comics, that a big publisher like DC or Marvel should be able to hire 20 of them a month with ease. If a publisher can’t get out of the teens, then they’re not even trying. And now DC is in the teens. Just barely so, but still. This is an embarrassingly low total, doubly so given that it’s such an important month for the publisher, and triply so because it marks DC’s lowest total since August 2016.

Moreover, fictional men are getting all of the focus in June as well. Superman’s the star of the show for the Man of Steel mini-series, of course, while only 2 of the 9 members of the new Justice League are women. There are also 5 special issues leading up to Batman and Catwoman’s nuptials called Batman: Prelude to the Wedding, in which only 2 of the 10 named characters are women and all of the creators are men. And 4 new Hanna-Barbera crossover issues with all male characters and about 17 dudes writing and drawing them. We’ve got a new Hawkman book in June, too, again with all male creators. At least the new Plastic Man has some women in the mix behind the scenes, even if the month as a whole is sorely lacking in fictional representation.

And as bad as these numbers are, they might be about to drop further. June marks the last issue of Bombshells United, ending one of the most enjoyable runs I’ve ever read and also removing a bastion of female creators from the monthly solicits. With its double shipping, you could count on 3-5 women each month in Bombshells United, and now that’s come to an end. July might be a rough outing, barring some new books or creative changes.

As I said at the top of the piece, female and non-binary creators tend to disappear when DC does big new initiatives. In every new round of relaunches or big creative shifts, men are always at the forefront. And frankly, this isn’t going to change until these men do something about it. Creators like Scott Snyder and Brian Michael Bendis are mega-stars. They could be working with any artists they wanted to, and yet here we see them with eight different dudes. The big names at DC need to step up and fight for improved representation at the publisher, otherwise it’s just going to be the same old thing again and again. Gail Simone does it. Greg Rucka does. And others need to join in.

Wonder Woman #43 Review: Diana Takes a Backseat, Once Again

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At some point, I think that DC will eventually realize that people buy Wonder Woman for Wonder Woman. It’s a simple idea, and one they’re pretty good at with their other characters. Batman is mostly about Batman. Superman is mostly about Superman. And yet here we are once again, with another run of Wonder Woman in which Wonder Woman all too often feels like a side character. Such is the case this week, in which a significant portion of the book is dedicated to a lengthy conversation between Diana’s boyfriend, Steve Trevor, and her brother, Jason. Diana gets a few pages, fighting a couple of Furies for no good reason and to no gain, but the core of this issue is two dudes chatting away and doing a bit of macho posturing. What’s even more irksome is that the conversation is largely pointless, a rehash of past events and mysteries that remain unsolved. This is indicative of a larger problem with the book: In twenty pages of comics, only one significant event occurs, and it’s one we all knew was coming in some form or another. The rest feels like filler. So yeah, this garbage run continues to be garbage. We’ll discuss it all, but first:

SPOILER ALERT!!

I am about to tell you the ONE SOLITARY THING that happens in this issue!

And it is neither good nor interesting!

Why must DC make us suffer so?

Hold onto your hats, gang, because I’m about to unleash the book’s big reveal. You know those artifacts that A.R.G.U.S. has? The ones that Darkseid has been jonesing for over the past few issues because they’re central to his big, evil plan? Well get a load of this: He attacked A.R.G.U.S. and got them all, and now his big evil plan can come to fruition. Your minds are blown, I know.

There was one almost interesting thing about this wholly expected development. I was waiting for a fight, some sort of major assault on A.R.G.U.S. with lots of action and drama, but for perhaps the first time in this entire run, James Robinson zigged when I thought he was going to zag. Instead of a battle, Darkseid just straight up steals the entire building, and I didn’t see that twist coming. It’s not a particularly good twist. Or a fun twist. But it is a twist, and for that I commend him.

And now I slowly walk that commendation back because lord knows there was a lot of space for a big battle on offer in this issue. Everything apart from the last handful of pages was useless conversation. Not to say that all conversation is useless in comics, of course. I like some banter. I like to learn about the characters and have them bounce off each other. Chatty books are fine with me. I don’t need loads of battles and action and whatnot.

The problem with this issue’s conversations, though, is that they were largely pointless. Steve and Jason just rehashed old stuff without adding anything new to the mix. Wonder Woman interrogated/fought the Furies and learned pretty much nothing from it. Darkseid said vague things about his evil plans. None of it added to the ongoing story or moved it forward in any real way. It just filled the pages until Darkseid attacked. That, combined with the fact that James Robinson seems to have lost the ability to write dialogue that resembles actual human speech in any way, made this issue quite a slog.

The art team did their best, however. I’m not terribly familiar with Marco Santucci’s work, but he acquited himself well here. The big test for every Wonder Woman artist is their ability to draw Wonder Woman, and he did a nice job from the very start, opening the book with a splash page that had a bit of a Phil Jimenez vibe. And Romulo Fajardo Jr. was amazing with the colors, as always. I know I say this all the time, but he really is the MVP of the series right now. We’ve had so many artists during this run, but his colors help give the title a consistent, high quality look. His steady excellence is the only thing stopping this runaway train of a series from barrelling into a ravine some months. Luckily with this issue, Santucci gave him a hand and we got some decent artwork throughout.

So we’ve got what, about seven more issues of this run, at least? Good gracious. It looks like Wonder Woman’s battle with Darkseid is coming sooner than later. A tie-in to DC’s big Metal event looms on the horizon as well, so that should mean that the Darkseid story will be sorted out before long. Wonder Woman looks to be playing a big role in the post-Metal DC universe, co-starring in the relaunched Justice League along with leading a new version of Justice League Dark. Perhaps her increased profile across the line will bring some creative changes to her solo title, finally. Not only is it long overdue, but these big changes present a fine opportunity to make the switch. I know I’ve got my fingers crossed.

Come See Me at C2E2 in Chicago, Artist Alley Table E7, April 6-8th!

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Last week, I told you all about my upcoming “The Many Lives of Catwoman” panel discussion with Angelica Jade Bastién, Lauren Burke, Caitlin Rosberg, and Katie Schenkel at The Book Cellar in Chicago, IL, on April 5th at 7:00pm. That’s going to be all kinds of awesome. But it’s only part one of my upcoming Chicago fun! Starting the very next day, I will be at C2E2 all weekend long. Here is all the important info:

Tim Hanley @ C2E2

South Building at McCormick Place, Chicago, IL

April 6-8th

Artist Alley, Table E7

I have also built a handy map so that it’s easy to find me at the show. You can click to embiggen:

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C2E2 is a great convention, and I’m so excited to be a part of it this year. I’ll be set up in Artist Alley for all three days, with all three of my books available for purchase. I’m talking Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World’s Most Famous Heroine, my exploration of everyone’s new favourite cinematic heroine’s fascinating origins. Everybody loves Wonder Woman now, as they should. We’ve also got Investigating Lois Lane: The Turbulent History of the Daily Planet’s Ace Reporter, and it’s a perfect time to read up on Lois what with exciting new relaunches of Action Comics and Superman just around the corner. Heck, Brian Michael Bendis is gonna be at C2E2 too! And the third in the trilogy is The Many Lives of Catwoman: The Felonious History of a Feline Fatale, an overview of the many intriguing incarnations of this beloved character. Plus she’s getting married soon! Making this a good opportunity to read up on all of the romantic hijinks that led her to this point.

All three books will be available for sale, and I’ll have some fun free goodies to give away. And I’ll be glad to sign any and all of the books for free, of course, whether you’re buying them at the show or bringing your own copies from home. You can also just come by and chat superheroes for a while if you’d like. That’s always a good time.

So yeah, if you’re coming to C2E2 you should absolutely come by my table! And if you’re in the vicinity of Chicago and you aren’t coming to the show, you should probably remedy that. It’s a great convention, with a whole host of excellent guests and vendors and such. Susan Eisenberg, the iconic voice of Wonder Woman on the Justice League cartoon, is going to be there! That’s worth the price of admission alone. I hope to see you there!

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Wonder Woman #42 Review: Jason Returns! From Where? And Why? Who Even Friggin’ Cares

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It’s the second Wednesday of the month so we’ve got a new issue of Wonder Woman to dig into, and boy am I not feeling it today. I’ve been ill since the weekend, flattened out with some nefarious strain of the flu. Talking about whatever new travesty James Robinson has inflicted upon us is not how I’d like to be using what little energy I have right now. And yet, here I am. Am I a masochist? A hero? So addled by the flu that I’m making poor life decisions? It’s hard to say. Anyway, let’s jump into this latest batch of stupidity, but first:

SPOILER ALERT!!

I am about to tell you all of the things that happened in this issue!

They are all so dumb.

So very, very dumb.

So Jason is back, with fancy new armor and new abilities, and he has no idea where he was or who gave them to him. Sure, that seems legit. No wonder Diana agrees to fly off together with him. There’s nothing sketchy about this situation at all. Someone needs to tell the entire creative team and editorial that Wonder Woman is actually quite smart. Kind and compassionate, yes, but not foolishly so. And literally everything having to do with Jason thus far has required her to act foolishly and put her trust in someone who has yet to earn it in the slightest. Now the dude shows up more powerful, after eight days away, with ZERO explanation? Those are some serious red flags. And Diana just rolls with it all.

Grail’s back too, off to kill another deity or some such, so Diana and Jason team up to take her down. As they fly there, we’re treated to a useless five page flashback about the time Jason fought the Deep Six and met Grail for the first time. What a waste of a quarter of the book. It added literally nothing to the story that we didn’t know already. The editors must be asleep at the wheel here, because this is the filleriest of filler. All terribly written, too. There is nothing less compelling than a monologue from Jason.

After that pointless diversion, the actual fight happens. Wonder Woman ensnares Grail in the lasso to try to learn Darkseid’s evil plan, but only gets a small piece of it before Grail escapes. Now Wonder Woman knows that Darkseid is going after Themyscira, at least, and she can go stop him or whatever. It sounds like he’s on his way to A.R.G.U.S. to steal a bunch of artifacts, so it looks like Steve’s going to have a rough issue in two weeks’ time.

Anyway, across all of these twenty pages we learned not a dang thing about Jason’s disappearance other than he’s stronger now, and Wonder Woman knows a bit more about Darkseid’s plan. That’s it. This is really not effective comic booking. If you’re going to tell a story as pointless as the saga of Diana’s idiot brother, at least speed it up a bit so we can get onto something else. Or put in a modicum of effort to try to make it interesting or fun in some way. This issue is an entertainment vacuum. It has nothing enjoyable to recommend it.

Even the art is disappointing. Jesus Merino’s work is inconsistent throughout, with a few good panels and a lot of pages that look like they were hastily dashed off. Such is the reality of bi-weekly comics, I suppose. Merino’s a talented guy, and I’m guessing that some poor editorial management may have contributed to the sloppy look. Even the colors feel a little rough. Romulo Fajardo Jr. has been masterful with his coloring for nearly two years now, so an average issue from him suggests to me that there was a very short turnaround time for everyone involved in this outing. The result is an issue that’s not terribly appealing on any level.

All together, “Amazons Attacked” is a very good name for this arc. Longtime Wonder Woman readers will remember the Amazons Attack event from about a decade back, in which the Amazons invaded Washington, DC. It was TERRIBLE. Easily one of the worst Wonder Woman stories ever committed to paper. It was nonsensical, poorly written, and tied up in the fiendish machinations of Apokolips and the New Gods. “Amazons Attacked” shares all of the same poor qualities as its similarly named predecessor. My question is, did the editors name the arc this knowing it was going to be just as bad as the original? Or do they think they’re rehabilitating the name? If it’s the first, that’s hilarious, though said. If it’s the second, it’s not working out in the slightest.

Okay, I’m going to go lay down now. Happy Wednesday, everyone! Wonder Woman still sucks. The June solicits should be out next week though, so let’s all cross our fingers for an end to this horrible run.

The Many Lives of Catwoman Panel Discussion in Chicago, April 5th at The Book Cellar!

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I’m coming back to Chicago, gang! I’ll be in town in early April for C2E2, where I’ll be set up in Artist’s Alley from April 6-8th at Table E7 (I’ll share more about that later in the week). But before the show starts, I’m going to be part of a special panel discussion about the fascinating history of Catwoman at The Book Cellar. Here are all the important details:

The Many Lives of Catwoman Panel Discussion

The Book Cellar

4736-38 N Lincoln Ave

Chicago, IL

Thursday, April 5th at 7:00pm

I’ll be there, of course, and I’ll be joined by an amazing group of panelists! We’ve got Angelica Jade Bastién, a staff writer at Vulture and one of the best voices out there right now in film and television criticism. If you’re not reading her stuff, you’re missing out. Then we have Lauren Burke, an editor of the Ladies’ Night Anthology comic collections and co-host of the delightful Bonnets at Dawn podcast for all of you Austen and/or Bronte enthusiasts. Next up is Caitlin Rosberg, one of the finest comic critics in the business at The AV Club and Paste. She’s got a dang Eisner! And finally, we’ve got Katie Schenkel, who wrote great pieces on comics for sites like Book Riot and The Mary Sue and is now writing her own comics, Moonlighters and The Cardboard Kingdom!

So yeah, it’s a pretty rad group. And there’s so much fun stuff to talk about. We’re going to do an overview of Catwoman’s history all the way from her first appearance in 1940 through to the present day. We’ll be hitting all of the highlights and a few of the lowlights: Her initial role as Batman’s only weakness, her delightful television incarnations in the 1960s, her reinvention in Batman: Year One in the 1980s, Michelle Pfeiffer’s brilliant take on the character in Batman Returns, Halle Berry’s decidedly less brilliant take on the character in Catwoman, and so much more! And it will all lead to a chat about her current status, with her upcoming nuptials currently taking the superhero comics world by storm.

If you’re in the area, I hope you’ll come by! And bring your friends, too. It’s totally free, and open to the public. It’s going to be a great event, and a really fun way to kick off the C2E2 weekend. Also, feel free to share the poster above online. I hope to see a lot of you there!

Women & NB Creators at Marvel Comics Watch, May 2018 Solicits: 15 Creators on 16 Books

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It’s International Women’s Day, which is perhaps not the best day to take a look at Marvel’s May solicits. The fact of the matter is, Marvel is garbage at hiring female and non-binary creators right now. While the women currently working at Marvel are amazing talents making some great books, they are few and far between. And they have been for a while. What’s more, the announcements surrounding Marvel’s umpteenth relaunch that’s coming this summer have been ridiculously male-dominated thus far. The publisher has a problem. So let’s take a look at who’s doing what at Marvel this May:

Ashley Witter: Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #20 (cover)
Becky Cloonan: Moon Knight #195 (cover)
Elizabeth Torque: All-New Wolverine #35 (cover)
Erica Henderson: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #32 (interior art, cover)
G. Willow Wilson: Ms. Marvel #30 (writer)
Gail Simone: Domino #2 (writer)
Jen Bartel: Mighty Thor: At The Gates Of Valhalla #1 (interior art)
Jody Houser: Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows #19 (writer), Star Wars: Thrawn #4 (writer)
Kamome Shirahama: Star Wars: The Last Jedi Adaptation #2 (variant cover)
Kelly Thompson: Rogue & Gambit #5 (writer), X-Men Wedding Special #1 (co-writer)
Marika Cresta: X-Men Wedding Special #1 (interior art)
Mariko Tamaki: Hunt for Wolverine: Claws of a Killer #1 (writer)
Natacha Bustos: Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #31 (cover)
Rainbow Rowell: Runaways #9 (writer)
Yasmine Putri: Black Panther #1 (variant cover)

All together, there are 15 different female creators set to work on 16 different books at Marvel in May, 2 fewer creators than in April and the same number of books. As best I can tell, there are no non-binary creators scheduled for Marvel’s May comics. This marks the third straight month of numbers in the teens for the publisher, a run that is, quite frankly, beyond embarrassing. Not only has Marvel shown themselves to be capable of posting totals of more than twice this amount in the past, the ranks of excellent female and non-binary creators have never been larger. There are so many in the mix these days, a publisher pretty much has to go out of their way NOT to hire them. And Marvel appears to be doing just that.

This disinterest in female creators looks like it’s going to continue into the future as well. Marvel is in the midst of unveiling their new lineup for their latest relaunch; it’s got a name, but I don’t care enough to go look it up. They’ve announced over a dozen new books so far, and only ONE has a female creator in the mix, with Margaret Stohl relaunching Captain Marvel. And here’s the kicker: It’s a mini-series. The majority of the other books are ongoing titles. So barring a sudden influx of female-led titles, I wouldn’t expect Marvel’s numbers to improve in the months to come.

There also seems to be a distinct disinterest in titles headlined by female characters, both this month and moving forward. Usually when I do the cover montage at the top, I have tons of great female characters to choose from and I get to pick the art that I like the best. This month was slim pickings. I had to go through the solicits twice to find the seven covers above.

Some new books are starting in May, too, and they are all male-led. We’ve got new solo titles for Black Panther, Quicksilver, and Venom, along with a round of mini-series centered on Wolverine. The dude Wolverine, I should say, not the new, awesome lady Wolverine who is much, much, much cooler. There’s a new Avengers book as well, and only 2 of the 8 characters on the team are women, with Captain Marvel and She-Hulk in the mix.

And just to continue the disappointing news run, of all of the relaunch titles announced so far, there are one and a half books with titular female characters. We’ve got the aforementioned Captain Marvel mini, and the Wasp sharing a new series with Ant-Man.

So yeah, Marvel’s got a definite problem with women right now. Their female and non-binary creator numbers are in the midst of the lowest run we’ve seen in years, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to improve anytime soon. Their female characters are on the decline as well, again with no change in sight. It feels like Marvel is intentionally appealing to conservative fanboys now, that irksome group who blasted the company for diversifying their line and making everyone a “social justice warrior.” And that’s just gross. Marvel needs to get it together before they embarrass themselves even further. Will they? Probably not. But we can hope.

Women & NB Creators at DC Comics Watch, May 2018 Solicits: 23 Creators on 20 Books

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May looks to be another pedestrian month for female and non-binary creator representation at DC Comics. Despite a lot of big changes and new initiatives, the numbers have been sitting in the mid-20s for several months now. While it’s not the worst we’ve seen from the publisher, they’ve shown themselves to be capable of far higher totals. And unfortunately, the future isn’t looking very bright at the moment, either. Let’s take a look at who’s doing what at DC Comics this May:

Amanda Conner: Harley Quinn: Harley Loves Joker #1 (cover), Harley Quinn: Harley Loves Joker #2 (cover)
Becky Cloonan: Shade, The Changing Woman #3 (cover)
Carmen Carnero: Green Arrow Annual #2 (interior art)
Cecil Castellucci: Shade, The Changing Woman #3 (writer)
Emanuela Lupacchino: Wonder Woman #46 (cover), Wonder Woman #47 (cover)
Hope Larson: Batgirl #23 (writer)
Jenny Frison: Wonder Woman #46 (variant cover), Wonder Woman #47 (variant cover)
Jill Thompson: Action Comics Special #1 (interior art)
Jody Houser: Mother Panic: Gotham A.D. #3 (writer)
Joelle Jones: Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles #5 (variant cover)
Julie Benson: Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #22 (co-writer), Green Arrow Annual #2 (co-writer)
Kamome Shirahama: Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #22 (variant cover)
Magdalene Visaggio: Eternity Girl #3 (writer)
Marguerite Bennett: Batwoman #15 (writer), Bombshells United #17 (writer), Bombshells United #18 (writer)
Marley Zarcone: Shade, The Changing Woman #3 (interior art)
Nicola Scott: Mera, Queen of Atlantis #4 (cover)
Paulina Ganucheau: Bombshells United #17 (cover)
Rachael Stott: Motherlands #5 (interior art)
Rachel Dodson: Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #22 (cover), Bombshells United #18 (cover)
Sandra Hope: The Silencer #5 (cover)
Shawna Benson: Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #22 (co-writer), Green Arrow Annual #2 (co-writer)
Siya Oum: Bombshells United #17 (interior art)
Yasmine Putri: Nightwing #44 (variant cover), Wonder Woman Annual #2 (cover)

All together, there are 23 different female creators set to work on 20 different books at DC Comics in May, the same number of creators as in April though on 3 fewer books. As best I can tell, there are no non-binary creators listed in the solicits this month. These totals are among the lowest DC has posted in a while, though they remain in the ballpark of where the publisher has been lately. A range of 23-27 women and non-binary creators has been the norm, and it’s been that way despite some big creative changes. Losses somewhere were met with gains elsewhere, keeping things about the same for a while now.

But this could change very soon. A couple of big cancellations were announced recently that are going to have a significant effect on the numbers. First, Batgirl and the Birds of Prey is shipping its final issue in May. That book has been a powerhouse for female creators. It accounts for four of the names listed above, and has done so more or less steadily for the past year and a half. On top of that, Bombshells United is set to wrap up soon. From DC Comics Bombshells through Bombshells United, the book has been a bastion of female representation at DC for years now. Not only were women working on it at all levels of production, it also double shipped frequently, adding a slew of names to the list each month. It was a showcase for female artists as well, with creators like Mirka Andolfo, Laura Braga, Carmen Carnero, and many more doing fantastic work there before moving on elsewhere in the DC universe. Without it, not only are the numbers going to take a hit, but an important pipeline for female creators will be lost.

So that’s going to be a lot for the rest of the line to have to overcome. Batgirl and the Birds of Prey will be gone in the June solicits, and Bombshells has maybe a month or two left. And we’ve yet to see any news on what female and non-binary creator-led titles could replace them. Things are ramping up for a lot of big changes at DC, with Brian Michael Bendis taking over the Superman line and Scott Snyder tackling the Justice League. But from the looks of things, they’re bringing a lot of dudes with them to draw those books. Unless DC’s got some exciting new announcements up their sleeve, and several of them, I fear the numbers are going to start to drop very soon.