An Open Letter to DC Comics and Warner Brothers

Dear DC Comics and Warner Brothers,

Allow me to begin my letter with a fact: You guys are missing the point.

What caused this random letter to be penned in the first place? My reading of Catwoman #0 and the constant “news” of your Justice League feature film endeavors. I’ll begin with Catwoman.

DC, I am one of your few female fans of the recently rebooted leather clad anti-hero after you bravely (some say stupidly) went where only fanfictions went. Selina was slowly becoming a character one could relate to, a vulnerable woman inside of a tough shell, and then Catwoman #0 happened. I don’t pretend to know what goes on in your offices, so I don’t know how much of that story was written when handed over to the all female creative team. I also don’t know who the hell told you the tentative cover art was wonderful enough to release to the public, or that the subsequent attempt at righting the wrongs was better.

Catwoman is an overtly sexual character. We know this. She is already in a body hugging leather suit so there is NO NEED for her to pose in a way that is not only physically impossible, but in a position that prominently displays her chest and ass. To be fair, you guys attempted to rectify these anatomical issues so the pose was more believable, but kept the idiotic pose. My question is why couldn’t she be leaning against a building without a care in the world? Was it such an outrageous idea that she pet a black cat, or held a jewel, or even whirled her whip overhead?

Ripped to shreds by the internet, several prominent artists rendered their own versions of the cover to the point where it got mass media coverage, most notably from Comics Alliance.

Kudos for listening to only part of the outrage, DC!

Again, to be fair, you guys tried to go one step further and allowed women to write the book, starting with the offending issue. As stated earlier, I have no idea how much of the story was written prior to this, and while a lot of the comic community cheered at this development, I felt alone in my disdain for it, for the writing was truly abysmal. I’ve never been invested in a character less and that says a lot, seeing as I read almost half of the DC52.  I felt a sense of kinship with the writer of this tumblr post, who put their thoughts far more eloquently than I did here in this letter that will not come to your attention, for I am but a girl on the internet.

I get that the run is not on Brubaker’s level or some other creators, but just because you get a woman to write a female character does not automatically mean you’re going to have an improvement. Bad writing is bad writing, no matter what gender, race, politics, etc.

– Tumblr user comicbookwomen

Comics aside, I wearily turn my attention to the other offenders, to whom this letter is also addressed.

Warner Brothers…I honestly don’t know where to begin with you.

I understand COMPLETELY that you guys feel the need to compete with Marvel Studio and understand that the time is right to begin welcoming viewers into this wonderful universe with films that interconnect.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DO NOT MAKE THESE MOVIES JUST FOR THE SAKE OF GIVING MARVEL COMPETITION.

I cannot stress how much we the fans (while, admittedly, more than half of which would see any movie put out by you guys) would love some quality in your films. There is so much story material out there, ripe for the adapting in which viewers (both fans and newcomers) could get on board with. Following Marvel’s lead is not a bad thing and if the internet rips you a new one for it, so what? It’ll quickly dissipate once you blow our mind holes with a flick leaving us begging for more. Nolan’s trilogy had its flaws, as did Green Lantern and Superman Returns. I wish I could say optimism was high for Man of Steel, but I ask…who the hell told you Henry Cavill can act well enough to be Superman? Did no one see The Immortals? Sure, he’s aesthetically pleasing, but that is not everything. I urge you all to choose directors who are fans of the source material, much as Jon Favreau was for the Iron Man series.

Aggressive Comix’s Geekgasm series echoed our feelings about impending movies as well.

Please, hear the cries of many and do not rush into starting a Justice League movie.

I don’t doubt for a second that another Batman story is in the works and you know what? I’ll even help you with that in my next article. I’m going to dream cast a new Batman movie and pick a story that could be wonderfully adapted and segued into a Justice League ensemble.

I feel better now that some of this is off my chest…I only hope that someone will bring you guys to your senses before fans become alienated further.

Sincerely,
Leia