What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1173940
T10 WHATS UP! October 6 - 12, 2019 vides a big hint as to where CW's "Batwoman" creators Caroline Dries ("Smallville") and Greg Berlanti ("Titans") drew their inspiration for the show. Those who've read the divisive 2010 Batwoman comic "Elegy" by Greg Rucka proba- bly know what to expect from Batwoman and Alice's on- screen relationship. For those not familiar with Rucka's work, just know that you're in for some of the "Batwoman" comic books' most outra- geous, unexpected and dis- turbing twists and turns. The psychedelic imagery and mind-warping colors for which the comic is known don't seem to have been car- ried over to the new TV series, but other such DC Comics television programs ("Arrow," "The Flash," "Supergirl," "Ti- tans," etc.) really seem to love dark, gritty and grey post-pro- cessing, and the look feels right for the city of Gotham. Still, fans likely hope the show will attempt to pay some hom- age to the source material with a bit of outlandish cinematog- raphy at some point. It's already become a topic of conversation when it comes to this series, so it's worth mentioning that both Bat- woman and the woman who plays her on TV are gay. Some- what comically and incredibly ironically, the original Bat- woman (Kathy, not Kate) was introduced way back in 1956 solely to discourage a contro- versy that arose in the previ- ous year regarding Batman's own perceived homosexuality. After the Batwoman character was written out of the DC Uni- verse in 1964, editors refused to bring her back despite de- mand from readers, calling her a "hapless female" who would be "gone for good." It wasn't until 2006, 50 years post-debut, that DC announced Batwoman's rebirth. In addi- tion to swapping the old-fash- ioned name Kathy for the more modern Kate, editors revealed that today's Batwoman would be a Jewish lesbian. Far from the lipstick-toting Batman-iac she was in the 1960s, Kate Kane was a directionless party girl, lost in life after being dis- charged from the military un- der the don't ask, don't tell pol- icy that discouraged homosex- ual service members. Whether it was the murder of her moth- er, the loss of her partner, the thrill of breaking some bad-guy bones, or Batman himself, we may never know why Kate was inspired to put down her drink to pick up a cowl, cape and bright red wig, becoming the Batwoman fans know and love today. The character's sexuality is more than just a gimmick or attempt at placation. Despite DC bigwigs saying Kate was made a lesbian for little reason other than differentiating her from other members of the "Bat-family," it meant enough to series writers Williams and Blackman for them to leave the job when DC refused to al- low Batwoman to get married to her longtime girlfriend, Maggie Sawyer. Long and sto- ried character history aside, Batwoman is amazing, and you should think about adding her to your pull-list the next time you visit your local comic book shop. If you've enjoyed CW's Ar- rowverse television adapta- tions of comic book characters so far, you'll likely want to keep up with "Batwoman." On Sunday, Oct. 6, "Batwoman" premieres on CW, and it will be interesting to see how on- line sentiment changes once the show has actually aired. CW is bringing a kick-butt LGBT+ icon to the mainstream of the small screen, and if you aren't a comic book fan al- ready, you may very well be- come one. Rachel Skarsten stars in "Batwoman" continued from page T2 Holy diversity Batman!: 'Batwoman' premieres on CW TV FEATURE