rav4

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19750318/chapters/46748104

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How DC's New 52 Affected My Favorite Ladies

As I've been looking back through the list of my favorite DC females characters, I've come to realize that the New 52 has largely been unkind to them, in some cases brutally so. Here's a look at just how my top ten have been affected, with my own personal grade on their new versions. Keep in mind that these are all my own opinions.

1. Ravager

While her recent appearances have been gorgeous from a physical perspective, she's lacked a whole lot of depth so far, going from the hero she was before the reboot to a barely relatable cold villain. While she's shown some brief flashes of depth and care around Caitlin Fairchild, those moments came and went way too fast, leaving her as just another villain. We've been promised to be shown her full backstory and see her develop more in The Ravagers series, but it doesn't look like that's happening any time soon. At least she's still badass, though I don't need to be constantly reminded of that every time she makes an appearance. Want some character development please. I've also dedicated an entire topic to my thoughts on her in the New 52, so for my full opinion, see here.

Grade: B

2. Raven

Non existent so far. It's been said that she's going to appear in the future in a big role, so here's hoping she turns out okay. I have a nagging feeling that they'll butcher her, though.

Grade: N/A

3. Power Girl

Oh boy, where the hell do I even start with her? This is not the PG I know, not even close. Not only has her origins changed to be the Supergirl from Earth-2 before becoming Power Girl, but her physical appearance has been horribly, horribly altered. First, the costume. I feel like a broken record repeating the thoughts of so many others, but oh my god is that thing ugly. It feels like an 80's track suit or a Swedish speed skating uniform with a cape, and the giant P symbol on the left side is beyond gaudy. Going along with that is her terrible drawn face and hair. Perez seems to want to draw every individual strand of hair on her head, and it fails. Hard. Her face is narrow and bony, and just oddly shaped with her cheekbones jutting out. It makes her look a lot older than she is, and not to mention a bit mannish. Then, of course, her actual figure has been trimmed down to be much leaner. She now looks no different than so many other heroines with skinny bodies. While she's given a few nice curves in a few panels, they're all too brief. To apparently compensate for the lack of visual appeal, they also went and made her super promiscuous, judging from some of her dialogue, and for no reason. My point is, this character is unrecognizable as PG on all levels. She has been completely butchered.

Grade: F

4. Barbara Gordon

I think I'm actually one of the few who don't mind her switch from Oracle back to Batgirl. Sure, the loss of Oracle is a heavy hit to the DC universe, but Barbara has always been my favorite Batgirl. While I'm way to young to have grown up with her as Batgirl in comics, I knew her from Batman TAS and such, and that's always how I knew Batgirl. When I started getting into comics, I was confused as to why she wasn't Batgirl, until I read the Killing Joke and learned about that whole backstory. I love the way Gail Simone has been writing her so far, too. Yeah, she's still a little rusty after having returned from three years in a wheelchair, but I absolutely adore her in every way so far.

Grade: A+

5. Renee Montoya

Non existent so far. Okay, that's not entirely true. She has been shown to exist, but only in a brief mention in Batwoman #1, where it's implied she might be dead. If she is... then eff you, DC, for snuffing one of the best diversity characters you had going for you, with absolutely no reason or explanation as to her disappearance, since she was quite alive and well before the reboot. Until her status is confirmed, though, I can't give a grade. Just know that I'm watching you, DC... I'm watching you closely.

Grade: N/A

6. Batwoman

Virtually unchanged from before the reboot, which is a good thing. She's still the character I love.

Grade: A

7. Cassandra Cain

I've always had a love-hate relationship with Cass. I initially hated her because she was Batgirl when I got into comics, and I already had it in my head that Barbara was supposed to be Batgirl. Plus, she was incredibly overpowered at the time... I mean, half the crap she pulled was beyond superhuman, yet she wasn't supposed to have any meta powers, which left me with quite a few 'wtf' moments. Later on, though, when I started reading her character more (and they thankfully nerfed her abilities to be more reasonable within the context of a non-powered superhero), she grew to be one of my favs. Buuuut... she's non existent so far in the New 52, with no confirmed mention, as far as I know, that she'll be making an appearance any time soon.

Grade: N/A

8. Poison Ivy

Prominent in the Birds of Prey series, which I rather enjoy. It's good to see her in a bigger role than just a sporadically appearing villain. Unlike a lot of others, too, I don't have many complaints about her costume, and I think it actually looks rather cool. Exceeeeept the fact that her skin isn't green anymore. That was one of the things I liked most about her, because it gave her a unique appearance and made sense (and looks awesome in combination with her red hair). That brings her grade down, unfortunately.

Grade: B+

9. Harley Quinn

Do I really even need to comment? This is not the Harley I grew to adore from Batman TAS, or earlier comics. This is... I don't even know what to call it. Harley's sl*tty doppelganger, I guess. I'll admit I haven't read much of her new version, but from what I've seen... it hasn't been pretty.

Grade: F

10. Big Barda

Non existent so far. Because, why not? Almost half the characters on this list haven't appeared yet.

Grade: N/A

So, out of my top ten favorite DC women, 4 haven't even made an appearance yet, and two of them are failures. Another two are above average, with the last two actually worthy of saying I like them as much, if not more so, than before the reboot. Overall, though, the reboot has not been kind at all to my favorite female characters.

What are your thoughts on some of these characters? Have your own favorite that was ruined by the reboot? Or maybe one that got better? Feel free to comment below!

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