An interesting article today on The Guardian by Noah Berlatsky on how the updated adaptation of The Killing Joke fails Batgirl as a character and how she could have been so much more if the right writers were involved.
Berlatsky also talks about the problem with the remake of Ghostbusters - mainly the fact that the 3 white women play the scientists and the 1 black woman plays a 'street smart subway worker'. As much as I liked the new Ghostbusters movie and Patty's character in general, the stereotype just seemed wrong she could have easily been a scientist so why not just make her a scientist!
Also worth reading through the comments on the article itself... a lot of angry comic book fans on there!!
Lot's of "I'm not sexist but..." (So perhaps maybe not actually worth reading those).
Perhaps different creators could have managed to craft a non-misogynist Batgirl story, especially if those creators were women. But a big part of the problem is, simply, that this is a Killing Joke adaptation. Superheroes just about never get point-blank shot, the way Barbara does in The Killing Joke. They dodge; they move superfast, they anticipate, they win. The Batgirl in The Killing Joke isn’t a hero, but a victim – and so, Azzarello and Timms follow along with the original material, and create a costumed hero who shouldn’t really be a hero at all. What kind of superhero would just let herself be shot? An overly emotional, unprepared, semi-incompetent hero, the cartoon creators chorus. Input a misogynist comic, add unimaginative creators – and presto! A misogynist cartoon.
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jul/26/batman-sexism-the-killing-joke-remake-source-material
