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More spoiler-related puns
I've been flat-out mainlining the Robin comics for a week ...
... and I just finished War Games.
Holy shit, you guys, my Steph. I just ... okay, I get that a lot of Steph fans hate the storyline, and I get why, but I actually really liked it, not least because it was probably the most valued/respected/appreciated Steph's ever been by any member of the Batfamily other than Tim. I especially loved Catwoman immediately blaming Batman, not Steph, for what Steph did - because, yeah, her actions started the war, but everything Batman did to her put her in the position where she felt she had to make that choice; his distrust, his training and then abandoning her (twice, plus once with the Birds), his not telling her the important secrets that would have prevented her from making that particular mistake. HOLY MIXED MESSAGES, BATMAN. And as much as I still have to fanwank ... pretty much everything to get a consistent picture of how Steph fits in with the rest of the Batfamily and what the fuck they actually think about her, at least War Games made it possible for me to do that. Before that, believe it or not, it was even more of a mess.
ALSO OH MY GOD MY FEELINGS WHEN STEPH'S ON HER ~DEATHBED AND BATMAN'S THERE AND THEN HE TRIES TO KILL BLACK MASK AND HAS FEELINGS AND HE TELLS HER SHE REALLY WAS ROBIN AND I HAVE NO FEELS LEFT, SORRY I HAVE FELT THEM ALL.
Next up: The final dozen or so issues of Robin, Leviathan Strikes, Batgirl vol. 1&2, Red Robin, other miscellaneous issues with Steph in them. Maybe not in that order.
Also ... okay, so I don't really interact with comics fandom much - my involvement at the moment has pretty much extended to reading a couple of fics on AO3 and tracking the Stephanie Brown tag on Tumblr - but even that much has exposed me to some pretty virulent Steph hate. And, I mean, obviously the whole thing bugs me - from the way it's so gendered and mired in the assumption that there's one right way to be a superhero and everything else is doing it wrong, to the fact that Steph is amazing and nobody should hate her ever - but once I hit Steph's all too brief run as Robin, one particular criticism started bugging me in particular.
And no, it's not "Steph wasn't a real Robin" - which, obviously that bugs me, and Dan DiDio can go screw himself, she was too and even Batman said so - it's the allegation (which I've seen around a few times, so this is apparently somehow a belief that more than one person with severely limited reading comprehension has) that she "blackmailed" her way into being Robin.
... Um, what?
I am sitting here with the comics open right in front of me, and this is what happens (paraphrased, of course):
Stephanie: I'm your new Robin!
Batman: Then you'll need a better costume.
Yes, that so clearly reeks of blackmail and coercion, I can see their point now. Or, you know, not.
But, okay, silver lining time: At least the people who hated her as Robin acknowledge that she was Robin.
IN LESS DEPRESSING NEWS, THINGS I REALLY WANT TO WRITE AND/OR READ:
- The one where Kara and Steph watch all the college movies. (Just maybe not the type Steph was expecting.) And then have pillow fights and makeouts.
- The one where Artemis exists in the pre-reboot continuity and she and Steph ~fall in love.
- The one with Gage/Steph jail cell makeouts.
- Fun, flirty Dick/Steph hookups.
- The dirtybadwrong Bruce/Steph d/s idfic.
- The fic where Steph accidentally leaves her comm on during an, ahem, intimate moment. And then not so accidentally. Maybe with semi-awkward Gage/Steph/Babs threesome-ish-ness, and featuring a lot of Oracle "talking her through it." (IDK, I don't even ship Steph/Barbara, but this idea got into my head and won't go away, and I'm really digging it.)
- And none for Tim Drake, bye.
Basically, shipping all the Steph ships ever. Except, apparently, the ones that are actually popular*, ugh, why my life. And really, I tried so hard to like Tim/Steph, but I just ... IDK, I like Tim but I don't actually feel very much for him, even a hundred and whatever issues of his comic later. But I still haven't read Red Robin (or much of Teen Titans), so, who knows. And even though, thanks to Steph, I don't actually hate Damian any more, I really don't ship them either (though I do loveSteph&Damian gen) - except maybe for fic where he has a huge crush on her and will literally murder anyone who brings it up, clearly crushes are below him and anyway he'd definitely have better taste than Stephanie Brown, ugh. (I'm pretty sure that actually exists somewhere, but I don't want to have to go looking through Steph/Damian fic to find it.)
*Although I'm pretty sure I will love Cass/Steph, but I actually need to get Cass' Batgirl run first, which is next on my list.
... and I just finished War Games.
Holy shit, you guys, my Steph. I just ... okay, I get that a lot of Steph fans hate the storyline, and I get why, but I actually really liked it, not least because it was probably the most valued/respected/appreciated Steph's ever been by any member of the Batfamily other than Tim. I especially loved Catwoman immediately blaming Batman, not Steph, for what Steph did - because, yeah, her actions started the war, but everything Batman did to her put her in the position where she felt she had to make that choice; his distrust, his training and then abandoning her (twice, plus once with the Birds), his not telling her the important secrets that would have prevented her from making that particular mistake. HOLY MIXED MESSAGES, BATMAN. And as much as I still have to fanwank ... pretty much everything to get a consistent picture of how Steph fits in with the rest of the Batfamily and what the fuck they actually think about her, at least War Games made it possible for me to do that. Before that, believe it or not, it was even more of a mess.
ALSO OH MY GOD MY FEELINGS WHEN STEPH'S ON HER ~DEATHBED AND BATMAN'S THERE AND THEN HE TRIES TO KILL BLACK MASK AND HAS FEELINGS AND HE TELLS HER SHE REALLY WAS ROBIN AND I HAVE NO FEELS LEFT, SORRY I HAVE FELT THEM ALL.
Next up: The final dozen or so issues of Robin, Leviathan Strikes, Batgirl vol. 1&2, Red Robin, other miscellaneous issues with Steph in them. Maybe not in that order.
Also ... okay, so I don't really interact with comics fandom much - my involvement at the moment has pretty much extended to reading a couple of fics on AO3 and tracking the Stephanie Brown tag on Tumblr - but even that much has exposed me to some pretty virulent Steph hate. And, I mean, obviously the whole thing bugs me - from the way it's so gendered and mired in the assumption that there's one right way to be a superhero and everything else is doing it wrong, to the fact that Steph is amazing and nobody should hate her ever - but once I hit Steph's all too brief run as Robin, one particular criticism started bugging me in particular.
And no, it's not "Steph wasn't a real Robin" - which, obviously that bugs me, and Dan DiDio can go screw himself, she was too and even Batman said so - it's the allegation (which I've seen around a few times, so this is apparently somehow a belief that more than one person with severely limited reading comprehension has) that she "blackmailed" her way into being Robin.
... Um, what?
I am sitting here with the comics open right in front of me, and this is what happens (paraphrased, of course):
Stephanie: I'm your new Robin!
Batman: Then you'll need a better costume.
Yes, that so clearly reeks of blackmail and coercion, I can see their point now. Or, you know, not.
But, okay, silver lining time: At least the people who hated her as Robin acknowledge that she was Robin.
IN LESS DEPRESSING NEWS, THINGS I REALLY WANT TO WRITE AND/OR READ:
- The one where Kara and Steph watch all the college movies. (Just maybe not the type Steph was expecting.) And then have pillow fights and makeouts.
- The one where Artemis exists in the pre-reboot continuity and she and Steph ~fall in love.
- The one with Gage/Steph jail cell makeouts.
- Fun, flirty Dick/Steph hookups.
- The dirtybadwrong Bruce/Steph d/s idfic.
- The fic where Steph accidentally leaves her comm on during an, ahem, intimate moment. And then not so accidentally. Maybe with semi-awkward Gage/Steph/Babs threesome-ish-ness, and featuring a lot of Oracle "talking her through it." (IDK, I don't even ship Steph/Barbara, but this idea got into my head and won't go away, and I'm really digging it.)
- And none for Tim Drake, bye.
Basically, shipping all the Steph ships ever. Except, apparently, the ones that are actually popular*, ugh, why my life. And really, I tried so hard to like Tim/Steph, but I just ... IDK, I like Tim but I don't actually feel very much for him, even a hundred and whatever issues of his comic later. But I still haven't read Red Robin (or much of Teen Titans), so, who knows. And even though, thanks to Steph, I don't actually hate Damian any more, I really don't ship them either (though I do loveSteph&Damian gen) - except maybe for fic where he has a huge crush on her and will literally murder anyone who brings it up, clearly crushes are below him and anyway he'd definitely have better taste than Stephanie Brown, ugh. (I'm pretty sure that actually exists somewhere, but I don't want to have to go looking through Steph/Damian fic to find it.)
*Although I'm pretty sure I will love Cass/Steph, but I actually need to get Cass' Batgirl run first, which is next on my list.
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- Fun, flirty Dick/Steph hookups.
- The dirtybadwrong Bruce/Steph d/s idfic.
YES PLEASE.
Also, the dirty bad wrong Bruce/Steph naughty schoolgirl roleplay fic.
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HOWEVER, I will mention the fact that a) I don't know if Steph did blackmail her way into being Robin, but Tim pretty much DID, so there is totally precedent, and b) if you're capable of blackmailing your way into wearing one of the more ridiculous costumes in the DCU and spending your nights running around on rooftops, freezing your ass off, getting beaten up by criminals and having your life in danger all the time (by blackmailing BRUCE WAYNE/BATMAN, to boot), I THINK YOU DESERVE TO BE ROBIN, JUST SAYING.
Expect more later when I have access to my computer again.