Kate Kane: Batwoman Appreciation 2018

[Katana500]

Cass and Bruce look pretty angry at Kate in the Cover. I wonder what she does and if she will be kicked out the team.

[Bat-Meal]

My guess, considering the writer interviews earlier on about Rebirth 'Tec and the different ideologies between Batwoman as a soldier and Batman as a Warrior - she'll eliminate a threat to protect her squad. Batman has a no kill rule, but it might not be the same for Batwoman.

It's an interesting one, because it's somewhat murky whether she's a character that would kill or not:

-She uses guns sometimes, and lethal force sometimes depending (though usually that's just for metas/demi-gods)
-In her original solo during her training her father tested her to see if she would lose it and kill, she held back but admitted that there were giveaways that the murder scene wasn't real
-In her original 'Tec run, her father asks/reminds her to stick to the 'Batman no kill rule'
-In the Andreyko issues, her sister states that Kate hasn't killed anyone yet and that she (Beth/Alice) is the only one of the two of them who is a killer

[Caivu]

Batman has a no kill rule, but it might not be the same for Batwoman.

It's definitely not the same for her.

It's an interesting one, because it's somewhat murky whether she's a character that would kill or not:

-She uses guns sometimes, and lethal force sometimes depending (though usually that's just for metas/demi-gods)

Doesn't that answer the question?

She's killed 5 or 6 people by now (or "sentient beings" if you want to be technical).

-In the Andreyko issues, her sister states that Kate hasn't killed anyone yet and that she (Beth/Alice) is the only one of the two of them who is a killer

Well, if it was just killing both Alice and Andreyko were wrong about that, quite frankly. I mean, Kate killed Alice, for starts (or at least, Kate herself believes so).

Now, if it's murder, then it'd be correct, and that's probably what it was in context, since Nocturna had been hypnotizing Kate to believe she was murdering people.

But kill? Kate has no qualms about killing.

[Bat-Meal]

Perhaps I should rephrase - what would be lethal force if the targets were not metas/demi-gods and hence they don't die so easily. She doesn't use lethal force against humans, so when she does resort to such tactics it's very calculated. Note the one time she did use a gun against batman she aimed for his legs, not the head and he did sneak up on her so she was attacking more on instinct.

Who has she actually killed? Can you provide a list.

I don't remember he ever actually killing a foe, but the original solo baddies were quite forgettable, so maybe she did and I just didn't care. Alice killed herself by intentionally stabbing Kate's hand to force her to let go. She's maimed foes (the demi-god/metas whatever they were).

[Caivu]

Who has she actually killed? Can you provide a list.

1. Bruno Mannheim (killed by throwing a large knife into his back after he stabbed her with it)

2. Alice (dropped her from a plane; whether or nor this actually counts, Kate believes it does)

2A. Not actual kills, but she threatened to exterminate the entire wereperson population of Gotham if they didn't stay away from her and her family.

3. Killed Medusa by petrifying her and punching her apart

4 - 6. Killed three of Morgaine le Fey's monster henchmen (two by impaling them, one by breaking his neck).

7. Killed Morgaine le Fey by trapping her inside a magical stone and smashing it.

She also shot Colony Prime in the face with a shotgun when he was monsterfied, so there was possibly an intent to kill there.

[Caivu]

I read a review of the new Vol.1, and its author, Brian Clements, began with a great opening paragraph that articulates a lot of what I've tried to here and elsewhere:

Since its debut, Batwoman has been, I believe purposefully, difficult to categorize. Many might want to make it about the hero’s gender, others about her sexuality. Having a strong female lead, both in terms of physical strength and depth of character, knocks some off their axes. Kate Kane does not fit the traditional, archetypal roles we expect from female characters. She combines the effortless grace of Wonder Woman with the physicality of Batman. Even when, pre-Batwoman, Kane is at her most vulnerable, she is not the helpless damsel in distress, nor is she some stereotype to be categorized, pinned down like a butterfly in a collection. Kate is beautiful, determined, loving, firm in her convictions, and stronger than many give her credit for.

http://www.adventuresinpoortaste.com...ff-their-axis/

[Bat-Meal]

I never saw the pre-elegy stuff, I only vaguely know she got stabbed because Elegy starts with her complaining about how long it was taking her to recover physically.


The other possibility is calling on the colony for help against the VS - that'd upset the team all right.

[Oberon]

Awesome summation.

[Caivu]

John Rauch finishing the colors on issue #10:

Screenshot_20171121-112116.jpg

Screenshot_20171121-112046.jpg

Probably from early in the issue, since that looks like Blanco's art.

[Man-Thing]

Interesting Feb solicits. I wonder what the "twist no one was expecting" will be in issue 12, and it looks like the speculation about Kate getting stripped of her Bat emblem were on the money given the sole oversized issue of Tec for that month is about her being judged by the bats on whether she will be "allowed" to continue being Batwoman.

[Caivu]

Interesting Feb solicits. I wonder what the "twist no one was expecting" will be in issue 12,

I'm almost afraid to say what I think, since I'm paranoid that at least one person involved in shaping Kate's story reads these forums; there have been too many instances of the current series having significantly different content compared to their solicits.

and it looks like the speculation about Kate getting stripped of her Bat emblem were on the money given the sole oversized issue of Tec for that month is about her being judged by the bats on whether she will be "allowed" to continue being Batwoman.

I get why the solicit phrased it the way it did, but it's kinda ridiculous if you think about it. Kate started off wearing a Bat without his permission, so the only reasonable reaction I can think of to him trying to take that away from her is to tell him to go piss up a rope. Or fight him or something. Especially if she thinks she was justified in whatever she did, which the solicit seems to indicate she does. If she gives up being Batwoman, it should be on her terms, not his (barring something out of left field).

The cover also makes me wonder something. The expectation is that Cass is going to be upset with Kate, which would make sense... but the cover can be read a different way. Cass is standing beside Kate, not Bruce, and has her back to him. She's not in an obviously accusatory pose. Maybe that means nothing, maybe it's intentionally ambiguous... or maybe it's important.

[Man-Thing]

I'm almost afraid to say what I think, since I'm paranoid that at least one person involved in shaping Kate's story reads these forums; there have been too many instances of the current series having significantly different content compared to their solicits.

Speaking of which, this is what's on DC's site for issue 12: "“CORYANA”-- As Batwoman begins the hunt for the Mother of War, she recalls the death of love -- the brutal end of her lost year upon the secret island of Coryana. As Safiyah, the Lady of the Island, seeks the villain who carried a deadly virus into paradise, treachery, butchery, passion, and plague bring the island to a fever pitch! "

and this is what's in the solicits that just went up the other day: "After her deadly trip around the world hunting the infamous Many Arms of Death, Batwoman returns to Brussels, the site of her most brutal losses and memories. As the clock begins to tick on a new cycle of violence, Kate must overcome her haunted past to ensure her terrorist foes don’t begin the New Year with a bang! Don’t miss the issue we’ve been building to all year, with a twist no one saw coming!"

So, uh, which is it?

[Caivu]

Speaking of which, this is what's on DC's site for issue 12: "“CORYANA”-- As Batwoman begins the hunt for the Mother of War, she recalls the death of love -- the brutal end of her lost year upon the secret island of Coryana. As Safiyah, the Lady of the Island, seeks the villain who carried a deadly virus into paradise, treachery, butchery, passion, and plague bring the island to a fever pitch! "

and this is what's in the solicits that just went up the other day: "After her deadly trip around the world hunting the infamous Many Arms of Death, Batwoman returns to Brussels, the site of her most brutal losses and memories. As the clock begins to tick on a new cycle of violence, Kate must overcome her haunted past to ensure her terrorist foes don’t begin the New Year with a bang! Don’t miss the issue we’ve been building to all year, with a twist no one saw coming!"

So, uh, which is it?

They changed it again?! WTF, DC?

I did see that Dan Panosian, the artist for the cover for #12 (originally #10) tagged it on Instagram as issue #13, so... I'm not too surprised, I guess?

Screenshot_20171122-122233.jpg

[Man-Thing]

They changed it again?! WTF, DC?

I did see that Dan Panosian, the artist for the cover for #12 (originally #10) tagged it on Instagram as issue #13, so... I'm not too surprised, I guess?

Screenshot_20171122-122233.jpg

That cover, incidentally, is displayed in the solicits for issue 12, and is attached to both issues 10 and 12 on DC's site.

[Caivu]

That cover, incidentally, is displayed in the solicits for issue 12, and is attached to both issues 10 and 12 on DC's site.

Yeah, I know. It's just weird for all these changes to be happening so fast.