DC Comics really stepped in it on a handful of accounts last week. There was almost too much for sensitive fanboys and fangirls to be outraged about all at once. Besides Wonder Woman's new, poorly designed in my opinion costume, Batman's post-Convergence robosuit, and Superman in jeans and a t-shirt with a buzzcut... whew.
But none of that saw as much ire raised as Raphael Albequerque's Batgirl variant cover. As you can see in the link, the art won't be released. The stink on it forced Albequerque to ask DC to not publish it. Its a shame because its an amazing piece of art.
On its own, I don't think there's anything wrong with Batgirl being posed as the Joker's next victim. Pair that with The Killing Joke (where Joker paralyzes and sexually assaults Batgirl) and the cover becomes something different entirely. I don't think that means Raphael Albequerque purposefully positioned Batgirl in a place of that particular victimization. But that doesn't mean it can't be inferred.
That kind of story, the one that can be inferred, shouldn't be eradicated from comics. The Joker is a terrifying character and does bad things to all kinds of people. The Joker doesn't target one audience just like comic writers don't target females in particular. The pre-New 52 story of Barbara Gordon picking herself up from the physical and psychological mess the Joker left her in years ago positioned Barbara as one of the strongest female characters DC has ever had. There's great potential in all types of stories. I would hate to see mainstream comics start limiting their possibilities.
-Gint
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