Snapshots in Time

It may not come as a surprise that I am avid fan of print comics as well as webcomics.

Print comics were my first love with the genre, and I still remain attached to them in this day and age. Some of what I read has changed - I have ditched all the original Marvel works, though I do read the Ultimate versions. I am still also quite the fan of DC, though my focus is much more heavily on the bat clan than Superman and friends.

As such, I can sympathize all too well with the concerns of Anne, part of the creative team over at the Wotch.

See, two characters from the DC universe - Stephanie Brown, the Spoiler, and Cassandra Cain, Batgirl - have been poorly treated of late.

I won't get into specifics - Anne has a post at the Wotch that covers the details.

There is a danger in print comics, one that is much less likely to rear its ugly head on the web. You see, the characters of DC, of Marvel... they are part of the company. They are not one individual person's work, and writers can - and will - change.

Which means the characters change, as well. Sometimes for the better - and sometimes the writers throw out everything that has come before, have their new test subjects completely break character, and have some 'dramatic plot point' happen just for the sake of something shocking.

It's infuriating.

I still like my print comics. Even as things change, sometimes those changes are well done. Sometimes I can see heroes die, or fade away, and accept it as the conclusion of a well-written story.

And sometimes it is meaningless, and serves only to incense.

Anne said it well, and drew a scene that captured well who these heroes once were. And I think all those who were true fans of the characters appreciate her for it.