H2O #2: One-Shot – BATWOMAN
Batwoman creative team walks! Mr. Harvey and Mr. Hunt react to the news. DC Comics does not.
In a surprise letter to the general public, Batwoman creative team J.H. Williams III and Haden Blackman announced that issue #26 would be their last, citing interference and last-minute editorial changes at DC Comics, among which was the denial to follow through on several story plans already approved by editors and pulled at the last minute.
Mr. Harvey and Mr. Hunt opine what this means for the title, and what it may indicate as to the mindset of the higher-ups in charge at the publisher. And despite the internet exploding over the gay marriage issue, that’s not what it’s about.
Read the original letter here.
Wait, you say “despite the internet exploding over the gay marriage issue, that’s not what it’s about.” However, when I read the actual letter, its states, “DC has asked us to alter or completely discard many long-standing storylines in ways that we feel compromise the character and the series. We were told to ditch plans for Killer Croc’s origins; forced to drastically alter the original ending of our current arc, which would have defined Batwoman’s heroic future in bold new ways; and, most crushingly, prohibited from ever showing Kate and Maggie actually getting married.”
Funny, it looks to me that it’s EXACTLY what it’s about. Nowhere in the letter does it say their decision has nothing to do with the Kate and Maggie story-arc as you infer in your blog. As a matter of fact, it’s definitely one of the story arcs that was scrubbed, and no reason was given. A natural inference can, and should be made of this development. Simply put, an editorial change that thwarts the granting of positive images on same-sex marriage was made – and at a time in the process that makes the editorial decision more than just suspect.
I wish Blackman and Williams the best in their future. This was a brave move and comes at a time when they will likely find it difficult to find work again, especially in light of the political turmoil that erupted due to their departure.
Well, it’s splitting hairs, certainly. But Williams and Blackman have both made the point that the wedding was just one of many points of contention with editorial, and they also point out that DC never made any reference that would be taken for an anti-gay marriage stance. In point of fact, the letter says there would not be a wedding. Which actually gets pretty specific about certain aspects of the relationship between Maggie and Kate. Clearly, DC was at least OK with the engagement, but for whatever reason, put the kibosh on the actual wedding itself.
As we point out, and others have pointed out, there is more to indicate that DC is against any of the major characters being married, period.
Rab Townsend has some good thoughts on it here: http://hatebunnyoncomics.tumblr.com/post/60404791619/some-thoughts-on-batwoman-williams-and-blackmans