…Or how they threw away the source material in order to be “woke”.
Well, here I am. After making my review for the pilot of this crapfest show to actively reading and scripting the next video reviewing the next part of the comic, I am finally diving into the differences between the Batwoman comic and CW Batwoman, and boooooooy are there lots of differences.
On October 6, 2019, this premiered…
I reviewed the pilot, and I even tried to review the episode after that, but, honestly, I couldn’t make it past the first ten minutes. It was that painful for me to watch. I commend anyone who sat through all the episodes, but I just couldn’t. Even if I hadn’t read the comic, the lazy writing, poor character set-up, and obvious “woke” points of hating her father and other examples had me rolling my eyes so much, I thought my eyes were permanently going to be stuck looking at the back of my head. Don’t get me started on the horrible fight scenes. *shudders*
Here is a little background before I go into the differences, which stunned me. A looooong time ago, I did, what I wrongly called, a deep dive.
Why was this ill-titled? I hadn’t read the comics and just did online research. Someone called me out:
Instead of getting angry, I told them I would read the comic. I found it on Amazon Kindle in their unlimited perk when you sign up for the program. What I read, surprised me. I will admit. I was expecting the comic to be like the show. I WAS SO WRONG.
The book is solid. I will be reviewing more of it on my channel. I was impressed with the art, the story, and the characters, unlike the show.
Kate
In the comics, she is willing to talk to others like normal people. She doesn’t talk down to others, even though there is a moment in an exchange with Batman (Yes, he’s in the comic.), where she was a bit snarky. It wasn’t forced or out there though. It seemed natural to the conversation. He treats her as an equal. There are also slices of life with her, showing you the difficulties of balancing relationships and her alter ego.
The show has her, for some reason, brooding all the time, not really emoting, and just being an emotionless bitch in general. I said it. She seems to talk down everyone in the show.
Her training, that you see in action in the comic, is nonexistent in the show. She has strategic knowledge in the comic, which she really doesn’t show in the CW series. The fact she can actually fight is showcased in the comic, not so much in the show.
Kate and Her Father
This is the BIGGEST disappointment and most glaring difference between the show and the comic.
In the comic, her father is in the military and is actively helping her. Yes, this means he KNOWS she’s Batwoman. He also helped her get her OWN HQ put together and even had someone make her own suit.
The show has her, let’s face it, usurping the Batcave and using all of Bruce’s stuff, since he hasn’t been in Gotham in three years. (In case you missed it, he has returned to Gotham in the comic.)
Her father monitors her progress and calls for either back-up or an evac when she needs it.
The show has her relationship with her father strained from the start. This is a disservice. They took any future tension between the two completely away. In the comic, the main conflict between her and her father is when she realizes the new leader of the group she is fighting was, in fact, her twin. How? Her father knew and did not tell her.
To me, this is a better conflict than having her constantly at odds with her father “not wanting her” and not listening to him even when he apologizes.
Her Relationships
The slice of life things you see in the comic are natural and everyday problems a hero/vigilante would face when trying to have a relationship when you have a job you can’t talk about. The fact she is a lesbian is NOT forced in the comic. You know she is one by her relationships and that’s it. I have no problems with this. Her sexuality is NOT the most prominent thing in the comic. Her being Batwoman is and the problems that brings with it.
Putting the two side-by-side, I would have to say the villain and her being a lesbian are the only two things they carried over from the comic, and that is a real tragedy. They could have had a larger, and more faithful, viewership if they would have stuck to the source material. Hell, it could possibly have had a secondary effect of people seeking out the comic, giving DC more cash, but nope. They can’t do it.
After all, why make a solid show when you can push an agenda to the point where the people you are actually targeting with the show are saying it has reached cringe levels for them? Yeah, that’s happened.
Until Next Time,
Anissa “Maddy” Walker
House of Geek 