In the fallout of her dismissal from DC Comics’ Batgirl ongoing, the last person we expected to announce her replacement was Gail Simone herself. But it gets even more curious. We’ll let Simone explain via her most recent tweets:
While we’d be eager to read an oral history of this and many other recent events behind the scenes at DC Comics from the people who know, there’s little to do from this perspective but speculate on just how this all went down.
Instead, let’s just say, welcome back. A lot of Gail Simone and Barbara Gordon stalwarts just got what might be described as a holiday miracle.
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This is odd. While I think it’s funny that DC would hire her back, I think it’s a little sad on Simone’s part to want to go back after how she was treated.
DC = Incompetent managers of people
People like you annoy the living crap out of me. Why was DC to blame in the first place, why are they the enemies? People get angry at DC due to creative differences between editors and writers. This is life going to work for anyone. You have a boss you asks you to do things, and if you don’t want to, you quit. Am I the only one that understands that this is just life and business? Or am I just a hard working person in a comic world full of hippies?
Whatever my job was I’d be pissed if I was sacked via email.
Deepspace, even though DC is a business out to make money. You have to give your employees respect….being canned via e-mail is not respect. Even if Gail deserved to be fired, doing it by e-mail is just pathetic. You make it sound like you expect businesses to treat their employees like crap. If DC continues to treat their creative talent in such a way it will make it more difficult to lure new talent and thusly the quality of comics goes down.
I wonder which side had to come crawling back? We’ll never know since we don’t really know what caused her to be fired in the first place. Still, glad she is back. 😀
Dc need to learn a little respect for professional artists.
Professional artists need to learn to respect the business in order to keep their jobs.
@deepspacesamurai come on now stop acting like a bitter republican or a management crony
Things do tend to go much smoother when employees know their place. I mean, who’s writing the paycheck around here?
When you think about it the money comes from the fans who appreciate the work of the creators so really the creators are the ones generating the money and the coporate types should show the proper respect and know their place
@ craig I’m not a Republican. This isn’t politics, it is common sense. Most of these writers and artists have a job that people dream of having. I’m sick of this diva bull crap where they think they’re entitled to get everything they want. It sucks that editors are being power hungry but I do believe editing can be a big help. I’ve read fantasy novels that were in some serious need of a heavy handed editor. I’d be dancing to hear that the Walking Dead now had one. But I digress. The point is, it’s a two way street. It isn’t just DC, it’s diva riders that already have their dream job and still want more.
Wow @deepspacesamurai I think you need to take a step back. There has been some problems at DC recently. For example Perez leaving the Superman book. His remarks highlighted that there are some editorial problems. Perez is a solid pro and doesn’t have a bad reputation about being a diva. Much less Gail Simone has a similar problem. For DC to take a u turn and put her back on the book shows that there were some upper level disagreement with the move. You are right that editors have a tough job and that some can be good and bad. I think you should take a look at both the editors and artists reputation before you make a opinion.
@Mongo You’re right about taking a step back. I’m not saying DC is completely innocent either. I agree that the editors have been a problem, Perez leaving Superman is a perfect example. The problem I’m having is people solely blaming DC. What if Gail totally deserved to be fired, and fans protesting are putting her back on a book she doesn’t deserve to still be on? We don’t know, so why is the finger already being pointed?
@deepspacesamurai Uh because we are comic book fans and with the internet we don’t have anything better to do.
At this point I think all we can do as comic fans is speculate on what happened and who is at fault. Usually fault is a mutual thing. To make a fair judgement call on who is to blame is to fully understand what happened, and since we all do not work there and are not privy to what happened, I don’t think anyone on the outside can lay blame correctly. If DC and Gail can work it out and she is willing to come back, then it is a plus to us as fans.
This as Deepspace has stated is simply part of working life. These issues will always be there no matter what type of job or profession you take up.
I am personally glad she is back on Batgirl.
Congratulations? I really don’t know what to feel about this. Was this a good thing or a bad thing. I guess I’ll have to wait to hear more.
What are the chances that Gail is writing Batgirl in a different title? Slim to non, I know, but she did recent;y post on Twitter that she’s writing her favorite “ladies” again.
As long as Gail is happy, I am happy. I can assume the initial firing was not that heated if she went back. She has the talent and the name to walk right across the street and be just as successful, but she came back home.
I’m betting this is very much like when Waid & Mike Wieringo were being taken off FF, then Marvel saw the fan outcry and put them back on the book.
I agree this has to be a direct result of how upset the fans got. Would love to hear her on Word Balloon sometime.
My old man memory wants to say, “Sadly, FF never quite got its footing back,” but my old man memory can’t be trusted. At any rate, I hope we’re not saying that about this one eight years from now.
Hickman FF run > Mark Waid FF run. Not even close.
A question no one asked?
@USPUNX Blasphemy. The Waid FF run was better than the Hickman run in every way. Waid’s run blew Hickman away.
Also don’t forget in the Waid and Ringo incident a big piece of them coming back to the book was Bill Jemas’ departure from Marvel. Apparently it was his call to take them off the book, and it was only after he left that Dan Buckley and Quesada offered them the book back.
Which is something to keep in mind considering the recent high editorial shifts at DC over the past two weeks.
The Waid/Wieringo run is among my all time favourites on the Fantastic Four. They just nailed it completely, combining family with adventure. Truly great comics.
@flan: Very clearly asked when Jim said “Sadly, FF never quite got its footing back.” I was saying I thought it definitely got its footing back and more.
@JohnVFerrigno: Wrong.
@Metamorphic: I feel like Hickman did the same and I really enjoyed his big ideas and giant sci-fi vistas. He did a great job of combining hard sci fi and space opera.
I’m happy for the scores of fans, understandably annoyed at DC’s behaviour. I’m happy for Gail, as this seems to be what she wants. I hope negotiations re : the devils of detail went in her favour.
Perspective : Today, Bob Harras was made VP in recognition of a job well done. I didn’t realise Dan Didio was taking quite so many hallucinogens. Under Bob’s stewardship, the initial headway made by a rushed new52 launch is being lost. Their ‘youth’ titles – utter disaster. Their ‘Superman’ titles – an editorial & commercial failure. Their ‘Dark’ titles – going in to major decline directly due to editorial tinkering. They elongated the rotworld plot, turning eager, happy fans off those titles. Permanently.
Most importantly, as y’know an editor, Bob Harras has alienated a considerable well of talent. He’s ridden roughshod over creator’s plans, often at the 11th hour to satisfy random sales theories. The sheer arrogance of this is exaggerated by the fact he’s also imported a fair amount of mediocre ‘talent’ that has served to fatally damage a dozen titles or so.
I hope Gail’s decision to keep faith with DC suggests some progress in this area. I won’t be holding my breath.
Hey at least it seems like DC realized they made or allowed a huge mistake to be made, and reversed course back to the best writer for the book. Ugly week or so, but at least it worked out for Gail and Batgirl fans.
And back to working under the editor that decided to fire her via email? What a wonderful “privilege”. There are some real idiots working at DC Comics right now. Gail should have gone right over to Marvel and turned it out.
Do we know the he (cunningham i believe) is staying on as editor?
Looks like somebody in DC editorial/staff just got their holiday portion of humble pie. Go ahead, why not have an extra slice?
da fu*k?
While I’m in the minority of despising Gail Simone’s Batgirl run, I found it weird she would stay with DC after they fired off Batgirl with an email. Personally, I would’ve taken that as a sign of disrespect. I’m not saying DC doesn’t have the right to fire someone but at least do it in person like respectable business. All these horror stories about modern DC editorial and the promotion of Bob Harras have me worried for the future as creative outlet for writers. Bob Harras was one of the many reasons why Marvel almost failed in the Dark Age of Comics before returning to form near the late 90s and early 2000s.
I just hope other writers don’t do this when faced in similar situation.
It was the new editor on BG that canned her, apparently some of the higher ups disagreed with that. It will be interesting to see who’s editing the title for #19.
Adrianrigter said
“It was the new editor on BG that canned her, apparently some of the higher ups disagreed with that. “\
You have proof of that? I think while the new editor may have been the one to notify her, I’m betting that initial call came from someone higher.
You’re probably right on that, i thought i had read from GS on twitter or tumblr that some of the bigwigs at DC had expressed shock at the situation to her, of course that wouldn’t mean that the firing was purely an editorial decision. Hopefully a bit more of the real story will come out in the future.
Weeeeeird.
Could it be possible that she is writing a different Batgirl like Cassandra or Stephanie?
If anyone’s going to write Stephanie, it’s gotta be Bryan Q. Miller.
Agreed, the whole series with her was great, but issue 16 with the “Bat Family History” was probably my favorite single issue of any series in the last 3 years.
She’s said on Tumblr that she’s back on Batgirl proper after Ray fawkes’ two-parter.
I dont know her financial situation, or how things are for most writers but at the end of the day a girls gotta eat. So maybe she took it cause they offered her more creative freedom, or maybe she just took it cause writing isnt like a 9-5 get paid week kind of thing.
Do what you have to do Gail.
It sounded to me like everyone on message boards was more upset about her being fired by e-mail than she was. Maybe they conduct a lot of business that way? I don’t know, but I’m sure it doesn’t matter now. I have been very unhappy with her Batgirl run so far, but to be honest I have hated how they approached the series in the new 52 anyhow. I think they should have retconned out Killing Joke and everything after, or left her in the wheelchair.
Does anyone else here read Gail’s blog? Its a genuinely entertaining and informative read.
I sure do and it sure is.
If this is a new Batgirl writer named Gail Simone, and the old Batgirl writer was Gail Simone, could this be Bizarro Gail Simone? I hope not because I enjoyed the old Gail Simone’s writing. 😉 Seriously though, welcome back Gail!!
I’m of the mind that Gail Simone is going to be a pro writer as long as I’m a fan of comics, not that I currently or historically read/have read any of her stuff.
With that said, was I the only one looking forward to a new creative team taking over this book???
I for one am thrilled she’s back on. She’s a great talent and, no matter how you slice it, firing someone via e-mail – especially someone who has worked for such a long time and been such a promoter of comics in general and DC in particular – is classless.
It’s like watching a shkesperean comedy
With all the dissapointment going on with my DC world, Frankenstein being cancelled, Snyder and Paquette leaving Swamp Thing, I’m glad that the Simone Batgirl fans are getting their writer back. It sucks when teams that are doing great on something get removed from projects. Maybe Marvel could get a clue from this and put Rucka, Chechetto, and Hollingsworth back on Punisher!!