Barbara Gordon (a.k.a Batgirl) was introduced January 1967 in Detective Comics No. 359 and was the creation of Bill Finger (writer) and Sheldon Moldoff (art). Batwoman predated her as well as a character called Bat-Girl, who was the younger sister of Kathy Kane (Batwoman). This was when having little sibling sidekicks was all the rage. Betty Kane was obnoxious and stupid, however, so she got dispatched by the merciful gods of retcon, and Barbara Gordon took her place as an older, more mature superhero a mere 6 years later.
Since then, Barbara's had a long history of retcons herself. Initially a librarian with a doctorate, she later became a congresswoman and then a forensic information specialist (whatever that is), and currently, she's regressed back to a teenager with no particular direction.
What has remained true to her story, however, is that she was shot by the Joker in Alan Moore's seminal Killing Joke, and as a result became wheelchair-bound for a period of time, serving as a master information hub for the whole Bat Family under the moniker of Oracle.
By the miracle of comic books, she's back to crime-fighting, however (though many fans are incensed about it). For the purpose of this blog, we're looking at a pre-wheelchair Babs from her earlier origins, so no need for controversy.
Since then, Barbara's had a long history of retcons herself. Initially a librarian with a doctorate, she later became a congresswoman and then a forensic information specialist (whatever that is), and currently, she's regressed back to a teenager with no particular direction.
What has remained true to her story, however, is that she was shot by the Joker in Alan Moore's seminal Killing Joke, and as a result became wheelchair-bound for a period of time, serving as a master information hub for the whole Bat Family under the moniker of Oracle.
By the miracle of comic books, she's back to crime-fighting, however (though many fans are incensed about it). For the purpose of this blog, we're looking at a pre-wheelchair Babs from her earlier origins, so no need for controversy.
A couple of notes: I'm numbering these plates going forward so that I can keep them more organized. The earlier downloads don't have their numbers, but I started with Harley Quinn. Also, Batgirl is the last of the Batman-related comic characters I am going to post for a while here, as I want to make sure I add other characters from other series as well before we get too deep into the fray! Don't want to make this a Batman-exclusive blog!