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Is healing Batgirl wrong?

Aug 30 02:36

Its not everyday a disabled character gets a huge role in a comic book. DC had the Joker shoot Batgirl in an infamous 1989 issue, leaving her a paraplegic and forcing her to create her "I may be paralyzed but I‘m a badass computer genius" persona - aka Oracle. With Oracle, disabled characters finally got the push they needed. But now, DC is rebooting her character, with her suddenly being 100% mobile. Yep, she'll be a walker.

The disabled Barbara Gordon character was perfectly done. She had a complicated personality, she was fleshed out and was fascinating. The WB even produced a TV show featuring her and her cohorts, Birds of Prey, that was on for a brief period. They showed her in romantic situations and struggling with the loss of physical abilities. Barbara Gordon/Batgirl was permanently paralyzed, and for years I was so pleased with DC for continuing her story. Its not easy to injure a popular character, and then desist from having her become miraculously healed only to make your readers happy.

Another great thing about Oracle is that she didn’t just "sit there." She'd take on anyone who broke into her secret lab, where she’d whip out ninja skills and some pretty sweet weapons, like her grappler and shortened katana. And so it was: Barbara Gordon and her sidekicks, living in Gotham Tower, taking down crime whenever they can. It was beautiful.

But now....out of the blue, and several years after she's been injured, she's walking again. Does Barbara Gordon have access to some super secret stem cells? I'm waiting to be impressed by some fantastical explanation on her impossible recovery, and it better good.

In the meantime, check out my friend Teal Sherer, an actress and paraplegic from LA, in her response video: Oracle Addresses the DC Reboot

Further reading: Batgirl back on her feet after 23 years in DC comics reboot - The Guardian

What do you think about DC magically healing Batgirl?

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By Tiffiny Carlson

Tiffiny Carlson Disability buzz, travel, fashion and dating — fun things to amp up everyday wheeling life.

Tiffiny Carlson is freelance writer and writes the “SCI Life” column for New Mobility. She's also a C6 quad from a diving accident that occurred when she was 14 years old. A lifelong resident of Minneapolis, Tiffiny has been a writer in the disability community for over 10 years and writes for several publications and blogs, as well as her personal blog BeautyAbility. Her work has also appeared in mainstream publications such as Nerve.com and Playgirl.