By [ad_1]
A forgotten DC event introduced a Batgirl who was never paralyzed by the Joker, highlighting how vital Killing Joke was to her growth as a hero.
Batman: The Killing Joke remains one of the most influential stories focusing on the Dark Knight, with one of its major impacts being the paralyzing injuries received by Barbara Gordon at the hands of the Joker. But rather than be sidelined by her injuries, the former Batgirl revealed her full strength and grew immeasurably as a character.
While the fallout of The Killing Joke was a traumatic period for Barbara Gordon, the ensuing growth she went through made her a far more compelling and inspirational character. In fact, DC codified this by once introducing a variant of Batgirl who was never paralyzed, and therefore never reached the heights of her core counterpart.
Zero Hour told the story of Parallax and Extant’s attempts to rewrite the history of the DC Universe, introducing a number of major changes to the timeline. One of the repercussions of this introduced a new version of Barbara Gordon. In her timeline, the events of The Killing Joke played out differently, and the Joker shot James Gordon instead of Barbara, killing him instantly. Batman later saved Barbara, who rededicated herself to her heroic career as Batgirl. This led to her becoming a more proactive hero, firmly planted in her version of Gotham City. In addition to fighting against the rogues and criminals of Gotham, she began a romance with Batman, and never spread her wings to the rest of the DC Universe.
This version of Barbara Gordon presents an interesting contrast to the primary version of Barbara. By this point in the mainstream DC Universe, Barabra Gordon had been paralyzed by the Joker, taking her out of the field for decades. But Barbara grew from this trauma, overcoming the hardships thrown into her life. She ended up focusing her attention less on day-to-day heroics and embraced her intellect and computer skills. Barbara became a leader, coordinator, and tactician of the heroes, forming the Birds of Prey and working alongside a wider assortment of heroes. She became a mentor, passing down her experience to young heroes like Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown, who went on to become new versions of Batgirl. As Oracle, Barbara even joined the Justice League, an accomplishment her counterpart was never able to achieve.
The Zero Hour Batgirl was still unmistakably a hero. But without the direct personal growth she achieved from overcoming the trauma of the Joker’s attack, she never reached her full potential. In the present day, Barbara Gordon has regained the use of her legs but still functions as Oracle, having grown into a strong-willed commander. As Oracle, she cemented her place in the pantheon of DC heroes instead of just being another one of Batman’s sidekicks. She has become a survivor in a way that elevates her accomplishments and explores her very personal drive to be a hero.
Without The Killing Joke, Barbara would have continued to be a hero, but would have been deprived of some of the most powerful elements of her story. As Oracle, she has become an icon for the disabled community, something that’s sorely lacking in the superhero genre. She reinvented herself and became a mentor, leader, and hero all at the same time. Without The Killing Joke, Barbara Gordon would be a very different, and far less inspirational character.
About The Author
[ad_2]
