Popmatters praises "Batwoman: Elegy" a new comic book on Batwoman, the first openly gay superhero.
From the piece...
The reinvention of the modern Batwoman has been a major achievement. Only tangentially connected to the Batman mythos, Kate Kane’s story holds in tension all the themes of identity, trauma and vengeance that are at the dark heart of the Dark Knight narrative. Suffering through standard issue superhero childhood trauma (with a twist), Kate Kane hoped to find fulfillment in the army and came close with a sterling career at West Point. The military’s altogether stupid and embarrassing policy regarding “homosexual conduct” ended her career but opened the way for her to find a new one.
Que cape and cowl, plenty of gadgets and a secret bunker under her house. All of these wonderful toys are provided by her army colonel father, an incredibly charming character whose bond with Kane becomes the most moving element of this tale.
Greg Rucka’s Batwoman is not the first openly gay superhero, although you don’t need the fingers of one hand to count the rest. However, this is no after-school special (not that American doesn’t need one on the topic). Kate Kane has become much-beloved by fans and critics because of Rucka’s well-known ability to add depth and dimension to his characters. Rucka builds in dialogue that drags you, delighted, into the narrative. He combines realism and an ear for current idiom that gives his fantastic world a lived-in feel.
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