Mindy Newell: Gail Simone and the Mayan Calendar
According to many interpreters of the Mayan calendar, December 21, 2012 was to be the last day of the world. Were we going to go quietly, or in another Big Bang? No one knew. But some portents started happening as December matured.
A woman slept while a tornado ripped off her home’s roof.
More than 100 UFOs are seen along the India-China border.
A contestant on The Bachelor claims the producers brainwashed her.
Karen Berger resigns as Executive Editor of Vertigo.
And on December 9, 2012 (or thereabouts), Gail Simone is told her services as the writer of Batgirl are no longer required… via fucking e-mail!!!!!
Although I did once work at a hospital where the Director of Anesthesiology fired one of his staff via FedEx, and although Editor Mike Gold tells me that this is simply the snafu way that corporations use to rid themselves of the suddenly tainted, I personally think this is an unbelievably putrid, cowardly and totally unprofessional way to be axed, corporate or otherwise.
Gail Simone displays superb class; only tweeting I am very proud of what we accomplished with Batgirl and it was an honor to get to write Barbara Gordon again. Love that dame, as well as a longer post at her blog Ape In A Cape in which she thanks Scott Snyder, Bobbie Chase, Brian Smith, others at DC, and her fans for supporting her.
And the shit, in Newell’s unclassy words, hits the fan.
The comics world, not waiting for December 21st,explodes!
Twitter accounts overload. E-mail boxes are stuffed. Phones ring off the work. Websites, (ComicMix, BleedingCool, Wired, The League of Women Bloggers, The Beat) are “hot off the presses” with the news. Fan forums are abuzz.
Friday, December 21, 2012.
What happens in the Bat-offices will most likely remain between Gail and DC, although there will sure to be many rumors spread by many pundits. Fan outcry? Pushback from other pros? Some even speculate that it was a massive marketing ploy…
Friday, December 21, 2012.
According to some expert on the Mayans and their calendar, the date did not signify the end of the physical world, but simply the death of one cycle and the beginning of another.
Friday, December 21, 2012.
And for one extremely talented and deserving woman, it sure was!
Friday, December 21, 2012.
Gail Simone tweets: Here’s the thing. Gail Simone is the new Batgirl writer.
Hmm….
Maybe those Mayans were on to something. Congratulations, Gail!
But don’t breath easy yet, girlfriend. According to the Huffington Post, German scientist and Mayan calendar researcher Nikolai Grube says the 13th Baktun (or cycle) may not actually be over until December 24, 2012.
That’s today, boys and girls.
TUESDAY MORNING (assuming there is one): Emily S. Whitten
TUESDAY AFTERNOON (assuming there is one): Michael Davis
The people, united, will never be defeated.
What I found most intriguing about this whole thing was the two-faced fans’ reactions. It seemed that there was a lot of outrage at the absurdity of Gail’s being terminated (although, when you look at it, it was shitloads less surreal than the Hostess execs who’d basically run that company into the ground despite all the concessions that had been made by labor over the last decade still getting the court’s okay to get their multi-million dollar bonuses while the employees lost all their built-up pension moneys, but I digress) but, it also seems that there were a WHOLE lot of fanboys who weren’t very kind to Gail or welcoming of her take on Batgirl. And I could swear I saw quite a few of the “God, Gail’s the worst Batgirl writer and I want Stephanie Brown back–NOW!!!!” fanboys who suddenly wanted Gail back on the book “AT ONCE!!!!!!!”
I do agree that Gail was treated pretty shabbily but I wouldn’t really be surprised if this didn’t happen more often in the real world but it just doesn’t get covered because we don’t have “fans” and our jobs don’t have blogs dedicated to them.
Bear in mind that, before the internet, people were treated very rudely quite often but there just wasn’t a way to shame the “bad guys” so publicly and so quickly and with the prospect of it going worldwide. I mean it’s not like people just suddenly started writing “Lose some weight you fat cow” on their receipts or restaurant workers writing “Coke for the bean-eater” on their soda cups. It’s just that the “victims” didn’t have the chance of letting everyone in the world know about it the way they do today. I’ve known people who go to work only to find their workplace padlocked and calls to the boss go unanswered (or, even better, “This number is no longer in service. Please check the number and try again.”).
Nothing against Ms Simone – she did a good job – but i didn’t like the idea of Barbara Gordon suddenly up and around.
.
And, yes, i have to admit that i preferred Stephanie… but that had nothing to do with the writing.