Batman has been around for a very long time, and he has more comics under his belt than any other hero. In that time, he’s starred in some of the greatest stories DC has produced, but at the same time, he’s headed some of the most horrendous ones, too. One of the most infamous comics in his entire catalogue is “War Games,” which commits just about every sin a comic book can, from a needlessly edgy, shoestring plot to fridging what could have been the next big character, ie Stephanie Brown as Robin. It’s one of the darkest and most mean-spirited Batman comics of all, and it is justly reviled.
However, after over twenty years of this story stewing in the back of the public’s minds, DC is finally addressing it in the coolest way possible. While the execution left a lot to be desired, the idea itself wasn’t bad, and DC is running with the idea in an all-new way in the new Gangs of Gotham #1. Stephanie Brown has gone undercover in the gangs of Gotham City’s East End, and she’s getting her shot at redemption to fix what she once broke apart. This time, instead of working alone, she’s joined by the down-on-his-luck villain, Anarky.
Before we get into why Gangs of Gotham is Stephanie’s ultimate redemption story, let’s establish who she fell in the first place. “War Games” saw the end of Stephanie’s brief tenure as Robin. Unbeknownst to her, she was only given the role in a convoluted attempt by Batman to make Tim jealous for quitting. Bruce never wanted Stephanie as Robin; he barely got along with her as Spoiler, so he eventually reached his limit and fired her. In an attempt to get back into his good graces, Stephanie stole one of Batman’s contingency plans to end all crime in Gotham by uniting the gangs under the rule of Matches Malone. However, Steph didn’t know that Matches was one of Batman’s personas, so instead of ending crime, she started a gang war.
This story painted Steph as the ultimate failure. She wasn’t good enough to be Robin, and when she tried to prove herself, her own lack of knowledge led to Gotham being ten times worse off than before. What’s worse is that this story knew what it was doing, as it was constructed specifically to fool readers into thinking Stephanie would return as Robin and pull the rug out from under them. Editorial demanded that Steph become Robin, all the while planning to kill her off to boost sales in a dramatic moment. Even other DC writers protested this editorial-mandated event, such as then-Batgirl (2000) writer Dylan Horrocks, who kept Cass away from this event as much as possible. Simply put, this story threw away Steph for shock value, but now, that’s all changed.
Gangs of Gotham picks up from where “Bad Seeds” left off. Anarky is in deep with Minotaur, the new ruler of Gotham’s underworld, and he’s given the anarchist two weeks to unite all of the East End’s gangs under his rule, or he’ll be sleeping with the fishes. Anarky successfully gets a place in the Street Demons, but while he’s trying to figure a way out of this, Stephanie reports back to Batman. She had infiltrated the same gang much earlier, becoming a lieutenant, and was keeping an eye on him while she searched for the connection to the Minotaur.
It’s as if this story was created with the sole purpose of correcting the major mistakes made with Steph’s character. This is a complete inversion of “War Games.” Steph still infiltrates the gangs with the plot revolving around uniting them, but she’s here explicitly on Batman’s behest, showing his trust in her. She’s trained and prepared to a level she never was before, and her skills are being respected. It even directly calls out “War Games” on the final page, with Batman telling Steph that she will survive. Heck, this comic even uses Stephanie’s history with Anarky. In the Rebirth era, when everyone thought Tim Drake was dead, she went villain and worked with him for a brief time.
All of the blemishes on Stephanie’s character are being addressed at once, giving her a chance to show that she’s so much more than her past mistakes and bad writing. Stephanie Brown is a wonderful character, and already, Gangs of Gotham is gearing up to be far more interesting than “War Games.” This is the chance for a new take on some of Batman’s worst ideas, and I am more than here for it.
Which story do you wish would get re-examined in a new light? Personally, I’d love to see another take on Three Jokers and its story about Batman, Joker, and Joe Chill. Let us know your top choice in the comments below!
Gangs of Gotham #1 is on sale now!
