Friday, June 23, 2006

I have a date with Judd Winick

No, I don't really. But I did try.

After all the mean things I said about him, it only seemed fair to give him the opportunity to respond, but he wasn't interested. He wasn't very happy about me calling him a misogynist, which is understandable. I have never met the man and know nothing of his life so I have no basis for commenting on him as a person and I would take this opportunity to publicly apologise to him. Okay, Judd?

It was sloppy wording on my part. What I meant to say was that in my opinion he had written a very misogynistic story, which is not the same thing. But don't take it personally, Judd. I'd say the same of anyone who wrote a story in which a woman was raped and left to die and her abuser escaped, whistling a happy tune.

The one thing he did tell me was that Kimiyo's race and sex had nothing to do with his decision to depower her and that he wasn't depowering an asian female character, he was depowering Dr. Light II.

Actually, Judd, I think you'll find you were doing both.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bravo.

"he wasn't depowering an asian female character, he was depowering Dr. Light II"

And why, pray tell, is that necessary? Why should a raping scumbag deserve to even speak Kimiyo's name?

Anonymous said...

"he wasn't depowering an asian female character, he was depowering Dr. Light II."

What does he think she was? American?

This PROVES the storyline was just written to get rid of her as best as possible and absolutly NO CARE was involved

Richard said...

I don't know for certain the following anecdote is true, but it seems plausible, and definitely reflects the mindset of some people working in comics:

Sixteen years ago, Grant Morrison had the title character in Animal Man discover that he was, in reality, a comic book character. After this plot was submitted, Morrison received an anxious call from someone at DC Comics. "Um...you're saying that Animal Man is just a character in a comic book."

"Yes, that's right," Morrison supposedly replied.

"But...Animal Man is in the Justice League!" said the person from DC. "Does that mean the Justice League are all comic book characters too?"

"Yes, that's right," Morrison answered.

Just like the unknown DC staffer in that story, it sounds as if Winick might need to step outside of the comic book company bubble for a moment and get back in touch with reality. In this case, the reality that fictional characters are symbols and representations of ideas; they aren't real people whose lives are being chronicled by biographers.

Anonymous said...

Sounds typical of the way Winick reacts to his critics - attack their motives, insult them and then try to ignore that not everyone thinks he is the Happy Golden Wonderboy...

Anonymous said...

You should have asked him if he let his Asian wife read the story.

Anonymous said...

Or if he'd allow that to happen to Juniper Lee.

S Bates said...

Actually, I think what he meant to say was that he wasn't depowering her because she was an asian female character, but because she was Dr. Light II.

That is, the first evil Dr Light decided to 'remove' this second, good, imposter Dr Light and it wouldn't have mattered if the character was male, female, black, welsh, homosexual, asian or whatever (IIRC Mr Winick didn't create Dr Light II and her background).

The reason that Dr Light had a vendetta against Dr Light II was the codename (and power profile) not because of the character's background.

Still wasn't a nice way of going about it, mind you! He could have left Dr Light II with at least a little dignity (and perhaps have her come back in a later issue to "kick evil Dr Light's butt" and thus show that Good triumphs over Evil).

Marionette said...

It is a side issue, but when a writer stands up and complains publically about the lack of female asian heroes and then reduces the current representation by one, I don't think he can get away with saying "it's not about her race/sex."

Unless it is a subplot that DC intend to return to, and after 8 months I think I'm entitled to start tapping my foot impatiently, we are left with a character who has been needlessly thrown away.

Sure, I can see the sense to reposition Kimiyo; although I'd much rather have seen her take the name away from him I can understand why DC only wants one Dr. Light (and who'd want to be named after a serial rapist, anyway?). But they could change her powers, change her name. It's been done often enough before. There was no reason to remove her powers completely and leave her for dead.

Anonymous said...

Recently I've come accross a possible theory reguarding the whole "She's no longer/never was a metahuman"

In 52, Lex Luthor has devised a means of providing regular non meta humans with metagenes and thus superpowers. Couldn't Kimiyo go to him? Also, this could mean she is this Luminata in Lex's Justice League.

Also, there's still the possibility that the monitor will return in Brave New World, which will also open up other possibilities given how he created her as Dr.Light

Also, Marionette, I'd check (and delete) a recent comment someone made in your Dr.Light article. It's very hateful

Good ridance, Kimiyo. Too bad the REAL Dr. Light didn't fuck her in the ass too...

Marionette said...

I think I'll leave it there for Judd. He might be mad at me for saying he went too far, but I wonder how he feels about people who think he didn't go far enough?

Anonymous said...

ok, what about the Meta Gene thing with Lex theory? Do you think that's a possibility and, if it is done, do you think it'll make up for/recover from what Winick did...or futher disgrace her character in some indirect way?

Anonymous said...

Does Judd still read the blog, though? If not, leaving the comment there just perpetuates hatred and disgust.

Alex Tucker said...

Let's take him out in the alleyway and beat the crap out of him.