One of our favorite Absorbasconners, RICO, has cried out that Black Canary deserves to elevate her iconic status by becoming a new Dynastic Centerpiece!
Indeed, she does, Rico. She's a pivotal character in the DCU. She links Golden Age with all subsequent ones, the JSA with the JLA, the "trained humans" with the "gifted metahumans". No female hero in the DCU, other than Wonder Woman, has her gravitas and icon-potential.
Yet still she remains a clearly secondary character while her doo-doo head ex-boyfriend has been creeping out of the grave and back onto the "A/B" list. WHY? Because she has no Dynasty, of course.
Birds of Prey, you say? Yes, very cool. We all love Birds of Prey, no argument. However, while it has undeniably helped her popularity, working equally (some would say subserviently) to Oracle and Huntress has not lifted her "status". (Under current continuity) this is the woman who was almost the driving force in founding the Justice League with (Saint) Barry Allen, Hal Jordan, Aquaman, and the Martian Manhunter; cool as Birds of Prey is, hanging out with Oracle and Huntress does not increase Black Canary's cache.
Black Canary needs a Dynasty built around her. With that in place, she can be in any little Task Force she wants and her rep will remain unassailable (yeesh, think of all the losers Batman's worked with over the years without denting his cool factor!). And, so, based on Rico's suggestions, let's take a stab at the "Dinahsty"!
Junior Counterpart. Flamebird is a perfect choice. Bird-themed woman crimefighter, needs a mentor, completely unused right now, and could be connected to Canary by Nightwing.
Male Version. Her buddy, Wildcat, representing her "kick-butt streetfighter" roots. And having a "subsidiary" version be older is a nice twist from the regular pattern.
Kid Sidekick: Perhaps the Empress? Empress could use the connection to a legacy and Canary should able to be appear to be grooming a successor without having to have a baby girl named Dinah.
Black Sheep: Flame me all you want, but my No. 1 choice is unequivocally: Reverb (Vibe's older brother, also known as Hardline, whom you may remember from the Conglomerate). Lots of narrative potential there and connects with her "superhero" side. Onyx, from the Batman War Games storyline, is another fun possibility.
Elder Statesman: Black Canary I, of course. Unfortunately, she's dead. Lady Blackhawk, then! The Blackhawks as a whole could become part of the larger Black Canary mythos.
Civilian Companion. Hm. Someone new. How about... a gay guy who actually runs her flower shop, because lord knows Dinah can't have any time to do it!
Romantic Interest: Anyone BUT Green Arrow. Wouldn't Jason Bard be an interesting choice? Like her mother, her Romantic Interest should definitely focus on a private dick.
Animal Companion. A cat, definitely. A black cat name "Blondie".
Junior Counterpart. Flamebird is a perfect choice. Bird-themed woman crimefighter, needs a mentor, completely unused right now, and could be connected to Canary by Nightwing.
Male Version. Her buddy, Wildcat, representing her "kick-butt streetfighter" roots. And having a "subsidiary" version be older is a nice twist from the regular pattern.
Kid Sidekick: Perhaps the Empress? Empress could use the connection to a legacy and Canary should able to be appear to be grooming a successor without having to have a baby girl named Dinah.
Black Sheep: Flame me all you want, but my No. 1 choice is unequivocally: Reverb (Vibe's older brother, also known as Hardline, whom you may remember from the Conglomerate). Lots of narrative potential there and connects with her "superhero" side. Onyx, from the Batman War Games storyline, is another fun possibility.
Elder Statesman: Black Canary I, of course. Unfortunately, she's dead. Lady Blackhawk, then! The Blackhawks as a whole could become part of the larger Black Canary mythos.
Civilian Companion. Hm. Someone new. How about... a gay guy who actually runs her flower shop, because lord knows Dinah can't have any time to do it!
Romantic Interest: Anyone BUT Green Arrow. Wouldn't Jason Bard be an interesting choice? Like her mother, her Romantic Interest should definitely focus on a private dick.
Animal Companion. A cat, definitely. A black cat name "Blondie".
Authority Figure: A new character, I should think. Some one in the Mayor's office of her new...
Contextualizing City: I think she deserves a place of her own, don't you? Why not "Gateway City"? It's available and would give her a chance to interact with Wonder Woman, since (I think) Wonder Girl still lives there).
Contextualizing City: I think she deserves a place of her own, don't you? Why not "Gateway City"? It's available and would give her a chance to interact with Wonder Woman, since (I think) Wonder Girl still lives there).
Any other ideas, folks?
It's been awhile since I've read Birds of Prey. They seemed to have a third World Country of the Month vibe going there for awhile. My suggestion for Romantic Interest would be for some type of Lovable Villain. Some guy who is on the wrong side of the law, but in a Robin Hood/PETA/Tree-Hugger kind of way? I always thought she liked Green Arrow because he was a jerk who blazed his own way.
ReplyDeleteAnarky. Dinah likes the younger men and he's flighty enough to never be relied on....important to Dinah occasionally fooling around.
ReplyDeleteEven better if Anarky looks her up because he met Green Arrow recently and, subconsciously, wants to co-opt his schtick.
Lady Blackhawk, eh? Hindisight is so powerful...
ReplyDeleteAre you a psychic? Or did Gail, a knows Absorbascommando, get the idea here?
One way or another, Zinda's revival in BOP is a testament to DC's legacy, Gail's originality, and Dynastic Centerpiece model at work.