Ah hah!
I had this epiphany while looking at the previews for the next issue of Detective Comics (which you can also look at here). The artwork reminds me of illustrations in fairy tale stories I've read. Which I'm okay with. I'm not really surprised either. Did I mention in my last entry on Batwoman that I think Alice in Wonderland is just a "modern" fairy tale? I may have. Anyway, it makes sense, then, why the art would look this way. I mean, it's sort of a water-colory, fantasty-heavy kind of thing with faded pastels and bright prime colors and lots of black and white.
Of course, in fairy tales red is the color of the devil. Or evil. Or whores. Depending.
Okay, and the loss of innocence. Maybe that's where this is going. The loss of Kate Kane's innocence as she becomes more ensconced in the world of Gotham and the life of a Bat. Let's go there. Let's make her Little Red Hood instead of one of the evil stepmothers with red lips and red nails (hmm), or Little Red Shoes who's so intent on being the best that she dances her feet off in devil-possessed shoes. Man, fairy tales are freaky. Good stuff to mine for a Bat-comic.
I swear I'm not getting this imagery out of nowhere. I took classes! I'm legit! (Actually, that whole "I'm a trained academic in [insert area of expertise here] thing doesn't mean tons when I'm just looking at something an interpreting it, but I wanted to use a few exclamation points.) Batwoman is obviously the hero, so it sort of sets up the whole "flip our ideas on their heads" kind of thing. Can we have a minute for Batwoman's mouth, though? Sweet merciful fang, those are some pointy teeth. Quite honestly, I'm more interested in seeing Kate Kane than in seeing Batwoman. Maybe that's because I've never been a big Bat-fan.
I had this epiphany while looking at the previews for the next issue of Detective Comics (which you can also look at here). The artwork reminds me of illustrations in fairy tale stories I've read. Which I'm okay with. I'm not really surprised either. Did I mention in my last entry on Batwoman that I think Alice in Wonderland is just a "modern" fairy tale? I may have. Anyway, it makes sense, then, why the art would look this way. I mean, it's sort of a water-colory, fantasty-heavy kind of thing with faded pastels and bright prime colors and lots of black and white.
Of course, in fairy tales red is the color of the devil. Or evil. Or whores. Depending.
Okay, and the loss of innocence. Maybe that's where this is going. The loss of Kate Kane's innocence as she becomes more ensconced in the world of Gotham and the life of a Bat. Let's go there. Let's make her Little Red Hood instead of one of the evil stepmothers with red lips and red nails (hmm), or Little Red Shoes who's so intent on being the best that she dances her feet off in devil-possessed shoes. Man, fairy tales are freaky. Good stuff to mine for a Bat-comic.I swear I'm not getting this imagery out of nowhere. I took classes! I'm legit! (Actually, that whole "I'm a trained academic in [insert area of expertise here] thing doesn't mean tons when I'm just looking at something an interpreting it, but I wanted to use a few exclamation points.) Batwoman is obviously the hero, so it sort of sets up the whole "flip our ideas on their heads" kind of thing. Can we have a minute for Batwoman's mouth, though? Sweet merciful fang, those are some pointy teeth. Quite honestly, I'm more interested in seeing Kate Kane than in seeing Batwoman. Maybe that's because I've never been a big Bat-fan.
"Of course, in fairy tales red is the color of the devil. Or evil. Or whores. Depending. Okay, and the loss of innocence. Maybe that's where this is going."
ReplyDeleteIn India, red is the color of purity; in China, it's the color of good luck. White is the color of death in all Eastern cultures.
It's interesting how our social backgrounds bias us in certain directions. You're probably right about Rucka's intention, if color matters. He writes very Christian-influenced stories.
@guardian.orion Yeah, I'm aware that other cultures have different, more positive, associations with the color red (and the colors white and black as well). But I think this arc is intended to evoke Western fairy tales more than anything else, and so I stuck with the meanings there. And, of course, fairy tales are linked with Christianity and Christian morals, especially in their German versions.
ReplyDelete@guardian.orion Yeah, I'm aware that other cultures have different, more positive, associations with the color red (and the colors white and black as well). But I think this arc is intended to evoke Western fairy tales more than anything else, and so I stuck with the meanings there. And, of course, fairy tales are linked with Christianity and Christian morals, especially in their German versions.
ReplyDelete"Of course, in fairy tales red is the color of the devil. Or evil. Or whores. Depending. Okay, and the loss of innocence. Maybe that's where this is going."
ReplyDeleteIn India, red is the color of purity; in China, it's the color of good luck. White is the color of death in all Eastern cultures.
It's interesting how our social backgrounds bias us in certain directions. You're probably right about Rucka's intention, if color matters. He writes very Christian-influenced stories.