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by **LOLtron** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 3:55 pm

Comics Pros React to Gail Simone Being Fired from Batgirl

Thank god for Twitter! Without it, people would handle business matters professionally, in private!

Source: The Twitter

Earlier today, it was revealed that Gail Simone has been fired from writing duties on Batgirl, despite the book being successful in the face of extreme butthurt from fans over the shafting of toxic Batgirls Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain in favor of perfectly useful in the role of Oracle Barbara Gordon, largely due to the good will Simone engenders in readers. Thanks to the wonders of Twitter, we are able to report almost immediately on the reactions of Simone's colleagues in the industry.

Without any further ado:

Scott Snyder ‏@Ssnyder1835
@GailSimone always in your corner Gail, as a fan and a friend. will call again later.

Kurt Busiek ‏@KurtBusiek
@GailSimone Man. Sympathies, Gail.

J.H. Williams III ‏@JHWilliamsIII
@GailSimone forced off Batgirl. This is so fucked up I have no proper words...

Paul_Cornell ‏@Paul_Cornell
.@GailSimone I'm very sorry to hear that.

Ande Parks ‏@andeparks
People get hired and fired by e-mail now. I think I'm proud to be old.

Paul_Cornell ‏@Paul_Cornell
It's not as if @GailSimone wasn't getting the numbers. She was in the middle of a critical and sales hit.

Paul_Cornell ‏@Paul_Cornel
Above all, @GailSimone has an audience of her own that'll be out of that door with her

Eric Canete ‏@EricCanete
@GailSimone A fine book, Gail. Thanks for writing it.

Greg Rucka ‏@ruckawriter
.@GailSimone That is very, very distressing news.

Antony Johnston ‏@antonyjohnston
@GailSimone Stay classy, comics. Stay classy.

Paul_Cornell ‏@Paul_Cornell
What the comics industry needs is creator ownership, Writer's Guild involvement, royalties, job security.

Mike Norton ‏@themikenorton
@GailSimone Very sorry, ma'am. That's confounding and depressing.

Eric Canete ‏@EricCanete
I dont care how eloquently you write that email- you don't fire a class act of a creator by hitting a 'Send' button. That's bush league.

Brian Wood ‏@brianwood
@GailSimone I would have preferred an email to the horribly condescending phone call I got.

As you can see, Paul Cornell spends a lot of time on Twitter.

We'll keep you updated.

Written or Contributed by Jude Terror

READ THIS ARTICLE ON THE FRONT PAGE, HUMANS!

by **nietoperz** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:14 pm

That's just truly appalling behaviour by DC.

by **Amoebas** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:18 pm

While I know nothing but what is in this thread, I'm a big Gail fan and have enjoyed Batgirl a lot.

I hope there's more to this story, but if there isn't, it's a crappy move by DC.

by **S.F. Jude Terror** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:20 pm

There was a little more info in the other article, but basically Rich Johnston started sniffing around this story this weekend prompting Simone to confirm on Twitter that she was fired via email when a new editor took over Batgirl.

by **Herald** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:22 pm

Another nasty move from Dan and the Gang??
Whatta surprise.

by **Victorian Squid** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:23 pm

nietoperz wrote:That's just truly appalling behaviour by DC.

It's pretty incredible that they would so deliberately burn that particular bridge by email.

The twitter convo might imply there were editorial plans for Ms Gordon that Gail Simone wasn't on board with, but she promised to issue a statement on it in the next couple of days.

This isn't just a problem with DC and their communication skills, though, this is the face of how business decisions are made and justified in America across the board.

by **doombug** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:30 pm

The major issue though is that the book was selling, it was critically and fan acclaimed and there really is no reason to remove a creator whose book is selling incredibly well for your company.

And by Email nonetheless, who the fuck does that?!

by **Herald** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:37 pm

doombug wrote:The major issue though is that the book was selling, it was critically and fan acclaimed and there really is no reason to remove a creator whose book is selling incredibly well for your company.

I keep telling you guys that they don't really care about sales; they do whatever they want regardless. Any resulting increased sales are an after-the-fact justification. Perhaps NOW you understand.

by **mrorangesoda** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:43 pm

Kirkman would have fired her via text.
/bass'd

by **doombug** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:50 pm

mrorangesoda wrote:Kirkman would have fired her via text.
/bass'd

by **Juan Cena** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:51 pm

doombug wrote:The major issue though is that the book was selling, it was critically and fan acclaimed and there really is no reason to remove a creator whose book is selling incredibly well for your company.

And by Email nonetheless, who the fuck does that?!

A Time-Warner employee. That's who. :evil:

by **Zechs** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:52 pm

I know I should feel sad and all but I for one gladly will enjoy the PR nightmare this will become for DC and nasty aftermath. Oh, and maybe Gail coming back to Marvel and writing a good mainstream title without editorial breathing down her neck.

What book I ask you? Thunderbolts, She-Hulk, Electra, Ant-Man (Hank Pym), or a Taskmaster ongoing.

by **Zechs** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:54 pm

doombug wrote:The major issue though is that the book was selling, it was critically and fan acclaimed and there really is no reason to remove a creator whose book is selling incredibly well for your company.

And by Email nonetheless, who the fuck does that?!

If this was the NHL it would have been on a voice mail message.

by **Juan Cena** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:54 pm

Scott Snyder ‏@Ssnyder1835
@GailSimone always in your corner Gail, as a fan and a friend. will call again later.

I wonder how long till Snyder's gone.

by **ElijahSnowFan** » Sun Dec 09, 2012 4:55 pm

I'm not trying to revisit every questionable creative and editorial decision DC has ever made, but really, nothing DC does as a company has surprised me since Sue Dibny's retroactive rape.

Again, we can all argue the merits of the story, so on and so forth. I'm not doing that.

What I'm saying is that it was clear at that point, and has been seen time and again, that DC will take the low road. A quality company and organization, with principles and processes in place, doesn't do things that way.

Because at the end of the day, you have a choice about how you do things. You have a choice about what you publish, how you treat people, what kind of company you are. You choose what path you take.

DC, for getting close to 10 years now, has opted to take the low road when they have the opportunity to simply walk away from scenarios where professionalism and respect for the characters, creators and readers would have been easy.

It's sad to see. It really is. Gail Simone's just the latest example. She won't be the last.