7. Coming Off the Bench
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| From Justice League #17, art by Ivan Reis. |
Earlier in this countdown I talked about how Black Canary almost joined the ranks of the Justice League in 2013. The closest she came was fighting on their behalf against the Atlantean invasion in the crossover event Game of Thrones "Throne of Atlantis".
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| From Aquaman #16, art by Paul Pellatier. |
When the League's heavy hitters are taken out of the game, Cyborg calls in the reserves to defend the city of Boston from Ocean Master and the army of Atlantis. Black Canary, as well as Hawkman, Vixen, Zatanna, Firestorm, Black Lightning, and Atomica, hold off the destruction of the East Coast until Aquaman and the rest of the League ran reinforce them and save the day.
(Apropos I like this team roster a hell of a lot more than the one with Vibe, Stargirl and Catwoman.)
It was great to see Dinah valued enough by the League to fight a war in their absence, even if there is a total lack of discipline and organization to their defense.
Wait, Cyborg's line in the panel to the left doesn't sound very flattering! Dinah never steps in and takes charge of the battle; she exhibits zero leadership skills. She can't even prevent a teenager from endangering them all. Oh God, why does the New 52 hate her so much?!! Top 10! I can't even make a Top 10 list that shows her in ten favorable moments!
6. "Where the Hell Did You Come From?"
At this year's San Diego ComicCon, the show runners of CW's surprisingly successful Arrow television series screened a short video that recapped the major beats of the first season finale while teasing the second season's premier.
And the climactic sequence of the video--what drove fans crazy was the first appearance of the Blonde Bombshell played by Caity Lotz.
The Canary would take on a much larger role in the show's second season than fans likely expected. At the time the video came out, though, it was enough to demonstrate to new and old audiences how bad-ass a character she could be. Hell, those 40 seconds got me to buy the first season so I could prepare for her screen debut.
5. Change of Clothes
Even though Black Canary didn't really make it into the game Injustice: Gods Among Us as anything other than an NPC who recharges Green Arrow's health (so I've heard; never played it), she did get the full-service concept art treatment. Below are seven different could've-been interpretations of the Canary by Bernard Beneteau.
Okay, none of these are ideal costumes for Black Canary--not if you want to take her seriously in anything other than a knockoff Street Fighter video game. Some of them look silly, and some of them make her look more intimidating than she's probably going for. But, and I cannot stress this enough, I like all of these costumes, every one, more than the Jim Lee-designed costume she wears in the New 52. I can't explain it rationally, but I would prefer her in even the silliest of the above designs to the one she has been stuck in for the last two years.
Thankfully, these weren't the only options for the digital-first comics that tied-into Injustice.
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| From Injustice: Gods Among Us Chapter 18. Art by Jheremy Raapack. |
Several artists have depicted Dinah in this bleak, alternate universe, and each one of them does a terrific job rendering her "unjust" costume. This look is so much better than the conceptual entries above and the New 52 design. I think the reason it works, even with its faults, is that it honors what I consider the most important elements of Black Canary's costume.
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| From Injustice: Gods Among Us Chapter 24. Art by Mike S. Miller. |
- Black. Her costume must have black, preferably black leather or something like it.
- Blonde. Whig or dye-job, I don't care, but as long as Black Canary is a caucasian woman, she's a blonde.
- Fishnets. Not padding. Not mesh. Fishnets.
And three recommended things her costume should have:
- Cleavage. It sounds juvenile, but Dinah's bust is part of her aesthetic. Not as much as Power Girl's, I'll grant you, but it is important to her look.
- Choker. She ought to have something around her neck.
- Jacket. Not necessary, but she looks better when she has one.
The Injustice costume is still a little more armored and tactical than I'd prefer, but it hits all three "needs" and two out of three "shoulds" on my checklist.
4. You Can't Stalk Someone Who Wants to Be Followed
Early in December I "followed" actress Caity Lotz on Twitter. Caity plays Black Canary on the television series Arrow.
A few hours later, I received this:
Holy--! A direct message from the woman who plays Black Canary?!! Did she see my Twitter handle and address and know what a fan I am? Is this the start of something--?
Yeah, for all of five minutes I believed this was really, truly a personalized direct message to me. Then I figured out that she wasn't following me back. The DM was probably a bot that automatically shoots the same message back to everyone who follows her. Nothing more.
... Still, it felt really cool for five minutes. Everything after that was sad and humiliating, but those five minutes were awesome and deserve to make my Top 10 Black Canary Moments of 2013.
What moments will make the final three?
To Be Continued...
