Who is the Best Female Bat Character (Heroines)

[Kid Kamikaze10]

I gave my vote to Kate, but it was either or between her and Cassandra.

[Godlike13]

/

[Sunbird]

So Kate can just go back to the army now, yeah?

Hint, if you are in a bar, and you see some Marines, don't ask them how they like being in the army.

This hint was brought to you by the Society of People Not Losing Teeth in One-sided Bar Fights.

(That said, I was fairly sure she was training to be a marine, was I wrong?)

[Kid Kamikaze10]

So Kate can just go back to the army now, yeah?

Ignore the post above. You should totally ask some Marines how they like being in the army.

Go for it. What's the worst that could happen?

But uh yeah, I doubt Kate would want to do that after getting forced out of West Point.

[Godlike13]

Hint, if you are in a bar, and you see some Marines, don't ask them how they like being in the army.

This hint was brought to you by the Society of People Not Losing Teeth in One-sided Bar Fights.

(That said, I was fairly sure she was training to be a marine, was I wrong?)

I think West Point is Army actually.

[Ed Sizzers]

Trying to look at it subjectively, in so much as anyone can as an individual, I think the best female character is Dinah.

However, my vote went to my favourite bat female character (as I suspect everyone's has), and that's Steph.

[Sunbird]

Yeah, I went back through Elegy. I was wrong and StDumas was right, although it wasn't clear. I'd like to claim it was the Nautical Star that threw me off, but I think I just remembered wrong.

[Stopu]

Well, Starling obviously.

[maximiliani]

My gut for flat out awesome: Babs by iconicness for her growth. Only as Oracle, that growth to move on and grow and improve despite any circumstance is inspiring. Since it's not separate from Batgirl I didn't vote her though.

For me Babs as Batgirl always originally had selfish origins and as a character pre TKJ and pre retcons in Dixon's Batgirl YO, the vilification of James Junior, she never had many monkey-wrenches at her. I mean, beautiful or "Hollywood Homely", photographic memory, judo black belt, then a politician. Dressed as Batgirl to shock her father and friends to prove "I'm not a dowdy librarian, I'm actually hot stuff" and ended up getting a adrenaline kick out of it when saving Bruce Wayne by accident. Girl had to good. That's probably while she was iconic but in retrospect her as Batgirl was pretty bland. She had no stakes and could quit, which is what she did. Good for the time but pre retcon stories you have to admit she was pretty blase, she only became really good POST retcons as Batgirl. Sad to say.

All the female Bat members are EXCELLENT if you splay out their character growth arcs and see the growth that they have had. It's truly a great example of a culmination of great writing and character building. Sad only two on your list is currently around.

Bette Kane is obviously the weakest or "less best" (she's not on your list) but that's only because she hasn't really had an outlet in which to really show a lot of growth. Getting literally gutted down the middle in Batwoman probably even though horrible, is probably a good step, as that means should she return to Flamebird, she will have to push herself more and more.

Cassandra is amazing (if you ignore her evil period) and her rise against Lady Shiva is great writing. Her illiteracy and disability there is also inspiring because I'm sure people with similar disabilities or had similar disabilities with speech and reading could relate to her.

Stephanie Brown's resolve to keep trying and picking herself up in the face of rejection time and time again is utterly HEARTBREAKING considering yet again they've given her the shaft and pulled something out from underneath her. It's so meta it hurts.

Dinah was always fringe Bat-fam. She was raised in Gotham but so was a lot of heroes. Kate Kane is badass on a stick.

Really nice ladies. Shame 3/4 are indisposed.

[Godlike13]

Im surprised that Catwoman was left out of the poll.

[The Man From Room X]

CASSANDRA CAIN.

[minasithil]

Im surprised that Catwoman was left out of the poll.

Yeah, me too.

And Helena really needs some love, wow.

[StDumas]

I was wrong and StDumas was right, although it wasn't clear.

Happens to the best of us. In any case, my point stands: Kate the lesbian has been vindicated by our society and if being Batwoman is just sublimating her army urges then she can hang up the wig already. I didn't buy into the superficiality of Kate's origin story then and no amount of GLAAD awards will make it believable or compelling to me now. As I see it, the character only makes sense if she never really wanted to be a soldier in the first place -- and if that aspect of her is *gasp* more important even than her gayness. Maybe *deeper gasp* her sexuality might even be at the service of other, more important personality traits. I'd better stop before someone realizes that "being gay" is becoming the new "being disabled" in the world of comic book diversity.

[Jim Thompson]

I really have enjoyed Batwoman. She's a great addition to the Bat-family, I think. That said, I went with nostalgia and voted for Barbara Gordon/Batgirl.

By the way, I have to agree with those who've asked why Catwoman isn't on this list. She's certainly a character I think belongs in this discussion.

[Aprillis]

I'm glad to see Steph quite high up. Just a few years ago she would have significantly less votes than now. Maybe that's why I like her character. Always picking up from the bottom and constantly trying to improve.

That said, my favourite female character is Talia al Ghul, but I don't think she's part of the Batfamily... more like Batman's rogues gallery actually. And my second favourite, Catwoman is also not on the list. So I went with my third favourite instead, which is Stephanie.