Barbara Gordon (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bodilesswarrior) wrote2012-07-20 07:57 pm
bodilesswarrior) wrote2012-07-20 07:57 pm
Information
Character Name: Barbara Gordon
Fandom: DC Comics (Pre-Reboot)
Canon Point: Soon after The Last Laugh.
Physical Description: Barbara is in her mid-thirties. She has bright red hair that she tends to keep cropped to her shoulders at most. Her eyes are blue-green, and can appear as either depending on theartist light. They're usually framed by thin, squared glasses.
At 5'11, she has the physique of a martial artist, with particularly muscular arms. Numerous scars are scattered across her body; the gravest is the remnants of a close-range gun shot to the torso.
She uses a manual wheelchair.
History: Barbara was born in Ohio, to Thelma and Roger Gordon. Thelma died in a car accident when Barbara was a little girl; Roger's ensuing alcoholism took his life by the time she was thirteen. And so it was she found herself in a new city, with a new family. Barbara is nothing if not resilient; she adjusted to her new home, and came to love her second parents as much as her first.
One thing she loved most was studying her father's work; she was fascinated by the crimes people committed and how they were caught. One night, when she was snooping in her office, she witnessed a meeting between him and Batman. (Batman even left her a note – "Don't get caught – he'll be angry!")
That's when Barbara decided he needed a partner. She'd always dreamed of being a super hero; it was her refuge as a little girl. But now it was a goal. She convinced her parents to let her take Karate lessons. She memorised the entire layout of Gotham city. She pushed herself in school enough to skip several grades. She excelled on the track team like never before.
Soon enough, she was outrunning everyone both physically and academically – and figured she had to tone it down. She pretended to rip a tendon, taking care of track; she achieved average grades, knowing she was already graduating two years early; she started training with a private sensei, rather than a public class. She continued her frequent trips to the library, but disguised her reference books as fiction. She redid her wardrobe, aiming for a conservative, generic appearance.
By the time she earned her Master's, she was more focused on finding a career and becoming truly independent, and became head librarian at the Gotham City Public Library. It was a trivial thing, really, that nudged her back on the path she'd strayed from; a policemens' masquerade ball.
Her Batgirl costume was fully functional, and when she ran into Bruce Wayne being menaced by Killer Moth, she couldn't help but intervene. That's when she realised she really could do this, and she wanted to.
She remained Batgirl for several years; the identity even travelled the world with her in her term as a Congresswoman. Eventually, however, Barbara began to find her life as Batgirl less fulfilling for various reasons – in the end, she was wearing someone else's symbol, she hadn't been a girl even when she started, her weapons were her own but still imitations of another's – and retired on her own terms. Gotham was in good hands; Batman was still fighting, the first Robin had grown into Nightwing, and the second had become quite the young hero.
She may have donned another costume. She may have walked in her father's footsteps, despite her reservations about the police force. Both of these choices were taken from her when the Joker showed up at her door and shot out her spine. All because of her connection to Jim Gordon, and his to Batman. It had nothing at all to do with her, and that just made it worse.
At first, she withdrew entirely from the world, bitter and ashamed. (Why did she ever open that door without looking? Why hadn't she kicked the gun out of his hand the moment she saw it?) She felt so helpless. She had lost so much in her life but she had never, ever been helpless. Not like this. She was desperately frightened of being defenceless, and of being inconsequential.
The brutal death of Robin by the same man's hand, the child she'd taught and defended, fought with and laughed with, only deepened her misery.
But she'd had skills long before becoming Batgirl, and she was tired of being afraid.
She turned to the burgeoning technology of computers, finding freedom and acceptance there, and learning to use it as a tool. She learned Eskrima, the Filipino art of stick-fighting. She used her skills as a researcher and a detective, combining them with her growing aptitude for hacking.
She became a new hero. She called herself Oracle. A name that was hers alone, no imitation or shadow of someone else's.
Recruiting Black Canary, after a rather disastrous attempt at teamwork with Power Girl, was the next step. Dinah quickly became more than an agent; she showed Barbara how to open her heart again, how to truly trust in someone else. They balance each other, as friends and partners.
Her life was brutally interrupted once more, this time by the Cataclysm, an earthquake that left her city in ruins. Instead of aiding the city, the government quarantined it and left it to rot. Barbara chose to stay behind. With her were remnants of the police force, led by her father, and Helena Bertinelli, acting as Batman. Together they did their best to aid the people who couldn't get out, and fight those who'd take advantage of them.
In time, Barbara found a young girl wandering the streets, a girl she would name twice; once as Cassandra and once as Batgirl. Together, when Bruce and the rest returned, they worked tirelessly until Gotham was once again a part of the United States, and given the help it needed.
But No Man's Land didn't end without intimate casualties. Sarah Essen, Jim Gordon's second wife, was another officer who chose to stay behind to defend Gotham. In her attempt to save a child, she was shot in the head by the Joker.
Barbara refused to let her death be in vain. She continued to fight for Gotham, for the world, with Cassandra and the rest of the Bats, with Dinah, with every vigilante who needed her. She only gained more knowledge, more experience, more connections, as time went on, becoming more formidable than ever.
Then the Joker escaped again, from the prison Barbara put him in, the instant she wasn't watching him. He infected the entire superhuman prison with a virus that made them act like him.
She used everything at her disposal to contain the prison break. She pinpointed the Jokerised fugitives and coordinated strikes. She forcibly recruited Harley Quinn to help create a cure.
Eventually, the Joker was caught, the antidote was formulated, and they've begun to round up the last of the infected. But the event left its mark on Barbara, who knew exactly how many casualties there had been. How many people maimed, how many brothers murdered, how many mothers lost. She revealed to Dick that she wondered if they shouldn't simply kill him; when Dick lost control and almost did, a part of her regretted Batman's quick resuscitation.
Talents/Abilities: Barbara is a brilliant academic, aided by her photographic memory. At home she maintains an invaluable database, constantly gathering information; being an expert hacker, she also has access to the files of the CIA, FBI, NSA, and Interpol.
She's been studying martial arts since she was a teenager, becoming a black belt in Karate by the age of eighteen and continuing to train throughout her career as a vigilante. When she lost the use of her legs, she mastered Eskrima. She remains adept with batarangs, as well as throwing stars and firearms. Due in part to her use of a manual wheelchair, she has tremendous upper body strength.
She's honed her detective skills for just as long, even though she's never been part of a police force.
Personality: Despite always being more independent from Batman than Robin, and moving on from her Batgirl identity, Barbara is perhaps the one most similar to Bruce. She's analytical, pragmatic, and independent; she can gauge and influence other people far more easily than she can herself; she's compassionate, but can seem callous when she distances herself to remain practical. She doesn't trust easily, or open her heart quickly – and even when she does, it can be hard to see. She strives to be perfect at what she does, and feels guilty when she isn't.
In other ways, she differs dramatically from Batman. His morality is clean and strict; you don't kill, no matter who it is, no matter what the circumstances are. Barbara, however, has been known to attempt just that. It's not something she enjoys, but if it will save lives (or her partner's life), it's a sacrifice she's willing to make. She is, in general, more flexible.
She's also far more aware of her own flaws, even if she can't always stop herself from making the same mistakes. She knows she can be impatient; she knows she can be blunt; she knows she can push to far, or withdraw too much. She's fully capable of apologising when she realises what she's done, though she's not always very good at it.
Barbara knows very well that you can lose the people you love at any moment. Open affection doesn't always come easily to her, but she tries her best; she wants them to know she cares. (Maybe if the elder Barbara had known, she wouldn't have left. Maybe if Jason had known, he wouldn't have gone on his tragic journey without a word.)
She doesn't let this behaviour affect her in the field, however. She's put people in very dangerous situations for the greater good. Sometimes it eats at her, knowing they're risking their lives and she can't be with them, but she keeps doing it because, in her mind, she has no choice.
Oracle isn't as much a separate persona as a refined one; a being defined by the mission. At first, she escaped into that role so utterly that she distanced herself from her own compassion. She paid the price with Power Girl's trust. Now, more of Barbara informs what Oracle does, just as Oracle dictates so much of Barbara's life.
Sometimes she feels guilty when she isn't Oracle; when she's spending time doing other things. She knows, rationally, that this isn't sensible, but much to her annoyance, she can't always logic away such emotions.
It's good that Barbara allows herself to be Barbara. That person can be fun, and kind, and intently passionate about things other than her calling. Not many people know all sides of her – the commander, the geek, the vigilante, the dork, the leader, the survivor – but she treasures her time with those who do. Who she can unleash her wry sarcasm and silly puns and obscure knowledge on at any moment, who she can tease and confide in.
It would be good for Barbara to have more relationships like that. Unfortunately, she's never been very good at making them, in part because she's so afraid of losing them.
Fandom: DC Comics (Pre-Reboot)
Canon Point: Soon after The Last Laugh.
Physical Description: Barbara is in her mid-thirties. She has bright red hair that she tends to keep cropped to her shoulders at most. Her eyes are blue-green, and can appear as either depending on the
At 5'11, she has the physique of a martial artist, with particularly muscular arms. Numerous scars are scattered across her body; the gravest is the remnants of a close-range gun shot to the torso.
She uses a manual wheelchair.
History: Barbara was born in Ohio, to Thelma and Roger Gordon. Thelma died in a car accident when Barbara was a little girl; Roger's ensuing alcoholism took his life by the time she was thirteen. And so it was she found herself in a new city, with a new family. Barbara is nothing if not resilient; she adjusted to her new home, and came to love her second parents as much as her first.
One thing she loved most was studying her father's work; she was fascinated by the crimes people committed and how they were caught. One night, when she was snooping in her office, she witnessed a meeting between him and Batman. (Batman even left her a note – "Don't get caught – he'll be angry!")
That's when Barbara decided he needed a partner. She'd always dreamed of being a super hero; it was her refuge as a little girl. But now it was a goal. She convinced her parents to let her take Karate lessons. She memorised the entire layout of Gotham city. She pushed herself in school enough to skip several grades. She excelled on the track team like never before.
Soon enough, she was outrunning everyone both physically and academically – and figured she had to tone it down. She pretended to rip a tendon, taking care of track; she achieved average grades, knowing she was already graduating two years early; she started training with a private sensei, rather than a public class. She continued her frequent trips to the library, but disguised her reference books as fiction. She redid her wardrobe, aiming for a conservative, generic appearance.
By the time she earned her Master's, she was more focused on finding a career and becoming truly independent, and became head librarian at the Gotham City Public Library. It was a trivial thing, really, that nudged her back on the path she'd strayed from; a policemens' masquerade ball.
Her Batgirl costume was fully functional, and when she ran into Bruce Wayne being menaced by Killer Moth, she couldn't help but intervene. That's when she realised she really could do this, and she wanted to.
She remained Batgirl for several years; the identity even travelled the world with her in her term as a Congresswoman. Eventually, however, Barbara began to find her life as Batgirl less fulfilling for various reasons – in the end, she was wearing someone else's symbol, she hadn't been a girl even when she started, her weapons were her own but still imitations of another's – and retired on her own terms. Gotham was in good hands; Batman was still fighting, the first Robin had grown into Nightwing, and the second had become quite the young hero.
She may have donned another costume. She may have walked in her father's footsteps, despite her reservations about the police force. Both of these choices were taken from her when the Joker showed up at her door and shot out her spine. All because of her connection to Jim Gordon, and his to Batman. It had nothing at all to do with her, and that just made it worse.
At first, she withdrew entirely from the world, bitter and ashamed. (Why did she ever open that door without looking? Why hadn't she kicked the gun out of his hand the moment she saw it?) She felt so helpless. She had lost so much in her life but she had never, ever been helpless. Not like this. She was desperately frightened of being defenceless, and of being inconsequential.
The brutal death of Robin by the same man's hand, the child she'd taught and defended, fought with and laughed with, only deepened her misery.
But she'd had skills long before becoming Batgirl, and she was tired of being afraid.
She turned to the burgeoning technology of computers, finding freedom and acceptance there, and learning to use it as a tool. She learned Eskrima, the Filipino art of stick-fighting. She used her skills as a researcher and a detective, combining them with her growing aptitude for hacking.
She became a new hero. She called herself Oracle. A name that was hers alone, no imitation or shadow of someone else's.
Recruiting Black Canary, after a rather disastrous attempt at teamwork with Power Girl, was the next step. Dinah quickly became more than an agent; she showed Barbara how to open her heart again, how to truly trust in someone else. They balance each other, as friends and partners.
Her life was brutally interrupted once more, this time by the Cataclysm, an earthquake that left her city in ruins. Instead of aiding the city, the government quarantined it and left it to rot. Barbara chose to stay behind. With her were remnants of the police force, led by her father, and Helena Bertinelli, acting as Batman. Together they did their best to aid the people who couldn't get out, and fight those who'd take advantage of them.
In time, Barbara found a young girl wandering the streets, a girl she would name twice; once as Cassandra and once as Batgirl. Together, when Bruce and the rest returned, they worked tirelessly until Gotham was once again a part of the United States, and given the help it needed.
But No Man's Land didn't end without intimate casualties. Sarah Essen, Jim Gordon's second wife, was another officer who chose to stay behind to defend Gotham. In her attempt to save a child, she was shot in the head by the Joker.
Barbara refused to let her death be in vain. She continued to fight for Gotham, for the world, with Cassandra and the rest of the Bats, with Dinah, with every vigilante who needed her. She only gained more knowledge, more experience, more connections, as time went on, becoming more formidable than ever.
Then the Joker escaped again, from the prison Barbara put him in, the instant she wasn't watching him. He infected the entire superhuman prison with a virus that made them act like him.
She used everything at her disposal to contain the prison break. She pinpointed the Jokerised fugitives and coordinated strikes. She forcibly recruited Harley Quinn to help create a cure.
Eventually, the Joker was caught, the antidote was formulated, and they've begun to round up the last of the infected. But the event left its mark on Barbara, who knew exactly how many casualties there had been. How many people maimed, how many brothers murdered, how many mothers lost. She revealed to Dick that she wondered if they shouldn't simply kill him; when Dick lost control and almost did, a part of her regretted Batman's quick resuscitation.
Talents/Abilities: Barbara is a brilliant academic, aided by her photographic memory. At home she maintains an invaluable database, constantly gathering information; being an expert hacker, she also has access to the files of the CIA, FBI, NSA, and Interpol.
She's been studying martial arts since she was a teenager, becoming a black belt in Karate by the age of eighteen and continuing to train throughout her career as a vigilante. When she lost the use of her legs, she mastered Eskrima. She remains adept with batarangs, as well as throwing stars and firearms. Due in part to her use of a manual wheelchair, she has tremendous upper body strength.
She's honed her detective skills for just as long, even though she's never been part of a police force.
Personality: Despite always being more independent from Batman than Robin, and moving on from her Batgirl identity, Barbara is perhaps the one most similar to Bruce. She's analytical, pragmatic, and independent; she can gauge and influence other people far more easily than she can herself; she's compassionate, but can seem callous when she distances herself to remain practical. She doesn't trust easily, or open her heart quickly – and even when she does, it can be hard to see. She strives to be perfect at what she does, and feels guilty when she isn't.
In other ways, she differs dramatically from Batman. His morality is clean and strict; you don't kill, no matter who it is, no matter what the circumstances are. Barbara, however, has been known to attempt just that. It's not something she enjoys, but if it will save lives (or her partner's life), it's a sacrifice she's willing to make. She is, in general, more flexible.
She's also far more aware of her own flaws, even if she can't always stop herself from making the same mistakes. She knows she can be impatient; she knows she can be blunt; she knows she can push to far, or withdraw too much. She's fully capable of apologising when she realises what she's done, though she's not always very good at it.
Barbara knows very well that you can lose the people you love at any moment. Open affection doesn't always come easily to her, but she tries her best; she wants them to know she cares. (Maybe if the elder Barbara had known, she wouldn't have left. Maybe if Jason had known, he wouldn't have gone on his tragic journey without a word.)
She doesn't let this behaviour affect her in the field, however. She's put people in very dangerous situations for the greater good. Sometimes it eats at her, knowing they're risking their lives and she can't be with them, but she keeps doing it because, in her mind, she has no choice.
Oracle isn't as much a separate persona as a refined one; a being defined by the mission. At first, she escaped into that role so utterly that she distanced herself from her own compassion. She paid the price with Power Girl's trust. Now, more of Barbara informs what Oracle does, just as Oracle dictates so much of Barbara's life.
Sometimes she feels guilty when she isn't Oracle; when she's spending time doing other things. She knows, rationally, that this isn't sensible, but much to her annoyance, she can't always logic away such emotions.
It's good that Barbara allows herself to be Barbara. That person can be fun, and kind, and intently passionate about things other than her calling. Not many people know all sides of her – the commander, the geek, the vigilante, the dork, the leader, the survivor – but she treasures her time with those who do. Who she can unleash her wry sarcasm and silly puns and obscure knowledge on at any moment, who she can tease and confide in.
It would be good for Barbara to have more relationships like that. Unfortunately, she's never been very good at making them, in part because she's so afraid of losing them.