Today, we finally got our first look at Ruby Rose in costume as Batwoman in advance of her debut in the upcoming Arrowverse crossover “Elseworlds.” Tying in plotlines from Supergirl, The Flash and Arrow, the event will take our heroes to Gotham City to team-up with Batwoman after an inmate at Arkham Asylum conjures heroes from all over the multiverse (I’m really hoping the Psycho Pirate’s involved).
Anyways, as mentioned above, The CW finally dropped the first photo of Rose in her Batwoman suit and, well, my advice for them would be to fire their photographer. While there’s nothing really wrong with the outfit (those moaning about the exposed red hair don’t seem to realize that the character wears a wig), it’s an absolutely terrible shot.
If you had told me that this was live from the New York Comic Con floor, I would’ve believed it in a second. I’m willing to bet this is just a crappy publicity photo and it’ll look great on screen when it’s properly lit and shot. Still, it’s an underwhelming first look, though fans online still seem to be going nuts for it.
https://twitter.com/spiderham2099/status/1049693388797353984
They got the costume right for Batwoman so please please please get her story and character right…
— Copen Archive (@Kiyo_pen) October 9, 2018
Someone at DC television division had there head on a swivel. The Flash and Super Girl looked cool almost right of the pages. Now #batwoman man keep up the good work. #RubyRose #theflash #SupergirlCW
— Gridfix (@GridfixEngage) October 9, 2018
😍 beyond my expectations! Amazing! #Batwoman pic.twitter.com/JnhhtNrssb
— Gime🏳️🌈🇺🇾 (@Gm3na) October 9, 2018
Well I can say the Batwoman outfit Ruby Rose is sporting does look better then what I was expecting but now to see if they got the characters attitude right…unlike that Titans fiasco.
— Eldritch Purity Sin (@puritysin) October 9, 2018
There’s also quite a bit of confusion on Twitter about who Batwoman actually is. That’s not too surprising, either, given the rather tangled history of the character.
First off, Batwoman isn’t related to Batgirl at all. There’ve been numerous Batgirls over the years, with the most famous being Barbara Gordon. Now, the original Batwoman (aka Kathy Kane) hails from the Silver Age and was originally intended as a love interest to fend off accusations that Batman was gay. With her utility purse, weapons disguised as lipstick, charm bracelets and hair nets though, she wasn’t exactly progressive and ended being ditched as Batman got a bit more serious in the 1970s.
Then, in 2006, DC debuted Kate Kane – a Jewish, lesbian former soldier who fights crime with her dad. This is the version that The CW are bringing to our screens this year and you can check out Batwoman: Elegy if you’re after a decent story starring her.
While the costume we saw in the first look photo is accurate, it remains to be seen whether The CW will capture the character’s essence. However, they’ve got a pretty good track record with this kind of thing, so my hopes are high.
The Arrowverse crossover will begin on Sunday, December 9th on The Flash, continue on Arrow on December 10th and then conclude on Supergirl on December 11th.