The news of Batgirl‘s cancellation after several months, and nearly $90 million spent, was shocking for casual and dedicated DC fans alike. The community has struggled, grasping at whatever straws of excitement they’ve been able to at an MCU-like shared continuity, or at least some sort of consistency since the failure of Justice League in 2017 caused a major change in plans from the original universe roadmap piloted by Zack Snyder.
Recent management changes at Warner Bros. have led to more than one major change, leaving a split of some fans hopeful that a more careful approach could be a good thing, while others have lost hope in seeing their favorite heroes on screen any time soon. All fans however, have been united in making memes, poking fun at the conflict.
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More Morbius
The “Chad face” meme formats have become quite popular recently and heavily associated with the SONY Marvel film Morbius. The running joke has been about the quality of the film, which fell into the category of “so bad it’s good” with a large community of fans gathering to meme it.
The Morbius super fans have taken a back seat in the superhero movie meme community though since Batgirl has taken over much of the buzz. This fan in particular is more upset that Morbius won’t be re-releasing for a third time than about Batgirl never seeing the light of day. Fans comparing Batgirl to Morbius have become one of the best Reddit reactions to Batgirl‘s cancellation.
Chad Sony
Not every Batgirl meme is made by Morbius fans, but they did return to throw shade at Warner Bros. for not having the gall to release a bad movie, while SONY was willing to release theirs twice. Whether Batgirl was bad will be under heavy speculation for a long time, unless they decide to release it years down the line like the Snyder Cut.
Using a different “Chad face” meme format, this one pokes fun at DC and Warner Bros. for not releasing a movie despite its quality. Whether they should’ve released it anyway has been highly debated, as many think it was best to toss out if it was expected to be a disaster, while others don’t trust Warner Bros’ judgement on the matter. Some of the best Twitter reactions to Batgirl’s cancellation are fans perplexed that Morbius still released.
The Blue Beetle Production
Batgirl wasn’t the only under-the-radar production being developed for an HBO Max release for DC. The long awaited Blue Beetle movie is also set to release in 2023, and fans have been wondering about the safety of that movie. The sweating Jordan Peele meme from QuirkyByte might be the vibe on the movie’s set right now.
While fans are hoping that the film is still on, there hasn’t been any true confirmation. The project likely won’t be the event DC is hoping for, but the lack of cancellation could mean the movie is enjoyable, and that DC hopes the character will see an increase in popularity.
Just Like To See The World Burn
DC Memes about DC Memes are always appreciated by fans, as Heath Ledger’s Joker suggests the possibility that maybe there just is no plan, and that DC tossed Batgirl just… because they could. While it is highly doubtful that this scene of the Joker burning money is often brought up as a potential business plan, DC fans aren’t ruling out any possibilities.
The idea of spending $90 million on essentially nothing but bad press and a further lack of faith is perplexing to so many fans, leaving many believing that the management are losing their minds. This craziness sparked the idea that the decision was made for tax purposes.
DC’s Newest Villain
David Zaslav recently took over as the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, where his actions have garnered mixed reception from fans. Some are open to new leadership because Zaslav has spoken about ideas for the DC Universe that many have been wanting for years. Others are justifiably skeptical and will believe in the new direction when they know exactly what the plan is.
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Warner Bros. hasn’t been transparent with its long-term ideas, leaving many to expect a concrete plan won’t be visible for years. So making drastic moves like canceling Batgirl has left Zaslav and the management team under heat from the fandom. The lack of trust has finally united the supporters and the naysayers of the Snyderverse.
A Criticism Of Fan Psychology
While it’s not entirely true that no one was talking about Batgirl, it definitely didn’t have the hype level of other superhero movies. While perhaps this lack of “event level” hype was part of the reason for cancellation, a new project, and hero for movies will never get the same level of excitement as their major titles.
Many great superheroes have joined in the spotlight in the 21st century after a movie propelled them into it, despite excitement not being there beforehand, Iron Man being the most notable example. DC will have to take risks on smaller characters if it wants to break away from the Batman safety net.
All Coming Together
While some fans have been majorly disappointed, others have taken recent news and speculated on the potential of Ben Affleck’s return, which would far overshadow most disappointment. While some were excited for the nostalgia of seeing Keaton return to the scene and be a veteran training younger heroes, most fans can agree they’d love to see Affleck get another go. This meme from QuirkyByte is clearly in favor of the actor’s return.
Batman vs Superman was highly divisive, but the warehouse scene, in particular, solidified Affleck’s Batman as a potential action movie standout. Recent news of him appearing in Aquaman has bolstered an idea of him returning as DC’s Batman instead of Keaton. One reason fans loved Affleck’s Batman so much was due to him having one of the best Batmobiles.
The Killing Joke
Barbara Gordon has been through a lot in the comics, and now in the movies too. The Killing Joke is one of the most well-known and well-regarded Batman vs Joker comic storylines. Unfortunately, it begins with The Joker arriving to shoot Barbara, paralyzing her, before taking her father hostage. This meme from QuirkyByte depicts Warner Bros. as the Joker.
While Warner Bros. seems to have entirely killed the Batgirl film, rather than just paralyzing it, the DC reference still applies. Barbara likely didn’t deserve it in either situation. Hopefully, Leslie Grace will have a chance to reprise the role in a future project. The Killing Joke is considered one of the best Batman comic arcs of all time.
Fight For Batgirl
The fight of the DC fan base to release the Snyder Cut was legendary and actually managed to work. One Twitter user criticized DC fans, saying they should fight as hard for Batgirl as they did for Justice League if they wanted to remain consistent. This became the source of many memes, in particular this one from QuirkyByte.
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As much as fans wanted to see the movie, Batgirl doesn’t carry the same weight among fans as the idea of seeing the trinity together on the big screen in their proper way, and the ideas that were left out of the 2017 Justice League were heartbreaking compared to the original vision which was so tragically uprooted.
Agatha All Along
While DC fans look for answers, some have turned to comic book antagonists as the reason for the cancellation. The Reverse Flash could have messed up the timeline and caused Warner Bros. to cancel Batgirl. Or it could have been Agatha Harkness the whole time. This meme from QuirkyByte suggests it might have been.
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It would be nice to know that Agatha’s magic was at play, as it would explain more about DC’s struggle to create a plan than just one canceled movie. Dark magic likely isn’t to blame, but seeing the familiar face definitely makes it easier to process the decision.
