DC Comics challenges Disney Princess with Superhero Girls!

[gaastra]

Looks like DC wants some of that cash Disney is making with Disney princess dolls!

http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/04/23/ ... characters

[EricJ]

Actually, it's that Warner faithfully believes they can tailor their two or three "core" franchises (Looneys, Batman, DC) to any demographic as needed--
For those who remember their trying to target preschool DC fans with the Krypto cartoon. Or teen-grrls with the "Birds of Prey" series".
Or, in reverse, that "action" version of the Looney Toons characters.

OTOH, that Castle of Justice does look a bit suspicious...

[droosan]

But -- DC -- you already had a really good and highly-enjoyable version of this concept in Super Best Friends Forever ..



.. with (IMO) much more-appealing character designs, a fun 'girlish' approach to super-heroic action, and with Lauren Faust (show-runner of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and a co-creator of The Powerpuff Girls) in charge..!

.. this just looks so generic, by comparison. Like, 'Barbie DTV' bland.


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As an aside: it's kinda sad to see what's become of Harley Quinn, in recent comics & media. Her original incarnation in Batman: TAS was iconic .. but no-one else at DC/Warner seems to want to let her just be that character.

[Ben]

...and what is it with the way WB Animation is drawing all their characters with big flat feet nowadays? I mean, I know these girls have their super-boots on, but they look like they weigh like lead...!

[EricJ]

As an aside: it's kinda sad to see what's become of Harley Quinn, in recent comics & media. Her original incarnation in Batman: TAS was iconic .. but no-one else at DC/Warner seems to want to let her just be that character.

Well, that's the problem--Once you're past Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Supergirl, there aren't that many well-known female characters in DC (Black Canary? Zatanna?) to demographically market.
For those wondering how Poison Ivy and Bumblebee also suddenly joined the good guys.

But, since the Harley and the Ivy are the "other" Bat-chicks Warner's Gotham-centric DC marketing can sell, we can hope Warner gives Harley a little better shift in the Suicide Squad movie....If that indeed is a thing.

[Dacey]

Yes, the Suicide Squad movie is definitely a "thing." They're filming it right now and showed an (apparently quite impressive) extended trailer at Comic-Con.

[Randall]

I think these designs are pretty cute... but they do look overly Disneyfied.

And I do find it odd that the girl villains get lumped in with the girl heroes. DC does have a number of female heroes, after all. Black Canary even shares a show now with Green Arrow, surely that gives her some cred?! Pulling Bumblebee out (she is a heroine, by the way, from the Teen Titans) at least gives some color to the group, but she's hardly A-list as a character.

[droosan]

The toy line was developed for girls ages 6-12 and focused on female superheroes and supervillains during their "formative years, prior to discovering their full super power potential," according to Mattel.

.. which I take to mean that this is more akin to something like Monster High -- where, rather than being designated as 'heroines' and 'villaines' (?), the characters will be grouped in cliques of 'good girls' and 'baa-ad grrls'.

[EricJ]

And I do find it odd that the girl villains get lumped in with the girl heroes. DC does have a number of female heroes, after all. Black Canary even shares a show now with Green Arrow, surely that gives her some cred?! Pulling Bumblebee out (she is a heroine, by the way, from the Teen Titans) at least gives some color to the group, but she's hardly A-list as a character.

They had to get a demographically racial mix, and Bumblebee was at least black (although keeping it to heroines, wouldn't have been bad to have a teen Vixen, with her animal motifs, but that's getting into seriously obscure DC). Which explains why Katana is also on the group as token Asian, despite also being on the Suicide Squad.
Hawkgirl, we may assume, was de-marketed after the Justice League cartoon.

[Ben]

Does Bumblebee still have the power to turn into a car, though?