The new Batgirl: Spoiled web series brings much-deserved attention to Stephanie Brown, a character who is often considered a hidden gem of the DC Universe.
"She was her own woman as Spoiler; then she was the only main continuity female Robin, and then she was Batgirl," said Sean Carr, a loyal comic fan who writes and produces Batgirl: Spoiled. "You don't get a pedigree better than that."
Most people might be shocked to hear that there was a female Robin. But it's those kind of details that prove the creators know their stuff. While Brown might not be the most recognizable comic character, her similarities to another pop culture icon will help introduce her to a new audience.
In a quest to find where she belongs in the world, the heroine has to fight villains, finish college and take a scolding from Batman.
The premise may seem like Buffy in a cape, but the exploration of the female superheroes in Gotham City show a different side of the Batman universe most people never knew existed. The series features iconic characters like Catwoman, but it will also introduce secondary characters like Batwoman and The Question.
The idea for the series came from the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con, where Carr and actress Marisha Ray (Batgirl herself) decided to create a comic-based web series with a female lead. After narrowing down ideas, they finally decided that Stephanie Brown deserved her own chance in the spotlight.
In order to deliver an action-packed series on a budget, the cast and crew worked with fight choreographer Paradox Pollack, who has an impressive list of credits including Thor, I Am Legend and Star Trek. The cast started training last November, as each character has a special fighting style based on moves from the comics.
"Stephanie's style is a combination of a few martial arts and a self-developed street style designed to compensate for her being weak in comparison to most of her opponents in Gotham," Carr explained. "It favors spins to build momentum, as well as dirty fighting, judo and strikes that depend on involvement of the whole body."