Thread by @planetx

So, it's been a week. We've all had a chance to read "Up at Bat," the Alysia Yeoh and Batgirl story me, @ProtokittyArt, @TBonvillain, @CommentAiry and @whatthe_shea made, right? If you haven't, go an do so right now!

Because this, my friends and enemies, is an Annotation Thread!

So, right off the bat (sorry, I had to) we have Alysia Yeoh leaving the Gotham Trans Wellness Conference, a clear nod to the @TransPHL: web.cvent.com/event/f03ff02b…

The Philadelphia Trans Wellness Conference was started by Charlene Arcila, and began as opportunity for medical professionals to receive training on how to become a competent health care provider for transgender patients.

It has since expanded to be open to everyone, spreading medical research and other trans-positive programing to whomever wants it. I've been attending since I started my transition, and it truly is a wonderful experience.

All of these are panels or workshops I've personally attended at @TransPHL.

Except for the last one, which is the workshop I'll be leading at this year's Philadelphia Trans Wellness Conference! It's virtual and free, so you have no reason not so sign up for it!

Did it give me a huge personal chuckle that Alysia attended my workshop? Yes. Yes, it did.

Going back to that first panel, we see Alysia waving to Kate Godwin and Lee Serrano.

Kate Godwin's first appearance is Doom Patrol Vol #70 (1993), by Rachel Pollack, Scot Eaton, Tom Sutton, Tom Ziuko, John Workman. Kate has the distinction of being DC's first trans superhero.

There were other characters who changed gender through magical or sci-fi means, but Kate was the first hero who did it the mundane way, and the first to identify explicitly as trans.

She is also a lesbian, which is nice.

Rachel Pollack's whole run on Doom Patrol has recently become available in omnibus format, which is great, because I can tell you from personal experience, some of those back issues are HARD TO FIND. penguinrandomhouse.com/books/707173/d…

Lee Serrano's first appearance is Supergirl Vol 7 #19
(2018), by Steve Orlando, Vita Ayala, Jamal Campbell, Carlos M. Mangual and Jessica Chen.

Lee isn't super, just a cool kid. Their story in Supergirl is just as fantastic as their hair, and they should really be in comics more

I wanted ALL DC's trans, non-binary and genderqueer characters in the background here--including Galaxy--but that was a lot to ask, and some of them wouldn't be recognizable out of costume.

We settled on having Kate represent DC's history of trans characters and Lee, its future

Credit @ProtokittyArt for slipping in Victoria October. I surprised to see her in the finished art!

Victoria October first appeared in Detective Comics Vol 1 #948 (2017) by James Tynion IV, Marguerite Bennett, Ben Oliver and Marilyn Patrizio.

Victoria is a morally grey super-scientist, has appeared sporadically in Batman comics, and is one of those delightful women who doesn't care what you think of her, but will make absolutely certain you know what she thinks of you.

Not enough of those characters, if you ask me.

Fans of Alysia continuity rejoice! Alysia is finally the head chef of her own place, the Red Eye Café.

Shoutout to Melissa Baruno, owner and head chef of the fantastic @1shotcafe here in Philly, for helping me brainstorm the name.

Speaking of Alysia continuity, she and Jo trying to have a baby was major plot point of their post-Gail Simone appearances.

They are still trying.

I wanted Alysia to have a more distinct look than she's had in the past, so I suggested to @ProtokittyArt that we take a page from lesbian celebrity chef's Kristen Kish style, with loose shirts and very cool, very gay haircut.

Lynne, of course, did a great job, capturing the new look without making Alysia look like someone else

This is, Batgirl's Watchtower, her version of the Batcave. Normally, a non-Bat-person wouldn't be in here, but it speaks to both Barbara's trust in Alysia and how painful that spike in her leg must be to keep her from thinking straight.

Barbara, still Oracle in so many ways, has SPECIFIC costumes ready for Nightwing and Robin for a SPECIFIC mission that only she knows about. Never change, Babs.

The Batman: Animated Series font her was all @ProtokittyArt, yet another reason why she's a genius.

Me and @whatthe_shea went through several versions of this joke. But you can't argue with success.

Schumacher reference #1: one of the ice-cuttting lasers from Batman & Robin.

I have put a "Holy ________" line in a Bat-comic. I can now check that off the Bucket List.

Shout out to @erykahaven for detailing for me the First-Aid procedure for dealing with a giant spike in your leg.

Babs here is paraphrasing the sage Rabbi Tarfon: "You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it."

The best joke in the story? No. My FAVORITE joke in the story? Absolutely!

Aysia and Jo: still married.

As a lesbian married to a bisexual, I do like this particular niche representation.

Why, in #DCPride 2022, now available wherever fine comics are sold!

One more note about Alysia and Jo's marriage, and we'll move on: In trying to place where this fell in continuity @whatthe_shea said that since I put in the script that they were married, that limits when the story takes place.

I thought that meant someone had killed Jo when I wasn't looking, and nearly had a panic attack! I sent an all-caps email to @whatthe_shea DEMANDING to know what MONSTER had TORN ASUNDER MY GIRLS' HAPPINESS.

Turned out, no one. They're still married.

This is such a good panel. I just love it.
Better than I imagined.

Alysia wields a bat because, besides the obvious pun, a bat has a long been a trans woman self-defense item of choice.

Carrying a knife or a gun will get you charged with Possession of a Deadly Weapon when the cops hassle you. But not a bat.

Gail Simone had already established that Alysia reaches for a bat when she feels threatened, so giving her one here felt just like a natural extension of her character.

The trans flag on it is based on the bat a friend of mine carries for self-defense, who has similar stripes made out of tape.

I was SO EXCITED to able to use Killer Moth for this story! One of my all-time favorite villains. The best of the anti-Batmen.

Killer Moth first appeared in Batman Vol1 #63 (1951) by Bill Finger, Dick Sprang and Lew Schwartz.

But his most noteworthy appearance is Detective Comics #359 (1967) by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino, where he battles a brand new superhero...Batgirl.

Given that, it seemed too perfect to not have him be the first supervillain Alysia defeats.

For the record, THIS is the best joke in the story.

Alysia uses Muay Thai because of the martial art's history of trans pro fighters. Parinya Charoenphol was a Muay Thai champion in 1998 with a face full of make-up and wicked right kick, and proceeded to fight--and win--after her transition.

There's also a Muay Thai gym down the street, where I've taken some classes.

I am not anywhere near as good as Alysia.

Alysia also plays softball, the archetypal queer woman sport. Her team, the Stonewall Rioters, is named after the Stonewall Riots, the demonstrations that would eventually become Pride.

Schumacher reference #2: Alysia's mask is based on the one Alicia Silverstone wore as Batgirl in Batman & Robin.

I just want to take a moment to revel in how @ProtokittyArt took Killer Moth, a character known for being a Silver-Age goofball, and made him cool and threatening.

...not that he isn't also a goofball.

There's no shortage of Bat-people, currently. Heck, there's no shortage of BatGIRLS. So, with this story I wanted to show why Alysia would be a valuable addition to the Gotham group.

Alysia has not been training her entire life to be a vigilante, after all.

What makes Alysia valuable is her perspective. As an activist, she doesn't just see problems; she sees the causes of those problems. And that's where she puts her energy.

To put it another way, the problem is not the man in the bug suit. The problem is that a man in bug suit flew into her friend's hideout. Don't deal with the man, deal with how he flew.

He's fine, folks.

Double meanings abound! Is Alysia talking about a weapon or a chest emblem? Is Alysia talking about how she's figured out Batgirl's secret identity or her bisexuality?

Those certainly are questions, aren't they?

I had short list of things I wanted to do here just in case this was my only Bat-comic. And with this, the classic "bat-shadow while out of costume," that list was complete.

I got goosebumps when I saw this panel for the first time.

I had so much fun writing this story that I had to end it with the hope of adventures to come, because that's how I felt.

If I did my job right, that's how you'll feel, too.

I'm going to be at @BNRittenhouse tomorrow at 7pm to sign and read Galaxy: The Prettiest Star. If you bring in a copy of #DCPride, I'll sign that, too.