debut in DC Comics publication, and fueled by her adaptation into the Batman television series in 1967, Barbara Gordon's Batgirl has been listed among fictional characters that are regarded as cultural icons. Author Brian Cronin, in Was Superman A Spy?: And Other Comic Book Legends Revealed (2009) notes that following her 1967 debut, "Batgirl was soon popular enough to appear regularly over the next two decades and Yvonne Craig certainly made an impression on many viewers with her one season portraying young Ms. Gordon." In 2011, IGN ranked Barbara Gordon 17th in the Top 100 Comic Books Heroes. Cassandra Cain's Batgirl has become one of the most prominent Asian characters to appear in American comic books, and her understated sexuality is notable as being contrary to the common sexual objectification of female characters, especially those of Asian descent. Feminist interpretations In The Supergirls: Fashion, Feminism, Fantasy, and the History of Comic Book Heroines (2009), author Mike Madrid states that what set Barbara Gordon as Batgirl apart from other female characters was her motivation for crime-fighting. Unlike Batwoman who preceded her, "she wears his symbol on her chest, but she is not his girlfriend or faithful handmaiden." Because of the fact she does not pursue a romantic interest in Batman, "Batgirl is a female Batman can actually regard as a brilliant peer and a partner in the war on crime, the same way he would a male." Historian Peter Sanderson observed that Barbara Gordon's Batgirl reflected the Women's liberation movement of the 1960s. During the 1980s, Barbara Kesel, after writing a complaint to DC Comics over the negative portrayal of female characters, was given the opportunity to write for Barbara Gordon in Detective Comics. Robin Anne Reid, in Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy: Overviews (2009) wrote that "Kesel's version of Batgirl established her as a character separate from Batman and Robin: a woman motivated to do what men do, but alone and in her own way. Her Secret Origins (1987) and Batgirl Special (1988) countered the victimized and objectified presentation of Barbara Gordon/Batgirl in Alan Moore's acclaimed The Killing Joke (1988)." She notes that Kesel's interpretation of the character emphasized her intelligence, technological skill, and ability to overcome fear. Gail Simone included the character's paralysis in a list of "major female characters that had been killed, mutilated, and depowered", dubbing the phenomenon "Women in Refrigerators" in reference to a 1994