After wrapping up the last plot, Batgirl #24 is off to another plot, this one being more of a one-shot plot. The cover and title do a great job of indicating who we’ll be up against this issue; Two-Faces Game of Chance Gets Ugly. Sort of gives you an idea, right?
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Issue #23 of Batgirl brings us the conclusion to the Strange Loop plotline. In the last issue, we learned that Batgirl was trapped in a series of scenarios occurring inside her own head and if she didn’t figure out a way to free herself things would go very poorly for her.
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Batgirl issue 22 is the start of a whole new plot, this one titled ‘Strange Loop.’ Between that and the cover, I’m pretty curious about what is going on. The cover shows Batgirl trapped in a maze, but with a twist! The maze appears to be inside her own mind. Or at least that’s what the cover is implying. We’ll have to read on to see how accurate that is.
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Issue #21 of Batgirl is more of a one-shot story than anything else, which works out well since the last plot has been fully wrapped up. This issue starts off ‘somewhere in Burnside’ where a redhead (not Barbara) is doing her nightly routine before bed. There’s a twist (of course, without a twist there’s no story), she’s trying a new cream tonight…one that has disastrous effects.
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In Batgirl #19 we last saw Burnside suffering from a sudden and unexpected snow storm (courtesy of a hacked weather app). If that wasn’t odd enough, that fact combined with Penguin being…kind and helpful was certainly enough to get Batgirl’s attention. Issue #20 concludes the story that’s already begun.
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Issue number 19 is the start of a new Batgirl heavy plot; Full Circle. This plot is building off of one started earlier, involving Calculator and his business (you know, the one where he helps criminals plan their heists by getting over blueprints and all the other relevant information?). The real question for this issue is whether or not Barbara can resist picking up the Oracle’s mantle again, and what would happen if she lets temptation win.
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Batgirl #19 is the start of a new plot, and I’m sure I’m not the only one that was a little bit confused upon seeing this cover. Batgirl and Cobblepot working together? According to the caption on the cover (which can sometimes be misleading, intentionally or not), they’re ‘Burnside’s newest crime-fighting duo.’ What alternative universe have we been flung to? Obviously I just had to read this one and see what was going on!
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Issue number 18 for Batgirl and the Birds of Prey is more a single issue story than the start of a new plot. This one happens to be titled Eco-Deadly (got to love the environmentally conscious points of this series). Joining Batgirl on this adventure (because Batgirl is obviously involved) are Black Canary and Huntress. Which is pretty standard, as the rest of the ladies tend to be pretty busy.
Read MoreIn the penultimate issue of Batgirl's 'Son of Penguin' arc, the Penguin plays ping-pong and Babs is bombarded with incriminating Dick pics (I'm referring to Nightwing, you perverted bastards), which causes Ethan, the overly-attached son of Penguin, to completely freak. Meanwhile, corrupt minds behind powerful technologies are putting privacy at risk for the citizens of Burnside, and Batgirl learns what happens when you give in to the allure of the mysterious bad boy. Read ahead for my thoughts on this week's issue, and the series as a whole, while I cry and double-fist some ice cream and vodka.
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I initially intended this review to be a follow-up, post-mortem of my review for issue #4. I wanted to summarize in a type of I-Told-You-So style about how the series failed to utilize its own new concepts and rushed its story to the end.
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A part of me wonders that when an independent comic creator enters the mainstream superhero genre, there’s this pressure to emphasize the superhero aspect in a superhero story.
Read MoreThere is so much I really like about this new Batgirl series. Rafael Albuquerque’s art is a must-see with his dynamic action scenes or the interesting and weird page layouts that demonstrate Barbara’s thought processes and movements. Dave McCaig’s colors have made these moments even more visually engaging with his attentive background color work.
Read MoreA really great second issue in mainstream comics is typically hard to come by. There’s neither the exciting newness introduced by the story change-ups of a first issue, and it’s always too early in a story for there to be significant and exciting moments or revelations. We’re at the lowest point in the rising action mountain climb so while Batgirl #2 doesn’t completely shake off those pitfalls, it does damn good job with what it's got.
This issue is all about taking the time and easing us fully into its premise set by the first issue. Barbara Gordon is taking a vacation across eastern Asia and in the process embroiled herself in conspiracy, a blossoming love affair, and the local mixed martial arts scene.
The story here is all about juggling—juxtaposing Barbara’s time sneaking out and fighting in the MMA scene against the romantic getaways with Kai. The sequential art does a lot of work here by paralleling the two, divided world’s she inhabits but unfortunately my interest couldn’t help lean towards the MMA side of the story.
This part of the comic has beautifully drawn fight scenes, plays towards the investigative heart of the Batbooks and transplants us into a new type of setting filled with intriguing characters. The alternate story with Kai is there to ground Babs with something relatable but hasn’t made a good case for their relationship so far.
Narratively, I don’t trust Kai, and luckily neither does Barbara. They grew up together in Gotham where he was in constant trouble and, now that they’re a decade and several continents away, things still look sketchy. As he’s presented, however, he’s a bit dry. I could see this story work if Barbara was using their relationship as her sub-vacation. Even though she’s not in Burnside or Gotham, she’s still acting like Batgirl and if she can’t take a break from being that then at least she can have some fun. Instead, though, she’s having these internal monologues about how her double life means their relationship can never work, and there’s not much of a sense of why she even wants a relationship in the first place. There’s not a ton of character to Kai right now, and their romantic scenes together play out like two separate characters in a different narrative.
For the time being, Kai’s a little too passive for the larger comic arc going on here, and while that doesn’t sink the ship, it definitely rocks it. The creative team behind this book has brought about some exciting elements and now that they have them all laid out and running, I hope to see them find some steadier footing.
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DC’s Rebirth relaunch is still a thing, and this time, Batgirl is back with a new #1, ditching Gotham and her last creative team for a backpacking adventure across Asia. Hope Larson and Rafael Albuquerque are the new leads on this book, and, while they’re keeping the light and adventurous tone of the previous Batgirl of Burnside series, they’ve undeniably brought new energy to the title.
Barbara Gordon is taking a break from Burnside and her new tech start-up for a vacation trekking across Asia, and she starts her journey in Japan. She’s staying at hostels, trying the cuisine, visiting friends, and finding the Japanese bat-themed heroine, Fruit Bat, from the 1940s.
This first issue is less interested in grounding us into a story as it is introducing a tone and establishing characters. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. We’re spending time with Barbara Gordon as she hangs out with her friend, Kai, trying the local cuisine, drinking craft beer, and learning the local history. Given DC and especially the Bat-Family’s history of stereotyping and 
exploitation when it comes to portraying a “mythical orientalism,” this Batgirl feels refreshing. This isn’t a story about a mystical Asia filled with wizened grandmasters. Instead, this is about a more real and genuine tourist experience.
In a lesser Batman story, Chiyo Yamashiro, the now elderly Fruit Bat, would have been set-up as a wise sensei to Barbara Gordon to teach her some secret technique. Here, though, the relationship is much more personal. Yamashiro isn’t just a super hero who managed to live to old age but is someone with a life paralleling Batgirl’s own life.
I understand I’ve written an article describing a fifty-plus year old character working for a tech start-up and drinking craft beer, but it’ll be okay. This is just the world we live in now.
When the characters aren’t getting sick from food poisoning or staring at giant crabs, Larson and Albuquerque prove that they’re willing to bring some serious action chops as Batgirl shows down with a new rival: a mysterious kabuki-sailor-scout hunting for a secret a formula.
Nothing in their fight ever looks like action posing. The artwork always feels kinetic, and it even balances between showing character’s visual thought processes and uses some really inventive ways of displaying movement. There’s even an added benefit of getting to see an hundred year old Fruit Bat kick some serious ass.
There are a few stumbles, of course. The issue opens with what felt like some clunky phone conversations that scream, “Hey we have to establish the current status quo and what’s going on,” and some jokes don’t land. Other than that though, I found myself getting caught up in these small details that convey a genuinely invested creative team. They use a neat method for conveying the different languages being spoken that isn’t simply the typical, “<This is us speaking a different language>”. Where most comics might leave a blank background for a close-up, the colorist here will add eye-catching halftone dots or a paint stroke effect.
If I can say anything at the end of this review to encourage you to pick up Batgirl #1 and get onto the ground floor of this new series, it’s this: Batgirl #1 ends with Batgirl going to join a mixed martial arts group.
Until this, I never knew just how badly I wanted to read a comic about Batgirl fighting her way through MMA matches.
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