What is this book about?

Featuring adventures surrounding Barbara Gordon (Batgirl, one of Batman’s most trusted allies), years after Gordon was paralyzed after being shot by the character the Joker. Unable to retire from fighting crime she attempted to create a new identity. Augmenting her detective skills with state-of-the-art-electronics she created a new alter ego as the ultimate information resource to the super-hero community. She now goes by the name, Oracle.

Oracle learned the ropes of espionage as an ally of the Suicide Squad, a covert black-ops government strike team, before starting her own international crimebusting operation called, The Birds of Prey. Her first agent Power Girl, left the team when a mission went awry and innocent people were killed–something that strains their relationship to this day. Oracle’s next agent was Black Canary, and the two slowly became the best of friends. Canary’s tour of duty defined the team and it’s methods of operation giving it the long-term credibility it would need to outlast her once she finally left the group.

No one operative could replace Canary, instead, Oracle now recruits allies largely on an as-needed basis–some regularly, others only when their specific skills are required. Among her core operatives: Big Barda, Manhunter, Lady Blackhawk, and Huntress.

Why should you read this book?

Solely because the title is the rarest of anomalies in the comic industry. Maybe it’s the creative team that makes this book such a gem and well-respected book among critics, maybe it’s these specific characters, maybe it’s writing for uniquely strong and well-rounded female personalities, or maybe it’s the assuredness of an editor who knows what this book should be. I have no idea. What IS important is that the Birds of prey book was one of the few books published by DC Comics that you could open each month and expect to find quality and entertaining stories starring strong women characters that embody so much of what the feminist ideal is. So given that concept, for this series to survive when the core audience of comic books, especially super-hero comics, are primarily young males is no small feat.

You can pretty much read any books from the Chuck Dixon’s run on the book, however, I’d like to recommend specifically issues 47-49.

Barbara Gordon makes plans to attend a scientific conference where Lex Luthor (who at the time was President of the United States of America, [not kidding]) claimed to have made a breakthrough that could stop cellular decay. Dr. Atticus Blackaver, the scientist? financier? demonstrated how to manipulate the so-called “chaotic code” that controls cellular decay. His demonstration included a teenage girl, who apparently can control the chaotic code. In order to prove his findings to be correct Blackaver healed a senator with a heart condition that was at the conference. Skeptical, Barbara Gordon asked incessant questions that annoyed Blackaver and had the teenage girl, Madison, touch her legs to heal them like she healed the senator. Much to Barbara’s surprise, she could now feel her legs. Before she could get up and walk around the convention was interrupted by terrorists out to kidnap Madison, the teenage miracle healer. Now without revealing too much of the actual story, I just have to take this time to tell you why exactly I’m reviewing and recommending this book to you.

Dinah Lance, Black Canary + Terry Moore (of Strangers in Paradise fame) + Amanda Conner + Ass kicking and witty banter from a hott woman in fishnets = Greatest story ever told. Also, the controversy surrounding Terry Moore and giving Barbara Gordon control over her legs again (albeit temporary) is another interesting reason to read this story.

If you would like to read this book, purchase from here.

How about that…no infamous NINTR introspective insight about about the book where I try and decipher the subversive message behind it all. Just a plain ‘olll fashioned book review.

What is this book about?

The series depicts Barbara Gordon’s origin as Batgirl.

The reasoning for Barbara Gordon becoming Batgirl seems to have been created to become a lighthearted departure from the tortured characters of Batman and Robin, where they both are depicted as fighting crime to avenge the death of their parents; Babara Gordon’s motivation for being a superhero is driven by a sense of wanting to do the right thing. Which probably is inspired her father, Jim Gordon, who is the police Commissioner in Gotham city and close confidant to Batman. Which is one of the reasons she dons a bat-themed costume.

This book isn’t so much about the heroics and colorful themed costumed people she has to fight in order to do the right thing; it’s more about her struggle in defying expectations and common conventions and raising the bar.

For people who know about DC comics crises, this version of her origin is “post-zero hour” and “pre-infinite crisis.”

Why should you read this book?

Because she is an icon for women empowerment and she is portrayed as a constant victim of sexism, which in itself plays its part in her developing an interest in vigilantism, which makes for an interesting story.

However, despite my recommendation this might be the first negative review I give.

DC Comics likes to create publications, usually with the word, Crisis, in the title.
These publications serve to alter the history of the DC comic Universe, to fix continuity holes. So every now and then DC Comics will publish mini-series’ or one-shot’s rebooting the origins of its characters. Batgirl: Year one changes Barbara Gordon’s origin in order to reestablish her character for the Modern Age.

Here’s one my problem with that and this series:
In Batgirl: Year one, Barbara is shown buying and using computers. However, Barbara first appeared in 1967 and the first personal home computer wasn’t made available until 1981. Not only do these crises revamp origins, but it revamps the time period in which in happened. That makes no sense! Even for a fictional comic! Combining Earth’s and amalgamating them does not change the time period in which it happened! It really pisses me off. I feel like I wasted my money on a book that wasn’t edited well.

I recommend this book for it’s superb narration and the writer’s ability to tell a great compelling story; but like a book filled with spelling and grammatical errors I cannot enjoy reading it because I cannot get over the errors in continuity. I have no idea anymore what is someone’s “pre-crisis origin,” “post-crisis origin,” “pre-zero hour origin,” “post-zero hour origin,” “pre-infinite crisis origin,” OR “post-infinite crisis origin.” It’s insanity.

I feel like this is the bane of the DC comic writer’s existence. Trying to write a good story within the continuity travesty that are the DC comics crises.

It was difficult to enjoy this book because I kept wondering what origin I was reading. I suppose something like this shouldn’t intercede reading and enjoying an otherwise great book, but it does. I feel like there was a lack for attention to detail.

If you would like to see a better layout of Batgirl’s origins from the different points pre and post crisis, please visit this livejournal post.

What is this book about?

This one-shot book features a tale involving Barbara Gordon (Batgirl), Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn from the cartoon: Batman: The Animated Series which was based on the artwork of producer Bruce Timm.

The television series was accompanied by a tie-in comic book titled, The Batman Adventures, which followed the art style and continuity of the television series instead of other Batman comic books. The Batman Adventures, went through several format changes to reflect the changing world of the series and its spin-offs, the comic outlasted the series itself by nearly a decade. So naturally, with the popularity of the show, the comic, and the characters; it was only a matter of time before Batgirl, who remains a constant staple in trying to get girls to watch superhero programming, got her own one-shot to see how well received it would be.

The story itself is about an underground terrorist organization who kidnapped Poison Ivy, a villain of the Bat-family, to try and convince her to join their ranks. The story takes place on Christmas eve where Barbara Gordon, is supposed to pick up her father Police Commissioner James Gordon from work. Before arriving at the police station she is witness to Harley Quinn, another villain of the Bat-Family, creating chaos in the streets. Barbara after suiting up as Batgirl, catches up with her Harley Quinn where she explains that she was trying to create chaos to get the attention of Batman to help save her friend Poison Ivy from the terrorist organization.

Why should you read this book?

I really wasn’t going to review this book. I try to stay away from reviewing and recommending small one-shot’s that are within continuity of the series, but I had to recommend this one.

The Batman Adventures and Batman: The Animated Series, were produced and advertised with the intent that it would be for children. So when I read Batgirl Adventures I was surprised to find a lot of sexual lesbian innuendo’s.

It’s been a running joke online and most likely offline as well, that Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn from the television show were lesbians. Because they were always hanging out together, looking out for eachother, very touchy feely, etc. Being that the audience of this show and comic are predominantly young males obviously this joke was well received. So drawings and fan-fiction became widespread online depicting these two characters having sex.

The reason I am recommending this book to you, is because I think it’s hilarious that this book intended for children is chock full of lesbian innuendo’s, like this one (click to view larger, if you’re using an RSS reader please visit actual post):

What is this book about?

This books stars the most recent Batgirl, Cassandra Cain, who is the daughter of the assassin David Cain and Lady Shiva.

This book is about Cassandra and overcoming her past, moving out of her father’s shadow to become her own woman, and to atone for one big mistake she made when she was younger.

Cassandra was raised from a very young age by assassin David Cain. Who is one of the world’s premier assassins, whose victims have included some of the most famous and powerful people on the planet. Cassandra Cain was not taught spoken language, but instead was taught to “read” physical movement. Cassandra’s only form of communication was body language. The parts of the character’s brain normally used for speech were trained so Cassandra could read other people’s body language and predict their next move. This caused her brain to develop learning functions different from most, a form of dyslexia that hampers her abilities to read and write.

I think this book is also about her struggle with learning to read and write while being able to maintain her ability to read physical movement.

Why should you read this book?

Much like Azrael: Agent of the bat, Cassandra Cain, has the same issues with her upbringing.

From a very early age, Cassandra Cain, has been taught and trained to become an assassin. When she was eight, David Cain took her to a businessman he was hired to kill. Cassandra was the one who killed the man. And as the man died, she read what he was feeling (because she can read body movement), realized what she had done, and ran away from David Cain.

This is similar to what Jean Paul Valley went through in the Azrael: Agent of the bat book.

This book just talks about the concept of parental conditioning. Questioning what we’re born with and what we’re taught as we grow up. For many, they do not question what they were taught; nor do they care. They see it as the correct way of life.

This book isn’t necessarily for just the people with whom can relate to Cassandra’s struggle in rejecting her birthright. But also for the people whom think that their upbringing is the correct way of life.

The story I want to recommend specifically is: Sisterhood, which is printed in issue #53 of Batgirl Volume: 1.

The story is about a family where the father works for the villain, the Penguin; the father was hired to pick up these guns where there were only four left in the entire world. But the father keeps running into the problem of superheroes (the heroes in this story are Batgirl [Cassandra Cain] and Robin [Stephanie Brown]) constantly breaking up his operation of getting these rare guns to the Penguin.

So the father has this idea of sending his very young daughter to transport the guns. Because the heroes wouldn’t suspect any father would ever send his own daughter to transport the guns.

This whole scenario is very reminiscent of when David Cain sent Cassandra in to kill the businessman, and the businessman didn’t suspect a thing. So obviously this situation affects Cassandra deeply. There are a lot of stories like this in this series. Kids lives that are being affected by the people we’re supposed to look up to and learn from. I feel a lot of the point of what the writers are trying to say in these stories is about the loss of childhood and innocence. About aging ourselves and others around us, specifically children, too quickly by exposing them to things most would think not conducive for a rich childhood.

I feel the true point is lost in many of the stories found in this book, and throughout the entire run of Batgirl; and the focus remains on the action and her struggle with her learning disability which is also very heartbreaking. I feel there’s an underlying point they want to make, but have yet to make it. It’s still a very intense read. Enjoy!