Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #20 - A Review

In the wake of Gus Yale's death, the secrets of The Birds of Prey have been lain bare and the team is all but broken. Black Canary hid the fact that her powers were still overclocked from a previous encounter.  Batgirl hid that she was using intelligence stolen from The Calculator to influence their activities. And Huntress... well, she's been visiting her crime-boss mother in prison and has been called to act as a character witness at her parole hearing. Despite the tension between them, the three heroines must come together again and soon, as the robotic assassin Burnrate begins to arrange a different sort of union...



Unfortunately, this series is coming to a close and I'll be sad to see it go. The Benson Sisters' stories have been nothing short of phenomenal and I've greatly enjoyed how they revitalized the classic Birds of Prey line-up for the reality of Rebirth. I just wish they'd had an art team worthy of their work. While not as bad as they've been in earlier issues, Roge Antonio's pencils are still incredibly uneven (particularly during the action scenes) and while Marcelo Maiolo's lighting effects are decently applied this month, this is still a very rough-looking comic.

The Final Analysis: 6 out of 10.

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #17 - A Review

A mysterious plague threatens the lives of every man in Gotham City. The Birds of Prey have gathered the rest of the city's heroines - and even The Sirens - to help them keep the peace and find a cure. Can they thwart the plans of Patient Zero - the super-genius behind the viral attack - and her followers in The Daughters of Gotham?


The story comes to a satisfying conclusion under the pens of The Benson Sisters. Despite the large cast of characters, nearly everyone gets a moment to shine. All of the characters sound like themselves, even special guests Wonder Woman and Lois Lane.

Unfortunately, the artwork continues to be an ordeal to work through. There's no consistency to Roge Antonio's work, with differing levels of detail being provided to different characters in the same panel. Patient Zero, for instance, is rendered in a more realistic style than the cartoonish, streamlined superheroines she's taken hostage. A larger problem is the colors of Marcelo Maiolo, which leave everything looking washed out or orange-tinted to the point that all the white heroines are the same shade as Harley Quinn!

 The Final Analysis: 5 out of 10.

Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #16 - A Review

The Birds of Prey have picked up some unexpected back-up in dealing with the plague that is slowly killing the men of Gotham City. Not only have Batwoman, Orphan and The Spoiler offered their aid but Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy and Catwoman have joined them along with Wonder Woman! Even with such formidable assistance, the battle ahead of them will not be easy - particularly once they learn of the new organization that stands against them!


(Click On The Image Above To See The Full Two-Page Spread!)
My comments and complaints about Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #15 remain the same in considering this issue. The script by The Benson Sisters is fantastic and does a wonderful job of capturing the personalities of all the heroes and villains involved. The artwork by Roge Antonio is lazy and ill-defined, with a coloring job by Marcelo Maiolo that leaves all the characters save Huntess with the same washed-out white skin-tone as Harley Quinn. Read it for the story. Suffer through the artwork.

The Final Analysis: 5 out of 10. Again, that's purely for the story.

Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #15 - A Review

The mother of all flu bugs seems to have hit Gotham City and it only seems to be infecting men. With Commissioner Gordon in his death-bed, half of Helena Bertinelli's class out-sick and Oliver Queen having just come into town, all the men closest to the Birds of Prey are endangered. Can they get to the bottom of things or will ace reporter Lois Lane beat them to the punch? And what other unlikely allies might join them in their fight?


Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #15 is a prime example of how terrible artwork can sink a great story. Not only does Roge Antonio seem to have rushed his pencil work and barely inked the artwork but there are numerous examples of figures being retraced throughout the book. Throw in some weird facial expressions and a coloring job by Marcelo Maiolo that leaves Lois Lane and Barbara Gordon as pale as Harley Quinn and there's not a single page of this book that looks good!


This is doubly unfortunate because The Benson Sisters have outdone themselves on the script for this issue. Bringing Lois Lane into the action adds a whole new level to things and the guest stars are perfectly handled. The final page offers up an honest surprise that I dare not spoil but it is well worth fighting through the rest of the issue to get to it.

The Final Analysis: 5 out of 10. Great story. Terrible artwork. 

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #13 - A Review

The Birds of Prey wind up in the thick of things, as the criminal past of Gus (a.k.a. the new Oracle) comes back to haunt him. Tangled in a plot involving a corrupt bio-engineering firm and the machinations of both The Calculator and Catwoman, things become even more complicated when Poison Ivy launches her own attack on the company's headquarters. Even if they survive with their lives and integrity intact, will Gus still have a place with the team?


The conclusion of Source Code is an enjoyable if somewhat rushed spectacle. Julie Benson and Shawna Benson's scripts are as strong as ever, but I wish they'd had a bit more time to let this story unfold at a more leisurely pace. If nothing else, I'd like to have seen a flashback tale detailing The Calculator's past encounters with the team in the Rebirth reality rather than the quick montage we got in the last issue.

The artwork, unfortunately, remains the series' weak point. Roge Antonio's individual panels look fine but the flow of action between them is a bit odd at times. Allen Passalaqua's colors look decent enough, though there is a coloring mistake in this issue where Canary is given Barbara Gordon's hair and skin tone in a close-up that the editors really should have caught.

The Final Analysis: 7 Out of 10. Enjoyable in spite of its flaws.

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #10 - A Review

Black Canary has disappeared while trying to infiltrate the operation of a metahuman criminal trainer called Blackbird. Thankfully, Batgirl and Huntress have Nightwing and Green Arrow ready to lend a hand. And a good thing too! Because it seems that everyone's favorite "pretty bird" has fallen prey to Blackbird's mind-control powers!


Batgirl and The Birds Of Prey remains one of my favorite books and one of the most underrated books of the DC Rebirth line. Shawna and Julie Benson have truly captured the essence of the title characters and this issue proves their no slouches when it comes to writing Nightwing and Green Arrow. In fact, I dare say the brief moment of Ollie comforting Dinah when she finally breaks free of the mind control rings far truer romantically than most of the "love scenes" in Ollie's own title. Roge Antonio's artwork in this issue may be his strongest offering yet, his fluid style proving perfectly suited to depicting the epic superhero battle at the heart of this issue.

Final Analysis: 9 out of 10.

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #8 - A Review

When Nightwing is injured trying to bring down a metahuman known as Gemini, it falls to The Birds Of Prey to bring the rogue shape-shifter to justice. The bigger problem may be the mysterious Blackbird, who is apparently mentoring Gemini and several other up-and-coming super-villains. And then there's the rumors of an underground fighting league for metahumans setting up shop in Gotham...


Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #8 sets up a series of subplots in this issue, which promise to keep things interesting for our heroines for a good long while. Julie and Shawna Benson are proving to be both master storytellers and good character writers. This is something that is rarer than you'd think in comic books!

The best part of this issue - and the one thing that threw me for a loop - was the relationship between Helena and Barbara. I had thought we were in for a repeat of the rivalry we saw back in the Chuck Dixon days of Birds of Prey. The Bensons took these expectations and flattened them, having both women admit to their feelings for Dick Grayson and deal with it like adults. It helps, of course, that Helena is prone to detachment and Barbara - ever the intellectual - is smart enough to divorce her feelings from what her brain tells her is a complication she doesn't need. In this, the past of the characters is acknowledged while still remaining true to both characters.


The artwork in this issue suits the series. Roge Antonio is fantastic at crafting expressive faces and that's to the benefit of this issue, which is largely built around some spirited conversations. Colorist Allen Passalaqua does his usual stellar job of finishing the artwork.

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #4 - A Review

The false Oracle is still on the loose and multiple setbacks have Huntress reconsidering her partnership with Black Canary and Batgirl. They also have Huntress thinking of her past and the family she's lost. Could this new Birds of Prey team be over before it has truly begun?


I didn't read Grayson, so I didn't know if the new Helena Bertinelli differed in any significant degree from the pre-New 52 Huntress. Julie & Shawna Benson deliver a fantastic retelling of Helena's origin in this issue, firmly establishing their take on the character and reasserting her role among The Birds.


The artwork for this issue is astonishing. Roge Antonio and Allen Passalaqua do a fantastic job bringing The Bensons' script to life. Antonio's sense of visual storytelling is fantastic and the splash-pages look phenomenal As far as the colors go, I love that Batgirl and Huntress have distinctive shades of purple for their respective motifs. .

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #3 - A Review

The hunt for the wicked hacker who stole the Oracle name from Barbara Gordon continues. The Birds have a lead which leads them to a favorite restaurant of the Gotham mob. Yet Oracle has their own operatives - a team called The Snakes - that are poised to strike Commissioner Gordon and his team!
This book is fortunate to have two great artists working on it. Claire Roe's gift for drawing expressive faces makes the various scenes of characters just talking a real treat, even in the case of the stoic Huntress. Roge Antonio does a fantastic job on the flashback sequences, showing the formative years of a young Dinah Lance as she ran away from her foster home and discovered a home and martial arts in the dojo of her first sensei.  Allen Passalaqua colors both sections with a unique style, with the modern story sporting a more vibrant palette and the flashbacks muted in pale greys, blues and off-whites.


The story by Julie and Shawna Benson is a thing of wonder. Their six-page flashback into Dinah Lance's background has done more to define Dinah's past and character than all 12 issues of  Brenden Fletcher's Black Canary series. And the story set in the modern day has a twisted humor not seen since the days of Gail Simone's Birds of Prey run. The Birds are back, baby!

Batgirl And The Birds Of Prey #2 - A Review

The Birds of Prey have a lead on the new "Oracle", who is aiding and abetting the Mafia families of Gotham. Batgirl is fighting mad and in little mood to talk when both Commissioner Gordon and Batman raise concerns about her working with the new vigilante called Huntress. Huntress herself continues to have trouble fitting in with the team, being the sort of person who picks fights to test her teammates - a spectacularly bad idea when one of your teammates is Black Canary!
Writers Julie Benson and Shawna Benson truly grasp these characters and write them in a way no author has managed in several years. The interaction between the various Birds is the high-point of the book. While they are far from a functioning team, the interplay between them as the camaraderie builds and Huntress slowly gains the trust of her new allies proves quite amusing.


The issue features two art teams, but this does not distract from the flow of the story at all. There are a number of striking visuals throughout but  my personal favorite is the shadow of Batman falling across the clock-face of Batgirl's clock-tower just after Barbara asserts her independence. It looks good but is also a powerful symbol of Batgirl trying to get out of Batman's metaphorical shadow. The color art is also notable, particularly the gradient effects used in the twilight duel of Huntress and Black Canary.

Batman: Annual #3 - A Review

Five years ago, Tommy Blackcrow was a newcomer to Gotham. A hard-nosed reporter of the old-school, Tommy didn't believe the mystique that Gotham's supervillains generated - particularly The Clown Prince of Prime. Tommy's courage took him places few would dare to go... including The Joker's lair! And it was there that Tommy did something brave but foolish. Tommy laughed at The Joker as he played nice with his minions and boldly declared that The Joker didn't have any real friends.

Little did Tommy realize that bold statement would change his life and that the next five years would seen him changing his name and running around the country. Because it turns out The Joker appreciates honesty - particularly honesty expressed as an insult - and decides that only a true friend could be so honest. And Tommy Blackcrow is about to discover that the only thing worse than having The Joker as an enemy is having him as a friend.


It's been said that some of the best Batman comics don't feature Batman as a character. That's certainly the case with Batman Annual #3 where Batman's presence is limited and the focus is firmly upon Joker's new best buddy. The script by James Tynion IV is a strong one, with a lot of honest humor as The Joker goes through great lengths to try and bond with the increasingly unbalanced Tommy.


The artwork isn't quite as strong as the script, unfortunately. Roge Antonio does a decent enough job in general. His design for The Joker is truly terrifying but nothing else in this issue really stands out or demands attention. The coloring by Nick Filardi is a bit off at points, with Harley Quinn's hair-coloration continually changing in regards to which side is red and which side is black.