With Rene Montoya buried, both Batwoman and Batman are anxious to renew the battle against Superman. But despite Bruce's attempts at building alliances, they are sorely lacking in allies. In order to put more soldiers in the field, Barbara Gordon will make a fateful choice. Meanwhile, Harley Quinn - now in control of Green Arrow's old hideout - tries to endear herself to a captive Billy Batson as only she can.
The first page of this issue touched me, as we saw Rene Montoya buried alongside Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance and we got a look at their tombstones. In that one moment Brian Buccellato showed with just a few simple words how well he understands these characters by perfectly capturing their essences. That Black Canary would want to be thought of as a fighter and a mentor to other heroes. That Green Arrow would be remembered as a husband and friend instead of as a hero. And that Rene was a cop first and a friend second.
It is a subtle thing, More subtle at least than the slapstick comedy of Harley Quinn's attempts to befriend her hostage, which are also true to character. But it is there. And it is powerful. As powerful as the choice made by Barbara Gordon to embrace her past while risking her future... but not in the way you might expect.
The artwork is equally powerful. Bruno Redondo's pencils suffer somewhat in detail past the medium distance with Juan Albarran's inks occassionally obscuring the original art rather than enhancing it. Thankfully, these moments are few and far between and the majority of the book looks excellent, bright and vibrant thanks to Rex Lokus' colors.
I love how blasé the king of Zingara is about a naked redhead on fire standing before him.
