Batgirl #1

I'm starting with this title because this is the first one I bought in the new relaunch. That part is simple.

But the reasons I bought this first are more complicated. While August had a lot of comic downtime in preparation for the relaunch, one of the titles I went back and read was Batgirl starring Stephanie Brown. And I was loving it. Bryan Q. Miller was kicking ass with Steph (Fabian Nicieza should take notes for the next time he gets a Batman sidekick title, that this is how you write one). Also, as a Dick Grayson fan, I firmly fell on the side that he and Babs were the best twosome, not Dick and Kory. Also, Babs is the Batgirl I remember from my BTAS days, so I had familiarity with that, though it was clear that this was a much more grown up character.

No, I have never read Birds of Prey outside of a crossover issue or two. But what I did know, Gail Simone is to Barbara Gordon how Geoff Johns is to Hal Jordon. If anyone should be handling Babs' return to Batgirl, it's Simone. Between picking the perfect writer, and putting a quality artist on the title (most of the preview art looked gorgeous) this series was setup for success.

That being said, they did not knock this out of the park on the first go-around. Not to take anything away from the issue, but it suffers from the same problem that Justice League and Flashpoint suffer from. These are pivotal turning points in the DC Universe.....and  Batgirl #1 is a pivotal turning point for Barbara Gordon.

Essentially this comic could have worked in two ways. An action comic that just gets right to the villain of the month, or a story about how the hell she's walking again! Simone chose the former, and I think that's a mistake.

Instead we get an issue examining a new villain named "Mirror." As predicted, he/she wears a mirror so his/her victims see their own deaths. Mirror goes after those who he/she think should already be dead, finishing the job. Overall, Mirror seems to be a strong nemesis. Oh, and by the way, Barbara Gordon's on the list of people that he's supposed to kill that should be dead already.

What I enjoyed: The dual paradoxical nature of what Babs is thinking as she fights as Batgirl, compared to what comes out of her mouth. Inside she is very nervous, anxious, and has hints of self-doubt. Outside she is as brash as ever, with that sharp tongue that's come to define her personality. It's always a rarity to see the inner monologue and the outward speech so dissimilar, and sometimes it doesn't make sense, but it really worked in this issue. The story also thankfully includes a flashback to the Killing Joke, answering one of the questions about the new continuity. Art was solid as well, not spectacular, but definitely a job well done.

What I didn't: We're told that Babs was in a wheelchair for 3 years....and now she's not. That's all the transition we as readers get? I'm not demanding the whole issue has to be about that (though there should be an arc explaining it all soon please) but this is a big giant, fat, hulking elephant in the room!

Conclusion: I'll give it an 80/100 (B-). It reads well and I'm going to try not to knock it. If this were say Batgirl #4, I would probably give it a higher score, but it's not, it's the kickoff to the first solo series Barbara has had as Batgirl, and should have been more exciting, more fun, bigger, and this falls a little flat.