DCU Comic Book Reviews

BATGIRL #1

Batgirl Rising, Part One:  Point Of New Origin

October 2009

Written by Bryan Q. Miller

Pencils by Lee Garbett

Inks by Trevor Scott

Covers by Phil Noto and Cully Hamner

Synopsis

At Foundry Row, Batgirl attempts to save teenage boys from crashing their cars during a drag race.  She does so, but is sloppy in the work, at least according to Batman and Robin, who are watching nearby.  Batman observes it is a different Batgirl than before.  He doesn’t know it is Stephanie brown.  Then ext morning, Stephanie once more convinces her mom she has given up being a vigilante.  At Thompkins Clinic, Leslie attempts to convince Barbara Gordon to help out Wendy Harris, former member of the Teen Titans now confined to a wheelchair.  Barbara declines; she doesn’t feel like she give anyone guidance.  Meanwhile at school, Stephanie day dreams about the moment when Cassandra decided she no longer wanted to be Batgirl.  Elsewhere, Barbara enjoys dinner with her father when she gets a call from Dick Grayson.  That night, Batgirl helps the police with a riot.  The next morning, Stephanie awakens to find Barbara waiting for her.  They need to talk.

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

I gotta give credit to DC; I think they probably made the best choice they could make as Batgirl, if Cassandra Cain is no longer going to wear the cowl.  There are a number of different choices editorial could have gone with, and all of them could’ve been supported by some very logical reasons, but Stephanie is a character with a solid fan base, a history with the Bat family, and certainly (in terms of character) the ability to do the job.  It makes the most sense and I think DC editorial do the best job in their choice. 

I think, however, that this is the crux of the problem with this issue, which I found to be competently executed.  There was nothing in the story that excited or thrilled me and made me think this is going to be a book that will latch on with the fans.  The issue just kind sat there, a typical story in a typical comic book in which the lead character is a teenager trying to cope with being a kid and hero.  The thing is, there is nothing in Stephanie’s character that makes her unique or different than, say, Tim Drake when was Robin.  There is nothing in the story that makes Stephanie as Batgirl intriguing.  As I was reading, I had the sense that editorial made the decision that Stephanie would be Batgirl and told the writer what he needed to know in order to write the first installment.  And that is exactly what he did.  It was okay, but it needed to be more than just okay. 

The other problem I have with this issue is the apparent backsliding of the character of Barbara Gordon.  She was never one, at least to me when I was reading Birds Of Prey, to be someone who was bitter at her confinement in a wheelchair.  Yes, she didn’t like it, but she never let it get to her as is getting to her now.  She is capable and confident, able to accomplish a lot of things without feeling depressed or angry about her physical limitations.  To me, it feels like the character is moving backwards, to the time when she was first in the wheelchair, not years later when she has done so much with her life.  Don’t get me wrong, I like the idea of Barbara wanting to help out Stephanie, but the way she is being written now, doesn’t ring true for me. 

The flashback with Cassandra was, well, lacking for a better word.  It absolutely did nothing to make me believe that Cassandra would walk away from being Batgirl.  Again, it felt arbitrary, like the decision was made and Miller needed to make it work and this is what he came up with.  The scary thing is that there really is no obligation to follow up on this.  Unless Cassandra is supposed to be part of the story, this may be the last we see of her for a long time.