Batgirl and the Birds of Prey Rebirth brought Black Canary back into the fold, but as most fans of the team know, there is one other integral part of the team.
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Issue #1 deals directly with the fallout from Birds of Prey Rebirth, where someone has taken Oracle’s identity and is using it to facilitate deals with some not so on the up and up citizens. Naturally, that would be upsetting to anyone, especially Babs, since she worked so hard to establish that identity in the first place.
“I don’t know what’s more embarrassing. The fact that you didn’t put your phone on silent, or that you use the default ringtone.”
Both in Rebirth and in issue #1, Black Canary is the resounding MVP of the group. She’s the perfect foil to Batgirl, who is still trying to find her identity a bit in this group dynamic. Batgirl is at her best when she is playing off of Canary’s slight recklessness in the field, and there is a deliberate lighthearted tone when the two are interacting, including that fantastic cell phone sequence.
“What do you want from me? Details on Dick, or this idiot alive? You only get one.”
That brings us to the third member of the group. the Huntress. Julie and Shawna Benson have hit the ground running with the former Spyral agent, and so far are executing her perfectly. This character is lethal and hot-tempered, but she is never not in control. That discipline is what makes her effective, but it also puts her directly at odds with Batgirl, something that previous versions of the character haven’t featured as heavily. So far, I’m absolutely loving it.
“I have a feeling that your method of silencing and mine are pretty different.”
Artist Claire Roe is again churning out some fantastic work here overall and truly excels at mixing action sequences with humorous elements. Her Black Canary and Huntress again impress, but while her Batgirl is growing on me, I still can’t help but focus on the goofy expressions she sports throughout the issue. Hopefully, that curtails some as we move along.
The only real downside to the issue is a rather uninteresting villain, both stylistically and thematically. The character lacked any sort of real presence, and the powerset was rather unremarkable, at least at first glance. The hope is that some of that will develop and change over time.
In short, Batgirl and the Birds of Prey continue to be a worthwhile addition to your pull list. You can check out a free preview of the book here.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars.
Written By: Julie Benson & Shawna Benson
Art By: Claire Roe
Colors By: Allen Passalaqua
Lettered By: Steve Wands
