Stephanie Brown's Last Hurrah as Batgirl

When my monthly comic delivery arrives tomorrow the first book I'll read - as always - will be Batgirl, issue #24. However, it'll be a particularly bittersweet read I'm sure as this will, of course, be the last of Stephanie Brown's adventures as Batgirl before DCs 'refresh' next month which will see Barbara Gordon returning to the role.

Very appropriately two of the creators who launched Steph's run as Batgirl have paid their own tributes to the young woman affectionately described by Clancy Johnson/The Grey Ghost as the "Violet Avenger".

Bryan Q. Miller talked at length with Comic Book Resources during which he reflected on his time as the writer of Batgirl while discussing the end of Stephanie's time as the female Caped Crusader.

Artist Lee Garbett tweeted what he described as a "quick sketch in honor of Stephanie Brown's last day as Batgirl today ...":

I'm sure I don't need to tell anyone reading this post just how much I've enjoyed Batgirl over the past couple of years: to Messrs Miller and Garbett; to Phil Noto, who's covers to the first few issues of the title immediately drew me to the book; to all the fantastically talented creators that have worked on the book over the past couple of years I simply want to say a heartfelt "thank you".

Captain America: Lee Garbett Explains His Cover Process

As someone who comes from an editorial background I've long since been interested in the process of how books, magazines and comics are produced.

Over at his blog one of our favourite artists Lee Garbett has posted an interesting feature that explains and illustrates his process when asked to create the cover for the upcoming Captain America collection - from the rough layout, through his pencils to the important contributions of the inker and colourist.

Check out the feature in full here.








CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBIRTH #1
Written by STAN LEE & KARL KESEL
Penciled by JACK KIRBY & KARL KESEL
Cover by LEE GARBETT
The origins of Captain America and the Red Skull, revealed! As the evils of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party spread across Europe, Steve Rogers becomes the legendary Captain America! With his sidekick, Bucky, and under the direction of Franklin Roosevelt himself, Cap battles the diabolical Red Skull on every front! Witness their earliest confrontations here! Collecting material from TALES OF SUSPENSE #63 and #65-68, fully remastered with modern coloring. Plus: an all-new framing sequence by Karl Kesel (CAPTAIN AMERICA 1940s NEWSPAPER STRIP). 64 pages, One-Shot, Rated T+, $4.99, June 2011

Captain America: Rebirth is published by Marvel.

Nominations Now Underway for the Annual Eagle Awards

Comic fans here in the UK are currently being asked to submit their nominations for their 'best of 2010' - artists, writers, titles, publishers ... - as part of the annual Eagle Awards which will be awarded at the London MCM Expo on Friday 27 May 2011.

The Eagle Awards comprise two distinct stages - a round of nominations before the final round of voting. Fans have until 7 March to nominate their favourites with the top five nominations in each section qualifying for the final round of voting which gets underway on 14 March.

The winners will be announced on Friday 27 May at the London MCM Expo, Excel-London, Royal Victoria Dock.

I've already cast my votes - Josh Finney and Kat Rocha's Titanium Rain from Archaia and Bryan Q. Miller, Lee Garbett and Dustin Dguyen's work on DC's Batgirl featured heavily in my nominations as regular visitors to Escape from Tomorrow will expect.

For more background on the Eagle Awards, and to vote for your favourites, visit the Eagle Awards website.

The Return of Bruce Wayne #6 Variant

Lee Garbett has been busy over the weekend sharing some of his current projects via his blog.

First up readers were treated to the pencils for his variant cover for The Return of Bruce Wayne #6 which will be inked and coloured by Bill Sienkiewicz.

Very nice isn't it? I'm certainly looking forward to seeing the final cover.

In addition to artwork for the CD cover of Giggs' first single from the "Let Em 'Ave It" album Mr Garbett posted a panel from a Halloween story he's drawing that features Batman - Dick Grayson - and Robin - Damian Wayne.

Finally, at New York Comic Con this weekend details of two signing sessions at the DC booth - Saturday 9 October at 1pm and Sunday 10 October at 1.30pm: both sessions run for an hour.

As I've said before I've been loving Lee Garbett's work on Batgirl over the past year and I'm looking forward to following his work on his future projects.

You can visit Lee Garbett's blog by clicking here.

Batgirl #14 Reviewed

As promised I have returned, refreshed and re-energized after a few days away following The Tour of Britain and with my bank balance in a sorry state thanks to a hugely enjoyable day buying comics and 'stuff', as well as meeting creators and fellow comics fans, at the superb Exeter Comic Expo.

I'll write about the Expo in a bit more detail later on this week (I'll spare you the cycling talk unless you're really interested?!) but to get us underway after my break here's my review of Batgirl #14 - while you read this I'll be working my way through a weeks worth of emails and Google reader updates ...

Batgirl #14

We're promised 'Terror in the 3rd Dimension' in Batgirl #14 and as the story opens we see Batgirl - Stephanie Brown - and Supergirl - Kara Zor-El - struggling to release themselves from their captive: as Stephanie explains, she was just hoping for a quiet, normal, evening; kicking back, relaxing with a friend - instead, these friends find themselves in a grip of a monochrome Dracula!

Much earlier, at the Brown household, we are witness to a much calmer scene as the young Stephanie is slumped over the table clearly less than engrossed by the game of Scrabble she is playing with her mother - we're told Babs is away on Birds duty 'again' and new friend Wendy is working back at Firewall.

At that moment the door bell rings and Steph leaps into the air - saved by the bell - apologises to her startled mother and races to the door where she's delighted, relieved probably, to discover her friend Kara, hovering in the air in Supergirl guise. The girls say their hellos as Mrs Brown joins Stephanie at the door - and in the nick of time Kara switches to her 'civvies'.

After some quick introductions the two young women set off for what they hope will be a 'normal' evening - of course there's no chance of that when Batgirl and Supergirl get together!

Having headed to the University campus Kara's enthusiasm gets the better of her as she takes in the sights of sounds of college life. Kara suggests they head to a keg party, have a pillow fight and Steph realises that Kara's experience of college life is, at best, limited.

As the two continue their catch-up they're hit from behind and knocked off their feet by a young man who's in a desperate hurry - as documents litter the air the young man mutters that he's got to get to his lab before ...

As the man scurries away Kara spots the student theatre and discovers they are screening a 3D revival of 'Vampyres Bryde' and talks Steph into going in.

Across campus in the 'requisite super-collider lab' we witness the clumsy, desperate young man who knocked Steph and Kara from their feet arguing with a security guard - it seems that the project is being closed down due to a lack of funds but the man - Newton or Newt - is having none of it: he needs to project to continue to earn credit and if it's results that the authorities are after he'll deliver results he says. As he pulls on a lever the lab equipment - presumably the aforementioned super-collider - comes to life with a rumble, a cloud of smoke or steam before, much to the guard and Newts surprise, overwhelming the pair of them.

Back at the campus theatre a packed audience of students is lapping-up the film: some enjoying it more than others. As Steph and Kara tuck into their popcorn they are blinded (figuratively) by a flash of white light coming from the screen in front of them. Removing her 3D glasses Steph is startled to see a number of figures - Draculas - coming out of the screen and into the theatre. Not realising what was happening Kara continues to marvel at what she believes are the 3D effects of the film before listening to her friend, removing her glasses and agreeing with Steph that the situation calls for a 'team-up'.

With the audience either having fled the audience or being otherwise distracted Batgirl and Supergirl join forces to bring down the first of the Draculas.

Scanning the frozen figure Kara proclaims that the body is empty, literally, as the aforementioned Newt looks on with a mixture of wonder and puzzlement: his experiment - to create a three dimensional construct - appears to have worked as the lab overloaded the theatre, and the film in particular, bore the brunt.

Furthermore (and here's the science) as the film runs at 24 frames a second there would be 24 Draculas on the run! The only way to stop them, it seems, is to drive a control rod into the empty body ...

So, as Batgirl and Supergirl work their way around the city they are able to take care of Dracula after Dracula - until they are left with just one more to find: Dracula number 24, who they eventually track down to a roof top overlooking Gotham City. As the two young women consider their next move they are startled to find their prey has disappeared - only to reappear behind them moments later ... and we're back where the book started with the two friends lives in jeopardy.

Spotting a stake some yards behind them Batgirl and Supergirl manage to wrestle themselves free, grab the weapon and 'shoonk' - the final Dracula is gone.

Some time later, back at the Brown household, Steph and Kara are hanging out in Steph's room: pyjamas on, feathers falling to the ground - there's the pillow fight! As Kara picks up on trouble back home the two friends strike a deal: next time either of them starts to feel alone, they are to give the other a call.

With that Kara is gone and Steph heads down to the kitchen where her mother has prepared breakfast. Making her apologies for bailing on family game night Steph explains to her mother that she really did have the best of evenings.


Three words describe this issue of Batgirl for me: fun, fun, fun! Since I first heard writer Bryan Q. Miller talking about it on episode 10 of Batgirl to Oracle I'd been looking forward to reading the book and it certainly exceeded my expectations.

The story itself very much had the tone of one of those 1950s horror films: the core plot-point, in this case a machine that could create a multi-dimensional object from a one dimensional image, being deliberately over complicated - as demonstrated by Newt's explanation just over halfway through the book in what must be the largest speach bubble in this series to date! - and dare I say 'unbelievable' while maintaining a simple 'goodies versus baddies' theme. That's how, to me at least, the book read and, as I suggest, I thought Mr Miller did a fine job of finding the tone.

I found the 'friendship' theme between Steph and Kara in this issue particularly poignant - I suppose as I've followed her story over the past year I'd assumed Steph was acutely aware of the support that's around her, most notably from Barbara Gordon - and this was a timely reminder that she's still at heart a girl who's finding her way in the world, in her world.

The dialogue throughout this issue was a joy - light, fun, at times throw-away, at times remarkably sensitive without ever feeling unreal, unnecessary or making the individuals look or sound foolish. The early exchange between Steph and Kara, as they strolled the campus grounds was particularly enjoyable as Kara articulated her idea of what a 'normal' evening is for a university student - she really did come across to me as being endearingly naïve at that point. Likewise I enjoyed Kara's behaviour during the screening itself as she clearly hadn't grasped quite what was happening before her eyes - and the comments between herself and Steph when reality dawned!

As is so often the case with this title I appreciated the pacing of the story, from the slow, mundane opening scenes featuring Stephanie and her mother, through the sense of adventure and possibilities as the two friends shared a 'typical' evening out, through the chaos of the overloaded laboratory equipment and the chase for the 'duplicate Draculas' to the once again sedate, calm, genuinely touching scene as the story closed.

Turning my attention to the art throughout this book - what can I say that I haven't said a hundred times before? To say that I'll miss Lee Garbett's pencils on the Batgirl title would be an understatement of massive proportions. From the first issue of the relaunch I immediately connected with Mr Garbett's take on Stephanie, her Batgirl, Barbara ... the 'tone' of the Batgirl series comes as much from his fine, detailed, delicate pencils as much as Mr Miller's fluid writing, Trevor Scott's inks, the fantastic colouring of Guy Major, Travis Lanham's lettering and the eye catching covers of Stanley Lau and Phil Noto.

Lee Garbett's eye, and talent, for detail is evident throughout every panel - from the oft-acknowledged emotive facial expressions, tone-defining and fluid movement and the often beautiful locations. As has been stated numerous times before I consider that we've been truly blessed that Mr Garbett was tasked with defining the look and visual 'feel' of Stephanie Brown and of Batgirl ... as he now leaves the book with this issue I'd like to express my gratitude for a job incredibly well done, I look forward to following his work on his next book and I look forward to perhaps one day seeing him return to the title.

Throughout the series we've been treated to a number of exceptional covers and this issue is a fine example of this - if you were looking at the cover in a shop or on-line how could you not want to buy this book? It screams of something different, something unique with the two heroines front and centre surrounded by identical monochrome Dracula's, with an illuminated theatre (cinema) display supporting a pair of 3D glasses!

If, by some remote possibility you haven't already jumped on board with Batgirl then now would be a great time. This is a fantastic, stand-alone issue that gives a subtle insight into the mind-set of the central character and introduces a very welcome 'guest star' wrapped around what was a hugely enjoyable, engaging story.

Top marks to all involved.

Batgirl #14
Written by Bryan Q. Miller, pencils by Lee Garbett, inks by Trevor Scott, colours by Guy Major, letters by Travis Lanham, cover by Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau
Published by DC Comics, November 2010

Dustin Nguyen Joins the Batgirl Team

DC Comics have announced that from issue #15 artist Dustin Nguyen will join writer Bryan Q. Miller on Batgirl.

Speaking to The Source Dustin Nguyen said “This is definitely going to be an exciting venture for me, besides the outline Bryan has for us, I’m just plain excited to be drawing Batgirl”.

Mr Nguyen went on to say “This latest incarnation of her has lots of the aesthetics of the original Babs that I love and some new ones. It’ll take me some getting used to drawing a female in horns, but I’m looking forward to putting away the “mean and moody” for a while and kick in the ‘fun and sexy.’”

With current artist Lee Garbett's year-long run from the books inception coming to an end with issue #14 there's been plenty of speculation as to who would be taking over artistic duties: Pere Pérez has been working with Lee Garbett on recent issues of Batgirl, I've been enjoying his work and, like a number of people, I assumed he'd be working on the book going forward.

I'm looking forward to seeing Dustin Nguyen's work on Batgirl: I'm a huge fan of Lee Garbett's work - and I'm looking forward to seeing his next 'top-secret' projects - and although he has a quite different style I've appreciated Dustin Nguyen's art on Batman: Streets of Gotham and I'm looking forward to seeing his interpretation of Stephanie, Barbara, et al.

Referring to the sneak peak look at Dustin Nguyen's cover - shown here - for Batgirl #15 series writer Bryan Q. Miller warned that the scene would be "one of the last truly quiet moments our Batgirl is going to have for quite a while. But she’s ready for it - you can tell from the look on her face. That’s Steph for you — always smiling!".

Batgirl #15 is due in shops during November this year.

Dustin Nguyen links:
official site
deviantART

Exeter International Comic Expo - September 2010

I've received news ahead of the Exeter International Comic Expo 2010, sponsored by Com.x, and it looks like we're in for another superb event from organisers Fantasy Events UK, the team behind the ever-popular Bristol International Comic and Small Press Expo.

Taking place at the Mercure Southgate Hotel, in the heart of Exeter city centre, on Sunday 19 September 2010, the Exeter International Comic Expo features a host of talented creators including Special Guests Lee Garbett (Outsiders, Batgirl, Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne), David Hine and Shaky Kane, who will be signing copies of Bulletproof Coffin with issue #4 debuting at the Expo, Matt Timson (The Impaler, The Darkness, The Darkness: High Noon) along with Guest of Honour Mike Ploog.

Lee Garbett will be signing copies of the recently published Batgirl Rising trade paperback which features the first 7 issues of the series written by Bryan Q. Miller. Furthermore, Expo visitors who purchase a copy of Batgirl Rising from the Krackers booth will receive a print of this fantastic pencilled splash page - from Batgirl #12 - which will be printed on A3 300gsm card stock: you'll find me somewhere in that queue!


As well as the creators there will be a wide range of dealers in attendance including Expo regulars Reed Comics, Full Circle Publications, PsiComics, The Comic Man and the aforementioned Taunton-based Krackers.

The event takes place from 11am to 4pm with entry an absolute bargain £2 while children under 12 years of age are admitted free of charge with a fee paying adult.

I attended Fantasy Events Exeter Expo in February of this year and had a wonderful day picking up a load of back-issues, new publications, sketches and chatting with creators and comic fans alike. The venue, the Mercure Southgate Hotel, was absolutely superb with fantastic facilities, friendly staff, large function rooms and a great restaurant.

I can't recommended this event too highly - along with the Bristol International Comic and Small Press Expo the Exeter Expo has quickly become one of the highlights of my 'comic year' - and more details and additions to guest list can, of course, be found at the Fantasy Events website.

EXETER INTERNATIONAL COMIC EXPO
Sunday 19 September, 11am to 4pm
Mercure Exeter Southgate Hotel

Expo website

Batgirl #12 Reviewed

This issue of Batgirl has very much a 'coming of age' feel about it as we witnessed the concluding part of the 'Batgirl Rising: The Flood' story-arc and with it the end of Stephanie Brown's first year in the role of Batgirl.

Having leapt from an aircraft piloted by Wendy Harris at the close of issue #10 this issue opens with Stephanie plunging towards Calculator's compound in deep in Slaughter Swamp. In the compound, she knows, is Oracle - Barbara Gordon - who's being held captive.

As Steph's parachute opens she reminds herself of the magnitude of the task in hand and her responsibilities to her friend Barbara - the one person who's ever really cared about her - and just as importantly to herself, as she reminds us who she is ... Batgirl!

Inside the compound, and more precisely inside Calculator's mind, we see a young Noah Kuttler imprisoned in a cage. As Babs - or a least Kuttler's impression of Babs - approaches the small child she's violently attacked from behind and sent tumbling to the floor.

Elsewhere, Stephanie has entered the compound only to be faced with some elaborate - and life threatening - security measures. Wendy meanwhile, is in communication with Steph from high above the compound. Bemoaning that she isn't able to help more Wendy wistfully recalls the motivation for her and her brother to run away from home and join the Teen Titans: to protect the world from men like her father, the Calculator.

As Steph skillfully evades the first of the deadly security measures she stumbles - literally - upon the lifeless body of Marvin, Wendy's brother. No doubt sensing the emotion in Wendy's voice Steph questions whether she ought to have said anything to Wendy at that time. Wendy meanwhile, with tears running down her cheeks, comes to a decision - she feels she can't help Steph while she's piloting the aircraft - and warns Steph not to touch anything for fear that her father has planned further deterrents.

Too late!

Elsewhere in the compound, and still in Kuttler's mind, he and Babs tumble through an apartment door - 'You stole my daughter from me' he accuses Babs, 'I saved her from you' she retorts. Moments later the physical and verbal tussle is interrupted by a crying baby - or more to the point two crying babies. Immediately realising what this 'vision' represents Kuttler discovers the bloodied body of his wife who had taken her own life. With her attacker momentarily distracted Babs seizes the opportunity to distance herself and begins the search for a way to separate her thoughts from those of the Calculator.

However, with their thoughts immediately rejoined Babs witnesses Calculator beating up on a bound and bloodied Kid Eternity, while moments later he's seated and calmly explaining that he can, and will, end their mental ordeal - and that he has no intention that either of them will survive the evening.

'Back in the real world' and Stephanie has discovered the device that will, in a matter of seconds, terminate Calculator's army of drones ... and in turn potentially destroy Gotham City. Unable to reach Wendy on the comms unit Stephanie takes aim with her grappling gun, fires into the device and yanks its core away.

Catastrophe averted? Sort of. With the device disabled Steph faces a second, altogether more challenging opponent - a giant 'creature' formed from power or data cables. As the creature targets Steph she's aware of tremendous crashing noise as Wendy plunges her aircraft into the compound, taking out the creature at the same time.

With nothing now to stop them Stephanie and Wendy set out to find Barbara and rescue her from the Calculator. Having done so Wendy - once again with streams of tears on her face - makes sure that her father 'won't be bothering anyone for a very long time'.

Later on, outside Gotham City University, Babs and Stephanie talk about their ordeal - Kuttler is in New Arkham, everyone who had been infected no longer remembers and Steph acknowledges that without Babs to lean on for support she was grateful for Wendy's backup. As Nick Gage arrives to meet Babs Steph excuses herself and joins Wendy who, while looking over a family photograph album, talks of needing a fresh start in life. Steph, clearly understanding where Wendy is coming from, offers her support.

Time passes and we find ourselves with Steph - again as Batgirl - in Devil's Square where she encounters a somewhat comedic villain named Blimp Master. Relaying this information back to their 'Firewall' base Babs reveals that Wendy - appropriately enough code-named Proxy - will stand in to help Steph on those occasions that she - Oracle - is unavailable.

Batgirl Rising concludes with a scene in a cell at Gotham Central Lockup where the occupant - Johnny C, last seen I believe in issue #9 - chillingly declares that he's looking forward to seeing Batgirl again because 'she's gonna need all the help she can get' ...


As I say, this certainly felt like a 'landmark' issue, in the same way that a 50th or 100th issue of a book feels different to a 51st or 99th, and as such I've found this a difficult issue to review in isolation and therefore found myself looking at it in the context of such a landmark.

Over the past year we've followed Stephanie and Barbara on what has been a challenging and, at times, uncomfortable journey. A year ago Steph and Babs set out without apparently knowing where they wanted to go - or even sure of their motivation for making the journey - and along the way there have been harsh words, any number of 'I'm out of my depth' situations, lots of bickering, plenty of laughter - to the point that through the pages of this particular issue it's clear that both women now have a clearer picture of what the future holds for them.

We've seen Steph's confidence in herself and her abilities grow and at the same time we've witnessed Barbara's willingness to trust and believe in the new Batgirl.

The inclusion of Calculator as the central villain in this story-arc felt to me, at first, just a little predictable but as the story unfolded I came to appreciate the opportunities his inclusion permitted - Barbara's complicated past, Wendy ultimately breaking out from under her father's shadow, Steph appreciating the parallels with her own father ...

Speaking of Wendy! With her initial, albeit at times brief, appearances in the series it became apparent that she was destined to play a more significant role in Steph and Bab's lives and sure enough, as predicted, she's set to become Batgirl's new 'handler' on those occasions when Barbara is 'unavailable'. I most definitely welcome her inclusion in the Batgirl team and I'm looking forward to seeing her character develop.

I can't say that I've particularly warmed to Wendy's personality so far but then I think it's fair to say that Wendy herself hasn't been particularly fond of herself. Through the pages of this issue I believe we've seen a change in Wendy's outlook on life and as she again learns to like herself the reader will have the chance to do likewise.

From the very first issue the books creative team - on this issue Bryan Q. Miller, Lee Garbett, Pere Perez and Waldon Wong - have consistently found the right tone: fun, funny, purposeful without ever taking itself too seriously and this issue maintains that tradition. I enjoy Mr Miller's writing technique of using of a few words of dialogue as scene transitions and, not for the first time, the 'I'm Batgirl' declaration at the start of the book gives us an insight into Steph's mindset. This time I felt the words were spoken with steel and determination whereas earlier in the series Steph appeared to use them as much to remind herself as inform the reader.

As with the previous issue I appreciated the 'thought' sequences - they may not have made for an easy read at times but they were in themselves quite thought provoking and I found them all the more powerful on second or third read.

I'm not too sure about the idea of Wendy crashing her jet into the compound to aid Stephanie - any more than I was sure about Barbara remotely crashing an ambulance in an earlier issue - but if these instances are the closest the book comes to 'silly' moments then I'm prepared to go with it.

The artwork throughout this issue is, as expected, magnificent: Lee Garbett, inked by Waldon Wong, and Pere Perez make a great team and I think we're lucky to have such talented artists working on the book. I particularly enjoyed the 'I'm Batgirl' splash page early in the book - I love the expression of determination on Batgirl's face - and I found the scenes with Wendy and Steph sitting under a tree getting to know one another really quite touching.

Continuing the theme, Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau provided another superb cover showing Batgirl bloodied, customer torn and yet with a smile that speaks to me of her determination and satisfaction. [Note to DC: this would make a fabulous poster!]

Once again we have been treated to a really great read from what has become a really great series. If there is a better, more enjoyable series being published at the moment then I've not seen it.

It's been a good year to be a Batgirl fan - here's to the coming 12 months.

Batgirl #12
Written by Bryan Q. Miller, pencils by Lee Garbett and Pere Perez, inks by Walden Wong and Pere Perez, colours by Guy Major, letters by John J. Hill, cover by Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau
Published by DC Comics, 32 pages, $2.99


As always when I review Batgirl I'd like to point you in the direction of a couple of great sites that will appeal to anyone with an interest in the Batman family. In addition to carrying my reviews of Batgirl and Birds of Prey you'll find all sorts of Batman and Batgirl-related news, commentary and conversation over at The Batgirl to Oracle Podcast message board and The Batman Universe Editorials - part of The Batman Universe network.

Batgirl and Supergirl - Lee Garbett Pencils

Over at his blog Lee Garbett has shared a page of pencils from the forthcoming Batgirl #14:


(Yes, that really is Supergirl! See the solicitation at the foot of this post)

I'm running out of compliments for Mr Garbett's work - these pencils are simply stunning and I can't wait for my next Batgirl fix with issue #12 that's due next Wednesday and will, of course, be my advance 'Pick of the Week'.

If you're not currently picking up the Batgirl book and are tempted to jump on board there couldn't be a better time - next week also sees the publication of the trade paperback Batgirl Rising which includes the first 7 issues of the current series and runs across 176 pages. I rarely pick up collections of books that I buy as single issues but I'll certainly be making an exception in this case.

I think we've been really fortunate to have artists of the calibre of Lee Garbett working on the Batgirl title and I'll certainly miss his beautiful pencils when his run, inevitably, comes to a close.

Batgirl #14
Written by Bryan Q. Miller with art by Lee Garbett & Trevor Scott and cover by Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau

It's terror in the third dimension starring Batgirl, Supergirl and Dracula…and Dracula, and Dracula! When Supergirl decides to get away from it all and visit Stephanie Brown on the campus of Gotham City University, a quiet, relaxing weekend turns into a monster movie mash-up! After a science experiment goes horribly wrong, 24 black-and-white Draculas are brought to life, and Batgirl and Supergirl are forced to become vampire hunters in order to stop an army of the celluloid undead!

The issue goes on sale 8 September 2010.

Batgirl #11 Reviewed

After the dark, threatening close to Batgirl #10 this, the third of the four part 'The Flood' story-arc, opens with quite a different tone, and it's immediately clear not everything is as it at first seems ...

Barbara Gordon wakes from her nights sleep with a bit of a start and sits up in her bed as Dick Grayson enters the room, gives her a kiss and urges her to get up and dressed. As her extended family relax, Barbara is racing around the kitchen preparing what appears to be a Thanksgiving dinner, accompanied by the sound of a complaining young Damian Wayne and the loving words and embrace of her father.

Throughout these scenes of happy family life Babs questions to herself what she's seeing, what she's feeling and as happy as she is she knows something is wrong. Moments later she's reminded of her friend Stephanie Brown and there's a somewhat familiar visitor to her front door ...

Cutting to the Calculators compound, deep in Slaughter Swamp, we witness the motionless body of Barbara, laid out on an examination table, with the Calculator sat alongside her talking to the decomposing body of his late son Marvin.

Appreciating that Barbara may be the key to some of his unanswered questions, Calculator plugs himself into his own laboratory equipment that is in turn connected to Barbara with the intention of seeing or reading Babs thoughts.

Over at the Gotham Port Authority Stephanie Brown - Batgirl - has evaded capture by the massed ranks of Calculator's zombies and has been pursued by an equally 'possessed' Man-Bat. Out-running her assailant Steph takes a minute to catch her breath, only to find herself snagged by another familiar adversary - and this time it's Catwoman.

Acutely aware that her priority has to be to help Barbara and that time is not on their side, Steph draws on her inner strength, fights back and with a swift blow sends her opponent to the ground. As one 'zombie' danger is averted another appears - Huntress, or as Stephanie herself acknowledges '... questionable-morals-action-Huntress'!

As her next challenger steps forward Steph gets an unexpected incoming message over her comms unit - Wendy Harris, who we saw trapped at Firewall in the previous issue. While continuing to combat Huntress Steph and Wendy clumsily, awkwardly, introduce one-another before we get a possible glimpse of Wendy's future as the young woman activates the surveillance functionality of the Firewall's computer, attempts to guide Steph to safety and then in turn traces Calculator's location.

While Wendy considers what else, if anything, she can do to help rescue Oracle, Stephanie has more immediate problems on her hands - she's been tracked by Man-Bat ... surely she can't escape this time?

While Stephanie fights for her own safety we return to Barbara who is engaged in a fight of her own as she is confronted by the thoughts of Calculator. Set in a library housing Barbara's memories and experiences she fights to keep her intruder at a distance.

Returning to ... well, returning to reality and as the rain gets heavier and the sky is lit by lightning and the sound of thunder we see the silhouette of Batgirl and Man-Bat fighting high above Gotham Harbor. Realising that perhaps she's more than met her match on this occasion Stephanie looks for an escape when, again, the voice of Wendy Harris echos across the comms link.

As Steph looks down on an airfield runway she's taken aback to see The Ricochet - a vehicle she's more than familiar with of course - piloted by none other than Wendy herself.

Having freed herself from the clutches of Man-Bat, Steph jumps to the ground where she's met by Wendy - and with hoards of zombies closing in on them Stephanie realises they have only one option is they are to ensure their own safety and rescue Barbara ...


Despite limited appearances throughout this issue, for me Barbara was undoubtedly the star of Batgirl #11. A real highlight in this issue were the Barbara 'dream' or 'thought' sequences - I find them difficult to describe so fully appreciate Bryan Q. Miller's vision and imagination to conceive and write these - particularly the chapter of this tale where Babs and Calculator fight over her thoughts and memories which I thought was possibly some of the best writing we've seen in this series to date.

What's absolutely clear to me is that Miller 'gets' Barbara - or perhaps I should say the Barbara he writes rings true for me: her strengths, her weaknesses, her fears, her ambitions and her regrets - as I say, some of the best writing I feel we've seen so far.

Personally I found the 'Batgirl versus Catwoman versus Huntress versus Man-Bat' scenes just a little drawn out although I concede that this gave us an opportunity to see Wendy Harris come to the fore and possibly give us a taste of things to come. To this point she's felt somewhat redundant amongst the supporting cast and, on the basis that the character is likely to around for a while I welcomed seeing her particular role developed.

On artwork duties we've again been spoiled to have such a talented team on the book. As I feel we saw with an earlier issue of Batgirl, having more than one artist work on an issue doesn't necessarily work but the respective styles of Lee Garbett and Pere Perez are uniquely different (if I'm right in suggesting that Garbett drew the first half of the book up to the Babs 'thoughts' sequence) and yet at the same time complementary. If indeed Perez is taking on art duties when Garbett moves on then I believe the book, and it's readers, are in safe hands. Returning to the 'dream' sequences for a moment, again credit must go to the artists for their respective interpretations - I particularly enjoyed Perez's portrayal of Babs in the library scene.

Furthermore, an acknowledgement is due also to Walden Wong for his bold sharp inks throughout the first half of the book and likewise to Guy Major for his sensitive colouring - most definitely a feature of his time on Batgirl. With another eye-catching, if in places little busy, cover from Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau creation of this book is truly a team effort.

Another hugely enjoyable adventure from the Batgirl creative team - this issue felt a little like the calm before the storm (no pun intended) that I'm expecting with the final part of this story-arc.


Batgirl #11
Written by Bryan Q. Miller, pencils by Lee Garbett and Pere Perez, inks by Walden Wong and Pere Perez, colours by Guy Major, letters by Travis Lanham, cover by Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau
Published by DC Comics, 32 pages, $2.99


As always when I review Batgirl I'd like to point you in the direction of a couple of great sites that will appeal to anyone with an interest in the Batman family. In addition to carrying my reviews of Batgirl and Birds of Prey you'll find all sorts of Batman and Batgirl-related news, commentary and conversation over at The Batman Universe Editorials blog - part of The Batman Universe network, and at The Batgirl to Oracle Podcast message board.

Batgirl and Birds of Prey: Brightest Day and Batman Solicits for September 2010

As regular readers will have noticed, I'm reading a lot of DC - and particularly Batman - titles these days. The Source have today published details of September's Batman and Brightest Day releases with some intriguing solicits and great looking covers.

Here are, for me, some of the stand-out releases:

Batgirl #14
Written by Bryan Q. Miller with art by Lee Garbett & Trevor Scott and cover by Stanley “Artgerm” Lau
It’s terror in the third dimension starring Batgirl, Supergirl and Dracula ... and Dracula, and Dracula! When Supergirl decides to get away from it all and visit Stephanie Brown on the campus of Gotham City University, a quiet, relaxing weekend turns into a monster movie mash-up! After a science experiment goes horribly wrong, 24 black-and-white Draculas are brought to life, and Batgirl and Supergirl are forced to become vampire hunters in order to stop an army of the celluloid undead!
On sale 8 September 2010, 32 pages, $2.99

Birds of Prey #5
Written by Gail Simone with art by Alvin Lee and cover by Alina Urusov
Join writer Gail Simone and guest artist Alvin Lee as two Birds track down a missing team member in Thailand ... where someone is hunting them to make sure they never return! Plus, the shocking events of Brightest Day continue to rock Hawk and Dove, the newest recruits to Oracle’s organization!
On sale 15 September 2010, 32 pages, $2.99

Batman #703
Written by Peter Milligan with art and cover by Tony Daniel with a 1:10 “DC 75th Anniversary” variant cover by Kevin Nowlan
Celebrating the “Return of Bruce Wayne”! Those closest to The Dark Knight look back on the legacy he has created. Featuring appearances by Alfred, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Damian Wayne, Selina Kyle and more!
On sale 8 September 2010, 32 pages, $2.99

Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #6
Written by Grant Morrison with art by Lee Garbett & Walden Wong
Cover by Andy Kubert with a 1:25 variant cover by Lee Garbett
Grant Morrison and Batgirl artist Lee Garbett deliver the final chapter of this time-spanning epic! With Bruce Wayne just steps away from returning to present day Gotham City, the timestream might have a few more surprises in store for The Dark Knight! Do not miss this issue, as it paves the way for the shocking future era of Batman!
On sale 1 September 2010, issue #6 of 6, 40 pages, $3.99

Batman and Robin #16
Written by Grant Morrison with art by Cameron Stewart and cover by Frank Quitely with a 1:25 variant cover by Ethan van Sciver
Don’t miss this fantastic finale as Batman and Robin’s storyline connects with The Return of Bruce Wayne! The climactic showdown between Batman and the Black Glove is finally here. It’s payback time for The Dark Knight as Batman and Robin face the ultimate evil. Will Damian betray his father’s legacy? Will Bruce Wayne return just in time to see Dick Grayson die? Plus, The Joker and Professor Pyg!
This is only the beginning of a startling new status quo for the Batman ...
On sale 15 September 2010, 32 pages, $2.99

Red Robin #16
Written by Fabian Nicieza with art and cover by Marcus To & Ray McCarthy
The new Anarky has his own version of Red Robin’s Hit List! Ulysses Armstrong has made a record of Gotham City teens who could be Red Robin – and he’s murdering them one by one. With an incapacitated Tim Drake crossed off his list, can Red Robin stop Anarky before the villain attacks his next target? And with the deaths of innocents weighing on his conscience, how far will Red Robin go to cross Anarky off his own Hit List?
On sale 8 September 2010, 32 pages, $2.99


For full solicits and preview covers of Septembers Brightest Day and Batman releases visit The Source.

Pencilled and Inked Batgirl Pages from Lee Garbett and Waldon Wong

Over at his blog, Lee Garbett has posted a number of preview pages from forthcoming issues of Batgirl.

Inked by Walden Wong, two of the pages are from issue #11, which is scheduled to be published later this week:

with a third image, again inked by Walden Wong, from issue #12 which is due for release next month, 14 July:


I really enjoy seeing such 'in progress' previews - as someone with no artistic talent whatsoever I find they help me appreciate the individual skills of the penciller, inker and colourist..

Source
Lee Garbett blog
Waldon Wong blog, website

Batgirl #10 Reviewed

When I discovered that regular, and one of my favourite, artists Lee Garbett was being joined by a second artist - Pere Perez - for this issue I was, I have to be honest, a little concerned. No sooner had I recognised and acknowledged that Batgirl was pretty much everything I could want from a comic book along came change - issue #8 featured a new artistic team and left me disappointed and while the last issue saw a return to form I still had reservations.

Thankfully I needn't have worried.

Batgirl returns with the second part of a four-part story arc - Batgirl Rising: The Flood. With the rain still falling the issue opens deep in Slaughter Swamp, Calculator's deceptively spacious base of operations, where in the shadow of a huge satellite dish and transmitter Calculator himself is chatting away - partly I suspect to himself but also to the lifeless body of his late son Marvin - about his plans to, as he sees it, teach Oracle a 'lesson in humility'.

On the roof-tops of Gotham City, meanwhile, an unsettled Batgirl - Stephanie Brown - is on patrol. She's unsettled because Barbara Gordon, working back at the Batcave while in constant communication with Steph, is herself unsettled - neither woman is too sure quite what's unfolding before them, just that something bad is just around the corner.

As their conversation continues, Stephanie intervenes to break up a gang of motorcyclists who are harassing some young women. In between delivering kicks and punches it becomes clear to Steph that the history Barbara shares with the Calculator is at the heart of her concerns. Conscious that she's a target Barbara urges Stephanie that for her own safety she ought to keep a low profile - maybe underestimating Steph's abilities to look after herself. Maybe sensing the scale of the danger ahead.

Later, at Gotham City University, Detective Nick Gage has called on Assistant Professor Barbara Gordon: trying the door and realising that Babs isn't around Gage lets himself in. As curiosity gets the better of him he inspects a file that's open on the desk - and realises he and Barbara have a mutual friend as he discovers a newspaper cutting featuring some of Stephanie's recent exploits as Batgirl.

Lost in his thoughts for a moment Gage doesn't realise that he's no longer alone in the room and Stephanie surprises him as she introduces herself. When the two had met previously Stephanie was in Batgirl mode and she's relieved that Gage clearly doesn't recognise her. Given that she - as Batgirl - and Gage had been flirtatious towards one another previously Steph becomes more than a little embarrassed as Gage hints at his burgeoning friendship with Barbara and she quickly changes the subject.

Across the city Wendy Harris has entered the lift in Barbara's apartment building and, with the help of a laptop computer has overridden security protocol and is heading for the sub-basement. As the lift heads down Wendy finds herself musing over the curious things she's encountered recently - Professor Gordon is up to something, 'that Stephanie girl', Tim 'Wayne ... or Drake', 'ninjas' and as the doors open she discovers she's been led to Firewall - the new Oracle control-centre.

Back in Slaughter Swamp the clock ticks down ... three, two, one ... and Calculator ignites his plan to teach Oracle a lesson.

Returning to the Computer Science Lab at Gotham U. and with her back turned towards the class, with her students concentrating on their computer screens and mobile phones Barbara is unaware of the strange zombie-like behaviour that's overcome her audience ... 'target acquired'. In the hallway Stephanie passes an equally strangely behaving Jordanna ... 'target acquired'.

The order is given: 'detain the target'. Turning to discover that she's under attack Barbara strikes out to protect herself as Stephanie - now in uniform - joins the fight before fleeing from the building with Barbara. As they make their way towards the car park they realise that they're outnumbered and surrounded. As the zombies engulf them Barbara is knocked to the ground and urges Batgirl to save herself and run - Batgirl of course refuses to do any such thing as she continues to fight back. As the issue closes we see Barbara's 'frozen' body lifted high above the heads of her attackers and carried away as Batgirl loses her footing, falls to the ground before discovering that she and Barbara have been fighting with some very familiar faces.

As I've already indicated I certainly enjoyed this book. Whereas the series as a whole so far has focused quite heavily on characters and their development this issue featured a lot more action than we've been used to and as such the book felt faster-paced and a little darker - menacing even.

For what is a fun, even light read, the Batgirl title demands commitment from me as a reader I find. I enjoy Bryan Q. Miller's 'layered' approach to storytelling - by layered I'm referring to the practice of overlapping narration and dialogue from one scene to the next - and it works particularly well in this issue as we jump about from location to location.

The artwork styles of Garbett and Perez complemented one another - different enough to be distinctive without being so different that the book felt disjointed. Maybe had they both been drawing the same same characters then a lack of consistency might have been exposed but (if I've followed the artwork correctly) with Perez drawing the 'middle third' of the book this pitfall was neatly avoided.

Once again Stanley Lau delivered a superb cover for this issue - although I generally prefer a 'cleaner', less busy look and did appreciate what I saw as a nod towards those great comic book covers of the 50's and 60's that screamed drama and excitement at the reader.

Although a fairly low-key scene I enjoyed the early exchange between Barbara and Stephanie. It's clear from Babs words and demeanor that she knows how much she hurt Calculator and, of course, how much he hurt her and the Birds of Prey.

In a similar vein I enjoyed the scenes between Detective Gage and Stephanie where Steph so nearly let on that the two had previously met. I thought the panels where we saw a shy and blushing Steph were particularly sweet - another reminder that she's still a young girl - and I also enjoyed the 'coded' conversation that the two enjoyed where Steph told Gage that it wasn't just Babs that was looking out for him.

The appearances of Wendy Harris continue to tease - just what have the creative team got in store for her? I'm convinced she's got a role to play in the book - I think I've said before that I suspect she's being lined-up as Stephanie's handler - but we'll just have to wait and see.

What I do know is it was nice to see her smiling for once!

As an aside, I enjoyed the appearance of a couple of 'notes from the editor' in this book - while such notes might be considered a little unnecessary by some for me it's an acknowledgement that every comic is someones first comic and an indication that the creators value their new and old readers alike.

Another excellent issue from the Batgirl team - if there's a better combination of great characters, strong writing and distinctive, eye-catching artwork being published at the moment then I've not come across it: highly recommended.

Batgirl #10
Written by Bryan Q. Miller with art by Lee Garbett and Pere Perez, cover by Stanley "Artgerm" Lau
Published by DC Comics, 32 pages, $2.99

Note:
DC have published an eight-page preview along with the solicitation for Batgirl #10 at their website.

My reviews of Batgirl are also published at The Batman Universe Editorials blog - part of The Batman Universe network, and over at The Batgirl to Oracle Podcast message board.

Batgirl #9 Reviewed

Following one or two reservations - okay, I'll say it, disappointments - with the previous issue I'd really been looking forward to seeing the return of a more familiar Batgirl with this release. 'Batgirl Rising: The Flood' marks the start of a new four-part story-arc that begins aboard a train screeching along the tracks through Gotham City. From the conversation between the driver and his Control it's clear something is amiss, that the driver isn't able to stop the train. Inside one of the carriages a middle-aged man - Johnny C - with a clear grudge against Gotham City wears explosives strapped around his waste as the passengers look on in fear.

As the train dashes in and out of the next station without stopping we see Batgirl - Stephanie Brown - desperately hanging on to the last carriage as she communicates with Oracle back at the Batcave. Having pulled herself up onto the roof of the train Stephanie surveys the situation inside the car, courtesy of thermal vision, and for the first time appreciates the scale of her task.

Rejecting Oracle's suggestion that she call in backup, Steph 'tools up', asks for the train to be plunged into darkness and ... CRASH ... swings through a window, knocks Johnny C from his feet amid a flurry of one-liners, calmly disarms the man and, with the lighting restored, receives - and accepts - the appreciation of the grateful passengers.

Soon afterwards, with the dramatic events behind them, Commissioner Gordon approaches Stephanie with a word of thanks, a warm hand on her shoulder and a reminder to be cautious. Stephanie seems a little taken aback by Gordon's comments, and as she reflects on a job very well done, it begins to rain before, almost immediately, catching her in a downpour.

In the meantime, with the rain getting heavier and forecasts suggesting that the weather is set in for the next 24 hours, over at the Computer Sciences lab of Gotham University Barbara Gordon is at work in her office accompanied by student Wendy Harris.

While Wendy works to repair some electrical equipment Barbara is reminiscing about a previous encounter with Wendy's father - The Calculator - in which she foiled his attempts to cure Wendy of her paralysis using a dangerous procedure and ground-breaking technology.

Recounting the events that led to her brother Marvin's death and her own physical condition, Wendy's emotions get the better of her and she snaps back at Barbara's well-meaning words of encouragement, before pushing Barbara further away with some harsh words. The mood changes somewhat as the two are joined by Stephanie - now out of uniform of course - who is reminded that she and Wendy have met once before, at the fundraiser for the Thompkins Clinic. As Wendy leaves the office Barbara asks Steph to follow her ...

Across the city, at the offices of Elysium Tech, Commissioner Gordon and Detective Nick Gage look on bemused at the blood-soaked body of an Elysium employee who had been discovered in very mysterious circumstances - it appears at first inspection that the individual had locked himself in the room and taken his own life, however it's not at all clear how or why. With blood covering the floor and the walls around the body Detective Gage identifies an unusual smell in the air around the deceased ... curious!

Returning to the space beneath Barbara's apartment building we are introduced to the 'Team Batgirl' new secret base in the making - Firewall! In a fantastic, fun panel, amid the high-tech workstations we see a number of buckets and pans catching drops of water as we are reminded of the atrocious weather conditions outside. As Barbara works to establish network connectivity and discusses her concerns and frustrations about Wendy with Steph she receives an alert that there's another incident underway at the offices of Elysium.

A coincidence?

As Stephanie makes her way to the Elysium facility Detective Gage is already on site investigating the earlier suicide when the alarm sounds. Drawing his weapon, and making his way to the source of the security breach, he asks one of the staff members who had been assisting him to call for GCPD back-up - with alarming consequences for the young employee.

Arriving at the scene - level 38, Restricted Research - Gage is swept off his feet as he runs into a large security guard. As he soon realises that the man is behaving suspiciously Nick finds himself at gun-point as the guard reels off a puzzling string of binary code. As the trigger is about to be pulled the weapon is knocked to the ground by a well-aimed batarang thrown by Batgirl. As Gage and Stephanie engage in clumsy verbal flirting the guard turns, runs, leaps through a window and falls towards his death. Stephanie immediately races after the man and does her best to catch him, but she just can't hold his weight.

Later that day both Stephanie and Detective Gage are at the West Mercy mortuary, collecting the results of the security guards autopsy. As the two wait, Barbara is back at the Batcave analysing the mans blood sample ... and she comes to a startling discovery.

Ordering Stephanie to return to the Batcave Barbara explains that the sample contains a colony of nanites that are transmitting a subtle wi-fi trace - technology that Barbara has seen before.

The issue closes at a property out in Slaughter Swamp as the rain continues to fall: sat in front of a bank of displays is none other than the aforementioned Calculator. Viewing pictures of his daughter Wendy, he turns to the lifeless, decaying body of his son Marvin and declares that they are going to 'save' the girl.

'And you won't want to miss the best part' ...


Following last issues 'dip', in my opinion, this issue felt like a real return to form. With Lee Garbett back on pencil duties and Guy Major taking care of colours, the art returned to a quality and style I've come to expect with this series and this, is turn, gave the book a much more confident and familiar feel.

I commented after reading issue #8 of Batgirl that Stephanie just didn't seem like ... well she didn't seem like Stephanie: I've grown very fond of this cheeky, self-believing while at the same time self-deprecating young woman and in the last issue I just didn't see enough of her. Thankfully, throughout the pages of this issue I feel 'my' Steph returned with a healthy dose of wise-cracks, confidence, inner strength and physical comedy - none more so than during the opening pages of the book as Stephanie is towed at high speed behind the speeding train!

The appearances of Wendy Harris through previous issues of this series have puzzled and intrigued me in equal measure and, with the introduction of The Calculator into this story we get quite possibly the first indication of her true intended role. She's felt a little superfluous to the cast of characters up until this point so I'm glad for the opportunity to see her in a different context and I'm looking forward to seeing this particular theme develop.

Our first glimpse of the 'firewall' - the base of operations for Barbara and Stephanie - was something I also enjoyed. There was a nice sense of humour throughout these couple of pages - I thought the 'Now you're talking my language' exchange between Barbara and Stephanie was particularly charming. It'll be good over the coming months to see Barbara and Stephanie create their own home ground rather than relying on others 'cast-offs': it's a small but important step towards Batgirl - the character and the title - becoming more self-sufficient I think.

Throughout the early issues of this series Phil Noto produced some quite exceptional covers and new artist Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau has continued the tradition with his contribution to this issue - portraying Batgirl looking wind-swept, rain-soaked and sitting atop the sort of roof-top architecture of Gotham City that Bat-books are famous for, this cover is quite beautiful.

In summary, this was a very good first part of a new story arc - with themes continued from previous issues, 'new' characters introduced, a number of clues indicating the direction the story could be heading and an ending that leaves me keen for the next issues.

Welcome back Batgirl.

Batgirl #9
Written by Bryan Q. Miller with art by Lee Garbett, cover by Stanley "Artgerm" Lau
Published by DC Comics, 32 pages, $2.99


My reviews of Batgirl are also published at The Batman Universe Editorials blog - part of The Batman Universe network, and now, I'm delighted to say, over at The Batgirl to Oracle Podcast message board.

Batgirl #10 Sneak-Peak

Over at his Twitter page Lee Garbett has posted a sneak-peak page from Batgirl #10:

Pencils by Lee Garbett with inks from Jonathan Glapion - very, very nice!

Lee Garbett Twitter

Batman News from The Source

News from DCs The Source announcing the artists that will be contributing to the Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne series coming later this summer:

issue #1, Chris Sprouse;
issue #2, Frazer Irving
issue #3, Yanick Paquette;
issue #4, Cameron Stewart
issue #5, Ryan Sook;
issue #6, Lee Garbett

I was already looking forward to this series and now I really can't wait ... what a great line-up. I'm particularly looking forward to seeing Lee Garbett's work on this title: I enjoyed his run on The Outsiders and of course I'm a big fan of his art in his current run on Batgirl.

The same announcement revealed that Frazer Irving will also be taking over artistic duties on Batman and Robin when Andy Clarke’s stint on the series comes to an end - Irving previously worked with Batman and Robin writer Grant Morrison on the Klarion The Witch Boy mini-series - as well as posting the variant cover for issue #2 of Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne.

Batgirl #7 Reviewed

With delivery of my order of last weeks (17/02) new books delayed until later this week I've had plenty of time this weekend to read through some of the bargains I picked up at the Exeter Comic Expo recently, including Daughters of the Dragon, Kitty Pryde - Shadow & Flame, Mice Templar ... all good stuff that I'll touch on in time.

In the meantime my ongoing review of the current Batgirl series continues today with issue number seven.

Batgirl #7
Reviewing this title each month is becoming increasingly difficult - I'm finding there are only so many ways to say 'good story', 'great dialogue', 'fun characters', 'superb art', 'striking covers' ... that said, I'm enjoying the challenge nonetheless as Batgirl continues to be my most looked-forward-to book each month.

This issue, the third and final part of the Batgirl Rising: Core Requirements story-arc, picks-up just where the last issue left-off: Batman is in trouble.

Batgirl and Robin are rushing to his aid before his hunters - Roxy Rocket, Riot and Doctor Phosphorus, each fuelled by a mix of infamy and Roulette's wealth - can kill him.

As Stephanie and Damian race across the roof-tops of Gotham City the bickering - such an enjoyable feature of recent issues - continues: 'What the hell is wrong with you?' asks Stephanie as Damian charges ahead refusing, as he sees it, to be hampered by his companion - 'And you swing like a girl' he counters before disappearing, quite literally, in a puff of smoke to pick up his motorbike.

At the Batcave Barbara Gordon is monitoring the web-feed of Roulette's performance as she tries to locate the source of the broadcast. Aware that Dick is injured and that he needs BOTH Stephanie and Damian if he is going to survive she directs Steph to her private garage, where she's been saving something for a 'special occasion' - and Batman's plight certainly qualifies as just such a special occasion.

As we see Damian, now on his bike, weaving in and out of the Gotham traffic we catch sight of Stephanie advancing rapidly in her own vehicle that's not quite a car, not quite a motorbike ... as we find out later on in the story!

Meanwhile, back in Devil's Square, Batman - weak but not yet beaten - is barely one-step ahead of Phosphorus with Roxy Rocket not far behind. Stephanie and Damian, join forces and work together as Dick, now close to being overwhelmed, sees that help from his young companions is just moments away. Wrestling himself free from his assailant Dick jumps to safety as Damian leaps from his bike ... moments before it impacts on Phosphorus.

With Phosphorus temporarily out of the picture Roxy Rocket sees her opportunity and swoops low for an attack - as she does Stephanie positions herself beneath Roxy's rocket, hits her vehicle's 'eject' button and fires herself skyward towards Roxy, where the two women fight for control of the aircraft.

With Riot - several Riots in fact - now beating on Dick, Damian positions Phosphorus for a very painful meeting with Roxy. Two down, one to go. As Stephanie leads Dick to safety the young boy - 'little Lord Fauntleroy' - confidently confronts around a dozen Riots ... and it soon becomes obvious that he's out of depth: Batgirl to the rescue!

Much later, having put an end to Roulette's plans, Dick, Damian and Stephanie join Barbara back at the Batcave. As the two youngsters eat, and recommence their bickering that had been largely abandoned while they worked as a team, Barbara and Dick take time-out to talk about where they've come from, where they are, and where they are going - and, perhaps more importantly, why they are going there.

When discussing 'creativity' I'm always quick to acknowledge there's no such thing as good or bad, rather something that is to my personal tastes or otherwise. The Batgirl title very much falls into the former category.

Throughout the series so far the stories themselves have been largely uncomplicated and beautifully told through strong narration and some great dialogue - and this issue continues that tradition.

As regular readers will know I'm enjoying the lighthearted bickering between Stephanie and Damian but it wouldn't take much for this fun relationship to cross the line into silly: it's credit to Brian Q. Miller's writing that I'm confident that particular pitfall will be avoided.

I've long-since been a fan of Lee Garbett's art and feel his work gets better with each passing issue - as I've said before, this clean, sharp, confident style of artwork is VERY much to my personal taste and therefore credit also goes to Trevor Scott and Guy Major for their inks and colours.

As the concluding issue of a story-arc featuring no less than four villains, it would have been easy for this issue to have turned into nothing more than a 22-page 'chase-and-fight': needless to say it didn't, as moments of high drama were interspersed with moments of quiet reflection, none more so than the scene, late in the issue, with Barbara and Dick in the Batcave.

I was genuinely touched as the two discussed their past - and their futures - and I have a feeling that in time we'll look back to these five panels as something of a turning-point for the two characters.

While I'm not saying the Batgirl title is perfect I can't, in all honesty, identify any flaws and I'm not sure what else I'm looking for to consider it perfect - it makes me smile, at times it makes me feel a little sad, it makes me think. It makes me want to read and then re-read the issue and makes me look forward to the next.

Batgirl #7
Written by Bryan Q. Miller with art by Lee Garbett and Trevor Scott and cover by Phil Noto
Published by DC Comics, 32 pages, $2.99

My reviews of Batgirl are also published at The Batman Universe Editorials blog - part of The Batman Universe network: a great source of news, reviews and discussion for all Bat-fans.