Kelly Thompson’s Birds of Prey moves into its second phase of plots, kicking off the new arc in issue #7 with a big roster change. Zealot and Harley Quinn have been replaced with Vixen and Oracle, both of whom are welcome changes. Javier Pina also joins the creative team as a penciler for this issue, keeping the “stellar artist” streak for this book intact.
I don’t know what to say about the roster change beyond Zealot being unrealized potential and Harley Quinn being unnecessary, but it is a shame to see the promise of Zealot on this team go to such waste. The prospect of a character like her joining had the potential to be so much more but she never quite found her footing. It never seemed like Thompson had a solid idea of what to do with her and so, her exit seems just as noncommittal as her presence in the last six issues. When this book was first announced, I had my fingers crossed for Vixen to join and I’m glad to see that has finally happened as of issue #7. Aside from Vixen having been a presence in Birds of Prey comics prior, she’s also just a prime example of an incredible character who has been vastly underutilized at DC. It never made sense to me how Mari was so underused across the board at the DC for years when the character is capable of everything she is. Mari McCabe is both so much cooler as a character than many people realize and I’m not a power scaler, but she is a lot more powerful than she gets credit for too.
Mari is very much a welcome addition to the book and with her introduction, the book seems to spark to life a little more. Barbara’s inclusion is also a highlight, especially since she takes the role of Oracle in this issue and for the foreseeable future. It’s the little things like this that start to make this book feel less like Gen Z Suicide Squad and more like something in the Birds of Prey vicinity.
DC Comics
Barbara Gordon being in anything really is like a monkey’s paw situation at this point because it never seems like DC can commit to the Oracle identity or Barbara as a disabled woman. A few years ago, we were told that Barbara would wield dual identities as Oracle and Batgirl because the hero life wasn’t ideal for her back. We were also told that Barbara was more of an ambulatory wheelchair user these days in what felt like DC throwing us a bone after 10 years of mess, but it feels like DC has forgotten to actually throw the bone and just taunts us with it instead. Barbara can sit down and be Oracle, but she can’t actually be in her wheelchair and if she ever is sitting down, the art has to be clear that her legs are moving. Barbara can call herself Oracle again, but it has to be because she can’t be Batgirl right now because the field and being a field agent is her primary role and we have to know that. Barbara can be sitting behind a computer screen and dressing like an adult woman instead of a college freshman, but once the “Oracle at the screen” scene is done, she needs to be seen walking in future panels. DC wants us to placate us but also doesn’t understand what it is about Oracle that made her so beloved. The way DC has handled Barbara Gordon has honestly never been short of cowardly for years now –I think I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen her use a wheelchair in the last four years let alone the times she’s been Oracle instead of Batgirl.
That being said, it is a breath of fresh air to see the Barbara and Dinah scenes in this book. They feel more like themselves this time, washing the bad taste of issue #6’s interactions out of my mouth. There is no Birds of Prey without Dinah and Babs and seeing them on page together again is a very welcome change. Thompson seems to understand the importance the women have to each other and it leaves me hopeful for their friendship and interactions in this portion of the run.
I still don’t understand why Maps is here and I don’t think I ever will. Though I’ve only read Gotham Academy and the select issues of Batman where she had a backup story (which I do believe is the majority of her appearances if not all), I still feel insane when I read Dinah and Barbara talk to her like they’ve known her forever. I admit I’m not a Maps megafan or anything, but I couldn’t tell you one single interaction Barbara or Dinah has had with her before this run and why they are talking about the person she’s “always been” and how “glad” they are to see her retain hope — when did you guys meet? Is there something I’m missing?
You know what else is missing? Huntress. It’s seriously strange that a Birds of Prey title centered around targeting all members has these lengths of just pretending she doesn’t exist.
Cass and Barda were two inclusions to this team that always made a lot of sense, but are still vastly underutilized. Sin’s inclusion on a book with Cassandra Cain could have been something really interesting considering the obvious Shiva connection between the two girls, but for some reason, this Birds of Prey run doesn’t ever mention that Sin Lance actually is quite an adept fighter or anything about her backstory. It’s part of why Sin’s plea to become “powerful” like Dinah and thereby fusing with Megaera is still such a puzzling choice — we know Sin was trained to fight. But for some reason these sequences are limited to Cass and Barda training Sin in some humorous gag where Barda is the big warrior lady who doesn’t understand human softness and Cass is the everyday girl who is levelheaded and tells her to calm down. None of these three characters feel like themselves and the roles Thompson wants them to embody in this story feel vastly unfitting. And since the bit is that it’s a gag, the humor falls flat in this entire sequence too.
Pina’s art is a major highlight throughout the book, making each page and the characters within it look gorgeous. The coloring goes above and beyond too, balancing vibrancy with stylish effect is like the distorted effect the scenes of Mari’s flashback to her robbery are placed in. Mari being a center point for the action and plot of this issue as well as the jumping off point for the arc are some of the greatest parts of this issue. It’s fresh and stylish and really breathes new air into this book that was greatly needed.
Birds of Prey is certainly on an upward trajectory, but the cracks in the pavement still haven’t been cleaned up. Hopefully, the series can continue its steps in the right direction and find its footing to smooth out the rough edges.
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