Hey folks, Crooker back here again for another issue of Tate Brombal and Takeshi Miyazawa’s Batgirl! This is issue #5, starring my favorite character of all time: the wonderful Cassandra Cain. Let’s just get into it, shall we?
First things first, one of the key things I liked about this issue was how quiet it started out. Cass’ muteness (relative muteness at this point, but that’s neither here nor there) is a key part of her character and in the past I’ve always enjoyed comics that go minimal with the dialogue. Cass is pretty much the perfect character for that sort of setup. The back half of the issue, taking place after Cass is gassed and knocked unconscious, is actually a callback to a significant fan-favorite moment from her original run: a misty dream vision of Stephanie Brown (who is not dead this time, something the comic itself jokes about, nice touch) ala Batgirl Vol.1 #62.
This moment is taken as a justification for Cass to poor her heart out about her feelings that this story has drudged up out of her, to speak to how she’s starting to see Shiva in a new light, and how much of a mirror the mother and daughter truly are. That scares her, and she hates the very idea of seeing any of herself in Shiva and vice versa. It’s a scene that’s a culmination of everything this story has been building to: the long-needed examination of Cassandra and Shiva’s dynamic. I also especially liked the touch of keeping David Cain, Cass’ biological father, in silhouette, Cass herself only referring to him by full name instead of her father. Remember, as this run has been trying to establish, Cass is a child of Shiva… but also of Batman.
DC
Segueing from that point, I want to ponder on the nature of Cass’s duality in this run for a moment. Cass’s status as Batman’s daughter, the parent she was able to choose, and the daughter of Shiva, the parent she’s found herself unable to walk away from, is key to understanding the underlaying conflict Brombal is creating. This story reminds me a lot of Batgirl Vol.1 #50, the infamous fight between Cass and Bruce where they buried a lot of their baggage. That was a story about Bruce thinking he knew best for Cass, molding her in his image and ordering her around like he would anybody else on his team, and Cass’s struggle for independence while still respecting him and the symbol he champions. In many ways, this story feels like almost an inversion of that. This is a story about Cass trying desperately to reject the symbol that is her mother, the indisputable fact that she is just as much an influence on her as Batman is. Maybe I’m blowing hot air, but I don’t play around when it comes to Cass.
DC
The art by Miyakawa is just as good as always of course, and I especially loved the shot of Cass standing in a bed of flowers overlooked by a whole in the moonlit cavern, bats flying up towards the sky. Instantly very iconic image, if you ask me. I also loved the entire dream sequence, how much it was genuinely reminiscent of the scene it’s paying homage to while still working in a lot of new imagery that calls back to various points in Cass’ long history. It was honestly crazy seeing shots of ’90s David Cain and the infamous “Cass’ first kill” scene being brought into this post-Rebirth era.
DC
So yeah, clearly with how much I had to say, it’s a safe assumption that Batgirl #5 is as solid as they come. I really do love this run, and I’m honestly just excited and thrilled to be able to keep reading and reviewing it, for however long it manages to last. Keep up the good work, team, you’re doing perfectly.
You must be logged in to post a comment.