Hey folks, Crooker here with another review of DC’s ongoing Batgirl, starring Cassandra Cain. This is issue #10 as written by Tate Brombal with art and colors by Takeshi Miyazawa and Mike Spicer, respectively. This issue is directly following up the intense revelations of the previous one, so not much in the way of preamble. Let’s talk on it.
This issue has me… mixed. On one hand, everything I thought last time still more or less stands. The revelation that Cass has a brother has stuck, and Cass continues to be self-destructive and angry, lashing out at people because of her complex hurt over her recent adventures with Shiva. That’s all well and good, but… well, this one kind of felt like it lacked some teeth to properly chew the meat on these bones. Cass being angry and callous still feels like an intentional wrong on her part, but it lacks some of the needed bite-back to properly put her in her place for that action. Bronze Tiger tries, showing that Brombal understands Cass’s position is not monolithic, but it just doesn’t feel like it sticks or makes enough of a believable impact for her to change her tune and get along with her new brother by the end. Jade Tiger is a cool character though, even if his backstory feels a bit front loaded and heavy handed. There’s a lot of assumption going on by every character here, which feels a bit weird and a degree weak compared to how tight and raw the emotions have felt up until this point.
DC
The assassin they fight by the end also kind of had me rolling my eyes at him shouting out power up and attacks like this was Dragon Ball. Now, I love Dragon Ball, and a good anime fight scene… but not for this kind of book, this kind of tone or story. Not for this character or corner of the world. There’s a time and a place, and this felt like a bad time and place for that. Jade Tiger himself is a really neat character however, and I hope he actually manages to survive beyond this run instead of being yet another really neat new character in the Batman mythos that falls by the wayside.
DC
The art is of course, very good. Miyazawa has had plenty of practice with Cass by now and that dynamism and grace is very well highlighted and refined, with multiple two-pagers of intense fighting moves. It’s structured very well and is extremely fun to follow, as one would hope with a book like this. Spicer’s colors are as good as always, too – guy knows his stuff. Read Transformers too on that note, by the way.
So, Batgirl #10, what’s my takeaway? Well, it’s not the best, I hate to say. Is it a BAD issue? No, not at all. I think it’s well drawn, well paced, well written for the most part, but it’s the first time I’ve felt disappointed by an issue in this run. And I’ll say, I’m fairly easy to please. I don’t tend to rank books too low, even ones I have problems with, because I try to see and emphasize the positives more than the negatives, and encourage people to make up their own minds. That said, I think this issue is dangerously close to a fumble. The resolution to the conflict of the moment doesn’t feel earned, and the push back against our lead’s growing attitude problem within the story is appreciated but feels half-baked, making it feel like it’s not being given proper focus. I should be a lot more invested in Cass’s inner conflict than I am, and I really hate that an aspect of this book that has been so consistently present and great is suddenly gone the moment Shiva leaves the story. Cass’s ability to introspect and think about her feelings should not vanish alongside her mother, even for thematic reasons.
This is a fantastic run, and one disappointing issue doesn’t spoil the bunch. But I hope the creative team takes this well-intended criticism to heart and this doesn’t become a downwards trend. I care too much about how great a job they’re doing to let it slip.
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