Written by: Cameron Stewart & Brenden Fletcher
Art by: Babs Tarr & Maris Wicks
Publisher: DC
Barbara Gordon is perhaps one of the most loved characters in the DC Universe. We’ve seen her go from a superhero as Batgirl, to the complex information hub for the Batfamily as Oracle, and then back to Batgirl as histories changed when the New 52 began.
When New 52 did begin, we saw a Barbara that had gotten out of the wheelchair and back into the costume. Much of that saw her dealing with the trauma itself, and also villains from her past. It was a storyline that very much kept her in the past, and that’s where Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher, and Babs Tarr come in to change the game and give us a Barbara Gordon that is ready to punch her past in the face and move on to the next great thing with a new costume, and new attitude.
When we begin this arc Barbara is starting grad school in an entire new part of Gotham known as Burnside and has found herself a new place to live. We meet her new roommate/friends Frankie and Liz and get a sense of the new world she lives in. They’re young and love to have fun, but are also a bunch of incredibly smart people. Before this new creative team debuted there was pushback about how much of a “hipster” quality this book was now going to have, but in the end that pushback had nothing to stand on. The story we get from Stewart, Fletcher, and Tarr is one about finding life after tragedy. We’re presented with a person who is making mistakes, but because she’s adjusting to a new life, and not because she’s being overly reckless. What’s refreshing is that not only are those circumstances presented realistically, but also with consequence as by the end of the arc we see how her actions influence the lives of those close to her and those in Burnside. That seems to come not only from the story, but the structure that the team has implemented here. Each chapter stands on its own, and has its own villain, such as the blackmailing Riot Black, or a pair of motorcycle riding women, but also work together to serve an overarching story with a shocking new adversary.
The very different and new Barbara and Batgirl continue on with the art aspect of thing. Babs Tarr is a relative newcomer to the monthly comics world. While Cameron Stewart assists with art breakdowns, this is entirely Tarr’s game as she adds to the fun quality of what Barbara wants to become. There is a chapter in which Batgirl is going up against a set of motorcycle assassin twins and shows where Tarr shines. Not only is the entire issue full of fluid movement and energy, but she manages to really make the various vehicle sequences work, which is no easy task in a medium made up of static images. That energy doesn’t stop at vehicles and chases. It extends to the characters themselves and shows us an array of emotions and movement in almost subtle ways. In a way you really get to experience what they’re experiencing.
Batgirl Vol 1: The Batgirl of Burnside is an energetic and emotional new direction for Barbara Gordon and her alter ego Batgirl that everyone on earth should be reading as soon as they can.
