I’ve really been neglecting my comic reviewing duties this week since work has really picked up. Plus, I’m going to be leaving for The Dark Knight Rises trailer screening (Mission Impossible 4) in an hour so…it’s been a bit hectic. Nonetheless, the comics I have had a chance to read this week have been good, granted I still haven’t read Batman & Robin, but my hopes are really high for it. Batwoman #4 was the best issue of that series, yet. And now, Batgirl wrapped up its first story arc and it was satisfying.
If you enjoyed the other Batgirl issues, then there’s really no way you’re not going to check out the climax. Batgirl has been pretty consistent in its quality. The art is sleek, the colors vibrant, Barbara is still fun and incredibly likeable, her roommate annoying, the villain Mirror kind of lame but with a great narrative purpose (he has helped Barbara REFLECT on her place as a solo Gotham crime fighter & how deserving she is of her recovery, etc.), and the answers to how Barbara got out of the chair have been overwhelming few and very vague. All of that is here. Well, maybe a few more answers have been sprinkled in, but I’d hardly advertise this with one of those cliché promos where “In this episode: questions will be answered!”
I will say that we now know it wasn’t anything supernatural or alien that repaired Barbara’s spine…at least from what info was given in this issue it seems like a logical assumption.
My favorite bit in the whole thing is a segment in which Batgirl goes after some common hoodlums and they are talking about an iPhone app. The app is used by crooks who, whenever they spot Batman, add a marker, an update to a map so everybody else knows where Batman is and that their chances of getting away with a crime are high just as long as they are not in anywhere near the Batman’s vicinity. It’s really a funny and brilliant idea by Gail Simone. But as you can imagine, the app needs an update for thugs who see Batgirl/Robin/Nightwing as well. Gotham is a crowded place of bat-themed do-gooders, after all.
The final battle between Barbara and Mirror isn’t going to make anyone’s jaw drop, but it gets the job done and brings about a satisfying conclusion. And get ready for a surprise appearance on the final page that’s sure to make fans of The Black Mirror raise an eyebrow as to whether or not their favorite Grayson as Batman tale has been retconned, already.
SCORE: 7.5
