Scan barcode
tshepiso's review
3.5
The Death of Oracle marks the end of a era for the Birds of Prey. The final hurrah for the team before their permanent shake up in the New 52. And while its sad to say goodbye I'm happy to say this era ended on a high note.
In this volume the Calculator has recruited super-powered goons in hopes of taking down the Birds of Prey and kill Oracle. But Barbara has a plan to fake her own death to her nemesis and the wider superhero community and get back underground. This arc introduces some interesting new villains like Mortis, a woman with the power to project anyones deepest regrets with one touch. As with any good fear-power based villain this leads to some fascinating introspective moments for Dinah.
In this arc Gail Simone teases out the romantic tension between Huntress and former assassin and Secret Six member Catman. There were elements I liked about Catman and Huntress's dynamic here, I'll always be down for doomed superhero romances. However I think Simone leaned into the assumption that her readers were familiar with the context of the Secret Six in a way that left some of their interactions feeling a little shallow. For fans of both I'm sure this hit but as someone without the full context of Catman's tragic past it wasn't as impactful for me.
The last two issues of the volume sees Marc Andreyko take over as writer in a nostalgic throwback story featuring golden age heroes Phantom Lady the original Black Canary and Lady Blackhawk. As someone who has recently read a bunch of golden age Black Canary adventures and adores when comics engage with the concept of legacy heroes this two parter felt specially crafted for me. Throughout the story weave between Zinda, Dinah (Drake) and Sandra's 1950s spy mission and the present day as the Nazis they fought then rear their ugly heads again. This send up to the legacy of female superheroes felt so at home in a Birds of Prey comic.
I especially loved seeing Dinah interface with her own mother's legacy and Kate Spencer Lady Phantom's granddaughter and on and off Birds of prey member as Manhunter forging that connection with her own history. Sometimes rah-rah girl power stories read as insincere but this one genuinely hit my in my feelings.
So while I'm sad that this era of Birds of Prey is over I am happy to have been along for the ride.
In this volume the Calculator has recruited super-powered goons in hopes of taking down the Birds of Prey and kill Oracle. But Barbara has a plan to fake her own death to her nemesis and the wider superhero community and get back underground. This arc introduces some interesting new villains like Mortis, a woman with the power to project anyones deepest regrets with one touch. As with any good fear-power based villain this leads to some fascinating introspective moments for Dinah.
In this arc Gail Simone teases out the romantic tension between Huntress and former assassin and Secret Six member Catman. There were elements I liked about Catman and Huntress's dynamic here, I'll always be down for doomed superhero romances. However I think Simone leaned into the assumption that her readers were familiar with the context of the Secret Six in a way that left some of their interactions feeling a little shallow. For fans of both I'm sure this hit but as someone without the full context of Catman's tragic past it wasn't as impactful for me.
The last two issues of the volume sees Marc Andreyko take over as writer in a nostalgic throwback story featuring golden age heroes Phantom Lady the original Black Canary and Lady Blackhawk. As someone who has recently read a bunch of golden age Black Canary adventures and adores when comics engage with the concept of legacy heroes this two parter felt specially crafted for me. Throughout the story weave between Zinda, Dinah (Drake) and Sandra's 1950s spy mission and the present day as the Nazis they fought then rear their ugly heads again. This send up to the legacy of female superheroes felt so at home in a Birds of Prey comic.
I especially loved seeing Dinah interface with her own mother's legacy and Kate Spencer Lady Phantom's granddaughter and on and off Birds of prey member as Manhunter forging that connection with her own history. Sometimes rah-rah girl power stories read as insincere but this one genuinely hit my in my feelings.
So while I'm sad that this era of Birds of Prey is over I am happy to have been along for the ride.
captwinghead's review
3.0
The art in the majority of this volume wasn’t my favorite. The ArtGerm covers were absolutely gorgeous! However, the inner art wasn’t what I was expecting and some of it was just downright obnoxiously sexualized. Again - there’s a difference between sexualized and sexy. See this compared to Sunstone for example.
There about 4 or 5 different stories. The last are 3 issue and 2 issue arcs because I think this was gearing up for the New 52 reboot. This is the last of Babs as Oracle, if I’m not mistaken. I really loved seeing her continue to lead in this book.
I liked the support between Dinah and Helena and Babs and Creote and Helena and Renee. Question and Huntress wasn’t a pairing I’d ever thought of but I really, really loved them here! Considering their age difference in the upcoming Birds of Prey movie, I don’t know if I’ll get similar interactions but I hope so. That was endlessly entertaining!
The WWII story was great. I actually wished it was longer. I love how dedicated Andreyko is to classic female comics book characters!
I missed the more diverse line up. I wished Cass was here but it was still fairly enjoyable when you got past the art.
There about 4 or 5 different stories. The last are 3 issue and 2 issue arcs because I think this was gearing up for the New 52 reboot. This is the last of Babs as Oracle, if I’m not mistaken. I really loved seeing her continue to lead in this book.
I liked the support between Dinah and Helena and Babs and Creote and Helena and Renee. Question and Huntress wasn’t a pairing I’d ever thought of but I really, really loved them here! Considering their age difference in the upcoming Birds of Prey movie, I don’t know if I’ll get similar interactions but I hope so. That was endlessly entertaining!
The WWII story was great. I actually wished it was longer. I love how dedicated Andreyko is to classic female comics book characters!
I missed the more diverse line up. I wished Cass was here but it was still fairly enjoyable when you got past the art.
iam_griff's review
4.0
Birds of Prey has been a favourite of mine for years, prior to “New 52”. I loved the idea of a team of super heroines proving they can kick ass as much as the male driven teams. In this volume Oracle (Barbara Gordon) decides that it’s time for her moniker to die & go back to being anonymous in her fight against evil. Only a handful of the Bat-family is in on the secret minus her team consisting of Huntress, Black Canary, Lady Blackhawk, Dove with appearances from Hawk & Manhunter. This volume was the last before the reboot in 2011 before the aforementioned “New 52”. The art work is beautiful & Gail Simone’s writing is consistent with her usual level of brilliance. My one & only complaint is the last story felt very rushed.
mjthomas43's review
3.0
Oracle fakes her own death to be able to accomplish more. She uses The Calculator as a communication medium and Batman plays by her rules.
wanderlustlover's review
4.0
Part of my massive Barbara Gordon Re-read which I had a glorious amazing time with. Birds of Prey, under the hands of Gail Simone, was a gorgeous thing and It made me super happy to have all my amazing women back together doing amazing things!
rouver's review
2.0
This is a collection of multiple stories, starting with Oracle faking her own death. The stories were fine, but I had no emotional investment in the characters & none were really elicited from the stories. Meh. I don't even want to give a synopsis. I wonder if a lot of my unhappiness at the book boiled down to there being entirely too much T&A and the artist having a poor grasp of human anatomy. (Legs are attached by joints, not kind of flapping around on some skin & muscle. Women actually have internal organs!) If you're already a fan of the Birds of Prey, know all their background, and love loads of cheesecake, I'm sure this is a very enjoyable book.
kvcatnip's review
4.0
Story was great! But the artwork became truly terrible at the end of the story arc.
jadejade's review
3.0
The release of the Birds of Prey movie inspired my comic book club to set this as required reading. I was keen, although (or perhaps because) my knowledge of DC comics is v limited.
Random thoughts while I was reading:
*Batman hugs and strippers – what an opening!
*The henchman-boyfriend is now their receptionist eeee
*Wait, so Savant works for them too? Traitor (mild spoilers: turns out I was mistaken)
*Sorry, did Dove go to a stripper bar in her superhero costume?
*Best quote so far … “WAAAUGHGH” -Penguin (2010)
*Okay Dove has magical clothes-changing powers. Hawk also has clothes change powers. They yell out their name and their clothes appear. Very practical. We should all have such powers.
*Batman leaves a photocopy of his logo on top of a pile of defeated baddies, nice.
*Oracle aka Batgirl wears batman pyjamas and bunny slippers omg
*I sure hope Catman's identity was already public, because Huntress just yelled out his name in front of a criminal.
*The Question has no face. Hokay then.
*Catman makes dinner in his superhero costume. I mean, how else would we know who we were looking at?
Well that was interesting, although the art was inconsistent, oscillating between “meh” and “awesome”. I think I preferred Of Like Minds, although I'm intrigued by some of the characters in The Death of Oracle (Question and Hawk & Dove in particular).
Random thoughts while I was reading:
*Batman hugs and strippers – what an opening!
*The henchman-boyfriend is now their receptionist eeee
*Wait, so Savant works for them too? Traitor (mild spoilers: turns out I was mistaken)
*Sorry, did Dove go to a stripper bar in her superhero costume?
*Best quote so far … “WAAAUGHGH” -Penguin (2010)
*Okay Dove has magical clothes-changing powers. Hawk also has clothes change powers. They yell out their name and their clothes appear. Very practical. We should all have such powers.
*Batman leaves a photocopy of his logo on top of a pile of defeated baddies, nice.
*Oracle aka Batgirl wears batman pyjamas and bunny slippers omg
*I sure hope Catman's identity was already public, because Huntress just yelled out his name in front of a criminal.
*The Question has no face. Hokay then.
*Catman makes dinner in his superhero costume. I mean, how else would we know who we were looking at?
Well that was interesting, although the art was inconsistent, oscillating between “meh” and “awesome”. I think I preferred Of Like Minds, although I'm intrigued by some of the characters in The Death of Oracle (Question and Hawk & Dove in particular).
renatasnacks's review
4.0
NGL probably my fave part of this was a) learning that Catman is an actual costumed character and b) Catman and Huntress flirting. And c) Huntress telling him he's ~never gonna get it, never gonna get it~. Wait, no, because I forgot about how this volume also involved the Birds taking Dove to a male strip club. That was a thing of beauty.
I also like the part where Batman offers Oracle a hug.
Also the part where Oracle is a scary genius, duh.
I also like the part where Batman offers Oracle a hug.
Also the part where Oracle is a scary genius, duh.