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A review by megstro
Batgirl, Vol. 4: Wanted by Gail Simone
3.0
Nope, nope, not buying it. Quick disclaimer that I'm very new to reading the comics, like I've only read stuff from the New 52 and just started this week for the sole purpose of reading Batgirl (which also led to reading vols. 1-3 of Batman). I'm really not a fan of the art for this issue, it's somewhere between too grotesque and too cartoonish, and while I'm not weak in the stomach at all, I could do without quite so much gore. But there are a few things that really bug me and that I don't quite buy:
1) What the hell did the Joker say to the bat fam during the last arc? My supposition at first was that the bat fam was punishing Batman for not trusting them completely, but clearly the Joker did something to them. Is this going to be mentioned later or is this what I get for reading 4 years of comics after they're released? I even kept reading Batman (which I really quite liked) and nope, wasn't explained there, either.
2) I get wanting to keep cohesion among the different comics within the Batman group, but I have neither the money nor the desire to read all the comics in the group. Some crossover events were totally fine and I thought they worked well--Death of the Family, Court of Owls. Others are sort of awkwardly shoe-horned in.
3) You are not going to be able to convince me that Barbara Sr., who saw everything and knows her daughter is Batgirl, would not seriously testify that James fell. She would not say that she saw nothing. She would protect her daughter at all costs.
4) You are not going to be able to convince me that Batman, in either of his identities, is not going to reach out to Batgirl. Nope. No matter how mad he thinks she is at him, he would reach out to her.
5) Okay, so the bit where the commish acknowledges that his son was a raging sociopath who killed a dozen people was refreshing. But the fact that he knows this and accepted it long before it was actually stated makes his complete bullheadedness re: hunting Batgirl strange and out of place. It's not that I expected him to be like "well shucks, that's a shame," but I don't think he would relentlessly pursue Batgirl above all else. I also believe based on issue 25 that he knows, or at least seriously suspects, that Barbara is Batgirl, which makes his cold rejection of logic even more heartrending.
I don't know, man. I could tell from the reviews that this volume was really polarizing for people and that they either loved it or hated it. I didn't hate it, but I was deeply disappointed. I love Gail Simone's characterization of Barbara, and I've thoroughly enjoyed the previous two volumes, which made me all the more critical of this one.
1) What the hell did the Joker say to the bat fam during the last arc? My supposition at first was that the bat fam was punishing Batman for not trusting them completely, but clearly the Joker did something to them. Is this going to be mentioned later or is this what I get for reading 4 years of comics after they're released? I even kept reading Batman (which I really quite liked) and nope, wasn't explained there, either.
2) I get wanting to keep cohesion among the different comics within the Batman group, but I have neither the money nor the desire to read all the comics in the group. Some crossover events were totally fine and I thought they worked well--Death of the Family, Court of Owls. Others are sort of awkwardly shoe-horned in.
3) You are not going to be able to convince me that Barbara Sr., who saw everything and knows her daughter is Batgirl, would not seriously testify that James fell. She would not say that she saw nothing. She would protect her daughter at all costs.
4) You are not going to be able to convince me that Batman, in either of his identities, is not going to reach out to Batgirl. Nope. No matter how mad he thinks she is at him, he would reach out to her.
5) Okay, so the bit where the commish acknowledges that his son was a raging sociopath who killed a dozen people was refreshing. But the fact that he knows this and accepted it long before it was actually stated makes his complete bullheadedness re: hunting Batgirl strange and out of place. It's not that I expected him to be like "well shucks, that's a shame," but I don't think he would relentlessly pursue Batgirl above all else. I also believe based on issue 25 that he knows, or at least seriously suspects, that Barbara is Batgirl, which makes his cold rejection of logic even more heartrending.
I don't know, man. I could tell from the reviews that this volume was really polarizing for people and that they either loved it or hated it. I didn't hate it, but I was deeply disappointed. I love Gail Simone's characterization of Barbara, and I've thoroughly enjoyed the previous two volumes, which made me all the more critical of this one.