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A review by tshepiso
Birds of Prey Vol. 1 by Chuck Dixon
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
Birds of Prey Vol. 1 was a fun action-filled romp. Its two leads Dinah Lance as Black Canary and Barbara Gordon as Oracle were dynamic and well written. I especially appreciated the way the story unpacked Barbara’s newfound strength, not despite her disability but because of her determination and capability. Dinah’s brash attitude and cavalier perspective on risk made her a great foil to Barbara’s more serious demeanour. Their growing trust and friendship was fun to see develop.
The stories themselves were fun if not the most unique I’ve ever seen. The premise of the comic is watching Black Canary go on international adventures to foil the plots of greedy businessmen and corrupt governments with Oracle as her remote guide. There was a tinge of white saviourism to these stories because more often than not Dinah went into “third world” countries to save helpless brown people. The constant framing of the global south as corrupt and filled with poverty was grating. I also wasn’t particularly fond of the multiple antagonists that blatantly fell into the "Dragon Lady" stereotype.
Despite this, the action was still pretty fun overall. Some of my favourite issues in the collection were the various team-ups Dinah is thrown into. Her madcap escapades with Huntress and Catwoman were tones of fun and her team up with Lois Lane was too.
This comic’s downfall however was its inconsistent art style. While some of the art was decent the quality vacillated pretty frequently across 9 issues and the reading experience was jarring because of it. I also wasn’t fond of the carousel of shitty romantic objects for Dinah and Barbara were thrown throughout. In my opinion, if all the men in the comic were going to suck they didn’t need to be there at all.
I'm definitely going to be picking up more of this series. This fun action-adventure was great to dip into despite some of its flaws.
The stories themselves were fun if not the most unique I’ve ever seen. The premise of the comic is watching Black Canary go on international adventures to foil the plots of greedy businessmen and corrupt governments with Oracle as her remote guide. There was a tinge of white saviourism to these stories because more often than not Dinah went into “third world” countries to save helpless brown people. The constant framing of the global south as corrupt and filled with poverty was grating. I also wasn’t particularly fond of the multiple antagonists that blatantly fell into the "Dragon Lady" stereotype.
Despite this, the action was still pretty fun overall. Some of my favourite issues in the collection were the various team-ups Dinah is thrown into. Her madcap escapades with Huntress and Catwoman were tones of fun and her team up with Lois Lane was too.
This comic’s downfall however was its inconsistent art style. While some of the art was decent the quality vacillated pretty frequently across 9 issues and the reading experience was jarring because of it. I also wasn’t fond of the carousel of shitty romantic objects for Dinah and Barbara were thrown throughout. In my opinion, if all the men in the comic were going to suck they didn’t need to be there at all.
I'm definitely going to be picking up more of this series. This fun action-adventure was great to dip into despite some of its flaws.