Reviews: The Unwritten, Batgirl

Originally posted at Newsarama.com, October 2009

The Unwritten #6
Written by Mike Carey
Art by Peter Gross
Colors by Chris Chuckry & Jeanne McGee
Letters by Todd Klein
Cover by Yuko Shimizu
Review by Amanda McDonald

After the last issue strayed from the Tom Taylor story line, this issue gets us back on track. Entitled "Inside Man, Part One," this issue weaves together time periods and mediums. Staying true to this series' penchant for literary allusions, Carey integrates the oldest surviving major work of French literature The Song of Roland into the story of Tom Taylor's extradition to France to stand trial for the murders at Villa Diodati.

The "Inside Man" from the title essentially narrates the story, mysteriously having knowledge of everything Tom Taylor is experiencing and posting about it online. Even the Inside Man takes part in The Unwritten's pattern of literary allusions, posting reference to the classic Robert Browning Poem, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came. This in turn, of course makes this literature nerd think of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, and of course, its protagonist-- Roland, the last of the knightly order of gunslingers. There are however, a few aspects of the story the Inside Man does not seem to have knowledge of. Lizzie Hexam is hard at work, trying to figure out a way to get Tom out of this. Her source of information? Classic French tales, with paragraphs distinctly in English speaking directly to her. The prison governor's home life-- after admitting Tom Taylor to the prison, he goes home and reads his children their favorite book, part of the Tommy Taylor series. And lastly, when Tom wakes up in the middle of the night, his tattoo that seems to appear and disappear, searing into him and leading him to the prison chapel-- where he finds a rather surprising visitor.

Gross' art talent stands out, varying from illustrating the old French tale, to Tom Taylor's world, to the high tech setting of blogs, news articles, and online forums blowing up on the internet over this whole Villa Diodati situation. Each of his settings have a distinct art style, further enhanced by Chuckry and McGee's variations on coloring styles for each. This truly is a book I look forward to each month. I remember picking up the first issue while browsing at my LCS, and upon flipping through was confused. I thought the art direction was all over the place, and I set the book back down. But my curiousity was piqued. I went back a couple days later and bought issue one. The Unwritten is a carefully crafted work, full of complex plot and literary allusions enough to keep this recovering English major want to keep reading.


Batgirl #3 (Published by DC Comics, Review by Amanda McDonald)

Batgirl fans have been anxiously awaiting this issue-- finally, the debut of Stephanie Brown's own Batgirl costume. We don't get it right away by any means, we get plenty of Steph in the old Cassandra Cain suit fighting off hoodlums high on Thrill and having a very trippy showdown with Scarecrow. Over the course of that showdown, as Steph tries to fight off not only the Scarecrow, but also the effect of Thrill on herself, we get insight into her psyche and self doubts. But by the end, she triumphantly declares that she is indeed Batgirl, greatly pleasing Barbara who is watching from in the Bat-cave. Something happened to me while reading this issue that I'm not sure has happened before. I teared up. Yeah, I know-- what kind of wimp gets teary over an issue of Batgirl? But trust me-- read the scene in which Babs explains when Bruce and Dick made a promise to each other, and then makes the same promise to Stephanie and gives her the new Batgirl suit. You may not tear up (I admittedly do have a tendency to do that over silly things), but I hope it will instill the same sense of excitement at where this series has the potential to go that it instilled in me.

My First Review: Batgirl #2

Originally posted at Newsarama.com, September 2009

Batgirl #2

Written by Bryan Q. Miller

Art by Lee Garbett, Trevor Scott, Sandra Hope

Colors by Guy Major

Letters by John J. Hill

Cover by Phil Noto

Review by Amanda McDonald

Let me preface this review with the fact that I am a librarian by day. Like most smart librarians, I've always wished I could be Barbara Gordon's Batgirl by night. Never having been able to get into the Cassandra Cain run of Batgirl, I thought I'd give this newest run a try. So far, so good. The last issue ended with Barbara surprising Stephanie Brown with a confrontation over waffles. The paneling and dialog structure are clear from the start-- while they converse, we are let in on Bab's inner thoughts in green text boxes, and Stephanie's in purple text boxes. It's a heavy feature in the book and the simple paneling keeps it from looking too cluttered or overwhelming.

The issue consistently flashes between scenes with Barbara, and scenes with Stephanie. As Babs communicates with the local morgue worker about a body testing positive for the drug "Thrill" (a hallucinogen that drives adrenaline to dangerously high levels), Stephanie attends the college Harvest Festival and encounters a classmate-- inebriated by Thrill spiked punch. As the girl collapses, everyone around scatters away in fear and guilt. Opening her school bag and pulling out the Batgirl suit, Stephanie soon hears Barbara's voice guiding her.

Needing more computing power, Barbara has contacted Alfred (in space chauffeuring the Outsiders) to gain access to the Batcave-- and more importantly, the Bat-computer. When Stephanie joins her, they have a confrontation, resulting in both realizing that Barbara has been trying to break Stephanie's will to take over the Batgirl mantle. The book ends by cutting to an unknown location to see a Thrill dealer being welcomed back by his boss. . . . Scarecrow.

Noto's cover shows a Batgirl pulling on yellow boots and wearing a yellow lined cape. However-- all through the issue, Stephanie continues to use the Cassandra Cain suit. Perhaps a tip of the hat to Barbara's former life as Batgirl and the passing of the torch? Nice touch, if that's the case.

The women characters' relationship transitions through the book from stand-offish, to hesitantly partnering, to a well crafted mentor/apprentice relationship. The strength of Miller's story is found in the development of the dynamic between Barbara as Oracle and Stephanie as Batgirl. The three artists' work blends seamlessly, with Major's colors tying everything together. Especially striking was the backdrop of a completely darkened Bat-cave, aside from the green glow of Oracle at work and silhouette of Batgirl watching.

Barbara will always be THE Batgirl in my heart. Cassandra couldn't cut it for me, and the first issue of this run left me only mildly intrigued by Stephanie. However, the ending editorial commentary put a fire under me to truly give this book a chance. There's a nice (if a bit fan-servicey) breakdown of why Steph was chosen over any of the rumored choices, along with a sneak peak at the next Batgirl look-- bit more purple, new belt, and. . . . leg pouches? If nothing else, I'll tune in to see what purpose those serve. Also for anyone still mourning the loss of Cassandra Cain, we learn she will be back on the pages of a DC book sometime in 2010.

If you're looking for crazy, non-stop pages of fast paced action, this isn't the issue for you. But if you're looking for a strong story about how Batgirl and Oracle will fit into this next phase of the Bat-universe, you don't want to miss this book.