Batgirl #20 - "I looked at my uniform. And I realized, to the dead center of my soul...I didn't deserve to wear it anymore."
Poor Batgirl is suffering from an overabundance of regret, just because she threw a batarang at her serial killer little brother, James Jr., last issue and managed to put out his eye and make him fall to his apparent death, all right in front of their father, Commissioner Gordon. She did it to save her mother's life (quite the family reunion!) but that doesn't seem to matter to her. She's so upset with herself that she rips the bat-symbol off of her costume in disgrace! Drama....
Well, all that aside, there's no stopping now as we are introduced to an all-different New 52 version of the Ventriloquist! This time around, we have an extremely thin and creepy woman named Shauna Belzer and her "dummy", Ferdie, who looks like Johnny Fiama (of Muppets fame) was possessed by the Joker, or maybe Dracula...we get a cool little origin for the character and some neat characterization to boot. I'll miss the old universe's Ventriloquist with Scarface, but this new girl is definitely far, far creepier! She's also got a bit of a surprise twist, but I'm not gonna tell!
See what other comics made the cut this week after the JUMP!
Supergirl #20 - "Sanctuary and I are going to have a long talk about manners after this."
It's Supergirl and her Earth 2 counterpart Power Girl versus Kara's home, Sanctuary, as new writer Michael Alan Nelson comes on board this month! Seems Sanctuary, being programmed on Krypton, has decided that one of the two duplicate Karas must be a clone, and since all Kryptonian clones inevitably go mad and become dangerous, the "clone" must be eliminated!! This while both characters are still in a weakened and somewhat strange state due to the combination of being dimensional twins and Supergirl's intese Kryptonite poisoning from earlier in the tale.
The new writer is quite good at dialogue and is quite amusing when poking fun at both Power Girl's taste in clothes and Supergirl's favourite go-to move...punching things!! Here I thought I was the only one laughing about that...I'm quite intrigued to see where this title will head now!
Nightwing #20 - "I'm just happy there's no Bat..."
Nightwing's adventure in Chicago continues this month as he keeps working to track down his parent's killer, Tony Zucco whilst avoiding the cops and general public in the Windy City, since they all apparently hate any costumed adventurer due to some misadventures a few years back. Nightwing didn't help his P.R. any last issue, when he was involved in the destruction of a major train station that had JUST been rebuilt from the last time there were "super heroes" in Chicago!
The good news is that Dick's found an informant that might be able to give him a lead, an old friend of Commissioner Gordon's from back in his Chicago days, a card shark and info man named Jonny Spade who may know something about Zucco! The bad news is that Nightwing's appearance has encouraged a hacker-type calling himself the Prankster to get out from behind the computer keyboard and cause some more up-close-and-personal mayhem! Prankster seems to have good intentions, but also has a sadistic streak that is NOT very heroic. The fun never stops in Chi-Town!
Oh, a quick note about the art...new artist Brett Booth continues to make small modifications to Nightwing's outfit...including red highlights on the mask. Personally I like it, but I suspect a lot of the Internet will complain...
Birds of Prey #20 - "I'd say I'm sorry, but...well, we'd both know better."
Christy Marx is the new writer on Birds of Prey starting this month and I really enjoyed this issue! Last issue's reveal that Starling is a traitor working with Mr. Freeze bears fruit and the Birds are out for revenge! Mr. Freeze and Starling are working against the Court of Owls, who tried to kill Freeze after using his technology to reanimate their old Talons all the way back in the "Night of the Owls" event from the dawn of the New 52.
We get lots of cool character moments for all of our main characters (aside from Strix, who spends most of the issue as an ice cube), and in particular a scene with Mr. Freeze and a couple of the Owls that I loved! Batgirl and Starling have some one-on-one time that works really well, too. This is the first time I've been really thrilled with this book in ages and I can't wait to see what comes next! Good work!
Red Hood and the Outlaws #20 - "Everything connected to the darkness means everything. Period."
Boy do we learn a lot about Jason, Kori and Roy this issue! Jason "Red Hood" Todd had his memories taken away from him last issue (at his request) by a member of the All-Caste. His friends are NOT too happy about that, particularly since Jason doesn't even remember THEM! The resulting...er...disagreement produces a bounty of flashback relating to all three Outlaws, teasing a lot of the moments that made them all angry outcasts in the first place! Some great stuff here, including some hints at Starfire's relationship with Nightwing and Arsenal's ties to Green Arrow!
Of course, in the Acres of All, where memories, reality and even life and death are seemingly malleable, not everything is as it seems. There's definitely more to this story, and I can't wait to see what happens next!
And that's it for another week! Honorable mention to Wonder Woman continuing the story of Diana trying to keep her baby half-brother from being killed by the gods. Strong book, but just not in my top 5 this week!
New Comic Book Day tomorrow promises new issues of Justice League, Green Lantern, The Flash, Batman, Incorporated, Superman, Aquaman and MORE! There's almost too many potentially great titles...I wonder which five I'll pick?
Well, while we are waiting you can check out Stryder's Dementia...it's really, really short and has a nice picture of a lake. Yeah, I'm on vacation this week...
Have a good one! Peace!
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