Batgirl

If there was one person who could rival Mark Waid for being mostin-demand at Baltimore Comic-Con 2014, it was Gail Simone. This writer was on multiple panels, gave the keynote speech at the Harveys, and spent nearly every OTHER hour of the convention signing autographs and speaking to her fans. But after reading her first Secret Six arc and her first Red Sonja arc, I REALLY wanted to talk to her. So, I think it was quite fitting that my Red Sonja analysis was one of the shortest I’ve written since the relaunch of the site and this interview is the shortest one I did at Baltimore Comic-Con 2014. I spoke to her about one of the key issues I’ve seen across her work: sisterhood. ...

Here’s something you probably don’t know about me: I’m blind. I’m not completely without sight; with glasses and magnification, I see well enough to read and write. I get almost all of my comics digitally for this reason. Computers are wonderful things that let me enlarge the comics until I can see the illustrations and read the text; without digital comics, I’d be hunched over each issue with a magnifying glass and a headache. As I’ve said in previous articles, comics are a form of escapism for a lot of people, myself included. They’re a look into a world where people with incredible power work for and protect normal citizens, where justice is something that happens whether it’s through the legal system or not, and where, no matter what happens to our heroes, they almost always get better. It’s something that I struggle with reading or seeing in a lot of different mediums; while it’s great to encounter characters that I love recovering from things that I haven’t been able to beat, it’s also frustrating, because I’d like to see situations like my own handled with a touch of realism, too.

I’m just going to jump out in front of this and call it a rant. It’s inspired by Kari’s entry last week: So What’s With Batwoman?: Why This Is Important . I’d passively read about the Batwoman controversy and shook my head. Batwoman was the subject of a few early articles here at Comic POW! ( Dan’s 2012 DC Runner Up, vs Wolverine and the X-Men, and vs SHIELD) and we’ve always praised the art and the storytelling that set it apart from the rest of the Bat Family. However, being apart from the Bat Family was a double-edged sword. When financial constraints hit, Batwoman hit the chomping block for me. I always intended to collect it as an omnibus trade but I didn’t bother supporting it monthly since it didn’t fit in with the other comics I was reading. Since I didn’t read it monthly, I only followed the departure of JH Williams III from the periphery. At first I thought it was an anti-gay stance which I thought was weird after the whole Alan Scott thing. But when Kari brought word that it was an anti-marriage stance coming from Dan Didio himself, it was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. ...

Earlier this week, Eric took a look at how Bruce Wayne interacts with his sons and with Barbara Gordon. Today I’m going to do a similar thing, but instead of focusing on Dick, Jason, Tim, and Damian, I’m going to take a look at the other two ladies of the main continuity Bat family – namely, Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown. Since neither woman has yet made an appearance in the New 52, this article will focus on the pre-reboot continuity. ...

[caption id=“attachment_359” align=“alignleft” width=“195” caption=“Batman and Robin #4”] [/caption] Batman and Robin #4 - The creative team hits their stride as a book I was once sure to drop and collect in trades starts becoming a book I can’t wait to read every month. This issue has Batman and Robin deal with escaping Nobody’s trap as well as Batman’s parenting issues. This run could end up becoming as groundbreaking as everyone says Grant Morrison’s Batman and Robin was. Batgirl #4 - Batgirl’s faceoff with The Mirror! Will she finally win or will it be one of those battles where he escapes at the end? Gail Simone does a good job writing an issue that really makes me feel that Barbara is in good hands. I just wish she’d finally answer whether or not she was Oracle Superboy #4 - Superboy continues to be a bit emo, but it’s fun to watch. I think kids of a certain age would identify with him and I enjoy shaking my head at him. He travels to NYC and has some “fun” there. I’m curious to see just how this first arc ends. [caption id=“attachment_361” align=“alignright” width=“197” caption=“Uncanny X-Force #18”] [/caption] ...

Welcome to week 3 of Comic POW! To find out the genesis of this site, check out the About page link above. What you need to know now is that the following is rife with spoilers. [caption id=“attachment_136” align=“alignleft” width=“194” caption=“Batgirl Vol 4 #3”] [/caption] Eric’s Book: Eric: Alright, ready to battle? Dan: My kung fu will destroy yours Eric: So this week I decided to choose Batgirl #3 which was actually a surprise contender to me. The week before the issue was out I was telling you about how I wasn’t sure about Batgirl. As you know, hype can be a double-edged sword. All the hype about Gail Simone piqued my interest in the book, but it also lead to disappointment when issues #1 and #2 weren’t the greatest thing ever. ...

[caption id=“attachment_68” align=“alignleft” width=“193” caption=“Justice League #1”] [/caption] The dust has settled on DC’s new 52 and the second month’s worth of comics have been released. The first month was obviously great for sales. Many of the titles went into third or fourth printings. But what effect did it have on my comic selection? I’ve always been more of a Marvel guy although I’ve enjoyed Batman cartoons and movies. Before the new 52 I’d started collecting Detective Comics, Batman and Robin, and Gotham City Sirens. The new 52 piqued my interest since the books were supposed to written for new readers, like me, to be able to just jump right in. So I added Justice League, Justice League International, Catwoman, Batman, Batman: The Dark Knight, Suicide Squad, Nightwing, Teen Titans, Red hood and the Outlaws, Birds of Prey, Batwoman, Supergirl, Superboy, Action Comics, and Superman to my pull list. So in the first month they definitely got what they wanted: people trying out books they’d never considered before. I know I’d found myself bored whenever I’d looked through a Superman book. ...