BATGIRL #35 Preview/Discussion

[JasonTodd428]

I agree there's a lot to like here but I'm not feeling the premise now that I've seen it action. Now things could change when I read the entire issue or even a few issues in but the bit that I read did absolutely nothing for me and as I said that never bodes well for my enjoying the book. I will wait and see though before dropping this out of turn. I could very well be mistaken about it and might find that I enjoy the heck out it.

[RobinFan4880]

I like the look and feel of it, though generally I favour a more realistic art style. I will probably end up getting it. My only problem with it is how it doesn't seem to fit with how the character has been portrayed so far - it's a bit jarring. Are these storylines going to fit with the grim and gritty ones of the other Bat-books?

With the exception of Batman himself, the whole family of books seem to be moving away from grim and gritty. Batgirl, Grayson, Batman & Robin, Harley Quinn and Gotham Academy are not grimdark.

[Deniz Camp]

Red Hood never really has been, nor has Batwoman.

[Dzetoun]

I agree there's a lot to like here but I'm not feeling the premise now that I've seen it action. Now things could change when I read the entire issue or even a few issues in but the bit that I read did absolutely nothing for me and as I said that never bodes well for my enjoying the book. I will wait and see though before dropping this out of turn. I could very well be mistaken about it and might find that I enjoy the heck out it.

Yeah, I kind of have the same reaction. It is almost like they are pulling a "Harley Quinn." That is, they are creating a version of the character that really isn't a part of the overall continuity. Now, if they want to do that it's perfectly fine, but as they keep saying that this IS part of the general continuity ... I just don't feel it, like you say. I'm all in favor of moving away from the grimdark, but there are ways of doing it that aren't so ... strange.

[JasonTodd428]

Yeah, I kind of have the same reaction. It is almost like they are pulling a "Harley Quinn." That is, they are creating a version of the character that really isn't a part of the overall continuity. Now, if they want to do that it's perfectly fine, but as they keep saying that this IS part of the general continuity ... I just don't feel it, like you say. I'm all in favor of moving away from the grimdark, but there are ways of doing it that aren't so ... strange.

The fact that they keep saying that this is still part of the general continuity is my problem as well. If this was more like "Harley Quinn" I might be a deal happier or maybe even if this was going to be a new #1 for the title to make it clear that it's a real break from the previous run but this just seems on the surface to be overcompensating for the grim tone of the previous run by going to far in the other direction. We'll see if that is indeed the case or if I'm simply misreading it.

[Deniz Camp]

I doubt very much that they are 'overcompensating'. It seems to me they are doing the kind of superhero book they want to do, that they want to read.

[Nite-Wing]

Oh and Babs is as cute as a button now
The comic should definitely explore the issues babs goes through as everyone assumes she's really 14 years old

[Deniz Camp]

This already feels more truthful about living life as a young adult-ish perosn in a big city than anything I've ever read in mainstream comics.

Hell, I'm 28 living in NYC and this reflects more of my life than I'd like to admit.

[db105]

I enjoyed the Stephanie Brown Batgirl before Flashpoint, and I'm happy to see them move towards a lighter comic. I prefer Batgirl to be fun, at least some of the time. It would be great if they could find a balance between having fun and having some darker stories.

[JasonTodd428]

I doubt very much that they are 'overcompensating'. It seems to me they are doing the kind of superhero book they want to do, that they want to read.

Oh, undoubtedly they are doing the kind of superhero book they want to and that they would want to read. I think most writers start out doing so. What I'm saying is that this change is unnecessarily jarring and to me it's giving the impression of the writer is trying to hard to make it lighthearted because people have complained about how grim and gritty the previous run was. This leads me to feel that the writer might be trying to pull the title to far in the other direction, hence my use of "overcompensating".

[Punisher007]

Again, don't care. The previous direction wasn't good, so ignoring it is completely fine in my book. Just like Jeff Lemire ignoring the GA stuff before him was the best decision that he could have made. The book isn't "Batgirl meets Saw" anymore, fantastic.

[Deniz Camp]

'Overcompensation for the complaints of others' negates the notion that this is the book that they've always wanted to do, by definition. You're saying they're building this book based on what they perceive other people to want, rather than what they personally believe is the best direction.

I don't get the impression that Cam Stewart or Babs Tarr or Brendan K Fletcher really pay much attention to the overall bat-fandom. I don't think they're responding to anything about Batgirl's book in particular; I think they were offered the title and see it as an opportunity to do the kind of book they want to do. I very much doubt that general fan reaction has much to do with that -- perhaps their own perception of the superhero segment of the comics industry being unnecessarily dark and violent, but I find it unlikely that they paid much attention to the book at all while it was coming out (whatever they might say to the contrary).

If the direction seems 'jarring', I think it's because they don't genuinely care about what came before; they're paying lipservice to the continuity stuff, they're tying up the ends that they need to, but they're doing their own thing.

Most of the best runs in comics start off with big shots across the bough this way, I should add. I really believe this could revitalize a fairly moribund, generic character by giving her book a distinct place and identifiable style in the Bat Universe.

[Tony]

The book looks fun to me. I've been waiting several years now to be able to read Batgirl. The Art is fantastic. Comic books should look more like comics and less like traced photos with Photoshop filters.

[The World]

That was enjoyable for the most part.

[jules]

I'm loving the eidetic memory playback thing. It's different, and it's a part of who Barbara is and always has been that hasn't been explored that greatly before. So far it's reading like a mystery story.

Here's hoping that - like Grayson - the more effort you put into reading the book, the more you get out of it. It's nice to see some comics that are compressed rather than decompressed.