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Batgirl: Year One #1-9
Batgirl: Year One
A look into the action-packed origin of the original Batgirl, Barbara Gordon! This volume collects the 9-issue miniseries that uncovered Gordon's transformation from average citizen into costumed super-heroine.
224 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2003
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June 3, 2024
Babs gets the Year One treatment.
Pretty good stuff.
You follow her as she tries to follow in her father's footsteps, only to get turned away again and again because she doesn't meet the height requirements. <--I didn't realize that was ever a thing, but apparently so.
You learn something new every day.
We follow her through her accidental debut at the Gotham Police Dept's Masquerade Ball, where she kicks Killer Moth's ass and gains the attention of the other Bats.
The rest of the comic follows her as she tries to prove she's good enough to be part of the Batfamily, while hiding the truth from her dad and going after Killer Moth after he teams up with the increasingly dangerous criminal, Firefly.
The budding romance between Babs and Dick Grayson is also touched on, but at this point, she still finds Robin annoying. Aww. Kinda cute.
I was a big fan of all the foreshadowing that happened in this one, too. Lots of little shout-outs to her Oracle persona and even a fairly obvious panel referencing The Killing Joke
Bottom line, this isn't a sexy story that I'd push on everyone, but it is a decent origin story if you're a fan of Batgirl.
Recommended.
Pretty good stuff.
You follow her as she tries to follow in her father's footsteps, only to get turned away again and again because she doesn't meet the height requirements. <--I didn't realize that was ever a thing, but apparently so.
You learn something new every day.
We follow her through her accidental debut at the Gotham Police Dept's Masquerade Ball, where she kicks Killer Moth's ass and gains the attention of the other Bats.
The rest of the comic follows her as she tries to prove she's good enough to be part of the Batfamily, while hiding the truth from her dad and going after Killer Moth after he teams up with the increasingly dangerous criminal, Firefly.
The budding romance between Babs and Dick Grayson is also touched on, but at this point, she still finds Robin annoying. Aww. Kinda cute.
I was a big fan of all the foreshadowing that happened in this one, too. Lots of little shout-outs to her Oracle persona and even a fairly obvious panel referencing The Killing Joke
Bottom line, this isn't a sexy story that I'd push on everyone, but it is a decent origin story if you're a fan of Batgirl.
Recommended.
June 30, 2023
and 's first year of the Barbara Gordon 'Silver Age' Batgirl. This is a book, that when I entered this review in 2020, that I could'nt remember a solitary thing about! Back when I read it, I rated it 6 out of 12, Three Star read.
2012 read
2012 read
December 25, 2018
4.5 stars
Executed to near-perfection, Year One recalls Barbara 'Babs' Gordon's tumultuous and never-boring debut year while wearing the cape & cowl. It's stylishly illustrated with bright, popping colors, and appearance-wise is reminiscent of the Batman: The Animated Series TV show from the 90's. It's has a great mix of drama and action, with even a few touches of romance and horror thrown in as well.
There's also the humor. Batgirl's voice-over narration (thought boxes, but you know what I mean) is often amusing, and it certainly becomes increasingly difficult for her to conceal her new secret identity from the policeman father. The 'Gotham' supporting cast is also a plus - a helpful Robin (referred to as 'Pixie Boots' by BG, as he's attired in his original but questionable outfit), a caring / paternal Alfred the butler, the always-welcome Black Canary ("We've teamed up for less than an hour and I've already lost count of how many times she's saved my life . . . Some dynamic duo we'd make." cracks BG), and of course the DARK KNIGHT play important second-banana roles in the plot.
It wraps up with a few chilling-in-hindsight scenes recalling Sean Connery's admonition ("If you open the door you must be prepared to go all the way . . .") to Kevin Costner in the film The Untouchables.
Executed to near-perfection, Year One recalls Barbara 'Babs' Gordon's tumultuous and never-boring debut year while wearing the cape & cowl. It's stylishly illustrated with bright, popping colors, and appearance-wise is reminiscent of the Batman: The Animated Series TV show from the 90's. It's has a great mix of drama and action, with even a few touches of romance and horror thrown in as well.
There's also the humor. Batgirl's voice-over narration (thought boxes, but you know what I mean) is often amusing, and it certainly becomes increasingly difficult for her to conceal her new secret identity from the policeman father. The 'Gotham' supporting cast is also a plus - a helpful Robin (referred to as 'Pixie Boots' by BG, as he's attired in his original but questionable outfit), a caring / paternal Alfred the butler, the always-welcome Black Canary ("We've teamed up for less than an hour and I've already lost count of how many times she's saved my life . . . Some dynamic duo we'd make." cracks BG), and of course the DARK KNIGHT play important second-banana roles in the plot.
It wraps up with a few chilling-in-hindsight scenes recalling Sean Connery's admonition ("If you open the door you must be prepared to go all the way . . .") to Kevin Costner in the film The Untouchables.
January 31, 2017
3 Stars
I really wanted to love this...
I was expecting more of this. Look, this is an origin story so there are things this book should have accomplished and it didn't. I know that Babs is a very well known character, more as Oracle than as Batgirl, but still, I wanted to know more of the character, I wanted to root for her from the beginning and see the motivations that inspired Barbara become Batgirl. But, you know what I got?
When Barbara tells his father her wish to become a police officer she just get a laugh for an answer. Then he later tells her that, well... she's too short for that. Duh. The ridiculous thing is that he's right. Being too short is the main reason she's rejected. Barbara is angry, angry because her father doesn't believe in her potential, she's angry because her martial arts teacher says that she's not brave enough, not good enough. She's annoyed because she's too young, too short. So, in a way to defy Gordon's expectations of her she decides to break into the JSA headquarters and leave a note for Black Canary asking for help, for a chance to be noted and to learn from her. Then, she's reminded, not in a nice way, that she has nothing new and special to offer. So that's it, that's her motivation.
What hurts Barbara the most and what gives her reason to keep going is the fact that his father doesn't believe in her potential. A bunch of coincidences take place in one important gala and Barbara gets in the middle of the action wearing her all new, batman inspired, costume. She's then named Batgirl and... well, she keeps doing it just to prove everyone else that she can, in fact, kick ass and help others.
Look, even though the reason of why Babs was wearing the costume was freaking ridiculous... there are still pretty great things in this story: Batgirl meeting Batman and Dick (and Alfie) for the first time and being tested without knowing. There's a small Black Canary and Green Arrow cameo that I absolutely loved. This story feels connected to Robin Year one that I pretty much enjoyed and liked. The villains, Killer Moth and Firefly, are not the most compelling enemies but they feel right for this origin story. As the story progresses Babs proves herself to be determined, brave, smart and capable, so that was when I started rooting for her.
I also really liked the artwork, it fits perfectly to the story, but I specially loved the coloring.
What I really disliked were the ''too on the nose'' references throughout this book for what's to come for Batgirl, especially in and after The Killing Joke. Lines like: ''I can get crippled doing this.'' or ''I could be paralized.'' After a fail and improvised team-up with Canary a cheesy line of '' You and me. Let's never do this again.''. I don't know, they just bothered me a lot. There was one though that I liked. The final one in the middle of a simulation test in the cave. One that, surrounded by the villains of Gotham and in front of the Joker, makes it say: ''I'm gonna be okay no matter what.''
Overall I enjoyed this comic book, but it didn't give me the backstory or the motivation I was hoping for. I had a much better time with Robin: Year One done by the same team. It is a nice introduction, but nothing out of the ordinary.
I really wanted to love this...
I was expecting more of this. Look, this is an origin story so there are things this book should have accomplished and it didn't. I know that Babs is a very well known character, more as Oracle than as Batgirl, but still, I wanted to know more of the character, I wanted to root for her from the beginning and see the motivations that inspired Barbara become Batgirl. But, you know what I got?
When Barbara tells his father her wish to become a police officer she just get a laugh for an answer. Then he later tells her that, well... she's too short for that. Duh. The ridiculous thing is that he's right. Being too short is the main reason she's rejected. Barbara is angry, angry because her father doesn't believe in her potential, she's angry because her martial arts teacher says that she's not brave enough, not good enough. She's annoyed because she's too young, too short. So, in a way to defy Gordon's expectations of her she decides to break into the JSA headquarters and leave a note for Black Canary asking for help, for a chance to be noted and to learn from her. Then, she's reminded, not in a nice way, that she has nothing new and special to offer. So that's it, that's her motivation.
What hurts Barbara the most and what gives her reason to keep going is the fact that his father doesn't believe in her potential. A bunch of coincidences take place in one important gala and Barbara gets in the middle of the action wearing her all new, batman inspired, costume. She's then named Batgirl and... well, she keeps doing it just to prove everyone else that she can, in fact, kick ass and help others.
Look, even though the reason of why Babs was wearing the costume was freaking ridiculous... there are still pretty great things in this story: Batgirl meeting Batman and Dick (and Alfie) for the first time and being tested without knowing. There's a small Black Canary and Green Arrow cameo that I absolutely loved. This story feels connected to Robin Year one that I pretty much enjoyed and liked. The villains, Killer Moth and Firefly, are not the most compelling enemies but they feel right for this origin story. As the story progresses Babs proves herself to be determined, brave, smart and capable, so that was when I started rooting for her.
I also really liked the artwork, it fits perfectly to the story, but I specially loved the coloring.
What I really disliked were the ''too on the nose'' references throughout this book for what's to come for Batgirl, especially in and after The Killing Joke. Lines like: ''I can get crippled doing this.'' or ''I could be paralized.'' After a fail and improvised team-up with Canary a cheesy line of '' You and me. Let's never do this again.''. I don't know, they just bothered me a lot. There was one though that I liked. The final one in the middle of a simulation test in the cave. One that, surrounded by the villains of Gotham and in front of the Joker, makes it say: ''I'm gonna be okay no matter what.''
Overall I enjoyed this comic book, but it didn't give me the backstory or the motivation I was hoping for. I had a much better time with Robin: Year One done by the same team. It is a nice introduction, but nothing out of the ordinary.
January 17, 2022
This was really good and I quite enjoyed it!
This is the origin of Batgirl again and we see how she got it with the costume and everything and then saving Bruce's life and then meeting Batman and Robin and continuously going up against Killer moth and defeating him, teaming up with Black Canary like the bird of prey they are and then going against Killer Moth and his Firefly but when her father is in danger, she steps up to stop this insane duo and also prove to Batman that she is worthy to wear the symbol and also some sparks with Robin maybe on the way and the usual shenanigans about secret identity maybe?!
Its such a great origin story and I love the way its told across 3 acts and the way she becomes the bat is interesting and the way they make Killer moth and Firefly such dangerous villains is insanely well done and just shows the range of dangers bats have to face and like threatening James G gives a good reason for our heroine to step up big time, though the stuff with Robin and that subway thing was corny but others were good and I like the BOP beginnings and the ending was good too. The art certainly got a whole lot better in this one and I kinda liked it! So yeah a recommendation from me for sure!
This is the origin of Batgirl again and we see how she got it with the costume and everything and then saving Bruce's life and then meeting Batman and Robin and continuously going up against Killer moth and defeating him, teaming up with Black Canary like the bird of prey they are and then going against Killer Moth and his Firefly but when her father is in danger, she steps up to stop this insane duo and also prove to Batman that she is worthy to wear the symbol and also some sparks with Robin maybe on the way and the usual shenanigans about secret identity maybe?!
Its such a great origin story and I love the way its told across 3 acts and the way she becomes the bat is interesting and the way they make Killer moth and Firefly such dangerous villains is insanely well done and just shows the range of dangers bats have to face and like threatening James G gives a good reason for our heroine to step up big time, though the stuff with Robin and that subway thing was corny but others were good and I like the BOP beginnings and the ending was good too. The art certainly got a whole lot better in this one and I kinda liked it! So yeah a recommendation from me for sure!
January 17, 2024
Nicely stylised both in visuals and writing, it’s an origin story that’s had clear heart and passion poured into it. However, despite the praise, it fails to deliver on a truly immersive experience. The plot is largely forgettable, and whilst it presents some great character work, some of the depictions just don’t quite consistently hit the nail on the head for me. Teasingly close to being great, it misses the mark one too many times, leaving it a solid 3.5 experience.
July 15, 2017
Where it all began, as told by Scott Beatty and Chuck Dixon.
Barbara Gordon, daughter of then-Captain James Gordon (absence of a mother and younger brother here), was a student wanting to go into the police force and set up her own detective agency. But no one, not even her dad, will take her seriously because she's "too short" (right). She takes people underestimating her to her own advantage, and is secretly more capable of espionage and butt-kicking than most full-grown adults. A couple of men even try hitting on her creepily, but she will have none of that either.
Barbara is her father's daughter, but isn't given a chance to express her views and skills. She even tries getting into an apprenticeship under Black Canary and a couple of superhero teams, but to seemingly no avail. They don't want to risk wasting their time on some redheaded young girl with no superpowers. She feels like the doomed prophet Cassandra, and worries about what will become of her future if she doesn’t get anything done right.
In an effort to show up her father, Babs designs, makes and dresses as a female version of Captain Gordon's ever-so-elusive "partner-in-crime", Batman, at a charity costume ball. But when a real criminal named Killer Moth crashes the party, she ends up fighting him; disrupting the plans of the Bat family and managing to one-up Batman and Robin. Killer Moth even calls the accidental vigilante Batgirl, much to Babs's shock and annoyance. And the rest, as they say, is history...
I loved reading Batgirl's origins in 'Batgirl: Year One'. I was surprised by how unpredictable it is. How Barbara came to be Batgirl was not necessarily by choice, but it was just something that happened on her course to prove to everyone around her how smart and badass she was for such an "ordinary girl". Actually, throughout the whole book she does have a choice - a choice not to wear the Batgirl costume anymore and leave crime fighting to the professionals, since she constantly puts herself and her loved ones in danger by going out and pretending to be another Batman. But Babs is an assertive heroine. She never gives up her cynical-yet-hopeful outlook on life - nor her dreams - because she continuously wants to be better and to keep on achieving more. And because she simply can, and will.
One thing I cannot abide in any hero is a stubborn refusal to learn from mistakes. Batgirl does learn, and she grows more aware of her boundaries; never losing her focus and drive along the way. Above all, to varying degrees, she never stops believing in herself when others do not.
Throughout her life, Barbara Gordon has never let her skills and determination falter and go to waste, no matter the circumstances. She is the epitome of inner strength and resolve. That, to me, is what makes her an equal to Batman; what makes her so admirable as a hero and role model for girls. This is why, currently, she is my favourite superheroine.
The artwork for 'Batgirl: Year One' is charming and colourful, reminiscent of 'Batman: The Animated Series', only slightly less dark and shadowy.
Batman is Batman here - broody, harsh, and unwilling to tolerate the existence of Batgirl. However, it doesn't seem like this is because the girl is cramping his style or making him look bad. Unlike a lot of the other men who underestimate Barbara in this comic, he eventually gives her a chance - several in fact - to prove herself fit to fight crime in the corrupt city of Gotham (the more I read about it in DC comics, the more it convinces me that it is the worst cesspool in the world to live in, and I wonder why anyone who's retained their sanity and loved ones still lives there). Batgirl takes incredibly dangerous risks on her night escapades against psychotic and deadly villains, but she succeeds and survives on her own, even without the help of Batman and Robin. In the end, she is finally accepted into the Bat family, with knowledge of the Dark Knight's true identity and his motivation. There's even foreshadowing in the form of a cut-out target of the Joker pointing his gun at Batgirl in the Bat Cave, which she takes out readily...
Dick Grayson as Robin (whom Babs calls Pixie Boots) comes across as a cocky, patronising little twerp most of the time, and I smiled whenever Batgirl easily kicks his butt. Yet he has his endearing moments, and seems to genuinely care for Babs, even if it is only because he has a crush on her (which is unrequited at this point). Robin starts believing in her long before anyone else does. Despite myself, I find I’m rooting for the two sidekicks as a couple; at least the Boy Wonder seems closer to Barbara's age than the other men who have the hots for her (Speaking of, there is Firefly... =shudders=).
Black Canary makes a proper appearance as well, with her lover Green Arrow left at the JLA space headquarters. Like everything else in Batgirl's life so far, Canary only partners up with her by chance and fate. They make a good duo similar to Batman and Robin, complete with banter and demonstrations of girl power. It's always great to see superheroines team up and fight crime together, and any comic where Black Canary isn't moping or is otherwise rendered ineffectual is a huge positive on my Action Girl Estimation scale.
Really, there are only two reasons why I don't rate 'Batgirl: Year one' five stars or 100%, even though I adore Batgirl:
It's 224 pages, but by the end I felt that more could have been done. There was a sense of "it could have been much more" in terms of action and character development, though it executes both competently. Maybe my expectations and standards are too high; that I've read many great stories in comics by writers like Gail Simone and I've become spoiled. I'm not saying 'Batgirl: Year One' should have been darker or edgier - it is already, with a balance of light humour complimenting the cartoony artwork perfectly. Maybe I was expecting a stronger story. Which brings me to...
The villains aren’t very interesting. Killer Moth and Firefly, as well as the mob bosses and monsters, seem to me like any other mooks or crazies inhabiting Gotham. The more I learned about them - and a lot of panel time is spent on them - the less invested I became. There isn't anything about them which stands out in comparison to the iconic Batman baddies such as Penguin and Poison Ivy. Except for Firefly, who is creepy as hell with his obsession with burning women to a crisp. It's proof that stronger villains make a stronger plot, in my opinion. Good heroes, but weak villains.
But 'Batgirl: Year One' is as good an introduction to one of my fave fictional females (the majority of which have red hair, I'm finding, but redheads are awesome aren't they?) as I could’ve asked for. It is funny, insightful, and both bright and dark in the right places.
Best of all, it never forgets who the star is. Batgirl narrates her story throughout, and while on the path to becoming one of Gotham's guardians, she achieves sound confidence, strength and self-control in her own destiny.
Final Score: 4/5
EDIT: Upon further observation, it's interesting that many of Gotham's non-powered female vigilantes started out independently without the direct influence or help from Batman or Robin (the male versions anyway): Batgirl in her various incarnations, Catwoman, Batwoman, Huntress. They've made their own choices and work under their own regime, not caring what anyone thinks. Batman doesn't make these ladies look good - they can do that themselves. Just a thought.
I would like to take this opportunity to be brave and confident myself. What I am about to write is personal and important to me, and it relates to Batgirl:
Do you know why I love superheroes? It's not just for escapist fantasy or the flashy superpowers, though those are cool too. I was a painfully shy and insecure kid growing up. Reality was scary, depressing and hopeless to my young eyes and ears, in a world where no one cared to listen to or understand me. So I mostly kept to myself, as I thought I was better off alone. Any ambitions were a pipe dream.
However, whenever I saw superheroes in films - but mostly in 90s and 2000s cartoons - fighting against adversity and proving that anyone can be as strong as they believe themselves to be, I found myself thinking, "Yeah, I can be like that. I can challenge the status quo and get people to take me seriously too." I especially loved seeing the women and girls kick arse, and in my little girl mind, I identified with them the most. They were some of my inspirations for opening up and expressing myself more.
Batgirl was one of the first superheroines I ever saw on TV, and I thought, "If a girl - with no powers at all - can be as smart, brave and amazing as Batman, then any girl can."
But apparently no one else thought so. No other girls I knew liked superheroes. And in recent years I've seen less and less female characters in the media who are in all honesty "strong" and "independent". If anything, the Smurfette Principle is stronger than it ever was, with a few exceptions including ‘The Legend of Korra� and ‘Steven Universe�. Despite what we've achieved in diversity over the years, in the 21st century the dominant demographic in any popular media remains overwhelmingly and persistently the straight white male. Comic books in the past had been off-putting to me in how often the heroines are depicted in ridiculous sexualised poses and fanservice anatomy and clothing designed to titillate the male gaze. Anytime I so much as glanced at them on covers (and they were hard to miss), I'd think, "Oh those poor spines" - and I don't mean the book binding. The women are also usually portrayed as victims rather than heroes who actually do anything. The superhero comic books always seemed to be about men's stories, so I just didn't bother with them as they were clearly not for me.
Even worse, I'd bought into the sadly-not-yet-dying belief held in the lands of geekdom and the old white male executive that girls don't read comic books. I stuck to kid's cartoons for my superhero entertainment.
Now, in my twenties, I see that this women-are-lesser-in-comics viewpoint is false. I've begun to read graphic novels that are mostly female-positive and female-lead. While more comic books are now working harder to be more diverse and inclusive - as are a few revivals of good cartoons in the 2010s - I think we still have a long way to go. But we shouldn't give up hope. After all, Batgirl and many of our favourite heroes of justice wouldn't give up so easily.
To those people - specifically those working in toy companies - who say that girls shouldn't be superheroes, that they shouldn't want to be heroes, that little girls shouldn't bother being self-confident and just learn to be mothers and good clean wives while the boys get to be whoever they want: Fuck you. Excuse my coarse language, but I'm sick of this. It is 2015 gone on 2016. This medieval thought process - double standards, discrimination and human rights violations - it needs to be addressed. It needs to fade away and die. (Plus I loved playing with male and female action figures as a kid, so what the hell!) No one ever got broke from trying to appeal to a wider audience, such as, say, half the human population.
I talk about this because I now realise something: I was once one of those girls whom society had drilled the message that I shouldn't try hard and be the best that I could be. That I try not to be equal or beneficial to the boys for fear of being called a bitch for doing what the dudes are allowed to do no problem. Simply being someone who does what she wants, surviving in the big wide and ever-progressing world, does not make her a bitch. Fiction is a reflection of our reality and how society perceives things, and so stories are powerful tools of influence.
It is long overdue for a woman to be seen as an ambitious, independent and intelligent person - capable of making her own decisions - first before her gender is even taken into account in how we view her very identity as a human being. And treat her as such; for she is not just a body to be scrutinised every day of her life.
It is thanks to these discoveries - and rediscovering Batgirl and other heroines in mediums I love - that I can finally fight back. Change as a goal is possible if we work hard towards it. I am proud to be a geek and a feminist, and I know there is no shame in that. I can challenge the patriarchy whenever it shows its ugly, toxic, regressive head. That's what Batgirl and any other woman in fiction and in real life would want, and would do accordingly. Because they can.
Because we can.
That's my two cents. Thank you for reading, and have a good day.
Barbara Gordon, daughter of then-Captain James Gordon (absence of a mother and younger brother here), was a student wanting to go into the police force and set up her own detective agency. But no one, not even her dad, will take her seriously because she's "too short" (right). She takes people underestimating her to her own advantage, and is secretly more capable of espionage and butt-kicking than most full-grown adults. A couple of men even try hitting on her creepily, but she will have none of that either.
Barbara is her father's daughter, but isn't given a chance to express her views and skills. She even tries getting into an apprenticeship under Black Canary and a couple of superhero teams, but to seemingly no avail. They don't want to risk wasting their time on some redheaded young girl with no superpowers. She feels like the doomed prophet Cassandra, and worries about what will become of her future if she doesn’t get anything done right.
In an effort to show up her father, Babs designs, makes and dresses as a female version of Captain Gordon's ever-so-elusive "partner-in-crime", Batman, at a charity costume ball. But when a real criminal named Killer Moth crashes the party, she ends up fighting him; disrupting the plans of the Bat family and managing to one-up Batman and Robin. Killer Moth even calls the accidental vigilante Batgirl, much to Babs's shock and annoyance. And the rest, as they say, is history...
I loved reading Batgirl's origins in 'Batgirl: Year One'. I was surprised by how unpredictable it is. How Barbara came to be Batgirl was not necessarily by choice, but it was just something that happened on her course to prove to everyone around her how smart and badass she was for such an "ordinary girl". Actually, throughout the whole book she does have a choice - a choice not to wear the Batgirl costume anymore and leave crime fighting to the professionals, since she constantly puts herself and her loved ones in danger by going out and pretending to be another Batman. But Babs is an assertive heroine. She never gives up her cynical-yet-hopeful outlook on life - nor her dreams - because she continuously wants to be better and to keep on achieving more. And because she simply can, and will.
One thing I cannot abide in any hero is a stubborn refusal to learn from mistakes. Batgirl does learn, and she grows more aware of her boundaries; never losing her focus and drive along the way. Above all, to varying degrees, she never stops believing in herself when others do not.
Throughout her life, Barbara Gordon has never let her skills and determination falter and go to waste, no matter the circumstances. She is the epitome of inner strength and resolve. That, to me, is what makes her an equal to Batman; what makes her so admirable as a hero and role model for girls. This is why, currently, she is my favourite superheroine.
The artwork for 'Batgirl: Year One' is charming and colourful, reminiscent of 'Batman: The Animated Series', only slightly less dark and shadowy.
Batman is Batman here - broody, harsh, and unwilling to tolerate the existence of Batgirl. However, it doesn't seem like this is because the girl is cramping his style or making him look bad. Unlike a lot of the other men who underestimate Barbara in this comic, he eventually gives her a chance - several in fact - to prove herself fit to fight crime in the corrupt city of Gotham (the more I read about it in DC comics, the more it convinces me that it is the worst cesspool in the world to live in, and I wonder why anyone who's retained their sanity and loved ones still lives there). Batgirl takes incredibly dangerous risks on her night escapades against psychotic and deadly villains, but she succeeds and survives on her own, even without the help of Batman and Robin. In the end, she is finally accepted into the Bat family, with knowledge of the Dark Knight's true identity and his motivation. There's even foreshadowing in the form of a cut-out target of the Joker pointing his gun at Batgirl in the Bat Cave, which she takes out readily...
Dick Grayson as Robin (whom Babs calls Pixie Boots) comes across as a cocky, patronising little twerp most of the time, and I smiled whenever Batgirl easily kicks his butt. Yet he has his endearing moments, and seems to genuinely care for Babs, even if it is only because he has a crush on her (which is unrequited at this point). Robin starts believing in her long before anyone else does. Despite myself, I find I’m rooting for the two sidekicks as a couple; at least the Boy Wonder seems closer to Barbara's age than the other men who have the hots for her (Speaking of, there is Firefly... =shudders=).
Black Canary makes a proper appearance as well, with her lover Green Arrow left at the JLA space headquarters. Like everything else in Batgirl's life so far, Canary only partners up with her by chance and fate. They make a good duo similar to Batman and Robin, complete with banter and demonstrations of girl power. It's always great to see superheroines team up and fight crime together, and any comic where Black Canary isn't moping or is otherwise rendered ineffectual is a huge positive on my Action Girl Estimation scale.
Really, there are only two reasons why I don't rate 'Batgirl: Year one' five stars or 100%, even though I adore Batgirl:
It's 224 pages, but by the end I felt that more could have been done. There was a sense of "it could have been much more" in terms of action and character development, though it executes both competently. Maybe my expectations and standards are too high; that I've read many great stories in comics by writers like Gail Simone and I've become spoiled. I'm not saying 'Batgirl: Year One' should have been darker or edgier - it is already, with a balance of light humour complimenting the cartoony artwork perfectly. Maybe I was expecting a stronger story. Which brings me to...
The villains aren’t very interesting. Killer Moth and Firefly, as well as the mob bosses and monsters, seem to me like any other mooks or crazies inhabiting Gotham. The more I learned about them - and a lot of panel time is spent on them - the less invested I became. There isn't anything about them which stands out in comparison to the iconic Batman baddies such as Penguin and Poison Ivy. Except for Firefly, who is creepy as hell with his obsession with burning women to a crisp. It's proof that stronger villains make a stronger plot, in my opinion. Good heroes, but weak villains.
But 'Batgirl: Year One' is as good an introduction to one of my fave fictional females (the majority of which have red hair, I'm finding, but redheads are awesome aren't they?) as I could’ve asked for. It is funny, insightful, and both bright and dark in the right places.
Best of all, it never forgets who the star is. Batgirl narrates her story throughout, and while on the path to becoming one of Gotham's guardians, she achieves sound confidence, strength and self-control in her own destiny.
Final Score: 4/5
EDIT: Upon further observation, it's interesting that many of Gotham's non-powered female vigilantes started out independently without the direct influence or help from Batman or Robin (the male versions anyway): Batgirl in her various incarnations, Catwoman, Batwoman, Huntress. They've made their own choices and work under their own regime, not caring what anyone thinks. Batman doesn't make these ladies look good - they can do that themselves. Just a thought.
I would like to take this opportunity to be brave and confident myself. What I am about to write is personal and important to me, and it relates to Batgirl:
Do you know why I love superheroes? It's not just for escapist fantasy or the flashy superpowers, though those are cool too. I was a painfully shy and insecure kid growing up. Reality was scary, depressing and hopeless to my young eyes and ears, in a world where no one cared to listen to or understand me. So I mostly kept to myself, as I thought I was better off alone. Any ambitions were a pipe dream.
However, whenever I saw superheroes in films - but mostly in 90s and 2000s cartoons - fighting against adversity and proving that anyone can be as strong as they believe themselves to be, I found myself thinking, "Yeah, I can be like that. I can challenge the status quo and get people to take me seriously too." I especially loved seeing the women and girls kick arse, and in my little girl mind, I identified with them the most. They were some of my inspirations for opening up and expressing myself more.
Batgirl was one of the first superheroines I ever saw on TV, and I thought, "If a girl - with no powers at all - can be as smart, brave and amazing as Batman, then any girl can."
But apparently no one else thought so. No other girls I knew liked superheroes. And in recent years I've seen less and less female characters in the media who are in all honesty "strong" and "independent". If anything, the Smurfette Principle is stronger than it ever was, with a few exceptions including ‘The Legend of Korra� and ‘Steven Universe�. Despite what we've achieved in diversity over the years, in the 21st century the dominant demographic in any popular media remains overwhelmingly and persistently the straight white male. Comic books in the past had been off-putting to me in how often the heroines are depicted in ridiculous sexualised poses and fanservice anatomy and clothing designed to titillate the male gaze. Anytime I so much as glanced at them on covers (and they were hard to miss), I'd think, "Oh those poor spines" - and I don't mean the book binding. The women are also usually portrayed as victims rather than heroes who actually do anything. The superhero comic books always seemed to be about men's stories, so I just didn't bother with them as they were clearly not for me.
Even worse, I'd bought into the sadly-not-yet-dying belief held in the lands of geekdom and the old white male executive that girls don't read comic books. I stuck to kid's cartoons for my superhero entertainment.
Now, in my twenties, I see that this women-are-lesser-in-comics viewpoint is false. I've begun to read graphic novels that are mostly female-positive and female-lead. While more comic books are now working harder to be more diverse and inclusive - as are a few revivals of good cartoons in the 2010s - I think we still have a long way to go. But we shouldn't give up hope. After all, Batgirl and many of our favourite heroes of justice wouldn't give up so easily.
To those people - specifically those working in toy companies - who say that girls shouldn't be superheroes, that they shouldn't want to be heroes, that little girls shouldn't bother being self-confident and just learn to be mothers and good clean wives while the boys get to be whoever they want: Fuck you. Excuse my coarse language, but I'm sick of this. It is 2015 gone on 2016. This medieval thought process - double standards, discrimination and human rights violations - it needs to be addressed. It needs to fade away and die. (Plus I loved playing with male and female action figures as a kid, so what the hell!) No one ever got broke from trying to appeal to a wider audience, such as, say, half the human population.
I talk about this because I now realise something: I was once one of those girls whom society had drilled the message that I shouldn't try hard and be the best that I could be. That I try not to be equal or beneficial to the boys for fear of being called a bitch for doing what the dudes are allowed to do no problem. Simply being someone who does what she wants, surviving in the big wide and ever-progressing world, does not make her a bitch. Fiction is a reflection of our reality and how society perceives things, and so stories are powerful tools of influence.
It is long overdue for a woman to be seen as an ambitious, independent and intelligent person - capable of making her own decisions - first before her gender is even taken into account in how we view her very identity as a human being. And treat her as such; for she is not just a body to be scrutinised every day of her life.
It is thanks to these discoveries - and rediscovering Batgirl and other heroines in mediums I love - that I can finally fight back. Change as a goal is possible if we work hard towards it. I am proud to be a geek and a feminist, and I know there is no shame in that. I can challenge the patriarchy whenever it shows its ugly, toxic, regressive head. That's what Batgirl and any other woman in fiction and in real life would want, and would do accordingly. Because they can.
Because we can.
That's my two cents. Thank you for reading, and have a good day.
April 17, 2024
Barbra Gordon the woman that you are.
May 17, 2016
2.5 stars. It's a bummer, because I loved the artwork and coloring. However, Batgirl was just plain annoying. She had a very in-your-face feminist mindset that I thought was actually kind of demeaning to women. I mean, yes, girls are just as great as guys. Obvious. So stop shouting about it every chance you get. Her reason for going vigilante seemed shallow at best: just to prove she could? And, ya know, because she wants to help, but that was her secondary reason. I liked all of the surrounding characters, but Batgirl just came across as a spoiled girl. A shame.
February 16, 2025
Highly recommended as an introduction to Barbara Gordon and Batgirl. It plays off the year one idea (a Batman classic) and shows the, you guessed it, first year of Batgirl. Lots of good setup and some beautiful, timeless comic art. Great use of lesser used/ sillier villains and makes them feel like threats.
May 30, 2012
I like Babs, a lot. But I know her much better as Oracle (a role she filled beautifully) than as Batgirl. I was excited to read Year One, to get to see more of her in the role that she's recently picked up again. (Haven't decided yet how I feel about that...)
Babs is a great character to lead the narration. She's witty and perceptive, and entirely determined to, in some way, follow in her father's footsteps. But she's too short to join the police, or even the FBI, so costumed crime fighting it is! (It takes a certain person to make that leap, I admit...) The entire volume is her process of learning on the job, which is far from over. There's a really nice Black Canary cameo, where she's used as a capable hero that Babs looks up to, and not just as a sex object for the handling of the hero. (I'm talking to you, Frank Miller.)
It's a great read, anchored by the fantastic narration of Babs herself. The art is stylized and stylish (observe the cover) and makes the book a pleasure to look at as well as to read.
Babs is a great character to lead the narration. She's witty and perceptive, and entirely determined to, in some way, follow in her father's footsteps. But she's too short to join the police, or even the FBI, so costumed crime fighting it is! (It takes a certain person to make that leap, I admit...) The entire volume is her process of learning on the job, which is far from over. There's a really nice Black Canary cameo, where she's used as a capable hero that Babs looks up to, and not just as a sex object for the handling of the hero. (I'm talking to you, Frank Miller.)
It's a great read, anchored by the fantastic narration of Babs herself. The art is stylized and stylish (observe the cover) and makes the book a pleasure to look at as well as to read.
March 5, 2017
This was pretty good!
Babs is kind of hot here...is that weird? Probably. How old is she? Is she out of HS atleast? I hope so.
Anyway that out of the way. I really enjoyed most of year one. It was just a cool way to see how Babs transforms into Batgirl. All the little fuck ups, all the work to get to be a major part of the batfamily, all the success and even her own villains. It stayed interesting throughout with some solid art as well. Also her and Dick are so cute together. More please.
On flipside there's some bad here. Well not bad but not memorable. This was a fun story, a good introduction, but nothing beyond that. I don't think I remember any of the villains past a guy who looks like a moth and fire user. That's it. Also Gordan wasn't kind of dumb here for being one of the better detectives in the series.
Either way though a fun read, good and easy and far better than the New52 volume I read with Batgirl. Check it out!
Babs is kind of hot here...is that weird? Probably. How old is she? Is she out of HS atleast? I hope so.
Anyway that out of the way. I really enjoyed most of year one. It was just a cool way to see how Babs transforms into Batgirl. All the little fuck ups, all the work to get to be a major part of the batfamily, all the success and even her own villains. It stayed interesting throughout with some solid art as well. Also her and Dick are so cute together. More please.
On flipside there's some bad here. Well not bad but not memorable. This was a fun story, a good introduction, but nothing beyond that. I don't think I remember any of the villains past a guy who looks like a moth and fire user. That's it. Also Gordan wasn't kind of dumb here for being one of the better detectives in the series.
Either way though a fun read, good and easy and far better than the New52 volume I read with Batgirl. Check it out!
September 14, 2020
Batgirl: Year One is so good that it not only entertains you, but also provides a sort of satisfaction.
The book follows the first year of Barbara Gordon as a crimefighter (hence, the title of the book), and doesn't limit her to being in the shadow of Batman, but as an independent hero of her own, and gives her character. The book not only establishes the hero, but also the villains, despite their introductions being brief. The writing isn't as verbose or cheesy as in other comic books; it is simple and that's the beauty of it.
The artwork is sort of cartoony, and very reminiscent of the DCAU, but it is dynamic and very expressive.
Batgirl: Year One is a book that has got the perfect balance of humor, heart and heroism, and I'd recommend to every fan of the Bat-family.
The book follows the first year of Barbara Gordon as a crimefighter (hence, the title of the book), and doesn't limit her to being in the shadow of Batman, but as an independent hero of her own, and gives her character. The book not only establishes the hero, but also the villains, despite their introductions being brief. The writing isn't as verbose or cheesy as in other comic books; it is simple and that's the beauty of it.
The artwork is sort of cartoony, and very reminiscent of the DCAU, but it is dynamic and very expressive.
Batgirl: Year One is a book that has got the perfect balance of humor, heart and heroism, and I'd recommend to every fan of the Bat-family.
May 26, 2024
Unwelcome to the family
A great book. Good story, fitting artwork, action, and character development. I like that Batgirl makes mistakes and that she shows her potential by learning and correcting them.
Barbara Gordon is not a little girl anymore. She is sick of her job in the library, but one job that she wants is the one job her father, Captain Gordon, will do everything in his power yo make sure she does not do.
I like that Barbara gas yo prove herself, to everyone and herself. She uses expectations placed on her and turned then to her advantage. I fairness I thought it was a good idea to give her a softer introduction to the Gotham super-villian community. Especially as we all know what happens later.
Great book, and introduction to the original Batgirl. The book finishes with a cover gallery and a sketchbook.
A great book. Good story, fitting artwork, action, and character development. I like that Batgirl makes mistakes and that she shows her potential by learning and correcting them.
Barbara Gordon is not a little girl anymore. She is sick of her job in the library, but one job that she wants is the one job her father, Captain Gordon, will do everything in his power yo make sure she does not do.
I like that Barbara gas yo prove herself, to everyone and herself. She uses expectations placed on her and turned then to her advantage. I fairness I thought it was a good idea to give her a softer introduction to the Gotham super-villian community. Especially as we all know what happens later.
Great book, and introduction to the original Batgirl. The book finishes with a cover gallery and a sketchbook.
March 30, 2018
This was (I think) my first standalone Batgirl encounter and I really liked her.
The artwork in this took me a few pages to adjust to, since it was so different to the style of the Superman story I last read, but it quickly grew on me and now I love it. An introduction at the beginning of the book calls it 'deceptively simple linework focusing on characterisation and acrobatic movement', and I found it to be very effective.
Over the course of this, Batgirl/Barbara Gordon quickly established herself as a new favourite of mine (though I obviously need to read more to back this up!)
I liked the evolution of her relationship with Batman and Robin throughout this, and her dynamic with her father. I want to learn more about this character, but I think Batgirl: Year One was a great place to start.
The artwork in this took me a few pages to adjust to, since it was so different to the style of the Superman story I last read, but it quickly grew on me and now I love it. An introduction at the beginning of the book calls it 'deceptively simple linework focusing on characterisation and acrobatic movement', and I found it to be very effective.
Over the course of this, Batgirl/Barbara Gordon quickly established herself as a new favourite of mine (though I obviously need to read more to back this up!)
I liked the evolution of her relationship with Batman and Robin throughout this, and her dynamic with her father. I want to learn more about this character, but I think Batgirl: Year One was a great place to start.
February 18, 2016
¡Me encantó!
Después de lo poco atrapante que me había parecido Robin: Año Uno, necesitaba un poco de esto: adictivo, divertido, interesante, buenos personajes, relaciones y situaciones. Además, los dibujos están muy bien, el guion también y ver a Batman, Robin y Batgirl juntos me dio algo fuerte.
Muy recomendable.
Después de lo poco atrapante que me había parecido Robin: Año Uno, necesitaba un poco de esto: adictivo, divertido, interesante, buenos personajes, relaciones y situaciones. Además, los dibujos están muy bien, el guion también y ver a Batman, Robin y Batgirl juntos me dio algo fuerte.
Muy recomendable.
March 21, 2022
Puntaje: 4.5 Estrellas.
Barbara Gordon es de mis personajes favoritos de los cómics, y la mejor Batgirl sin duda.
Me encantó todo, desde el inicio de Barbara como Batgirl como el desarrollo de su relación con Batman y Robin.
Las ilustraciones estuvieron perfectas, ese efecto de caricatura animada me pareció ideal para esta historia.
Barbara Gordon es de mis personajes favoritos de los cómics, y la mejor Batgirl sin duda.
Me encantó todo, desde el inicio de Barbara como Batgirl como el desarrollo de su relación con Batman y Robin.
Las ilustraciones estuvieron perfectas, ese efecto de caricatura animada me pareció ideal para esta historia.
October 1, 2022
I'm not much of a superhero reader, so was not very familiar with the characters (hey, everyone knows Batman and Robin, and I knew a couple others too). This was a very good origin story. It's easy to follow, it has a good plot/story arc, and the art is excellent. Barbara/Batgirl is an engaging character, and Batman and Robin's good cop/bad cop routine is funny. And how could you not love Alfred!
November 11, 2021
When the script is so boring and subpar, that not even such great artwork cannot save...
September 25, 2012
Batgirl: Year One follows in the same footsteps as Batman: Year One and Robin: Year One in that the book goes back to the origin story of the character and reinvents him (or her in this case). To me, Batgirl has always had more of a fluid origin story. You can't mess with Batman's too much because the hard facts are always that his parents got killed and he takes on the villainy in Gotham City as a way to both avenge and honor them. Batgirl feels more open to different interpretations as to why she goes crazy enough to throw on a mask and fight crime.
I really enjoyed how this book handles this, demonstrating how she wanted to be a legitimate police officer, but was rejected for being too short (really? that's a thing?). Soon she witnesses the good Batman can do in Gotham and seeks to make use of her own set of skills. Her crash course in the Batcave as well as Robin's somewhat guiding hand is a nice touch. In many ways, it's as if we are being inducted into the Bat family as well with Batgirl as our proxy.
Also, the main villains of these first several issues are Killer Moth and Firefly. I thought this was a nice touch as neither really gets the spotlight in the same way that Joker, Mr. Freeze, Scarecrow, etc. do. Also, comparatively they are B or C list villains, just menacing enough that Batgirl can cut her teeth on her first foes, but not as hardcore as Joker (there's a nice reference to the Killing Joke during her training). By the end, it feels like Batgirl is finally the character that we've known for years. A great introduction that also doesn't shy away from hinting at her future as Oracle as well.
I really enjoyed how this book handles this, demonstrating how she wanted to be a legitimate police officer, but was rejected for being too short (really? that's a thing?). Soon she witnesses the good Batman can do in Gotham and seeks to make use of her own set of skills. Her crash course in the Batcave as well as Robin's somewhat guiding hand is a nice touch. In many ways, it's as if we are being inducted into the Bat family as well with Batgirl as our proxy.
Also, the main villains of these first several issues are Killer Moth and Firefly. I thought this was a nice touch as neither really gets the spotlight in the same way that Joker, Mr. Freeze, Scarecrow, etc. do. Also, comparatively they are B or C list villains, just menacing enough that Batgirl can cut her teeth on her first foes, but not as hardcore as Joker (there's a nice reference to the Killing Joke during her training). By the end, it feels like Batgirl is finally the character that we've known for years. A great introduction that also doesn't shy away from hinting at her future as Oracle as well.
August 4, 2015
Put your hands up if you're tired of having to hear about "I'm a GIRL and men HATE GIRLS and they HATE GIRL SUPERHEROES and I have a REALLY HARD LIFE buying expensive computer programming and beating people up and men PICKING ON ME because they're MEN and they HATE GIRLS" shtick. It's weak and outdated and literally THE path of least resistance in building story conflict. As a female person, I actually do have other conflicts in my life than MEN being MEAN TO ME because I have LADY PARTS, so if we could get some more issues that don't focus on female characters' gender, that'd be great.
The art is fine, simple and unaggravated. Barbara is pretty interesting, except for the whole "persecuted woman" thing. I liked her conversation with Batman about why she was doing the masked vigilante thing, even if that conversation was pretty short. I've also wanted to get more into Black Canary, so I really enjoyed her cameos, even if they weren't big!
The art is fine, simple and unaggravated. Barbara is pretty interesting, except for the whole "persecuted woman" thing. I liked her conversation with Batman about why she was doing the masked vigilante thing, even if that conversation was pretty short. I've also wanted to get more into Black Canary, so I really enjoyed her cameos, even if they weren't big!
Read
January 8, 2023Loved loved loved. Great introduction to Batgirl Barbara Gordon. And so many easter eggs and inside jokes for those of us who already know the future of the character and story. I want more more mooooore
September 17, 2021
DC never disappoints
June 7, 2022
Just as "Robin: Year One" is a solid introduction to Dick Grayson, this is a great introduction to Barbara Gordon. There are some nice elements around her struggles as a daughter of a police detective and his refusal to allow her to join the force. The way she's kind of a joke to the villains and doubted by Batman shows her struggle.
Batman asks her why she's doing it. He and Dick have very personal reasons, but does she? And should she? Why is Batman the one who decides who can mask up and run around rooftops?
I particularly love her interaction with Dick, and her vague disinterest in him while he clearly has a crush on her. It's cute and I love seeing it from Babs' point of view.
I would have liked to have seen more Robin/Batgirl adventures set during this time period, but it's nice to see a direct continuation of their evolving relationship by the time Nightwing rolls around.
Batman asks her why she's doing it. He and Dick have very personal reasons, but does she? And should she? Why is Batman the one who decides who can mask up and run around rooftops?
I particularly love her interaction with Dick, and her vague disinterest in him while he clearly has a crush on her. It's cute and I love seeing it from Babs' point of view.
I would have liked to have seen more Robin/Batgirl adventures set during this time period, but it's nice to see a direct continuation of their evolving relationship by the time Nightwing rolls around.
March 22, 2022
SOY FAN DE BATGIRL.
November 22, 2007
Collecting the nine issue series written by Dixon and Beatty and drawn by Marcos Martin and Alvaro Lopez, this is an attempt by Dixon to re-write continuity into his preferred history of the Batverse...
Chuck Dixon is obsessed with the idea that Babs Gordon is the one true love of Dick Grayson. Perhaps he's Xenophobic, I don't know, or maybe Kory's hair just bugs him. Regardless, for almost all of Dixon's run on the batbooks, he's tried to keep Dick and Babs hooked up together, and in this case, he uses the ability to re-write history to make the ties between them even stronger than we've had previously.
I like Chuck Dixon the writer, but I think he got badly burnt out on the subject of Bruce Wayne and his cast, especially on Robin towards the end. The year one format gives him a chance to refresh a bit, and he takes full advantage of it (either that, or Beatty had a strong hand in the writing).
The basic idea is that Barbara Gordon wants desperately to fight crime like her dad, but is blocked by several things: gender, height, and overprotective father, to name a few. Despite all this, she opts to join the vigilante set that haunts Gotham's skylines, learning as she goes and trying to find her way in the world without the help of Batman.
We see her strive for her goals and watch as Bruce yet again brings another child into the fold, a pattern he has yet to break and yet always decries when something goes wrong. We see her come into her own as a crime-fighter, and we look at it all with eyes that know the Joker lurks, ready to break her life.
And that, I think, is why this works so much better than most shoe-horned continuity shifts. Despite my dislike for Dixon's love plot, he otherwise does a great job of making Barbara a likable, strong character that is doomed to experience tragedy and we all know it. This is not a re-imagining of Batman, Superman, or even Nightwing. This is making us want her to succeed and yet knowing she will (temporarily) fail, all at the same time. It's the best Year One Story I've read, and definitely the best of the ones written or co-written by Dixon.
Trebby's Take: A good, strong, story and no overly annoying continuity changes to scream about, save the Dick-Babs one. Highly recommended, I enjoyed this one a lot.
Chuck Dixon is obsessed with the idea that Babs Gordon is the one true love of Dick Grayson. Perhaps he's Xenophobic, I don't know, or maybe Kory's hair just bugs him. Regardless, for almost all of Dixon's run on the batbooks, he's tried to keep Dick and Babs hooked up together, and in this case, he uses the ability to re-write history to make the ties between them even stronger than we've had previously.
I like Chuck Dixon the writer, but I think he got badly burnt out on the subject of Bruce Wayne and his cast, especially on Robin towards the end. The year one format gives him a chance to refresh a bit, and he takes full advantage of it (either that, or Beatty had a strong hand in the writing).
The basic idea is that Barbara Gordon wants desperately to fight crime like her dad, but is blocked by several things: gender, height, and overprotective father, to name a few. Despite all this, she opts to join the vigilante set that haunts Gotham's skylines, learning as she goes and trying to find her way in the world without the help of Batman.
We see her strive for her goals and watch as Bruce yet again brings another child into the fold, a pattern he has yet to break and yet always decries when something goes wrong. We see her come into her own as a crime-fighter, and we look at it all with eyes that know the Joker lurks, ready to break her life.
And that, I think, is why this works so much better than most shoe-horned continuity shifts. Despite my dislike for Dixon's love plot, he otherwise does a great job of making Barbara a likable, strong character that is doomed to experience tragedy and we all know it. This is not a re-imagining of Batman, Superman, or even Nightwing. This is making us want her to succeed and yet knowing she will (temporarily) fail, all at the same time. It's the best Year One Story I've read, and definitely the best of the ones written or co-written by Dixon.
Trebby's Take: A good, strong, story and no overly annoying continuity changes to scream about, save the Dick-Babs one. Highly recommended, I enjoyed this one a lot.
November 28, 2023
I have no idea how I missed this first time round, which incredibly now is 20 years ago, but this is an outstanding piece of work.
Batgirl has always been a character I have a fondness for, but no great love of, she has always just come over as a derivative of another character (guess who).
The strength of this 9 part story is that it doesn’t shy away from that, it actually incorporates that into the narrative, and makes it all make logical sense. Scott Beatty and Chuck Dixon write the hell out of this one, with perfect characterisation of characters at the beginning of their careers, superb dialogue to boot.
The story, focusing on Killer Moth and Firefly, is actually just the excuse for visiting this time period to see whom these people were.
at least as good, if not actually even better, is the art by Marcos Martin and Alvaro Lopez (plus perfect colours by Javier Rodriguez). It has a gorgeous retro timeless quality, much like Darwyn Cooke's work. Just a thing of beauty to look at.
Books like this are what comics were intended for. Outstanding.
Batgirl has always been a character I have a fondness for, but no great love of, she has always just come over as a derivative of another character (guess who).
The strength of this 9 part story is that it doesn’t shy away from that, it actually incorporates that into the narrative, and makes it all make logical sense. Scott Beatty and Chuck Dixon write the hell out of this one, with perfect characterisation of characters at the beginning of their careers, superb dialogue to boot.
The story, focusing on Killer Moth and Firefly, is actually just the excuse for visiting this time period to see whom these people were.
at least as good, if not actually even better, is the art by Marcos Martin and Alvaro Lopez (plus perfect colours by Javier Rodriguez). It has a gorgeous retro timeless quality, much like Darwyn Cooke's work. Just a thing of beauty to look at.
Books like this are what comics were intended for. Outstanding.
March 29, 2017
I enjoyed this book a lot! I love Babs as a character and seeing her start as Batgirl was awesome! This gives great insight into why she takes up the costume and she has to fight tooth and nail to prove that she can take care of herself and Gotham. Batman treats her pretty similarly to Dick in that he watches from afar and helps her, all the while hoping she'll give up and go back to being a normal citizen.
Babs is definitely her own person and it's always great to see female characters that are well fleshed out and have their own goals. I loved seeing her fight alongside Canary and I love that her brain is one of her most powerful assets. I loved seeing her friendship with Dick and it was fun watching hem fight crime together.
I definitely recommend this book to fans of Babs and the Bat family.
Babs is definitely her own person and it's always great to see female characters that are well fleshed out and have their own goals. I loved seeing her fight alongside Canary and I love that her brain is one of her most powerful assets. I loved seeing her friendship with Dick and it was fun watching hem fight crime together.
I definitely recommend this book to fans of Babs and the Bat family.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 31, 2015
One of the best batgirl stories ever told!Batgirl year one is just like batman year one or robin year one.Anyways in this story Barbara Gordon wants to be in the CIA yet cant cause she doesn't reach the height to become an agent.I don't get that part because in the other comics shes really tall but i bet she has her other reasons to become a hero,otherwise babs decides to become a crime fighter named batgirl. In this epic comic Barbara will face some criminals and meet with other heroes like Robin and Black canary to fight crime.If anyone would like to start reading batgirl comics they should definitely give this a try.
November 22, 2014
Lo único que realmente me molestó de este comic es la cantidad de referencias que hace al futuro de Barbara Gordon abandonando el manto de Batichica para convertirse en Oráculo, de resto, me encantó esta historia completamente enfocada en ella y lo que la hizo convertirse en una vigilante bajo la tutela del hombre murciélago. Puntos extra por mostrarnos también el origen de Firefly y por el excelente dibujo.
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