by Alan Rapp on April 10, 2013
in Comics
The latest issue of Ame-Comi Girls concludes the Brainiac arc as Wonder Woman, Power Girl, the Flash, Steel, Catwoman, Batgirl, and Robin work with Duela, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, and Catwoman to stop Brainiac’s attempt to drain all the intelligence from the planet Earth.
There’s plenty of action in the first-half of the latest issue as the second-half of the comic deals with the fallout of the women defeating Braniac and the logistical problems of trying to form some kind of Justice League.
There are some interesting ideas in the later-half of the comic dealing with vigilantes working with the government (especially when two of them are minors), but (like the final few pages of the Braniac story involving Power Girl nearly coming to blows with Wonder Woman while trying to help a poisoned Supergirl) the writing seems rushed with panels, or even whole pages, missing. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that two-issues worth of story were crammed into this one book. Hit-and-Miss.
[DC, 3.99]
by Alan Rapp on March 9, 2013
in Comics
The all-new Ame-Comi Girls series picks up with the last one left off with Earth’s heroes (or to be more specific the all female Ame-Comi versions of them) united to stop Braniac‘s attack on Earth. As Wonder Woman battles a Supergirl corrupted by the influence of the machine that destroyed her home world, Batgirl tries to foil Braniac’s schemes with nothing more than her wits and smart phone.
After realizing Braniac’s plans to destroy the planet the villainesses join the heroes in fighting off the robotic soldiers and trying (unsuccessfully) to destroy the machines which have risen from deep in the Earth from transferring all human knowledge off-world into Brainiac. Meahwile, at the center of the Earth the right fight takes place as Power Girl, after convincing the mechanical beings living in the Earth’s core to help, takes on Braniac one-on-one.
Although Brainiac’s master plan seems more than a little ridiculous (even by Silver Age standards) this first issue is full of action and some humorous moments (such as Duela‘s amusement of Wonder Woman’s attempt to stab every problem into submission). Worth a look.
[DC, $3.99]
by Alan Rapp on November 24, 2012
in Comics
I will admit the entire idea of Ame-Comi Girls is goofy as hell, and that’s part of the charm. One thing in short supply since DC Comics launched their New 52 is accepting and embracing the fact that comics are supposed to be fun. From the digital comics that were based on the anime-inspired figures from DC Collectibles, the Ame-Comi version of the DCU is female-centric, and in this issue features Batgirl and Robin facing off against Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Catwoman, and the villainous Duela Dent.
The writing isn’t great, although it’s better that many of the New 52 books from the past year, but one thing it delivers, oddly enough given its set-up, is easily recognizable characters. We get the basic archetypes for Batgirl, Poison Ivy, and (the original version) of Harley Quinn. Catwoman seems to be based off a more current interpretation, and I would have preferred by Robin to be blonde and named Stephanie Brown, but I’ll take what I can get.
The comic’s major weakness is its choice of resurrected best forgotten C-list character in Duela Dent. That said, there’s still plenty of fun to be had, and quite a bit of story jammed within the pages of the comic. Worth a look.
[DC, $3.99]
by Alan Rapp on December 28, 2011
in Comics
It takes more than half the issue but Batgirl finally joins the team. The addition of Batgil may mean good things for the future of the comic but it doesn’t do much to help out here as the story is still stuck in neutral with invisible ninja assassins and super-secret scientists planting bombs in peoples heads.
Birds of Prey is a comic I want to like but now for four months it’s given me little reason to do so. The addition of Batgirl isn’t the only change that needs to be made on this title. We still know next to nothing about Starling, Katana remains a one-note character, and I don’t see how Babs sticks around for a team that includes Poison Ivy as one of its members.
The good news is Batgirl works well here, especially with Black Canary. It’s good to see the Babs/Dinah team back together. Now if we can just figure out a way to get Zinda Blake and the Huntress to replace Poison Ivy and Katana we might, might have something. Hit-and-Miss.
[DC, $2.99]
by Alan Rapp on December 28, 2011
in Comics
by Alan Rapp on November 15, 2011
in Comics
I still miss Stephanie Brown, I’ll freely admit that. Of all the comics that went away in favor of DC’s New 52 Bryan Q. Miller‘s Batgirl was the most consistent and showed promise to get even better with time.
Stephanie was a Barbara Gordon Batgirl for a new generation. Strong, opinionated, quirky, intelligent, kick-ass, and always wearing her heart on her sleeve. Why would we need Babs back in the Batsuit when Steph was honoring her so well?
I also miss Oracle, and her partnership with Black Canary, Huntress, Zinda Blake, and the rest of the Birds of Prey. It’s in her years in the wheelchair, not before, that Barbara became a real fleshed out character that was one of the most inspiring in all of comics.
Barbara Gordon’s return as Batgirl has been underwhelming, even with Gail Simone at the helm. The latest issue sees Batgirl go toe-to-toe with Nightwing, and, if only for a moment, we see what this comic could be is Simone wasn’t so intent on isolating Babs from the rest of the Bat-Family.
[click to continue…]
by Alan Rapp on September 13, 2011
in Comics
Of all the comics slated for the DC Reboot Barbara Gordon‘s return as Batgirl created the most heated debate. DC was cancelling Stephanie Brown‘s popular version of the character in favor of putting Barbara back in the Batsuit for the first time since 1988 when the character was paralyzed by the Joker in Alan Moore‘s Batman: The Killing Joke.
Forgetting for the second that this first issue is far inferior to Bryan Q. Miller’s stellar Batgirl run, and the debate whether or not Barbara Gordon is a more intriguing character as Oracle rather than Batgirl (the answer is Oracle, by the way), this first issue has a great many problems.
I love writer Gail Simone, I’d just rather see her penning Secret Six. The writing her feels rushed, Barbara Gordon’s paralysis is fixed by a “miracle” off-panel, and her time as Oracle isn’t even hinted at (did it even occur in this vesrion of the DCU?). The villain of the piece (who basically appears to be some guy who has seen Final Destination way, way too many times) is also troubling. And don’t even get me started on the costume that looks like someone spray-painted Witchblade.
[click to continue…]
With DC Comics reboot of their entire universe with 52 new first issues now underway I continue to take a look at what I would do if I rebooted the DCU.
Where I could I kept ideas DC wanted to explore in the relaunch (when not incredibly stupid like Voodoo), and even included titles I’m personally not all that high on but characters I know have a devoted fan base. You’ll find I’ve also kept far more of the current titles than DC’s proposed reboot, and brought back a few personal favorites as well.
[click to continue…]
With DC Comics reboot of their entire universe with 52 new first issues looming ever closer I continue to take a look at what I would do if I rebooted the DCU.
Where I could I kept ideas DC wanted to explore in the relaunch (when not incredibly stupid like Voodoo), and even included titles I’m personally not all that high on but characters I know have a devoted fan base. You’ll find I’ve also kept far more of the current titles than DC’s proposed reboot, and brought back a few personal favorites as well.
[click to continue…]
Over the past two years Bryan Q. Miller has taken a character from the scrapheap and transformed her into one of the most vibrant young stars of the DCU. Sadly, with the looming DC Reboot, Barbara Gordon will take the cowl, which means an end to these terrific adventures.
[click to continue…]
Another of DC Comics 
