Batgirl: Gail Simone, Ardian Syaf, Alitha Martinez, Vicente Cifuentes, Ulises Arreola, Dave Sharpe

We start this issue with a very provocative image: Batgirl with her head being shoved underwater. What’s interesting about this series is how Simone isn’t afraid to really drag Babs through the mud. Put her through the ringer. Really let her have it. She’s human, and she’s not yet at the top of her game since the shooting. We’re also introduced right here to the villain of this next arc…and his name is Grotesque. And he’s probably my favorite villain of this entire series so far. This guy is FUNNY. It’s really unclear as to what his metahuman abilities are as well…but we quickly go back in time to trace the beginnings of this story. Babs spars with Dinah Lance, the Black Canary. She gets advice on how to deal with her mother being back, and then drops in on a party that’s under attack by this Grotesque guy. That leads to the chase into the sewer where we first saw her in this issue. Then…we see a really big revelation that leads into next issue…and it’s pretty incredible. I really liked this twist, and I talk about it a lot in the next issue’s review. So check it out there if you want to know what it is. Syaf’s art is really fantastic, as per normal, then we get Alitha Martinez in for the sparring with Canary. She does a good job of keeping the style consistent with Syaf’s. And his is a very unique style, I think. It definitely does this book justice.

Batgirl #7, the verdict: While I’m not super crazy about this title, it is good. I have seen very consistent results out of it with every issue. Every issue has delivered a solid story with great characters…and a really fantastic representation of Barbara Gordon. She’s even more real than Batman is. Even Nightwing. Those are still a little more fantastic. I’ve stopped collecting this series, though, so there may not be any more reviews on this title. I hope you continue to enjoy the book!

(Photo Source: Kotaku)