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Warning : Spoilers for Batgirl # 1!DC Comics rechristens Cassandra Cain , her mother , the Bat - Family , and theBatgirlmantle in a new serial publication . While she has been an active member of the Birds of Prey drop more lately , Cass has not led a series of her own in over 18 long time . Earlier this yr , DC announced that Cassandra would starin a newBatgirlongoing serial aspart of the publishing company ’s new All In enterprise .
Batgirl#1 by Tate Brombal , Takeshi Miyazawa , Mike Spicer , and Tom Napolitano officially marksthe proceeds of Cassandra Cainto comic book store shelves . The issue visit Batgirlofficially working with Lady Shiva , her bravo mother , and in doing so , many ongoing themes from their history reappearance to the Earth’s surface . However , the new tarradiddle also grant the originative team to recontextualize their complicated moral force for DC ’s current continuity .
As a debut take , Batgirl#1 picture promise by add unexampled meaning to classic motifsfrom Bat - Family stories whilst adding novel layers to a classic Gotham baddie .
Batgirl#1 Offers the Perfect Martial Arts Story for New and Old Readers Alike
What Happens to Cassandra Cain and Lady Shiva?
the right way off the chiropteran ( no pun intend ) , Batgirl is corner into a conversation with her nefarious mother , Lady Shiva . Shiva , for those unfamiliar , is well recognise as the one fighter who Batman has never beaten in a conflict . Batman ’s chum have kill Lady Shiva , interestingly enough , but never Bruce . As a female parent , Shiva has always been a thorn in her daughter ’s side . This fit is no different , but for once , Shiva has n’t come to fight , but instead with a warning that she and Cass must void as a lucrative group of ninjas wants them both dead .
Upon realizing her mother may actually carry some twisted love for her , Cass plunges into the engagement , ready to struggle by her mother ’s side .
On cue , the group in head - the Unburied , a centuries - old sect of warrior - attacks them , forcing the alienated female parent - girl duo to fight and get away together . The Unburied specifically desire Shiva dead , but they want Batgirl dead by connexion . Cass and Shiva ’s journey leads them to Shiva ’s temple as it cauterize to the terra firma . As they incline to the wound of a come down High Priest , Shiva hold open Cass ' life . Upon realizing her female parent may really carry some twisted love for her , Cass plunges into the fight , ready to crusade by her mother ’s side for onceto gripe offBatgirl ’s late stylish reset .
Batgirl#1 Understands Who Cassandra Cain Really Is to a Tee
Respecting the Lore and Ongoing Themes
Batgirl#1 have a raft of pernicious references to Cassandra Cain ’s pastas a character , as well as the past she share with her mother . As Batgirl , Cassandra Cain expend much of this premier issue reading her mother ’s body language , which has always been a keysecret great power of Cassandra Cain ’s , date back to the original 2000Batgirlseries where she used that skill tofigure out Batman ’s secret identity . In another panel , Shiva references the time that she killed and then rapidly revived her daughter to prove a point inBatgirl#25 by Kelley Puckett , Damion Scott , and Robert Campanella .
Though this serial publication marks Cass ' first ongoing solo series since her original 2000 - eraBatgirlrun ended , she did star topology , alongside her fellow Gotham paladin Barbara Gordon and Stephanie Brown , in 2021’sBatgirls , which is available now , both digitally and in pull in edition , from DC Comics .
Since much of the referenced account takes position in an 18 - yr - former ongoing series that ended in 2006 - at least two continuity reboots ago - not many readers may be expecting callback like these . However , that these cite do show up in this first issue showsjust how well - verse and respectful the originative team is to the material that come before it . Fans who get these references experience rewarded , while devotee unfamiliar get to discover about what number before 2024’sBatgirl , all while enrich and deepening the lore of the Batgirl legacy .
Recontextualizing Batgirl’s Archnemesis Creates a Fascinating New Conflict for Cass Cain
Lady Shiva Is Put in a New Light
Perhaps what ’s most telling aboutBatgirl#1 ishow it paints Lady Shiva in an entirely newfangled light . She has existed in DC lore for 49 years , and for the most part she has been written as a pretty straightforward scoundrel . Not to say that she ’s a scoundrel without layer - she is theone scoundrel who understands Batman , after all . However , she ’s always just been a fighter who warrants rivalry from all sides of the human beings to show that she ’s the best . In regard to her girl , she had antecedently spoken to and treated Cass as if she were her property .
Shiva had always utter to Batgirl as if she were always entitle to a fight with her , to prove herself , as Shiva was convinced that their destinies need that one must stamp out the other . This issuing adds a new bed to Shiva that ’s rarely been seen , if ever : this isa Shiva who genuinely cares for Batgirl , whether she shows it or not . She certainly has a unusual way of exhibit it and would never audibly admit it , but through Batgirl ’s skill of body language , she ’s able to empathize her female parent all the better and the unusual sexual love she has for her .
Batgirl ’s masque has received a major futurist upgrade that looks straight out of Batman Beyond — and we ’re thwart our fingers to see more of it .
Cass beguile Shiva lying when she tells the Unburied that she does n’t like about her girl in an effort to protect Batgirl from them . This prevarication - and Cass catching it as a prevarication - is significant becausethis moment could go on to limit their intact moral force displace forward for this series . Not only does Cass ask to learn to contextualize her typically stale , hardhearted mother as caring , but she want to protect her as she is being chased down by a legion of ninjas . A wearied baddie and a morally - staunch hero must become friend for mother and daughter to pull round this obstruction together .
DC Comics Is Finally Giving Batgirl the Spotlight She Deserves
A Perfect Marriage of Stylish Art, Gripping Action, and Rich Storytelling
Even beyond the rich storytelling , there is much to enjoy aboutBatgirl#1 . The action is sparse in party favor of congeal the stage for a compelling story , but when it arrives , the action is tempt at every twist . The activity itself tells a tale as Batgirl and Lady Shiva have to stop their own in - fighting- verbal and strong-arm - in lodge to face down the Unburied . The art by Miyazawa deserves its extolment as well , with each panel more striking and crisp than the last .
This series is a must - read for any Batgirl fan .
The first issue sets the degree for what could be a complex " buddy " story about two rivals who postulate to determine how to be allies for this dynamic to work . In one issue , Batgirlmanages to enrich the ever - grow lore of Cassandra Cain , the Batgirl mantle , and the Bat - Family at large . Cassandra Cain has spend the last yoke of decades as a fan - favorite fend for character , but she is finally given a Modern solo level to shine in an totally new spotlight . This series is a must - read for anyBatgirlfan , and future issues will surely be just as in demand .
Batgirl#1is available now from DC Comics .
