Batgirl is Reborn! FINALLY, the fan beloved but criminally underappreciated run of Stephanie Brown’s adventures in the cape and cowl is receiving a new collection! Bryan Q. Miller‘s take on the teen heroine has been remembered fondly by die-hard fans. However, whenever one of us would want to show a friend why we were arguing, to the point that spittle was flying, that the once Spoiler was the best of all the Batgirls we never had a trade paperback to hand them. Until this day, that is. Are you ready? You’re not ready. But you will be.
Batgirl in the comics was originally Betty Kane, niece of the original Batwoman, Kathy Kane. Then, Barbara Gordon was introduced in 1967 and replaced Betty to fill her spandex. Barbara Gordon’s tenure ended when left for dead at the end of Joker’s gun barrel. Scribe John Ostrander brought Barbara back into the fold as the wheelchair-bound Oracle in seminal run on Suicide Squad but her most famous mantle remained unoccupied for many years (eleven to be exact). Then came the 1999 No Man’s Land event where Helena Bertinelli took up the title much to Barbara’s chagrin.
Following Helena’s brief stint came the fan beloved Cassandra Cain, a silent warrior, the daughter of an assassin. After the events of Final Crisis and Batman R.I.P. out of nowhere comes Stephanie Brown. Fan outcry nearly canceled Stephanie’s run early on. The former Spoiler’s cold welcome came along with questions as to what happened to Cass, taking away from some of the early stories finally collected here. Over the first few issues a realization occurred to readers: We were seeing a character that the DC Universe sorely needed. And she was such a spaz, in the best way possible.
Stephanie Brown became to DC Comics what Peter Parker had been to Marvel. Reading this first collection which deals with the first two story arcs, it’s hard not to be charmed by Ms. Brown. With her best of intentions but terrible aptitude of listening to her alarm or balancing being a teenager and superhero, Ms. Brown encapsulated the lovable loser teen trying to grow up because she has to. The best writer once said that some are born great and others have greatness thrust upon them, now we get some Stephanie Brown goodness thrust upon our bookshelves again.
Relive or discover a new Batgirl’s trials by fire dealing with villains like Man-Bat, Scarecrow, and stopping a nanovirus that will turn the people of Gotham City into mindless techno-zombies. Collects BATGIRL #1-12.
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