Batgirl 1

Recap
When a deadly group of assassins shows up to kill Cassandra, Lady Shiva comes to the rescue, and they must put their complicated past aside and work together as mother and daughter to ensure they make it out alive. Unfortunately, things are never as easy as they seem, and Cass must embark on a jaw-dropping, martial-arts filled adventure in her quest for truth and justice... and revenge?
Review
Cassandra Cain returns to the solo spotlight and her roots this week in Batgirl #1 from the creative team of writer Tate Brombal and artist Takeshi Miyazawa.
From the first panel, readers are reminded of the strained relationship between Cassandra and her absent mother, the assassin, and sometimes Batman’s nemesis, Lady Shiva. Brombal doesn’t waste time showing the tension, between them as Shiva tries to convince Cassandra that the two of them are being targeted for death.
The two are attacked by a group of ninjas and Batgirl and Shiva fight for their survival, Cassandra’s inner monolog brings the reader up to speed on who she is and why she chooses to live her life the way she does, even though she was raised to be a killer. This page is a great way to remind seasoned readers who she is and explain to newer readers.
While the issue doesn’t give many hints as to who is trying to kill Shiva and Cassandra, it does a good job of setting the tone for the story. It will be interesting to see how deeply the series explores their past and mentions David Cain, Batgirl’s father, who also hated Batman for influencing her path away from what was originally intended for her to follow.
The artwork and color for the issue work well and has a similar style and feel of the Cassandra Cain Batgirl series that ran from 2000 to 2006.
Final Thoughts
Batgirl #1 is an interesting start to this series that will hopefully examine and challenge the strained mother-daughter relationship between Lady Shiva and Cassandra. Hopefully the series will continue to build and expand on the relationship between the two and setup some more stories for Cassandra Cain's solo adventures in the future.
Batgirl #1: Does Mother REally Know Best?
- Writing - 9/109/10
- Storyline - 8/108/10
- Art - 9/109/10
- Color - 9/109/10
- Cover Art - 10/1010/10