Batgirls #2 Review

As Dramatic as TP'ing a High School Gym

Written by: Becky Cloonan, Michael W. Conrad

Art by: Jorge Corona

Colors by: Sarah Stern

Letters by: Becca Carey

Cover price: $3.99

Release date: January 11, 2021

Batgirls #2 introduce the Batgirls to the Saints, a militant gang of killers for hire who believe Simon Saint is still alive and are devotees of his grand vision for Gotham. However, when Barbara sends the girls out to perform some recon, they find the local gang of robbers from issue #1 linked to the GCPD for some mysterious purpose. Meanwhile, Simon Saint is alive... or is he???

Was It Good?

Meh. Yes, that doesn't sound very insightful or critic-like, but that mild pejorative accurately sums up this issue.

Sure, You learn things in this issue that help readers further understand the plot. For example, we know the GCPD, in conjunction with a robbery gang, are building "something" down by the docks for some reason. We learn Simon Saint has manipulated the Saints to hunt down the Batgirls for some reason. We find out that the Batgirls' creepy neighbor is baking a human head for some reason. And Cloonan and Conrad have put these half developments together around a cast of characters that don't resemble (in voice, tone, or personality) themselves... for some reason.

That's why this issue gets a resounding "meh." You get bits and pieces of things that may or may not be interesting surrounding a mystery that may or may not be interesting using characters that are so different from their origins that you're not sure yet if they are or aren't interesting.

The art is fine, but it does appear Corona is exaggerating the anatomies more in this issue than the previous one. Also, Corona seems to be aping Riley Rossmo's style in a few panels, which feels a bit odd. If the intention is to escalate the silly factor (and we get plenty of immature silliness in the dialog), then mission accomplished. If not, the nonsense is killing the seriousness of whatever is happening. Time will tell.

Bits and Pieces

Batgirls #2 plays up the silly banter and the lack of stakes to build toward a mystery that has no apparent purpose... yet. Corona's art style appears more exaggerated in this issue, further enhancing the nonsense. The issue isn't necessarily bad, but the focus, right now, is on dropping clues about an undefined mystery. At the same time, the oddly re-characterized Batgirls don't treat their situation any more seriously than a collection of middle school hijinx.

6.5/10