Batgirl #8 is written by Tate Brombal and published by DC. Artwork is by Isaac Goodhart, colours by Mike Spicer and letters are by Tom Napolitano. Main cover art (left) is by Reiko Murakami.
Batgirl #8 is available from today, in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your digital copy from Amazon Comixology UK right here.
Synopsis
Sandra and Carolyn Wu-San have taken to the streets of Detroit and become the champions of Chinatown—but what happens when they meet the deadly fists of Richard Dragon and the Bronze Tiger? Meanwhile, who is the dark shadow thatstalks the young Lady Shiva by day and haunts her dreams by night, and how do itsrevelations affect Cassandra Cain in the present?Get ready for the deadliest, most action-packed issue of Batgirl yet!
Review
DC’s incredible Batgirl continues today with the second part of an arc diving in to the past of Cass’ mother, Lady Shiva. After the first chapter of the story sought to add a deeper meaning to the character’s history. This month’s issue dials up the action to round out her journey from orphaned child to stone cold assassin.
I talked about this in my review of issue #7 but I do think it’s brave of writer Tate Brombal to take on fleshing out Shiva’s story in this manner. I hate to use The Joker as a comparison but sometimes not giving a villain a back story can work in their favour. Of course Shiva isn’t an outright villain anymore. But even so, a story such as this needs the right level of subtlety to avoid making Shiva a character we ultimately only feel sympathy for. The first half did a decent job of giving her a tragic background without compromising the fact she’s made plenty of deplorable decisions during her time as an assassin. Brombal showed there was absolutely a reason why Shiva would have a heart and an empathy towards others. Now this second part shows us how that heart was broken and replaced by a seething anger which is fitting for what we know of her in the present day.
Picking up where we left off, Sandra and Carolyn as they will come to be known are on the run from their uncle. Fleeing their homeland we finally see them travelling overseas, eventually winding up on the streets of Detroit. It’s here that the story begins to intersect with more of the DCU. Brombal folds in Richard Dragon and Bronze Tiger to give the sisters someone to bounce off as the story progresses. More importantly, we begin to see the sisters beginning to grow apart which is the inevitable signpost toward further heartbreak to come.
Brombal’s ability to lean in to character development has never been sharper. This issue has the right amount of backstory to really flavour the pot. But never once does it take even a single step too far. If the story ever flirts with creating too much sympathy for Shiva then something comes along to pull us back from the edge. Be it the looming shadow of their uncle hunting for the sisters. Or Shiva’s inability to give in to the advances of Richard whilst her sister begins to open up to Ben. There’s an inherent lack of ability to make true connections beyond her sister which isolates Shiva, nudging her towards her destiny.
There’s a cool edge of martial arts thriller to Batgirl #8. There’s echoes of Batman: Soul of the Dragon in there though I would say this book feels more 80’s than 70’s. There’s a really neat delineation between part one and part two of this story as well. With Isaac Goodhart using the shift in setting to the US, as well as the continued passage of time, as a chance to change up the fashion and overall visual style of the book.
Looming in the background of all of this is the arrival of David Cain. Anyone with a functioning knowledge of the DCU knows that Cain is a shady character. There’s a reason he’s only been used sparingly in the past because his arrogance and sheer deplorability is such that anything other than small doses would probably anger the audience to the point of putting the book down. So Brombal uses him to great effect in just a small number of panels. His influence over Shiva is strong and instant. It also puts her on the trajectory to Cass’ birth which neatly brings us back to the bookends to this story.
With Cass now arriving in Montana the story can move back to the mission at hand. It’s time to find Bronze Tiger, now with the context that he is an important part of Shiva’s history…
Verdict
The second part of “The Book of Shiva” closes out this chapter in her history having given real and clear context to her personal journey. Everything in this story has felt relevant to telling us who she is. But also why she sent Cass to find Bronze Tiger. Brombal’s character work has been impeccable but now it’s time to get back to Cassandra’s story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
