“Who’s Oracle?” She Said, and Tried to
Look the Other Way
Writer: Cecil Castellucci
Artist: Carmine Digiandomenico
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Andworld Design
Cover: Carmine Digiandomenico & Ivan
Plascencia
Variant Cover: Joshua Middleton
Editor: Brittany Holzherr
Group Editor: Brian Cunningham
Cover Price: $3.99
On Sale Date: August 28, 2019
**NON SPOILERS AND SCORE
AT THE BOTTOM**
You
all know the drill by now: ol’ Reggie was incapacitated for a few months and
didn’t read any current DC Comics books
during that time! This puts me about four issues out on Batgirl…can I keep
up with the breakneck pace of this series and hop right back on? What do you think?
Explain It!
Last
I left this series, Batgirl was caught by the Terrible Trio after she uncovered
something they did that was…terrible. Well, she got out of that trap, but her dalliance
with the Trio aren’t over since they’re behind the resurrection of Oracle in
this issue! She’s one of the “Dark Gifts”
that holographic Lex Luthor has posthumously bestowed on the criminal
underworld, probably the most dangerous piece of software in existence sincen
she almost destroyed humanity, last time she was sprung. I mean, the recurrence
of Oracle in this series feels like a slap in the face because I loved that
character, and Oracle’s continued use in this series feels like a cheap ploy to
get fans of handicapped Barbara Gordon on board. You can’t have it both ways,
DC Comics; if you see fit to reboot your universe every few years, I suppose
that’s your wont, but you can’t keep one toe in previous continuity and expect everyone
to go along with it. The handling of this feels sloppy and ignorant of how
important Oracle is to fans, or how powerful the character was in her time. And
then to hand her off to the Terrible Trio?!
Barbara is sidelined through this hand-off of Oracle
because she’s getting over having been the victim of a royal beat down by
Killer Moth. Her internal commentary implies that it’s a rookie maneuver to be
beaten by Killer Moth, but what she should be considering is changing her
perception of this villain. While Batgirl regroups and accepts some cash from a
passer-by, Oracle connects to every database in order to find out who she is,
and what is her purpose. She’s got a physical component now, which is really
nothing new, which she uses to bully the crap out of the Terrible Trio, who are
desperate for her friendship, since she is beaucoup powerful. At the end of the
book, Batgirl kicks the crap out of Killer Moth because that’s how this issue
was going to conclude, no matter what else happened.
This is a well-told but ineffectual story. I was
able to pick up the threads to this story despite not having read it for three
months. Everything was plainly told and well-paced, and I think the art is
terrific. I also liked Batgirl’s new. More sensible costume. But, like many “Year
of the Villain” tie-ins, the titular character’s story suffers at the expense
of some grandiose exposition by holographic Lex Luthor. The Batgirl content of
this issue is that Barbara recuperates from getting housed by Killer Moth, then
gives him a beat down, Not very interesting. The development of a separate
Oracle AI is somewhat interesting, but it has been done before—recentky, in fact,
in this volume of Batgirl—and it as a flop for the most part, So I’m
cautious.
Bits and Pieces:
Barbara recovers from getting beaten dowm by Killer
Moth and prepares for revenge. Elsewhere, Oracle is back as an independent
entity and she’s already downloading mainframes or whatever. A middling issue of
sowing seeds that will pay off later.
6.5/10
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