Batgirl #20 & Batman and Robin #22

Two more DC books to go, both from the Bat-family of titles. One of them actually scores quite a high score, and you may be surprised to learn which one...

Batgirl #20:

Summary: This issue starts off informing us that Slipstream, the speedster working for those Order of the Scythe guys, was actually a student at Steph's college... Yes, that plays into things later on... Anyway, Steph and Proxy know Slipstream is planning on stealing money from a bank, but they aren't exactly sure when he's going to strike. You see, Slipstream sprayed the money at the bank with a tracking spray, so there's no doubt he's going to make his move, it's just a matter of when. Proxy does learn that the bank was planning on moving a large quantity of money, which would make that the ideal time to try to steal the dough. With nothing to do, Steph heads to class, where she is bothered by a student sitting next to her, staring at a map of Gotham, repeating directions to himself. Eventually the bank loads up the money and begins to move it, at which time the student next to Steph takes off. Right after that, Proxy calls Steph and tells her that the money was on the road, at which time Steph realizes that she had Slipstream sitting right next to her, but let him... well, slip away. Steph cuts the trucks off in a tunnel, figuring that would be the most likely spot for Slipstream to make his move, and sure enough, he shows up, knocking out all of the guards, before setting his sights on Steph. Slipstream takes a run at her, but Steph is prepared, waving her cape at him as a distraction before peppering Slipstream with a bunch of electro-magnetic-gooperangs. The electro-magnetism kills Slipstream's suit, while the gooperangs glue the villain to the ground, leaving him helpless. Steph waits for the police to show up, and is a bit disconcerted with how eager Slipstream seemed to be heading to Blackgate Prison. With that, the Order of the Scythe chumps prepare their next challenge for Batgirl, some woman named Harmony.

Thoughts: Meh. I don't know what it was about this issue, but it just didn't do much for me. I mean technically it was fine, we learned about the villains, Steph set up the electro-magnetic-gooperangs earlier in the issue, the story moved smoothly, and the end saw the villain arrested, with the next threat already being prepped. However, I'm just not all that fond of these Order of the Scythe guys... They just don't really impress me much. Maybe when their secretive leader is revealed I'll change my tune, but for now? I wish they'd just go away.

Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.Gooperangs? Okay...


Batman and Robin #22:

Summary: The White Knight tries to have dozens of family members of Arkham's inmates jump to their deaths at once, but Batman(Dick Grayson for this issue) manages to interrupt the signal White Knight was using to control the people he was forcing to jump. Bats and Robin manage to save most of the jumpers, but some still end up as street pizza. Later on, the Knight enters Arkham itself, blinding or knocking out the police and guards who were there to protect the inmates. The Knight floods all of the cells, and we learn that his father was a guard at Arkham who was killed by Dr. Phosphorous. Phosphorous killed the Knight's dad by burning him in the back, leaving him with what looked to be wings, which is why the Knight had been dressing all of his victims like angels. The Knight enters Phosphorus's cell to kill him personally, but is halted by the timely arrival of Bats and Robin. While Bats deals with the Knight, Robin has to wrangle Zsasz, who escaped his flooded cell when the Dynamic Duo entered the Asylum. The Knight and Bats head up to the roof, and after downing Zsasz, Robin reluctantly drains the cells, saving the inmates... Man do I wish he'd have let them drown! Knight stabs Bats and tries to make a getaway, but Bats hits him with a batarang, right in the harness controlling his wings, causing the harness to violently malfunction, and ending Knight's threat. In the end the White Knight is sent to Arkham to live amongst the filth he hated most. However, the doctors can't seem to figure out how he managed to get his skin to glow, nor could they disconnect him from the harness, leaving him a literal White Angel.

Thoughts: Hey, when not shackled by Chairman Johns, Peter Tomasi can STILL write a good story! I mean, I'd always enjoyed Tomasi's work before Brightest Day, but after that absolute piece of sucktitude, I had figured that he'd lost it and was in the same sinking boat Chairman Johns was aboard. But no, as this three part story has proven, Tomasi, unlike Johns, CAN still write something other then self-indulgent crap. I'll be the first to admit that I was a bit dubious when I read the first part of this storyline, since I thought it was going to be a loose tie-in to Brightest Day, but instead, it was a strong story that introduced a new villain with a great look, a well thought out backstory, and huge potential, unlike Grant Morrison's creation, The Hat... So yeah, all in all, great work here, and I'm hoping we'll see more of the White Knight/White Angel in the near future.

Score: 9 out of 10.Yes, Damian is indeed awesome.