Upcoming Comics August 15, 2023

Hello everyone and welcome back to Upcoming Comics! This week has quite a few comics coming out, with at least three Batman Knight Terrors related issues wrapping up their tales. Though, I’m sure they’ll be vying for your attention against Buldur’s Gate 3 since it released this past week. I, for one, am not so patiently waiting for it to drop on PS5 and will have time to read. I feel like I’ve heard more about that game this week than I heard about Tears of the Kingdom when that dropped, but it could be recency bias speaking. Still, I’m sure there’s time to adventure and read these upcoming comics this week!

Upcoming Comics

Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #18

Think you know how Superman and Batman met and became friends? Think again! Read the untold tale of how their worlds first collided-and the stunning, secret loss that nearly destroyed their partnership before it even began!

Written By: Mark Waid
Pencils & Inks By: Travis Moore
Colors By: Tamra Bonvillain
Cover By: Dan Mora

Thoughts: I’m excited to see what this series comes up with for Batman and Superman’s first meeting!

Batman News Critic: Casper

Knight Terrors: Nightwing #2

Nightwing’s worst nightmare is to wake up one day realizing he murdered someone he loves and doesn’t even remember how or why he did it…and that’s exactly the Knightmareverse in which Insomnia has placed him while memories of who Nightwing killed and how he did it start flashing back vividly in his head. To make matters worse, he’ll have to work with his cellmates, Two-Face and Scarecrow, to get out of this one alive…

Written By: Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad
Pencils &Inks By: Daniele Di Nicuolo
Colors By: Adriano Lucas
Cover By: Adriano Lucas, Daniele Di Nicuolo

Thoughts: I wasn’t all that excited by the first part of this story, which makes it hard to get into a second part.

Batman News Critic: Michael

Knight Terrors: Catwoman #2

Catwoman is stuck in a nightmare in which her sister, Maggie, parades around Gotham as its savior, Sister Zero. After rescuing Bruce from The Joker, Catwoman calls him Batman…to which he asks her how she knew that name, since he had only called himself that in his head. What year is it in this Gotham, why does The Joker have snakes for limbs, and can Sister Zero and Catwoman pray themselves out of this nightmare?

Written By: Tini Howard
Pencils & Inks By: Leila Leiz
Colors By: Marissa Louise
Cover By: Veronica Gandini, Leila Leiz, Adriano Lucas

Thoughts: I skipped the first part of this story, but Michael’s review and this new solicit have me interested in seeing what’s going on in Selina’s nightmares.

Batman News Critic: Michael

The Penguin #0

Following the Penguin’s death in the landmark Batman #125, the mysterious Executor has enlisted Catwoman to carry out the departed’s last wishes and track down his next of kin. But when the Penguin’s heirs start getting murdered, Catwoman will have to find the killer and discover what truly became of Oswald Cobblepot. Collects the Batman #125-127 backup stories by the red-hot creative team of Chip Zdarsky and Belén Ortega!

Written By: Chip Zdarsky
Penciled By: Belén Ortega
Cover By: Belén Ortega, Alejandro Sanchez

Batman News Critic: William

The Vigil #4

/…/ /Who are the Vigil?/ /Dodge file loading… Dodge is the speedster metahuman in the secret organization called the Vigil. Her alias is likely to be a woman who goes by the name Dinah Kom. All files connected to this name have been erased. The only information left that was pieced together by Checkmate is that Dodge has a condition that places an extraordinary amount of fast-twitch muscle fiber in her body. Her suit allows her to control the fibers to move at the speed of thought. The multiversal and space-time repercussions of this are to be discussed in the next transmission. Stay tuned for more./ /…/ /you are being watched./

Written By: Ram V
Pencils & Inks By: Lalit Kumar Sharma, Devmalya Pramanik
Colors By: Rain Beredo
Cover By: Sumit Kumar, Romulo Fajardo

Batman News Critic: William

Harley Quinn: Black, White, and Redder #2

In this issue, Kelly Thompson makes her DC debut, collaborating with superstar Annie Wu on a tale of Harley’s attempts to escape her own origin story-with some begrudging magical help from Zatanna! Fan favorites Ro Stein & Ted Brandt throw Harley and her Legion of Doominals into the high-stakes Gotham Pet Show to go paw-to-paw with the beloved League of Super-Pets! And ROGUE SUN writer Ryan Parrott joins with Russ Manning Award-Winner Luana Vecchio to serve up a story of Jim Gordon and Harley sharing a diner booth, but what brought these two here is more complicated than you'd think!

Written By: Kelly Thompson, Ted Brandt, Ro Stein, Ryan Parrott
Penciled By: Ro Stein, Annie Wu, Luana Vecchio
Inks By: Ted Brandt, Annie Wu, Luana Vecchio
Colors By: Ted Brandt, Ro Stein, Annie Wu, Luana Vecchio
Cover By: Chris Samnee

Thoughts: All of the stories pitched in this solicit sound like a ton of fun, and make me want to pick this one up asap.

Batman News Critic: Theresa

Batman: White Knight Presents: Generation Joker #4

Revenge is a dish best served cold! With the FBI hot on their tail and nowhere to go, Bryce and Jackie return to where it all began…Arkham Asylum. There, with the help of a reformed Victor Fries, they hope to save their fading father. Will science prevail or will Mr. Freeze take the opportunity to end The Joker’s reign in Gotham for good?

Written By: Katana Collins, Clay McCormack
Pencils & Inks By: Mirka Andolfo
Colors By: Alejandro Sanchez
Cover By: Dave Stewart, Sean Gordon Murphy

Batman News Critic: Marylea

Knight Terrors: Punchline #2

It’s Punchline versus a nightmare Batgirl for the control of the hearts and minds of Gotham! Can Punchline overcome her deepest fears and anxieties to defeat this bat-cowled beast?!

Written By: Danny Lore
Pencils & Inks By: Lucas Meyer
Colors By: Alex Guimarães
Cover By: Gleb Melnikov

Batman News Critic: Aaron

Beyond the Bat

Hello and welcome back to Beyond the Bat! Here we look at the comics being released by DC that aren’t exactly Batman focused. This week Superman and Wonder Woman wrap up their Knight Terrors adventures while Raven gets her turn in the Titans spotlight.

Gallery

Ratings

Most Excited: Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #18- It’s no surprise this is my most anticipated book this week. I love this series, and I’m eager to see it take on this particular first meeting!

Least Excited: Knight Terrors: Punchline #2- We all know I have very little interest in Punchline as a character, which puts this book at the very bottom of my list of titles I’m looking forward to.

Wild Card: Knight Terrors: Catwoman #2- I’ve found myself quite curious about this book after it’s first part, and hoping that it turns out to be a really solid tale!

That’s all for this week’s Upcoming Comics! Be sure to let us know what you’re looking forward to in the comments, and let me know if you’ve picked up Baldur’s Gate 3, what you’re playing as, and how you’ve enjoyed it so far! Until next time, I hope you all have an excellent week!

16 comments

Tyranus

August 13, 2023

I still do not quite understand Dick's nightmare. He killed someone he loves and is now locked in Arkham. Okay, that makes sense, I am following along. But his nightmare is also that Babs is more machine now than person? Why? Vic (Cyborg) is one of his closest friends. Why would he be afraid Babs ends up like him? Wouldn't Babs's nightmare be that she ends up more machine than person? That the implants in her spine and her persona of Oracle take over her life? Seems odd how that is Dick's nightmare and not hers.

I do not know about Knightmares. There has been far more bad than there has been good. I am glad it is not a major event, but I am annoyed that it is stopping a ton of books for this mini event...which is not cool.

I also have my concerns about the Beast World event for the Titans happening later this year. I am not sure Taylor is up to the task. Seems to be lasting a lot longer than it really should and I have not been impressed with his writing for the past while now.

Anyway, picking up World's Finest and Hawkgirl for sure this week. We will see if anything else tickles my fancy.

Raphael Howard
August 13, 2023
It's frustrating that Barbara has a supporting role in three of the Knight Terrors stories (Nightwing, Detective Comics and Punchline), but doesn't have one of her own...
The chainmail elements of Barbara's "machine" design on the cover of Nightwing's Knight Terrors remind me a bit of the "Bete Noire" persona she had in her Futures End solo story in the time when she had enough clout to lead stories in these events. Although that tale was pretty overstuffed, the idea of Barbara being at peak physical power but struggling with her mental state has an intriguing irony to it - an interesting reversal for a character who many DC fans feel was most powerful when she was a full-time wheelchair user. The idea of a "miracle cure" having horrific side effects is solid horror territory, and exploring it could grant Barbara a much-needed return to the spotlight...
1. Tyranus
  August 14, 2023
  I think the problem with Babs is DC really wants to have their cake and eat it too. They want Babs as Batgirl full time, but her series have not done well for the past while (severe writing issues). Fans really want Babs as Oracle full time. That is when most fans today know her as and, quite honestly, when her best stories were written.
  So DC decided to split the baby, she is both Batgirl and Oracle now. Her miracle spinal implants cured her paralysis, but it is not perfect! Sometimes she just does not feel well.
  Seems like quite the cop out to me. Her overcoming her disability, finding a new purpose and new identity, and showing that tragedy does not have to define you, was a very powerful message. She was more affective as Oracle than she was Batgirl. Even leading her own team!
  But now, now she is just everyone's sidekick. Hell, in Nightwing, her only real trait in that book is that she is Dick's girlfriend. That is really the only reason she is there and it is kind of annoying. Dick cannot be solo in his solo series, but Babs does not really have a role or purpose other than to just be there and agree with everything Dick says. It is insulting to both characters and I just do not know why so many people are okay with that.
  1. Raphael Howard
    August 14, 2023
    If DC prefers Barbara as Batgirl, they need to find ways to make us accept the idea. Maybe they could give her a solo comic series written by a popular and reliable writer. Maybe they could avoid constantly interfering in the development of these stories. Maybe they could ensure that her solo movie was the best it could possibly be, instead of cancelling it and publicly tearing it down. If DC want to convince us Barbara works as Batgirl, maybe they could actually try to make her work as Batgirl (What a radical concept!)
    When comparing Barbara as Batgirl, and Barbara as Oracle, I often use the analogy of Batgirl being a "player" and Oracle being a "manager". To use an example from British football (soccer), Gareth Southgate was a solid player, but didn't truly become popular until he found success as the manager of England's national soccer team. I feel like the same principle is applied to Barbara - she receives so much more respect as a manager. Personally, I believe a lot of that is unfair. Many of Barbara's best and most compelling traits as Batgirl (esp. her status as a superhero fangirl who becomes a superhero for real) are constantly ignored and downplayed. Maybe there shouldn't be anything wrong with a young female superhero who has no superpowers (unless you count her photographic memory), no fortune and an entirely normal upbringing - maybe those traits should be admired and respected. Whilst Oracle's "comeback story" gives her an edge and a distinctive selling point, I always find myself infuriated by the suggestion Barbara doesn't have value as Batgirl...
    To go back to my Player/Manager analogy, there are some soccer stars who spend time as a "Player-Manager", but they usually don't last long - alternating between the two quickly becomes unsustainable. I think the best course of action would be to return Barbara to being Oracle, but on much more favorable terms. Give her a solo series instead of leaving her as part of an ensemble, and MAKE IT LAST (Barbara's longest "Solo Series" as Oracle lasted just three issues - why not go for at least six?) I also believe that there should be several prequel and/or AU comic series/graphic novels about Barbara as Batgirl, to ensure she gets more respect in that role without it coming at the expense of her time as Oracle OR Cass and Stephanie's work as Batgirl...
    1. Sara
      August 14, 2023
      "no fortune and an entirely normal upbringing"; "a superhero fangirl who becomes a superhero for real"
      You're running into Tim Drake territory with these. What interests loyal fans won't interest casual readers.
      I don't think DC cares about proving Barbara has value as Batgirl. They wanted her back for New 52 because they thought her stories would outsell the other Batgirls' stories. If they did at first, they didn't for long. (Remember sexy Waller and emo Lobo? It was not an era marked by good decisions.) They can't paralyze her again (just hinting at in dialogue sparks outrage), but she's too famous to retire, so they're keeping her as Oracle who sometimes goes out in costume. My opinion? She should have stayed in the chair.
      Today I'd wager a Cass Cain solo would outsell a Barbara Gordon solo. I'll carry that prediction a step further: If the DCU has a Batgirl, it will be Cass. If Barbara appears, it will be as Oracle, in a wheelchair.
    2. Raphael Howard
      August 15, 2023
      I agree that returning Barbara to the Batgirl role was motivated by $$$ first and foremost, and it initially worked - Gail Simone's run enjoyed consistently solid sales (Although Simone's Batgirl run was erratic and struggled with the angsty tone imposed on it, it had a clear and engaging "Dealing with Trauma" theme and you could tell Simone still genuinely cared about Barbara). However, the Batgirl comics began falling out of the Top 100 towards the end of the Burnside run, and fell even further during the various editorial interferences and author changes of the Rebirth era...
      I agree that it's more likely that the DCU will use Cass as Batgirl and Barbara as Oracle, due to James Gunn's enthusiasm for the 2000s DC Glory Days. I personally think that this is a good thing, but I also want to see Barbara receive respect as a Batgirl rather than an Ex-Batgirl...
  2. Professor Pyg's Trotters
    August 14, 2023
    I agree. Always felt it was a mistake to reverse her paralysis.
    Aside from the excellent points you made, it always felt (to me at least) that Barbara Gordon had completely distinguished herself as Oracle, and though the events that led her there were tragic, she had gone on to excel in a unique role that added depth to both the DC universe and to her as a character.
    A good example of triumph over adversity. And also how good storytelling can come from the consistency of BUILDING ON a shock-value moment (such as TKJ), rather than reversing or retconning it away for the sake of a comfortable reset.
    When I first heard about the decision for the New 52, I remember thinking that having Barbara revert to being Batgirl would be just like making Dick or Jason suddenly becoming Robin again.
    Felt it was a short-sighted mistake back then, and nothing I've read since has convinced me otherwise.
    Years of character development, and a unique identity, completely thrown out the window. And for what?
    I am pleased that DC have at least returned her to the role of Oracle (part-time) more recently. Hopefully, Barbara can excel in her own right once again. It certainly feels like DC could do with all the help it can get at times.
    1. Tyranus
      August 15, 2023
      It is so weird how DC continues to regress their Bat characters so that they cannot never really stand out from Batman's shadow. They have done it with pretty much the entire Bat family at this point.
      Every time Dick and the Titans start to get popular, DC rips Dick from the team.
      Jason finally finds footing with his own team, DC swoops in to mess it up.
      Babs makes her own identity and has her own team, DC reverse all of her character development and even removes the disabled representation (a really bad move).
      Tim is constantly stripped of his identity over and over again to be made Robin.
      One could say this is DC just trying to keep some sort of status quo, but why keep destroying popular things? I honestly feel like DC does not want any of these characters to outshine Batman. Because once they get popular enough away from him, DC might take the character away from the editorial team. That is what happened with Dick and the NTT. Bat editorial had no use for Dick, Wolfman uses Dick as part of his new NTT team, Dick starts to get popular, Wolfman and Perez give Dick a new identity that skyrockets his popularity. I bet Bat editorial was pissed. Especially since the NTT had become more popular than Batman at that time. In fact, I know they were since, the moment the NTT started to lose popularity, Bat editorial made a bid to get Dick back, won it, and completely destroyed Dick's marriage to Kori so they can put Dick back in Gotham and start pushing Babs as his love interest again. They even drastically de-aged Babs to make it less creepy.
      Look at what happened with Babs. Bat editorial had no use for her, they let the The Killing Joke team do whatever they wanted with her and they paralyzed her. She stayed that way until someone came along and decided to give Babs new purpose and gave her her own team to boot. Now, suddenly, she is getting popular away from Bat editorial and therefor they have less control over her. So what do you do to get her back into the fold? You wait for a reset and then you erase two other characters, reverse pretty much all of Babs development, and make her Batgirl again. Now you have full control again.
      It is honestly creepy how this keeps happening to Bat characters. No one is allowed to leave Batman's shadow.
    2. Raphael Howard
      August 15, 2023
      The "No Glasses, No Computers, No Library" mandates that affected Barbara in New 52 are the clearest example of sabotage - I understand the logic of DC wanting to return to the Pre-Crisis status quo. I DO NOT understand the logic of removing the things that made Barbara compelling in that older status quo...
    3. Tyranus
      August 15, 2023
      There are times when it is very obvious that DC does not understand their characters or their fans and put in strange mandates and effectively remove all the things that people liked about said characters. Like, whomever is in charge has this very specific vision of how they see a character and will utterly ignore decades of stories and development to preserve this pure idea in their head.

Sara

August 13, 2023

The Nightwing nightmare is one of the few Knight Terrors stories that doesn't sound like a bomb to me. We don't know if Barbara as a cyborg is supposed to be something Dick subconsciously fears or if it's something that will work to his benefit in his dream. Oracle is a font of information and key link in the chain of communication.

It isn't unusual for something that doesn't bother us in our day to day lives to manifest as something horrible in a nightmare. I am sorry to bring this up in a second comment so soon, but I used to work with the disabled, many of whom had visible or invisible medical devices and prosthetics. I had some damn strange dreams about those. I had a dream that a hip implant worked its way through someone's skin. I had an unshakable, waking fear of oxygen tanks bursting into flames. I have a lovable pitbull who's killed my cats in my dreams. That's nightmares for you.

Raphael Howard
August 13, 2023
Fascinating... Dreams are scary because of the way in which we can't control them...

Sara

August 13, 2023

The thought that the Punchline comic is better than the Robin comic makes me sad when there shouldn't be a Punchline comic in the first place. I can think of more than a few more deserving villains. Does ANYONE think Punchline's nightmares are more interesting than the Riddler's?

Sara
August 14, 2023
"this very white event"
Now that you mention it... If I squint, I can see Nubia's name on the WW cover.

amphiuma33

August 13, 2023

I really love the George Perez-inspired "Tales of the Titans" covers. I'll be picking that up, World's Finest, and Hawkgirl.

Also, I haven't kept up with Nightwing and won't pick it up, but nightmare!Barbara looks rad as hell.

Professor Pyg's Trotters

August 14, 2023

Like many, World's Finest is definitely the one I'm looking forward to the most. Have really enjoyed this run so far and been particularly pleased at the consistency. It's definitely felt like a throwback to the FUN of reading comics in my youth. Ah, the good old days...

Anyway, it's a story that's been told (and 're-imagined') many times now, but I'm genuinely curious to see Waid's version of the origin of Batman and Superman's partnership - it feels like he's earned the right to offer his take, with the strength of his recent work.

As for the others, I'll be picking up Nightwing and Catwoman to see the conclusion of their KT tales.

I feel like the earlier comment from dead bird sums up the KT tie-ins perfectly. I'm not a regular reader of either of these comics, but was intrigued enough by their first issues to want to see them through. Nightwing in particular - that last page of No. 1 was pretty disturbing!

Beyond the Bat: just the Superman tie-in this week, I think. I do feel like Williamson has spread himself a little thin of late, but have enjoyed his work on Superman and this tale is clearly going to link in with his ongoing story, so that's sufficient for me.

One final point: it seems pretty audacious of DC to be repackaging 'Batman' back up tales from as recently as the last 6 months for this Penguin No. 0. I know there's a new (mini?) series coming soon, but even so. Wonder how many takers they'll get for that..?

Oh, and Punchline reminds me of Gabbo from The Simpsons on these KT covers!

Tyranus
August 13, 2023
I still do not quite understand Dick's nightmare. He killed someone he loves and is now locked in Arkham. Okay, that makes sense, I am following along. But his nightmare is also that Babs is more machine now than person? Why? Vic (Cyborg) is one of his closest friends. Why would he be afraid Babs ends up like him? Wouldn't Babs's nightmare be that she ends up more machine than person? That the implants in her spine and her persona of Oracle take over her life? Seems odd how that is Dick's nightmare and not hers.
I do not know about Knightmares. There has been far more bad than there has been good. I am glad it is not a major event, but I am annoyed that it is stopping a ton of books for this mini event...which is not cool.
I also have my concerns about the Beast World event for the Titans happening later this year. I am not sure Taylor is up to the task. Seems to be lasting a lot longer than it really should and I have not been impressed with his writing for the past while now.
Anyway, picking up World's Finest and Hawkgirl for sure this week. We will see if anything else tickles my fancy.
1. Raphael Howard
  August 13, 2023
  It's frustrating that Barbara has a supporting role in three of the Knight Terrors stories (Nightwing, Detective Comics and Punchline), but doesn't have one of her own...
  The chainmail elements of Barbara's "machine" design on the cover of Nightwing's Knight Terrors remind me a bit of the "Bete Noire" persona she had in her Futures End solo story in the time when she had enough clout to lead stories in these events. Although that tale was pretty overstuffed, the idea of Barbara being at peak physical power but struggling with her mental state has an intriguing irony to it - an interesting reversal for a character who many DC fans feel was most powerful when she was a full-time wheelchair user. The idea of a "miracle cure" having horrific side effects is solid horror territory, and exploring it could grant Barbara a much-needed return to the spotlight...
  1. Tyranus
    August 14, 2023
    I think the problem with Babs is DC really wants to have their cake and eat it too. They want Babs as Batgirl full time, but her series have not done well for the past while (severe writing issues). Fans really want Babs as Oracle full time. That is when most fans today know her as and, quite honestly, when her best stories were written.
    So DC decided to split the baby, she is both Batgirl and Oracle now. Her miracle spinal implants cured her paralysis, but it is not perfect! Sometimes she just does not feel well.
    Seems like quite the cop out to me. Her overcoming her disability, finding a new purpose and new identity, and showing that tragedy does not have to define you, was a very powerful message. She was more affective as Oracle than she was Batgirl. Even leading her own team!
    But now, now she is just everyone's sidekick. Hell, in Nightwing, her only real trait in that book is that she is Dick's girlfriend. That is really the only reason she is there and it is kind of annoying. Dick cannot be solo in his solo series, but Babs does not really have a role or purpose other than to just be there and agree with everything Dick says. It is insulting to both characters and I just do not know why so many people are okay with that.
    1. Raphael Howard
      August 14, 2023
      If DC prefers Barbara as Batgirl, they need to find ways to make us accept the idea. Maybe they could give her a solo comic series written by a popular and reliable writer. Maybe they could avoid constantly interfering in the development of these stories. Maybe they could ensure that her solo movie was the best it could possibly be, instead of cancelling it and publicly tearing it down. If DC want to convince us Barbara works as Batgirl, maybe they could actually try to make her work as Batgirl (What a radical concept!)
      When comparing Barbara as Batgirl, and Barbara as Oracle, I often use the analogy of Batgirl being a "player" and Oracle being a "manager". To use an example from British football (soccer), Gareth Southgate was a solid player, but didn't truly become popular until he found success as the manager of England's national soccer team. I feel like the same principle is applied to Barbara - she receives so much more respect as a manager. Personally, I believe a lot of that is unfair. Many of Barbara's best and most compelling traits as Batgirl (esp. her status as a superhero fangirl who becomes a superhero for real) are constantly ignored and downplayed. Maybe there shouldn't be anything wrong with a young female superhero who has no superpowers (unless you count her photographic memory), no fortune and an entirely normal upbringing - maybe those traits should be admired and respected. Whilst Oracle's "comeback story" gives her an edge and a distinctive selling point, I always find myself infuriated by the suggestion Barbara doesn't have value as Batgirl...
      To go back to my Player/Manager analogy, there are some soccer stars who spend time as a "Player-Manager", but they usually don't last long - alternating between the two quickly becomes unsustainable. I think the best course of action would be to return Barbara to being Oracle, but on much more favorable terms. Give her a solo series instead of leaving her as part of an ensemble, and MAKE IT LAST (Barbara's longest "Solo Series" as Oracle lasted just three issues - why not go for at least six?) I also believe that there should be several prequel and/or AU comic series/graphic novels about Barbara as Batgirl, to ensure she gets more respect in that role without it coming at the expense of her time as Oracle OR Cass and Stephanie's work as Batgirl...
      1. Sara
        August 14, 2023
        "no fortune and an entirely normal upbringing"; "a superhero fangirl who becomes a superhero for real"
        You're running into Tim Drake territory with these. What interests loyal fans won't interest casual readers.
        I don't think DC cares about proving Barbara has value as Batgirl. They wanted her back for New 52 because they thought her stories would outsell the other Batgirls' stories. If they did at first, they didn't for long. (Remember sexy Waller and emo Lobo? It was not an era marked by good decisions.) They can't paralyze her again (just hinting at in dialogue sparks outrage), but she's too famous to retire, so they're keeping her as Oracle who sometimes goes out in costume. My opinion? She should have stayed in the chair.
        Today I'd wager a Cass Cain solo would outsell a Barbara Gordon solo. I'll carry that prediction a step further: If the DCU has a Batgirl, it will be Cass. If Barbara appears, it will be as Oracle, in a wheelchair.
      2. Raphael Howard
        August 15, 2023
        I agree that returning Barbara to the Batgirl role was motivated by $$$ first and foremost, and it initially worked - Gail Simone's run enjoyed consistently solid sales (Although Simone's Batgirl run was erratic and struggled with the angsty tone imposed on it, it had a clear and engaging "Dealing with Trauma" theme and you could tell Simone still genuinely cared about Barbara). However, the Batgirl comics began falling out of the Top 100 towards the end of the Burnside run, and fell even further during the various editorial interferences and author changes of the Rebirth era...
        I agree that it's more likely that the DCU will use Cass as Batgirl and Barbara as Oracle, due to James Gunn's enthusiasm for the 2000s DC Glory Days. I personally think that this is a good thing, but I also want to see Barbara receive respect as a Batgirl rather than an Ex-Batgirl...
    2. Professor Pyg's Trotters
      August 14, 2023
      I agree. Always felt it was a mistake to reverse her paralysis.
      Aside from the excellent points you made, it always felt (to me at least) that Barbara Gordon had completely distinguished herself as Oracle, and though the events that led her there were tragic, she had gone on to excel in a unique role that added depth to both the DC universe and to her as a character.
      A good example of triumph over adversity. And also how good storytelling can come from the consistency of BUILDING ON a shock-value moment (such as TKJ), rather than reversing or retconning it away for the sake of a comfortable reset.
      When I first heard about the decision for the New 52, I remember thinking that having Barbara revert to being Batgirl would be just like making Dick or Jason suddenly becoming Robin again.
      Felt it was a short-sighted mistake back then, and nothing I've read since has convinced me otherwise.
      Years of character development, and a unique identity, completely thrown out the window. And for what?
      I am pleased that DC have at least returned her to the role of Oracle (part-time) more recently. Hopefully, Barbara can excel in her own right once again. It certainly feels like DC could do with all the help it can get at times.
      1. Tyranus
        August 15, 2023
        It is so weird how DC continues to regress their Bat characters so that they cannot never really stand out from Batman's shadow. They have done it with pretty much the entire Bat family at this point.
        Every time Dick and the Titans start to get popular, DC rips Dick from the team.
        Jason finally finds footing with his own team, DC swoops in to mess it up.
        Babs makes her own identity and has her own team, DC reverse all of her character development and even removes the disabled representation (a really bad move).
        Tim is constantly stripped of his identity over and over again to be made Robin.
        One could say this is DC just trying to keep some sort of status quo, but why keep destroying popular things? I honestly feel like DC does not want any of these characters to outshine Batman. Because once they get popular enough away from him, DC might take the character away from the editorial team. That is what happened with Dick and the NTT. Bat editorial had no use for Dick, Wolfman uses Dick as part of his new NTT team, Dick starts to get popular, Wolfman and Perez give Dick a new identity that skyrockets his popularity. I bet Bat editorial was pissed. Especially since the NTT had become more popular than Batman at that time. In fact, I know they were since, the moment the NTT started to lose popularity, Bat editorial made a bid to get Dick back, won it, and completely destroyed Dick's marriage to Kori so they can put Dick back in Gotham and start pushing Babs as his love interest again. They even drastically de-aged Babs to make it less creepy.
        Look at what happened with Babs. Bat editorial had no use for her, they let the The Killing Joke team do whatever they wanted with her and they paralyzed her. She stayed that way until someone came along and decided to give Babs new purpose and gave her her own team to boot. Now, suddenly, she is getting popular away from Bat editorial and therefor they have less control over her. So what do you do to get her back into the fold? You wait for a reset and then you erase two other characters, reverse pretty much all of Babs development, and make her Batgirl again. Now you have full control again.
        It is honestly creepy how this keeps happening to Bat characters. No one is allowed to leave Batman's shadow.
      2. Raphael Howard
        August 15, 2023
        The "No Glasses, No Computers, No Library" mandates that affected Barbara in New 52 are the clearest example of sabotage - I understand the logic of DC wanting to return to the Pre-Crisis status quo. I DO NOT understand the logic of removing the things that made Barbara compelling in that older status quo...
      3. Tyranus
        August 15, 2023
        There are times when it is very obvious that DC does not understand their characters or their fans and put in strange mandates and effectively remove all the things that people liked about said characters. Like, whomever is in charge has this very specific vision of how they see a character and will utterly ignore decades of stories and development to preserve this pure idea in their head.
Sara
August 13, 2023
The Nightwing nightmare is one of the few Knight Terrors stories that doesn't sound like a bomb to me. We don't know if Barbara as a cyborg is supposed to be something Dick subconsciously fears or if it's something that will work to his benefit in his dream. Oracle is a font of information and key link in the chain of communication.
It isn't unusual for something that doesn't bother us in our day to day lives to manifest as something horrible in a nightmare. I am sorry to bring this up in a second comment so soon, but I used to work with the disabled, many of whom had visible or invisible medical devices and prosthetics. I had some damn strange dreams about those. I had a dream that a hip implant worked its way through someone's skin. I had an unshakable, waking fear of oxygen tanks bursting into flames. I have a lovable pitbull who's killed my cats in my dreams. That's nightmares for you.
1. Raphael Howard
  August 13, 2023
  Fascinating... Dreams are scary because of the way in which we can't control them...
Sara
August 13, 2023
The thought that the Punchline comic is better than the Robin comic makes me sad when there shouldn't be a Punchline comic in the first place. I can think of more than a few more deserving villains. Does ANYONE think Punchline's nightmares are more interesting than the Riddler's?
1. Sara
  August 14, 2023
  "this very white event"
  Now that you mention it... If I squint, I can see Nubia's name on the WW cover.
amphiuma33
August 13, 2023
I really love the George Perez-inspired "Tales of the Titans" covers. I'll be picking that up, World's Finest, and Hawkgirl.
Also, I haven't kept up with Nightwing and won't pick it up, but nightmare!Barbara looks rad as hell.
Professor Pyg's Trotters
August 14, 2023
Like many, World's Finest is definitely the one I'm looking forward to the most. Have really enjoyed this run so far and been particularly pleased at the consistency. It's definitely felt like a throwback to the FUN of reading comics in my youth. Ah, the good old days...
Anyway, it's a story that's been told (and 're-imagined') many times now, but I'm genuinely curious to see Waid's version of the origin of Batman and Superman's partnership - it feels like he's earned the right to offer his take, with the strength of his recent work.
As for the others, I'll be picking up Nightwing and Catwoman to see the conclusion of their KT tales.
I feel like the earlier comment from dead bird sums up the KT tie-ins perfectly. I'm not a regular reader of either of these comics, but was intrigued enough by their first issues to want to see them through. Nightwing in particular - that last page of No. 1 was pretty disturbing!
Beyond the Bat: just the Superman tie-in this week, I think. I do feel like Williamson has spread himself a little thin of late, but have enjoyed his work on Superman and this tale is clearly going to link in with his ongoing story, so that's sufficient for me.
One final point: it seems pretty audacious of DC to be repackaging 'Batman' back up tales from as recently as the last 6 months for this Penguin No. 0. I know there's a new (mini?) series coming soon, but even so. Wonder how many takers they'll get for that..?
Oh, and Punchline reminds me of Gabbo from The Simpsons on these KT covers!

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