Wow, we are getting deeper into January of 2022 and that means more Bat-Family fun with one of my favorite ladies, Barbara Gordon, aka, Batgirl. The volume I am covering this week is Batgirl Volume 1: Beyond Burnside, it contains issues #1-6. Batgirl doesn't have a Rebirth #1 issue because her story reset about two-thirds of the way through the New 52 and into the DC You run of comics. So while this is the first Batgirl Rebirth volume it is also kind of the fourth volume in her Burnside storyline. For the sake of keeping my blog posts short and reasonable this post is going to cover issues #1-3.
Beyond Burnside Part 1: In Naha, Okinawa, Japan, a girl who is dressed like a Japanese school girl is beating up on guys. She appears to be looking for a formula. She is speaking Japanese but the guy she is attacking doesn't. Batgirl arrives speaking Japanese (because of course she can) and our school girl asks BG who she is, giving our girl the chance to tell us she is Batgirl!
Twenty-four hours earlier, Barbara has just arrived in Japan and she is calling to check in with her roommate and business associate Frankie. (Fun background, Barbara met Frankie in physical therapy and when she moved to Burnside they became BFFs. Frankie knows Barbara is Batgirl and often helps her.) We see Babs wandering around to some Japanese landmarks until she finds the hostel she is staying at. She is sharing her room and it turns out she knows the guy. (Those with a good eye will see that this is the guy that was getting beat up on the first page.)
This hunky guy's name is Kia and has known Bab's since they were little. Barbara tells Kia that she is in Okinawa to find Fruit Bat, who was a Japanese super hero back in the 40s. She was unmasked in the 80s and at 104, she still lives in Naha. Babs wants to interview her and ask about how she lived so long doing such a dangerous job. Kia points out that she has always been weird and Barbara points out that he was always a trouble maker. There is a short flashback of Kia and Babs getting in trouble. We get a great and accurate line from Jim Gordon (see below).
Kia admits he was trouble for a while, but he isn't that guy anymore. There is a quick line telling us Kia's family is from China and his grandparents still live there, so he is traveling and getting back into photography, planning to end his trip at his grandparents’ home. The two go on what I would call a date. They grab some food, Kia is not feeling the octopus, then some drinks at an Irish Pub. Babs is happy for the distraction, but things take a little turn when Kia starts getting sick. (Like food poisoning, not life or death...yet.)
The next day, Barbara gets to meet Fruit Bat. The older woman is being pushed around in a wheelchair by her jerk of a son, who doesn't give her a chance to speak (he even calls her Old Bat, what an ass). Kia wanders off to take photos and the jerk does too. Barbara tries to talk to Fruit Bat again, admitting she was in a wheelchair for some time too.
A scream interrupts the conversation and moments later we are caught back up to the first page. Batgirl is saving Kia from the Schoolgirl Ninja (just what I am calling her for now). They fight for a moment and Schoolgirl Ninja makes a run for it. Batgirl is about to take her down with a dodgeball, but Fruit Bat joins the fight, being way faster than a 104 year old woman should be able to. Batgirl gets star eyed and even our Ninja is impressed. The Schoolgirl throws a knife but is no match for Fruit Bat, she knows it and runs away.
Batgirl finally gets to talk to Fruit Bat, asking her how she was faster than the knife. In true cryptic fashion Fruit Bat replies, "No. Not faster. I was blocking the knife before she threw it." Batgirl wants to know all of Fruit Bat's ways, but before she can get too excited, age catches up with Fruit Bat. As Batgirl is helping Fruit Bat sit back down and before jerk son comes back, she tells Batgirl she needs a teacher and another line, "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way."
Batgirl takes off, pondering all that Fruit Bat said. She finds herself replaying the fight (she has an eidetic memory). She is about to call Frankie when she looks up to see a giant billboard advertising an MMA Grand Prix in Singapore. (A literal sign?)
Later back in the hostel, Barbara is relaxing when Kia walks in. He is very excited to tell her all about his run in with Batgirl. He observes that Batgirl looks a lot like Babs, but she waves that off like a champ. He is just happy Batgirl was there to be his guardian angel. She resolves to keep an eye on Kia and asks him how he feels about a trip to Singapore.
Beyond Burnside Part 2: In Singapore, Batgirl is still ruminating on the words of Fruit Bat. While she is thinking about it, she is taking over a drone that was spying on Kia and her. She finds the source of the drone but it isn't a conspiracy, just a peeping tom, that she sends to jail.
In classic Bat-Family tradition, Batgirl finds a high up place to think. She is running through her memory again and spots a tattoo on the Schoolgirl’s arm. It is odd because it is in Chinese. She finds the translation and it means, "student." Batgirl realizes that maybe that is why Fruit Bat told her to find a teacher.
Back in her hotel room, Babs is taking a shower and Kia is hanging out. (These two got chemistry. I think this all takes place after the events in Nightwing.) He asks her to lunch but she tells him she is off to a rare books store. They have an awkward goodbye. As Barbara is heading to wherever she is actually going she is thinking a lot about what she likes about Kia (my girlfriend will love this part) her conclusion is, once she is home, girl needs to find a therapist.
Babs arrives at a company called Adapt hoping to get in on the MMA scene. This company isn't signing women anymore and Babs gets a little testy about it, but a security looking guy gives a lead on another gym. At the Ligthtspeed Gym Babs meets May Hoa and they talk about being a woman in the sport that is MMA fighting. May used to fight in Gotham but came back to Singapore to help train future fighters. May is suspicious and Babs gives a fake name. May shrugs it off but offers to set up a fight for her. Babs isn't sure she can commit to that and May is unimpressed.
The two women do still square off in the ring though. Barbara puts up a good fight but gets her butt kicked and three hours later walking back into her hotel room, she is sore. Poor girl wants to just relax, but Kia has plans, telling her she is going to need a swimsuit. Kia's surprise is that he has a room at the Marina Bay Sands (a very fancy hotel). She asks him how and he is a little shady about it. She is going to ask more, but gets distracted by how beautiful the view is and the pool.
Kia is laying the charm on and promising that he is coming into money. He tells her that he has a legit job lined up and she is happy for him, because she can tell when he is lying and he seems to be telling the truth. The chemistry finally boils over and they kiss.
Later, the two are chatting about said kiss. Barbara knows this is a bad idea and tries to gently say goodbye to Kia. He is supposed to leave the next day, but he calls his grandpa and tells him he is going to be longer than he thought. Barbara tries again to tell him that this is too much and too fast, but Kia keeps his cool and promises to keep it at her pace.
On the next page we go through most of the week. We see Barbara training more with May and going on more dates with Kia. By the end of the week she is able to beat May, hand to hand. On Friday it is time for her big fight to prove she belongs in the MMA scene. On her way out, Kia stops her and asks her to go to Shanghai with him. Dude is falling hard for her and she doesn't give him an answer, just quotes Fruit Bat at him, "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way." He asks what that means and she admits she doesn't know as she leaves.
At a warehouse Barbara is gearing up to fight a very intense looking lady fighter. May told Babs, they call this fighter, "The Moth" but she wasn't sure why. The official starts the fight and Bab's learns quickly why her opponent is like a moth. She flutters around and Barbara can't hit her. The moment there is an opening, Barbara is about to take her punch when she gets distracted by a tattoo on the other fighter's arm. (Not in the same place as the Schoolgirl Ninja, but the same word.) That moment of hesitation results in Barbara getting knocked out, full KO.
Beyond Burnside Part 3: Barbara is taking some time to recover from her fight. May tells her she didn't do badly, that her opponent (she uses the name Lu, which I think she mentioned before...I do my best guys) was better than she had heard. Lu ducked immediately after the fight. May tells Barbara that maybe being deaf was an advantage for Lu. A couple of fan girls approach and Barbara directs them to May. Barbara takes a moment to go over the fight in her memory. The knockout really rattled her, but suddenly she remembers the tattoo and realizes Kia is in danger.
She rushes back to the hotel as Batgirl, kicking in the door and she finds a masked person. (Assuming it is Lu, she is kind of dressed as a moth.) She calls out for Kia, who is okay but locked in a room. Batgirl and Lu fight again, but this time she is ready and blocks what would have been the knockout punch, much to Lu's surprise. This time Batgirl gets to land a huge punch. She literally punches Lu out of a window, lucky for them both, Lu's costume seems to let her glide down. While Lu is falling Batgirl is over thinking the advice Fruit Bat gave her. "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way." However, Batgirl only won this fight because she had already lost to Lu.
Batgirl remembers Kia is trapped. Before she lets him out, she finds a spy cam and comes up with a plan to track it to its source. She changes out of her outfit and pretends she is just walking in and asks Kia what happened. He was locked in the bathroom and could hear someone trashing the place. She doesn't buy that and asks what Kia is hiding from her. He won't be honest with her even after she gives him many chances to do so. She tells him good luck and bounces.
Barbara knows that Lu is heading to Seoul, South Korea, so she heads to the airport to follow her. The spy cam she found is also transmitting from Seoul to further confirm that is where she needs to go. She is feeling bad leaving Kia, but figures solving this is the best thing she can do for him. On the plane she is trying to research the job Kia said he was getting. She gets interrupted by the guy sitting next to her. He is going on and on about a product that changed his life (pyramid scheme product) giving her a sample. She says thanks and puts on her headphones, but not before he brings up his gut bacteria. (The word is bolded so we, the reader, know it is important.)
While Barbara is trying to tune him out she is hit by the fact that the job Kia said he is starting is for a man who works in bio-encryption. She somehow figures out that Kia is transporting bio-encrypted bacteria. He didn't have food poisoning before, it was information poisoning. (Oh comics, you crazy, but I am here for it.)
Once Barbara lands she grabs some food before donning her Batgirl cowl. She goes to Lu's gym to tag her movements. While there she sees that Lu is studying for a physics entrance exam, she wonders about it, but figures that is a mystery for later. First she jets to the location that the spy cam signal is coming from. Classic abandoned construction site owned by a shady shell company. She makes it to the top of the building tracking the signal to the source. The hard drive seems to be missing, or she fell into a trap. (This is a comic, guys, of course it is a trap.) Someone throws a crate at her that she just dodges. A buff lady makes a joke about hard hats in active worksites and getting hurt (in English). Babs is impressed with her English. This interaction is all to explain that this girl is also studying for a scholastic ability test.
Babs is tired of dealing with students and wants to meet the teacher. Hard hat tells us that the teacher is in Shanghai (where Kia went) oh and Moth is ready for a rematch. We end this issue with Batgirl about to have to fight these two and no one is watching Kia's back.
Beyond Burnside Part 1: In Naha, Okinawa, Japan, a girl who is dressed like a Japanese school girl is beating up on guys. She appears to be looking for a formula. She is speaking Japanese but the guy she is attacking doesn't. Batgirl arrives speaking Japanese (because of course she can) and our school girl asks BG who she is, giving our girl the chance to tell us she is Batgirl!
Twenty-four hours earlier, Barbara has just arrived in Japan and she is calling to check in with her roommate and business associate Frankie. (Fun background, Barbara met Frankie in physical therapy and when she moved to Burnside they became BFFs. Frankie knows Barbara is Batgirl and often helps her.) We see Babs wandering around to some Japanese landmarks until she finds the hostel she is staying at. She is sharing her room and it turns out she knows the guy. (Those with a good eye will see that this is the guy that was getting beat up on the first page.)
This hunky guy's name is Kia and has known Bab's since they were little. Barbara tells Kia that she is in Okinawa to find Fruit Bat, who was a Japanese super hero back in the 40s. She was unmasked in the 80s and at 104, she still lives in Naha. Babs wants to interview her and ask about how she lived so long doing such a dangerous job. Kia points out that she has always been weird and Barbara points out that he was always a trouble maker. There is a short flashback of Kia and Babs getting in trouble. We get a great and accurate line from Jim Gordon (see below).
Kia admits he was trouble for a while, but he isn't that guy anymore. There is a quick line telling us Kia's family is from China and his grandparents still live there, so he is traveling and getting back into photography, planning to end his trip at his grandparents’ home. The two go on what I would call a date. They grab some food, Kia is not feeling the octopus, then some drinks at an Irish Pub. Babs is happy for the distraction, but things take a little turn when Kia starts getting sick. (Like food poisoning, not life or death...yet.)
The next day, Barbara gets to meet Fruit Bat. The older woman is being pushed around in a wheelchair by her jerk of a son, who doesn't give her a chance to speak (he even calls her Old Bat, what an ass). Kia wanders off to take photos and the jerk does too. Barbara tries to talk to Fruit Bat again, admitting she was in a wheelchair for some time too.
A scream interrupts the conversation and moments later we are caught back up to the first page. Batgirl is saving Kia from the Schoolgirl Ninja (just what I am calling her for now). They fight for a moment and Schoolgirl Ninja makes a run for it. Batgirl is about to take her down with a dodgeball, but Fruit Bat joins the fight, being way faster than a 104 year old woman should be able to. Batgirl gets star eyed and even our Ninja is impressed. The Schoolgirl throws a knife but is no match for Fruit Bat, she knows it and runs away.
Batgirl finally gets to talk to Fruit Bat, asking her how she was faster than the knife. In true cryptic fashion Fruit Bat replies, "No. Not faster. I was blocking the knife before she threw it." Batgirl wants to know all of Fruit Bat's ways, but before she can get too excited, age catches up with Fruit Bat. As Batgirl is helping Fruit Bat sit back down and before jerk son comes back, she tells Batgirl she needs a teacher and another line, "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way."
Batgirl takes off, pondering all that Fruit Bat said. She finds herself replaying the fight (she has an eidetic memory). She is about to call Frankie when she looks up to see a giant billboard advertising an MMA Grand Prix in Singapore. (A literal sign?)
Later back in the hostel, Barbara is relaxing when Kia walks in. He is very excited to tell her all about his run in with Batgirl. He observes that Batgirl looks a lot like Babs, but she waves that off like a champ. He is just happy Batgirl was there to be his guardian angel. She resolves to keep an eye on Kia and asks him how he feels about a trip to Singapore.
Beyond Burnside Part 2: In Singapore, Batgirl is still ruminating on the words of Fruit Bat. While she is thinking about it, she is taking over a drone that was spying on Kia and her. She finds the source of the drone but it isn't a conspiracy, just a peeping tom, that she sends to jail.
In classic Bat-Family tradition, Batgirl finds a high up place to think. She is running through her memory again and spots a tattoo on the Schoolgirl’s arm. It is odd because it is in Chinese. She finds the translation and it means, "student." Batgirl realizes that maybe that is why Fruit Bat told her to find a teacher.
Back in her hotel room, Babs is taking a shower and Kia is hanging out. (These two got chemistry. I think this all takes place after the events in Nightwing.) He asks her to lunch but she tells him she is off to a rare books store. They have an awkward goodbye. As Barbara is heading to wherever she is actually going she is thinking a lot about what she likes about Kia (my girlfriend will love this part) her conclusion is, once she is home, girl needs to find a therapist.
Babs arrives at a company called Adapt hoping to get in on the MMA scene. This company isn't signing women anymore and Babs gets a little testy about it, but a security looking guy gives a lead on another gym. At the Ligthtspeed Gym Babs meets May Hoa and they talk about being a woman in the sport that is MMA fighting. May used to fight in Gotham but came back to Singapore to help train future fighters. May is suspicious and Babs gives a fake name. May shrugs it off but offers to set up a fight for her. Babs isn't sure she can commit to that and May is unimpressed.
The two women do still square off in the ring though. Barbara puts up a good fight but gets her butt kicked and three hours later walking back into her hotel room, she is sore. Poor girl wants to just relax, but Kia has plans, telling her she is going to need a swimsuit. Kia's surprise is that he has a room at the Marina Bay Sands (a very fancy hotel). She asks him how and he is a little shady about it. She is going to ask more, but gets distracted by how beautiful the view is and the pool.
Kia is laying the charm on and promising that he is coming into money. He tells her that he has a legit job lined up and she is happy for him, because she can tell when he is lying and he seems to be telling the truth. The chemistry finally boils over and they kiss.
Later, the two are chatting about said kiss. Barbara knows this is a bad idea and tries to gently say goodbye to Kia. He is supposed to leave the next day, but he calls his grandpa and tells him he is going to be longer than he thought. Barbara tries again to tell him that this is too much and too fast, but Kia keeps his cool and promises to keep it at her pace.
On the next page we go through most of the week. We see Barbara training more with May and going on more dates with Kia. By the end of the week she is able to beat May, hand to hand. On Friday it is time for her big fight to prove she belongs in the MMA scene. On her way out, Kia stops her and asks her to go to Shanghai with him. Dude is falling hard for her and she doesn't give him an answer, just quotes Fruit Bat at him, "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way." He asks what that means and she admits she doesn't know as she leaves.
At a warehouse Barbara is gearing up to fight a very intense looking lady fighter. May told Babs, they call this fighter, "The Moth" but she wasn't sure why. The official starts the fight and Bab's learns quickly why her opponent is like a moth. She flutters around and Barbara can't hit her. The moment there is an opening, Barbara is about to take her punch when she gets distracted by a tattoo on the other fighter's arm. (Not in the same place as the Schoolgirl Ninja, but the same word.) That moment of hesitation results in Barbara getting knocked out, full KO.
Beyond Burnside Part 3: Barbara is taking some time to recover from her fight. May tells her she didn't do badly, that her opponent (she uses the name Lu, which I think she mentioned before...I do my best guys) was better than she had heard. Lu ducked immediately after the fight. May tells Barbara that maybe being deaf was an advantage for Lu. A couple of fan girls approach and Barbara directs them to May. Barbara takes a moment to go over the fight in her memory. The knockout really rattled her, but suddenly she remembers the tattoo and realizes Kia is in danger.
Digging this art.
She rushes back to the hotel as Batgirl, kicking in the door and she finds a masked person. (Assuming it is Lu, she is kind of dressed as a moth.) She calls out for Kia, who is okay but locked in a room. Batgirl and Lu fight again, but this time she is ready and blocks what would have been the knockout punch, much to Lu's surprise. This time Batgirl gets to land a huge punch. She literally punches Lu out of a window, lucky for them both, Lu's costume seems to let her glide down. While Lu is falling Batgirl is over thinking the advice Fruit Bat gave her. "You can't see the future when the past is standing in your way." However, Batgirl only won this fight because she had already lost to Lu.
Batgirl remembers Kia is trapped. Before she lets him out, she finds a spy cam and comes up with a plan to track it to its source. She changes out of her outfit and pretends she is just walking in and asks Kia what happened. He was locked in the bathroom and could hear someone trashing the place. She doesn't buy that and asks what Kia is hiding from her. He won't be honest with her even after she gives him many chances to do so. She tells him good luck and bounces.
Barbara knows that Lu is heading to Seoul, South Korea, so she heads to the airport to follow her. The spy cam she found is also transmitting from Seoul to further confirm that is where she needs to go. She is feeling bad leaving Kia, but figures solving this is the best thing she can do for him. On the plane she is trying to research the job Kia said he was getting. She gets interrupted by the guy sitting next to her. He is going on and on about a product that changed his life (pyramid scheme product) giving her a sample. She says thanks and puts on her headphones, but not before he brings up his gut bacteria. (The word is bolded so we, the reader, know it is important.)
While Barbara is trying to tune him out she is hit by the fact that the job Kia said he is starting is for a man who works in bio-encryption. She somehow figures out that Kia is transporting bio-encrypted bacteria. He didn't have food poisoning before, it was information poisoning. (Oh comics, you crazy, but I am here for it.)
Once Barbara lands she grabs some food before donning her Batgirl cowl. She goes to Lu's gym to tag her movements. While there she sees that Lu is studying for a physics entrance exam, she wonders about it, but figures that is a mystery for later. First she jets to the location that the spy cam signal is coming from. Classic abandoned construction site owned by a shady shell company. She makes it to the top of the building tracking the signal to the source. The hard drive seems to be missing, or she fell into a trap. (This is a comic, guys, of course it is a trap.) Someone throws a crate at her that she just dodges. A buff lady makes a joke about hard hats in active worksites and getting hurt (in English). Babs is impressed with her English. This interaction is all to explain that this girl is also studying for a scholastic ability test.
Babs is tired of dealing with students and wants to meet the teacher. Hard hat tells us that the teacher is in Shanghai (where Kia went) oh and Moth is ready for a rematch. We end this issue with Batgirl about to have to fight these two and no one is watching Kia's back.
Gonna wrap this up for now, do not worry though, I will have part two and the rest of this story out on Friday. That post will also include more thoughts and my favorite line. For now, I will say that this is a fun version of Batgirl, off doing her own thing.
Next Post: Batgirl Volume No. 1: Beyond Burnside, Part 2
Last Week: Nightwing Volume No. 1: Better Than Batman, Part 1
Nightwing Volume No. 1: Better Than Batman, Part 2
Note: All images belong to DC™
Last Week: Nightwing Volume No. 1: Better Than Batman, Part 1
Nightwing Volume No. 1: Better Than Batman, Part 2
Note: All images belong to DC™
Yay therapy! I'm so glad one of the DC heroes at least considered it. Also, shout out to Heroes in Crisis, go read that story if you haven't, it's a great one!
ReplyDeleteIt really is the best. You are right.
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