The Batgirls have come a long way since they started. Conrad and Cloonan have taken Steph and Cass through a nice variety of different adventures in the first sixteen issues of the series. Next, the Batgirls leap into Spring in Aparo Park with a couple of completely new villains. Then theres the return of the Saints in May. The first year and a half with Steph and Cass hasnt exactly been flawless, but Batgirls has easily proven itself to be one of the most reliably satisfying comics in the mainstream superhero genre.   Read Full Review

This has been an odd series so far, with a lot of mood whiplash, but surprisingly it manages to make the whiplash work. The story feels messy and real, in a way few comics usually do. Read Full Review

Batgirls #16 strikes the perfect balance between action, plot, character, nostalgia and emotion. We shouldn't be surprised that it's yet another great issue in this series. Inductive reasoning should tell us that! We didn't even get to mention the fun use of all the expected Alice in Wonderland motifs one would expect in a Mad Hatter story! Read Full Review

All in all, this is a fun story that focuses more on character than plot and works well as a result. Read Full Review

Well, this issue sure was Batty! I'm starting to just get used to the new level of insane and then another issue comes out and throws me a curveball. Batgirls #16 did this exact thing. I was expecting a normal baddie beat down, but we ended with something much more. Cloonan and Conrad and quickly becoming must-read writers for me, and I can't wait to see what they come up with next. Read Full Review

Like a lot of issues of Batgirls this one had ups and downs, and taken apart from previous issues it has enjoyable moments. Within the greater context of the series it struggles with leaning on elements that haven't quite worked in the past, like frequent use of major villains as guests rather than actual players. Still, if you enjoy the relationship between Steph and Cass this issue has its moments. Read Full Review

Though a deeply uneven issue in emotional impact, Cloonan, Conrad, and Googe do provide many pleasures in this Batgirl vs. Girl-Bat tale. Read Full Review

Batgirls #16 takes the weirdest, most nonsensical path to resolve Mad Hatter's evil plan, even though this issue is the first one where he actually makes an appearance. The plot is bizarrely random, and the art is sub-par compared to the last few issues. Read Full Review

I liked this. It was solid. A lot of my issues with the book previously was the overuse of narration, and its tonal quality. I've said this more than a few times, but once again, they manage to tone down the narration a bit. It makes for a more fluid reading experience, instead of before when you'd have to pump the brakes on everything, just for some mildly chaotic narration. I will say, this writing team still has pacing trouble. This issue, and many issues of theirs I've read lately, feel like they should end about 4 pages before they do. It's very jarring to read.

This whole arc has been a real mixed bag. Some issues were good, others were not. This was a not. We finally meet the Mad Hatter and I get that the writer was going for creepy mad man, but the result was huh, this plan makes no sense.

That’s the problem with much of Batman’s Rogue’s Gallery. It madness all the way down, but to be an effective story telling device there has to be method and motive to the madness, otherwise it is just a gimmick. Hatter just collects serums and then invites people to his trap. Why? BTAS was great in giving villains motives for their madness. This issue not so much.

The trap is sprung and the Batgirls fight life-sized puppets of the Bat family. They are easily defeated but Steph is exposed To Manbat serum and converts. This is one of the serums Hatter collects. I guess his eBay-fu is strong. Cass goes after Steph and uses the power of friendship to calm her down. Babs shoots cure and it’s happiness all around. I get the point of this, to show Iove and trust and family, but I found it obvious and on the nose. A better example of this is Tombstone. Doc Holliday says he joins Wyatt Earp because Wyatt is his friend. The other guy says”I have lots of friends.” Doc says “I don’t.”

That is the whole explanation of one character’s motive. It is to the point and taken care of in four sentences. It says a lot in very few words, and is not obvious. Since the whole point of the book is the friendship between Cass and Steph, and to a certain point Babs, do more show and not tell. Subtext is not your enemy.

So overall, a mixed bag. Also, I hate it when one villain’s gimmick become public domain. Just a personal peeve.

Or I could be wrong. more