This story has so many great twists and turns. Again, DC has an incredible Rebirth cycle comic on their hands. I'm so glad Batgirl is back, teamed up with a reluctant Black Canary, a contrary and deadly Huntress, and...Oracle? Babs has to come to terms with someone else usurping her identity and fight to reclaim it.

I was excited when I found out that Birds of Prey was going to be part of DC's rebirth. I have several friends who are enthusiastic BOP fans, and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. As someone largely new to the series I appreciated the time spent delving into the backstories for Batgirl, Black Canary, and the Huntress. I found the relationships to be believable, the banter amusing, and the storytelling consistent and fluid. I had fun reading this title, and would recommend it for any library.

That being said I am not a huge fan of Claire Roe and Roge Antonio's artwork, and was very disappointed to see the unnecessary return of the Joker and the Killing Game to the story as part of Barbara's flashbacks.

This was a fun return to the Birds of Prey! The story was a little predictable, but still very engaging and the artwork was nice.

Barbara Gordon is a pretty masterful secret keeper. As the daughter of the police commissioner of Gotham City PD, she has somehow hidden both of her hero roles as Oracle and Batgirl. Basically, she's been one of the most powerful hackers on the planet and a kickass super hero, without triggering her dad's questioning. That's call serious skills. Unfortunately, someone has taken on the mantle or Oracle and is releasing some pretty important information out into the public about local crime families. Wondering who is behind it and really wanting to pull the plug on their escapades, Barbara Gordon calls upon her close friend, Dinah Lance. Dinah is better known as Black Canary. The two stumble across an attempted murder as Helena Bertinelli, aka Huntress, is trying to take out a mob member she believes responsible for the murder of her family. Despite a few initial stumbles and misunderstandings, the three team up to become The Birds of Prey. It is a strained relationship, and many things could trigger their demise. However, they all have a common goal; find out who Oracle really is and why they are trying to cause major problems for Gotham.

Okay, okay. At this point in time, we need to wonder who ISN'T Oracle. This is the second time in recent memory that someone has stolen Barbara Gordon's hacker identity for their own personal gain. Now that she's back in her Batgirl role, she has a few options, but its a very terrifying thought to have someone use your alter ego for evil. Think of it like people repeatedly hacking into your social media profiles and posting inappropriate things that cause serious discord among your family. However, in this case, it is information that could very well get your family and friends killed.
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Huntress is a difficult character to follow because of her rash decisions. She seeks revenge, but goes in without a great deal of planning and almost gets everyone killed. The reader finds themselves making the Jackie Chan meme face and asking why she won't just listen to Barbara once in a while. The collection puts together issued #1-6 of the Batgirl and the Birds of Prey: Rebirth one-shot mini series. The adventure is great, and it includes a great deal of fun played at Fanboys and Fangirls.

Batgirl and The Birds of Prey: Who is Oracle? is now available from DC.

A great introduction to the Birds of Prey, Batgirl, Black Canary, Huntress AND Oracle, as well as a mix of great villains. Lots of action, great art(as always) and an intriguing story packed with sarcasm and humour. Great read!

I’ve always liked the Birds of Prey, it’s the girl thing if I have to be honest. In a world that seems to focus on Superman, Batman, Aquaman, and all the other men any time women are given a chance to shine in that male dominated world is a good one.

Admittedly I’m a fan of the Rebirth thing DC has going on because I didn’t grow up with comics so I feel like this is giving me a chance to catch up. When the graphic novels, like this one, provides background info it helps feel more connected to the story, settings, and characters. The dialogue is witty and well written, sounds very conversationalist for a graphic novel. The added layer of mystery and action to the story line was written very well. I liked how the completely contrasting personalities of the characters actually blended well and made for some interesting chemistry between the girls; it really brought out their humanity. The only con in the story I had were the few continuity issues but the good outweighed the little bit of bad so I was happy.

I was a little put off by some of the art work. Batgirl was drawn so muscular in some of the frames it looked like it was a man’s body with a woman’s head on top. There’s already tons of men in the comic universe, what few female characters we get shouldn’t be taken from us by trying to masculinize them. Women can have muscles and defined bodies but this was a bit much. It wasn’t all bad but it was so good then bad at the same time and because graphic novel are half story / half artwork having good CONSISTENT art work is pretty important.

If you like reading about strong, intelligent female characters then you should pick this up!

This is the rebirth of the birds of prey. Meaning it's like a retelling of how the Birds of Prey began. It follows Batgirl, Huntress, Black Canary, and someone masquerading as Oracle. Oracle was Batgirl's moniker when she was in a wheel chair. The Birds of Prey are hunting down this fake oracle because whoever they are, they are selling information to mob bosses. I did like this story. I enjoyed all the banter between the BoP. It was cool to see how this group started up and slowly grew to trust each other. I really enjoyed the theme of family. There is plenty of background information to tell you where these character's are coming from. You don't feel left out in the dark if you are just picking this one up. The story was kind of jumpy. If you're used to superhero comics then it won't bother you. But if you've never read any other superhero comics the art and way information is given might seen a little disjointed. I personally enjoyed the art though. I wouldn't recommend it as your first superhero comic. But if you're well versed in the DC universe then I think you'll really enjoy this volume. I loved Batgirl and the Birds of Prey Volume 1. 4/5 stars.

Story - - 5 stars. I really liked how the back stories played so heavily into the plot. I felt like I should have seen it coming, but it surprised me.
Art - - 2 stars. The artwork was very weak. I don't care for the style used for most of the book. Sort of a mashup of western cartoon and Japanese anime. Not for me.

Total - - 3.5 stars, rounded up. I'll keep reading this one for now.