The continuity issues continue in this title. So many comments made and then ignored, enough that they have gotten in the way of the story. ( )

Access a version of the below that includes illustrations on my blog.

A Clash of Daggers opens with a standalone tale about Batgirl, Jim Gordon, Catwoman, and a leftover Talon from the Night of the Owls. It's a neat, character-driven story, where Batgirl, Catwoman, and the Talon, later given the name Strix, all have to learn to trust one another, making leaps of faith for their various own reasons: Catwoman allows herself to be arrested to delay the police so that Batgirl can take Strix in and help her reacclimate from being a tool of the Court of Owls.

The next story must take place before that one, because the Birds, Batgirl included, are still recovering from Poison Ivy's toxin in Your Kiss Might Kill. Katana's sword is stolen by the Dagger clan, and the Birds accompany her to Japan to steal it back; they also bump into Condor, a sort of clumsy oaf of a superhero. Though the details of the Dagger plot kind of escaped me, this is one of Duane Swierczynski's better Birds of Prey tales: the girls work together as a team, Condor is fun, the banter is good, and Romano Molenaar and Vicentue Cifuentes turn in the best art the book has had in a long while.

The last story sees Strix joining the Birds as a replacement for the departed Katana as they track down a terrorist arms dealer. I don't really care for the subplot about Dinah's malfunctioning powers, but other than that this is a decent, solid tale-- not quite as good as the previous one, but still entertaining enough. It's amazing how much good a consistent art team goes, making the characters feel like real people. It's pretty action-heavy, though, so I hope what comes next can draw out the character dynamics of this constantly fluctuating team a little bit more clearly: I like Dinah, Batgirl, Ev Starling, and Condor, and am prepared to like Strix, but I don't think these birds have yet been allowed to soar.

Birds of Prey: « Previous in sequence | Next in sequence »

I really liked the first volume of Birds of Prey but felt that the second volume went off the rails too much. Now, I’m torn over this third volume. It is better than the second volume, but it also shakes up the team...again.

The book opens with the fantastic Batgirl Annual #1, where she unexpectedly teams up with Catwoman for the introduction of a new character (someone’s gotta replace Poison Ivy, right?). Not only was the story action-packed, but the artist totally blew me away. I loved the hyper-realistic style. Unfortunately, it doesn’t continue through the volume when it switches back to the Birds of Prey series. But after reading this piece, I will definitely be starting the Batgirl solo series.

The second part of the story provides an exit point for Katana, who is getting her own solo series from DC, and the introduction of another new character. I like Katana and will follow her to the new series, but I’m also unhappy that the Birds are losing another member just after the team started to gel. This section was a simple, uninspired story, but it did have some good action sequences. I’ll miss Katana on the team, but will be glad to *hopefully* see the gloves pulled off so she can let loose with the violence more suitable to the character.

The last section brings the two new characters into the fold while bringing back a tie to the series-spanning Basilisk storyline. The biggest point of this section seemed to be to show that Canary is losing control of her power. While I do want to know more about her character, I’m not thrilled about the prospect of the team leader falling apart when the team already has so many issues.

Overall, I’m still hooked on the Birds, but I really hope that the writers/DC give the shake-up nonsense a rest. Let this team stick together for a few volumes, build a little trust and, hey, even resolve the Basilisk story arc with them. Recommended. ( )