The first issue of Birds of Prey was pure set-up. It was to bring the new roster Black Canary has assembled over for why they were chosen. Not all of the choices worked, especially with how Oracle and Huntress were arbitrarily left out of roster. That said, Kelly Thompson did show she has an understanding of each member of the new Birds of Prey. Now from here as we get into Black Canary’s mission to save Sin we will hopefully see the team chemistry shine. Let’s see if that is the case with Birds of Prey #1.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artist: Leonardo Romero
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
SOLICITATION
“BLACK CANARY’S ALL-NEW TEAM ON THEIR FIRST MISSION! Black Canary has built an all-new team with a very specific and very dangerous first mission: extraction! Their target: [REDACTED]! She’s being held on [REDACTED] and guarded by a battalion of [REDACTED]. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, then we’re explaining it wrong! It’s a terrible mission! And before it can even be launched, the Birds have to gather a few mysterious supplies and see some old familiar faces…that they punch!” – DC Comics
REVIEW
Birds of Prey #2 is a step up every way from the first issue. The first issue fell into the trappings of trying to put over each member of the Birds of Prey individually. Because of that there wasn’t time to show any of the team chemistry. Given the team part is a big selling point of Birds of Prey that missing element hurt the debut to get over this roster. Because of that Birds of Prey #2 stands out even more as a great second showing.
The improvement over what the first issue tried to do is how the first mission the Birds of Prey will be going is messaged. Everything here gives us proper context of the stakes of taking Sin from her current home in Themyscira. Along with that context we see the team discuss the difficulties that come with this heist mission. The Amazons are already not to be messed with. Right now, after the events of Wonder Woman #1, the Amazons are even more on guard, adding greater difficulty to this mission.
By establishing the stakes and difficulty level in this way the roster Black Canary is put over more. Each member brings something to the table. That is where Birds of Prey #1 is elevated by this second issue. We know individually what Harley Quinn, Big Barda, Cassandra Cain’s Batgirl, and Zealot. This mission to save Sin is now given context of how Black Canary can use her teammates individual skills to get through the Amazons.
The only character in Birds of Prey #2 that doesn’t still work is Meridian, an alternate future version of Mia Mizoguchi. She is not a genuine character. Instead, Meridian is just a plot device, exemplified by how she just disappears after Black Canary explains the mission. That moment where Meridian disappears drives home how she was not needed in this story. There is enough here where Black Canary could’ve found out about Sin’s situation through someone else, like Oracle, to get this team together.
From there the rest of Birds of Prey #2 does an excellent job at showcasing the team in action. Bringing in the element of the Oblivion Bar’s black market was a nice touch to show that Themyscira isn’t easy to get to. That is made harder by how the Birds of Prey are trying to sneak their way onto the island. This immediately shows how experienced Black Canary is as a leader that she made sure her teammates understood the preparations they had to make. It also made how she reaches out to John Constantine a great use of her Justice League resources.
In the process of this Thompson hands things over more to Leonardo Romero’s artwork to be the star of the second half of Birds of Prey. Once again, the action in the Oblivion Bar’s black market was smooth. Romero got across the different fighting styles of each member over well. Along with Jordie Bellaire, Romero’s artwork also has a great tone to establishing the heist direction of this story.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Birds of Prey #2 is a vast improvement over the debut issue. The team chemistry for the roster Black Canary assembles shines. The mission involving a heist set in Themyscira is given the high stakes expected from a premiere superhero team. Along with great looking arc the potential of Birds of Prey becoming one of DC Comics best series shines here.
Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10