Broken Frontier

If audiences had any doubt that Gail Simone's Birds of Prey relaunch is geared more towards fans of the original series, the publication of issue #4 confirms that suspicion as the majority of the book is spent unraveling connections within Black Canary and Oracle's shared pasts.

Birds of Prey #4 also signals the completion of Simone's first story arc and while previous issues have waxed and waned in their connections with Brightest Day, the arrival of #4 confirms its continuity as having transpired after Brightest Day #7 and the revelations to both Hawk and Dove.  Here, audiences learn more about the White Canary's mysterious origins and this short sequence is perhaps one of the strongest in the book.  Honestly, it's in the moments of character history that this book truly resonates with fans and leaves readers wanting more.  Yes, some of the information about Black Canary and Oracle is already well-established, but Simone succeeds here because she is able to invest these time honored stories with new brilliance and power in their associations with the present. 

While the majority of the book is high octane action sequence after action sequence, Simone returns to the pattern she established in the first issue where the action facilitates the story rather than obscures it.  The threats seem real even if the readers' connections to the characters (Savant, Creote, Penguin, Lady Blackhawk, etc.) are stronger for fans of Simone's first run than for newcomers.   Paralleling the story segments with revelations about White Canary are those with Black Canary as her flaws and weaknesses evoke far more compassion and intrigue than Simone has dealt with in these past three issues. 

If there are any slights or limitations to Birds of Prey #4 in regards to the story they come primarily from the disconnect some new audiences may have with members of the Birds and the associate figures of Savant and Creote.  While readers can easily associate with Barbara Gordon, the same ties to these mysterious men are stressed at times as little information is provided about them.  By far the more troubling aspects of Birds of Prey #4 come from the artwork and the visible transitions between Ed Benes and Adriana Melo.  Although this factor was pointed out in a prior review, it is even more glaring here in #4 as Benes' pencils lull readers into a security that is abruptly disturbed in the shift from scenes with Black Canary to those with Barbara Gordon.  Why DC enlists two pencillers is unknown as is the absence of clear editorial oversight in regards to the artistic differences in style.  Again, it's not that one artist is better than the other but simply that their styles are noticeably different and the shift is disjointing to what is a very tightly constructed and well-paced story.