Wednesday, July 18, 2007

A Fond Farewell to Gail Simone on Birds of Prey


BOP 108
Originally uploaded by Heidi Meeley
Birds of Prey #108 is Gail Simone's final issue of the series after a 53 issue run on the book. It is a sad moment for me, and I am sure, for many readers that have really appreciated her work here.

I was pleasantly surprised at "Swan Song", which ended with a bit of a nod to the changing of the guard. There was a down and dirty brawl that was a long time coming, which was well executed by penciller Nicola Scott and inker Doug Hazlewood. Gleefully, there was also a great deal of laughter and tears, making for an emotional roller coaster run.

I have grown to love the characters in this book. Oracle is an absolute favorite of mine for her determination and brilliance. I also love how Gail has "cleaned up" Huntress and gave her more depth of personality. Helena Bertinelli is a character I have great compassion for. Then there is Zinda, Lady Blackhawk, who just slays me with her old fashioned grit. Simone's portrayal of Zinda makes me long for a solo mini-series.

The evolution of Black Canary has been wonderful to watch. Simone made her more independent and made her a force to be reckoned with. I really feel that Dinah's portrayal here set the stage for her to take over the chairperson role in the JLA.

Low point: ass shot on the cover, but I am keeping that on the back burner for now since I want to focus on expressing my gratitude to an incredible talent rather then make this a "is this gratuitous" feature.

Thank you Gail for giving me a book to grow with. While I look forward to your upcoming run on Wonder Woman I wish you could have stayed on Birds as well. I want my cake and the icing on it too!

Here's to many more years of great success! Gail, you rule!

6 comments:

SallyP said...

This was a nice wrap-up issue. I'm going to miss her terribly on BoP, but at least Wonder Woman will finally be readable.

Thank goodness she brought back Zinda, safe and sound. I was a bit worried about her being stuck.

Melchior del DariƩn said...

Yeah, a very satisfying issue to end an enjoyable run.

Nick said...

Not getting my comics till today after work, I look forward to it....you gotta admit though, Spy Smasher's positioning...just saying....DANG that's a LOT of booty.

Heidi Meeley said...

Sally- I really enjoyed this issue. I think a bit of denial is starting to set in now for me about Gail's departure. Hopefully her replacement will do fine and I won't have to be bitter.

Amen on Wonder Woman improving. What a mess!

I echo your sentiments on Zinda. I love the character and want to see more!

Heidi Meeley said...

Melchior- Amen. This was a fantastic run for Gail, and I am thrilled to have been around to enjoy the ride.

Heidi Meeley said...

Nick, the cover gave me pause. I kept wondering if they could have positioned Spy Smasher at a bit of a different angle so it would have been a bit less booty. I didn't want my summary to focus on it, but I couldn't ignore it completely!

I hope you enjoyed the issue as well!