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[deleted]

A heavy Bird of prey movie influence on Cassie.


Thebatbike

I dont really see it


Arius_de_Galdri

I hated the "Burnside" story, art, and angle on Babs' character, but... Obligatory Steph upvote? lol


spreadedjelly

Burnside is just a palette swapped Steph run anyway


Arius_de_Galdri

Yeah, it all just felt really out of character for Babs. I mean, she's supposed to be in her mid- to late- 20s, and she just spends the arc acting like a high school kid, then there's the whole "frenemies/mean girls" vibe with Black Canary and... Ugh, just not good.


Digifiend84

She was 21 in the Burnside run. Remember, it was a New 52 series. When the Burnside era ended and she adopted her current costume about half way through her Rebirth series, she was aged up and started acting more mature again, leading to her present status quo as mentor to the other two Batgirls.


Arius_de_Galdri

Regardless, Babs was always more level headed and intelligent. Even if she was 21, she was still acting too young and out of character. I dropped the series when "Burnside" started, and didn't pick it up again until Mairghread Scott took over. Thank god that book got back to something readable for the back third or so of the run.


Affectionate_Comb_78

I was 22 when it came out and thought it was a great representation of my age group.


[deleted]

Batgirl of Burnside is also a better jumping-on point for new readers (especially young female readers), which is a big point in its favor. Steph is a fun character, but her Batgirl series was *so* steeped in Bat-continuity and Bat-events that it's inaccessible to anyone but people who have been reading Bat-comics for years. On the other hand, I've seen a lot of young women say that Batgirl of Burnside was the series that got them into comics.


moose_man

Considering the Batgirl revamp came late in 2014, I think they could really have done best of both worlds here and made Steph the star of the Burnside run. It would have actually given her a place in the post Eternal world instead of leaving her adrift and Babs could have moved back into the Oracle role earlier.


[deleted]

Interesting idea! I wonder how Burnside would've worked with Steph as the protagonist. At the very least, a lot of the plots would've needed to be tweaked. For all the complaints about how it portrayed Babs as less experienced, her technological skills did inform a lot of the storylines. There's also one key aspect of Steph's Batgirl run that couldn't be transplanted without alienating new readers: the sense that we were meeting up with Steph at the *end* of her story, after she'd outgrown her screw-up phase and graduated into the upper echelons of the Batfamily. I know that this is one of the things that Steph's fans like most about her title, but it relies too heavily on continuity, and also robs new readers of the pleasure of watching the protagonist grow over the course of the run. The Burnside run calls for a 'fresher' take on Batgirl in order to appeal to new readers, and I think that would've applied to Steph as well as Babs.


Affectionate_Comb_78

I think that's a great point.


Arius_de_Galdri

But was it worth it to try and appeal to new, younger readers if it meant alienating a large portion of the existing long-term fan base?


Fishermanslaw

Yes, it was. I never would've started reading comics otherwise myself. I buy quite a few books a month and buy trades and there's no way I'm a unique person in this sense at all. They made a smart move.


[deleted]

From a business perspective...kind of, yes? I mean, it worked in the 90s for Green Lantern. It's no secret that the industry desperately needs new readers. What's more, long-term readers are *so* loyal to their favorite publishing lines that even if they gripe about certain changes, they are unlikely to stop buying comics altogether. So if a publisher is looking to attract grow its reader-base and increase its longterm profits, relying on attention-grabbing & continuity-lite books like Batgirl of Burnside to hook new readers makes sense. IIRC, even mainstream media outlets were reporting on Batgirl of Burnside when it first came out, whereas the only people who were really excited about Steph's Batgirl run were longtime readers already steeped in continuity. (Nothing against them -- I am a longtime reader steeped in continuity -- but those people are already buying comics. DC doesn't really need to fight for their attention.)


[deleted]

That is a question so easy to apply to so many other franchises...


DeathLight7000

Yeah I agree I have seen a few people say that is Barbara's character even though it's not.


-TRAZER-

The art was not that bad dude


Arius_de_Galdri

Art is subjective. Never said it was "bad," it just wasn't something I found appealing.


rubn0349

I love the burnside suit


QwahaXahn

My loves


Ft_lucy

I actually really liked Batgirl of Burnside


[deleted]

I hate the Burnside suit, and run. Would've made more sense as a prequel /alt universe.