Review: Batgirl Vol. 3- Mindfields

Quick Summary

Pros: The main storyline is a wonderful celebration of Batgirl and all of her friends. The conclusion to this main storyline is epic and meaningful. The artwork works, for the most part.

Cons: The opening chapter is lackluster. The conclusion is only average and suffers from some poor pacing.

Overall: The final volume of this series brings things back to the quality level present in the first volume. Batgirl and a cast of new friends take on a variety of threats in a few fun adventures. This allows for an awesome final showdown between Batgirl and a mysterious new villain. However, the book still has a number of problems weighing down an otherwise great story. Pick this one up if you want a solid conclusion to Batgirl’s current storyline.

Story

Batgirl Vol. 3: Mindfields manages to fix many of the negatives from the previous volume in order to deliver a pretty solid conclusion to the series. This volume is filled with action, some mystery, and even a few heartwarming character moments. However, problems, including poor pacing and a few lackluster chapters, prevent it from being as good as it potentially could have been. Overall, this is a slightly above average volume that will appeal to those who have enjoyed this series so far.

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Mindfields starts out with a few chapters involving Batgirl’s investigation into a few local gangs. These chapters are pretty lackluster, as the main mystery isn’t really that interesting. There are a few nice moments between characters, like the ones between Barbara and her father or Barbara and Spoiler, but these are not enough to make the story on their own.

From here though, things get much better as the mystery of Batgirl’s memories becomes the focus. Barbara realizes that her previously perfect memory has been failing her lately and soon discovers that the fault lies with some villain. The journey to this discovery and then to the showdown with the villain is compelling and filled with great moments. Batgirl and all of her allies each have their moment to shine and show what makes them a valuable member of this fledgling team.

However, it is Batgirl’s personal struggle that really puts the icing on the cake. In the final battle against Fugue, she temporarily sacrifices her mobility in order to remove the villain’s control over her mind. She then turns his powers against him, leading to a final showdown with a great twist at the end.

From here though, things taper off somewhat. Batgirl and her allies have another battle against another villain but the stakes just aren’t there. It feels like the series should have ended with the Fugue storyline’s epic showdown instead of extending into another arc. This isn’t a bad story but feels awkward in terms of pacing.

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Art

Like the other Burnside focused volumes of Batgirl, Mindfields looks great, for the most part. The volume is filled with brightly colored locales and beautiful characterizations. Even the clothes are creative, as each character wears something unique and different in every appearance they make.

However, there are also moments where the bright and bubbly aesthetic does not work. For example, the cartoonish design used when the characters are at the GCPD completely takes away from the tension of the moment. These tone problems do not happen often but are a bit disruptive to the reading experience when they do happen.

Continuity

Batgirl Vol. 3: Mindfields continues the story started in Batgirl Vol. 2: Family Business (Review).

This series ends with this volume. However, Batgirl’s story continues in Batgirl Vol. 1: Beyond Burnside (Review).

This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:

• Spoiler’s story here is a near direct continuation of her story from Catwoman Vol. 7: Inheritance (Review).
• Bluebird says she met Batgirl before. This was in the final battle of Batman Eternal Vol. 3 (Review).
• Commissioner Gordon complains about his fight against Bloom. This fight begins in Batman Vol. 8: Superheavy (Review) and ends in Batman Vol. 9: Bloom (Review).
• Back Canary mentions having a missing person of her own. This is a reference to her quest to find her mother, which begins in Black Canary Vol. 2: New Killer Star (Review).
  • Black Canary also became friends with Vixen during this volume.
• In the final chapter of the main storyline, Batgirl flashes back to moments from her past. One of these is when Alysia tells Barbara she is transgender, which happens at the beginning of Batgirl Vol. 4: Wanted (Review).
• The history behind the students of Gotham Academy is told in their own comic series, starting with Gotham Academy Vol. 1: Welcome to Gotham Academy.
• The final chapter of the entire collection is a tie-in to Batman Vol. 7: Endgame (Review).