In this review of Batgirl #6, Cassandra and Shiva are in for the fight of their lives as the battle against the Unburied reaches a climax!
Batgirl #6 main cover by David Talaski (DC Comics)
BATGIRL #6
Written by TATE BROMBAL
Art by TAKESHI MIYAZAWA
Main Cover by DAVID TALASKI
Variant cover by INHYUK LEE
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: April 2, 2025
This review contains spoilers
Captured and held up high over the cavern floor, Batgirl and Lady Shiva argue in devising their best course of action before they are greeted by Kalden the Unseen. He explains that for centuries the Unburied were a peaceful people until Ra’s Al Gul and the Blood of Wu crossed their paths, bringing violence to them. Burrowing into the shadows, they over the years slowly rebuilt, until they were found and taken advantage of by Lady Shiva. Refusing to be victimized any longer, the Unburied waged war on Shiva and any ally she aligned herself with.
Jayesh arrives and frees Cass and Shiva before he’s quickly killed by Nergui. They run to a nearby waterfall, outflanking the Unburied members chasing them. Shiva turns to Cass for options, who in turn opts for subterfuge with the help of unleashing the underground swarm of bats against the Unburied in aiding their escape. Both Mother and Daughter make it to Jayesh’s motorcycle outside, when suddenly Shiva tells Cass to save herself as she turns to fight the Unburied alone. Commanding her to find the Bronze Tiger, Shiva fights to seemingly the bitter end as Batgirl drives away from her mother, back towards Gotham.
Analysis
Last issue was far and away the best of the series, for a few reasons. Left on her own, Cassandra was far more in her element as the classic Silent Knight, showing off her peerless fighting prowess and Batman-taught skills in theatricality and deception. We got a healthy scene of imaginary introspection in the form of a dream sequence with Stephanie Brown, where Cassandra’s hang-ups with Shiva were given voice in a narratively satisfying way, ending up in a final confrontation with her mother and the Unburied.
So it’s unfortunate that the end of this initial arc just circles towards what we’ve been given for most of the storyline, over and over again. Cass doesn’t trust Shiva, Shiva is duplicitous, and they fight an ill-defined group of ninjas with varying success. Ultimately we learn nothing that the last several issues haven’t already made clear, from Shiva’s genuine love for Cassandra to Cass’ stubborn love for Shiva, in a blend of overwritten dialogue that only hurts the book unless you speed through it.
As a Batgirl fan, I appreciate Tate Brombal’s attention to character history and what truly drives these two women, but by this sixth issue it reads as though he’s simply indulging in writing the same melodrama again and again. The scenes of dialogue between the two women have no explicit journey or destination in communication besides Cass saying “You suck, and I hate that!” with Shiva responding “I y’am what I y’am.” What is that supposed to mean exactly, who is Shiva? A force of nature? A two-timing shyster? A woman who lives under no one’s rules? I’ve spoken before about the character’s different iterations between the original Question series from the late 1980s through the Batman and the Outsiders’ book, and while I thought we may be gesturing towards a more complicated Shiva, Brombal unfortunately just circles back to the incredibly surface-level and uncomplicated villain with a heart of gold that other writers have depicted her as for years now. Again, I’m seriously urging anyone remotely interested in the character to read Batgirl #25 from the 2000s series, the issue Brombal has specifically referenced more than once. Shiva tells Batgirl in that issue “I’m not a murderer, I’m a warrior.” We could’ve circled back to that, as with that quote you understand who she is even with saying so little. It speaks volumes.
Having Shiva be the culprit for the Unburied’s war on various characters, due to her own selfishness and callousness simply serves to make her the devil to Cassandra’s angel, and that’s far too simple. While the Cassandra Cain story is realizing one’s worth no matter their past failures or upbringing, boiling it down to petty morality tales such as stealing and dishonor and familial love makes the characters seem stupid before long. If Batgirl is done with her mother once and for all, we need to really be sold on that ultimatum and feel that she means it. If Shiva’s overriding emotion is love for Cassandra, we need to find that irresistible, no matter what The Unburied say about her. I wish that were the case as written, but too much of this issue feels repetitive to every other conflict from this story. There’s no resolution.
I also think Brombal has forgotten that these two are the baddest B!tches in all DC Comics, when talking about martial artists. They’re supposed to be the best in the world. While The Unburied were described up front as being too powerful for wither of them, having our heroes constantly on the backfoot and running away in the opening arc of a series about the best fighters in the DCU makes the series seem like a big retcon, as though that’s not who they are. So when we circle back to those familiar beats again, I sigh because I’m tired of seeing Cassandra Cain not overcome the odds, but opt out to disengage altogether. Especially when it’s not remarked as something out of the ordinary for her. She has fled fighting The Unburied three separate times now, and though most of those were at the urging of Shiva (the woman she mostly hates), she still acted upon those orders. It’s a big deal for someone of her reckless and supremely skilled caliber to run from a fight, and now we’ve seen it thrice.
At the end of the day, I was left unsatisfied with this opening arc, but not with the title. Brombal has shown off enough Batgirl bonafides to keep me invested in where she goes next, but I’ve had my fill over overwroughtly-written Shiva screaming matches for one story. He’s a solid writer for my favorite Bat-Family member, but when it comes to the deadliest woman in the world, Brombal’s not the worst (I’d unfortunately bestow that dishonor to Che Grayson) but he’s quickly becoming one of the most frustrating, because his vision for the character seems incredibly limited, despite remarking on some of her best stories.
Nevertheless, he is a solid Cass writer, and with Miyazawa still in tow, I’m looking forward to the next arc, as a breath of fresh air more than anything.
