Oracle and The Watcher

 

Hey, if you want to be sure that you have all of the most current intel to pull off a successful mission, it helps to have an inside man that knows it all.  I think that watching the behind the scenes machinations between these two against the backdrop of a crisis-style event could make for an interesting tale. 

Oracle and Lieutenant Uhura

The creation of Oracle by John Ostrander was one of the best lemonade-out-of-lemons moves in comics.  Despite the gorgeous artwork, I did not like the story of The Killing Joke and was not happy that Barbara Gordon's crippling at the hands of the Joker was canon.   Once she re-imagined her heroic role as Oracle, though, I was intrigued and I enjoyed watching her development through titles like Birds of Prey.  It's cool seeing her back as Batgirl again, but was it necessary?  It's not like Batman doesn't have other female street level crimefighters to work with - even other Batgirls. It was nice to see that her disability did not prevent her from being a hero and I miss that.

The Decoders

I had fun assembling this team.  I tried to select members based on the function they could serve.  Max Headroom would be the conduit to all media, C3PO would handle communications with any type of language or code, Tron is the ultimate inside man with his ability to enter the computer grid, Arno Stark is the high-tech muscle, and Oracle runs the show and coordinates the operatives.  I almost included Cypher from the New Mutants but C3PO covered his skill set.  Looking at the team, I think their varied personalities would make for some fun interaction as they worked together.

The Thing and Birds of Prey

I think it's only fitting that Ben meets the Birds on Thanksgiving! I hope you all have had a wonderful day filled with turkey, family and football!

I think The Birds of Prey is one of the best concepts that DC has come up with in years. I have truly enjoyed their adventures, which have had solid tales by Gail Simone and Chuck Dixon that strike a great balance between action and characterization. It's another team book that serves as a worthy home for characters that might not be able to generate the sales for a solo title. I love the fact that Lady Blackhawk has found a new lease on life there, for instance. The addition of Hawk and Dove in the most recent series is a very welcome one, as well. The art can be a bit too cheesecake for my taste at times, but don't let that put you off the title - it's always been very dependable.