Behind These Bloody Bars — Reviewing ‘Barbara Gordon: Breakout’ #2

Someone (or something) has been killing the individuals Vandal Savage has used his corrupt power to imprison in his super max. Barbara Gordon is determined to discover who is behind this foul murderous plot.  

Too bad for her, other mysterious powers seem to be working against her at every turn in Barbara Gordon: Breakout #2. Hallucinations, murders, and skeletal figures fill out the pages of Mariko Tamaki, Amancay Nahuelpan, Tamra Bonvillain, and Ariana Maher’s second chapter.  

I have to say, this series is very different than I thought it would be. There was the notion that of course it would deal with Barbara being in prison and trying to survive. In the first issue, the whole mystery and the reason for her being in jail in the first place were revealed. Now things are taking on a supernatural or at least fantastical essence to that mystery.  

Tamaki writes the Bat family so well, even a brief moment between Nightwing and Jim Gordon feels deep. Speaking to the years upon years, these characters have interacted without having to say more than the words relevant to the storyline.  

Who or what Sparrow is all about and who is behind the murders aren’t any clearer by the issue’s end. Stringing mysteries along in monthly comic book format is a hard thing to do. Keeping interest with such gaps takes the right writer and focus. Tamaki definitely achieves that with this issue, as the pieces being moved around have enough meat on the bone to satiate my hunger further.  

Denseness comes into play with the artwork as well. I just love seeing the way that Nahuelpan handles the characters and the world. They’re rendered in an artistic style that has so much depth, detail, whimsy, and firmness all at the same time. This gives the world a bit of a softer human edge without erasing the sharper harder edges necessary for the story tone.  

Oh, I must mention the emotional resonance felt from the aforementioned details. Just look at the preview pages featured in this review. Instantly the pain, the fear, and more can be felt in just the expressions on Barbara’s face. All of it perfectly conveys what characters are going through and feeling at every turn.  

Tonal energy is also built into the colors that Bonvillain utilizes in her palette. As noted, there are darker elements in place with this particular story. We always see and feel those even when the overall colors on a panel or page are so bright and vivid. Again, it plays with the softer and harder sides that are present at all times in both the fictional and real worlds, contrasting in a completely and clear complimentary way.  

Seeing Maher handle the lettering of any comic always brings a smile to my face. It’s full of such heart and power just in the display of the words themselves, adding the right flair or modification when necessary to hit the point home. It still delivers lettering that is more standard in appearance without losing any of the bolder energy, layering the captions and other elements in a way that never obscures other artwork but instead melds with it so smoothly. This helps keep the reader’s eye moving correctly and rapidly through the story so that we’re never missing out in the energy.  

Barbara Gordon: Breakout #2 is now available from DC Comics.