Hey guys, Darius here, and today I am bringing you my review of Batman Eternal Issue #4, which is a very Batgirl centered issue. In this issue we see Batman and Batgirl fighting one another. We see Batgirl viciously beating up Professor Pyg, and his goons as she takes the anger of what is happening to her father out on them. Â We see the Batman Eternal debut of many familiar characters such as Stephanie Brown, The Penguin is mentioned, Â etc. Â Finally, we see Ex-Commissioner Gordon’s situation take a turn for the worse!
Positives
- I loved how Gordon family heavy this issue was. As Ex-Commissioner Gordon was on trial and getting read his charges, you can feel every word the judge is saying and you can literally see the look of hopelessness on Ex-Commissioner Gordon’s face. You can almost put yourself in Batgirl’s shoes as she is hearing all the charges against her father. When I read that the judge said Ex-Commissioner Gordon caused “one hundred and sixty-two dead” and when the judge also said that Ex-Commissioner Gordon’s request for bail was denied, even my heart dropped a little bit.
- Piggy-backing off the aforementioned positive, this issue invoked a lot of emotion out of both the reader and in its characters. I love when a well written comic invokes emotion because it shows that comics these days are not just explosions and well-drawn characters on paper, but it is also a great story and holds within it well-written dialogue.
- I cannot say enough about the art, it is always a positive for me because it is drawn so beautifully. The art helps with invoking  and promoting the use of pathos in this issue.
- One word:Â FALCONE!!
- We also see Stephanie Brown, a.k.a. The Spoiler, the 5th Batgirl, and the daughter of a villain who also appeared in this issue, only on screen though, The Cluemaster. I loved how they showed that her mom is in on the secret of Stephanie’s father being The Cluemaster as well. It was to be expected for her mom to be in on it so I am glad that is was written into this issue.
- The final scene of the issue with ex-Commissioner Gordon and Leone was good. You can still see that sense of hopelessness on Gordon’s face which says everything without saying anything.
- Batgirl was so good in this issue that I had to give her her own bullet along with the first positive bullet. I loved how Snyder and Tynion IV did not play down her emotions. Some readers would say she was overreacting, but I say she was reacting exactly how she should have reacted.  If my father was being put on trial for something that does not seem like something he would do purposefully, I would be angry and defend him as well. So you can only imagine what Batgirl is feeling.
Negatives
- The Forbes character, who is now the new commissioner, he is having the opposite effect on me when it comes to his display of emotion, compared to Batgirl’s display of emotion. Again, I understand that he never liked ex-Commissioner Gordon, but I think his character does not have to always be a dick.
- Lack of action for all you explosion-loving readers.
Verdict
If you are looking for an action heavy issue as the first three issues, you will not find it here. This issue was really character driven, specifically driven by Batgirl, and I loved it. The reality is, this issue’s plot played out exactly as I wanted it and exactly as it was supposed to plan out. I barely saw any negatives in this issue and it is probably my favorite issue in this series so far. This is a must read!
Rating
