Essential Reading
Tags
Ask the Batgirls!
Ask Oracle, Blackbat and Batgirl anything!
Maintainers: Shobogan
Posts tagged: essential reading
Inquiring Minds/Let the Puzzlement Fit the Crime/Malled
Detective Comics 647-649
In Spoiler’s introduction, Batman and Robin find someone has beaten them to the punch. The punching of Cluemaster, that is.
Huntress/Spoiler: Blunt Trauma
Spoiler teams up with Huntress in the wake of the Cataclysm.
Pregnancy Arc
Robin 57-62
Robin 64-65
Stephanie finds herself pregnant by a boy who abandoned her.
Daddy’s Little Girl
Young Justice: Secret Origins 80 Page Giant
Stephanie tells her baby about her life.
Robin 80 Page Giant
Stephanie meets Dinah Lance.
Spoiled!
Batgirl 20
Spoiler teams up with Batgirl for the first time.
The Gun
Birds of Prey 39
Spoiler follows Black Canary around, desperate for training and companionship.
Switchback
Birds of Prey 40
Dinah brings Stephanie to the clock tower before kicking the criminals out of her home.
Untitled
Batgirl 26
Spoiler battles a warrior of the cult of Shiva in Batgirl’s place.
Untitled
Batgirl 28
Cassandra trains and bonds with Stephanie.
Testline
Batgirl 38
Stephanie convinces Cass to ignore Bruce’s orders to avoid her.
Robin 100-120
Stephanie appears in most of Jon Lewis’ run, in which both her past and present are developed and explored.
A Life More Ordinary
Robin 126
Stephanie becomes Robin.
…And Red All Over
Detective Comics 796
Batman and Robin track down Zsasz.
Sisterhood
Batgirl 53
Robin teams up with Batgirl when children are used in crime.
Return Arc
Robin 172-174
Stephanie returns to Gotham a year after Leslie fakes her death.
Robin/Spoiler Special
A series of stories about Stephanie’s new start.
Batgirl Rising
Batgirl 1-3
Stephanie becomes the third Batgirl.
Mark of Cain
Batman 567-Detective Comics 734
An introduction of tragedy and heroism.
Assembly
Legends of the Dark Knight 120
Cassandra accepts the cowl.
I Hold the Waterfront
Batman 569
Cassandra’s first mission as Batgirl, a struggle without and within.
Evacuation
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 60
Batgirl teams up with Azrael to foil the Joker’s plot.
Presents of Mind
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 61
Cassandra fight and dances with Azrael and relieves her first Christmas gift.
Batgirl 1-37
Kelley Puckett’s poignant run defined and developed Cassandra’s character.
Batgirl: Secret Files and Origins
Cassandra’s history is told through a mission of redemption.
Fresh Blood
Batgirl 58
Cassandra makes a new home for herself in Bludhaven.
Curse of the Penguin
Batgirl 60
An illuminating spar with Onyx helps Cassandra settle into her new life.
Blood Matters
Batgirl 71-73
Cassandra confronts her past and forges her future.
The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl!
Detective Comics 359
“Out of the super-star studded firmament of Gotham city, where Batman and Robin shine supreme as masked manhunters - bursts a brand new luminary - Batgirl!”
A Bullet for Gordon
Detective Comics 417
Batgirl saves her father, both from dying himself and killing an innocent man.
The Unmasking of Batgirl
Detective Comics 422
After a disheartening case, Barbara reveals her identity to her father.
Candidate for Danger/Batgirl’s Last Case
Detective Comics 423-424.
“Distraught over her continuing failure to prevent crime as Batgirl, Babs Gordon…the commissioner’s daughter…is propelled into a Gotham-shaking decision!”
The Assasination of Batgirl/Vengeance Trail
Detective Comics 491-492
As Barbara Gordon, she becomes head of the social services department at the Human Research and Development Center. As Batgirl, she deals with an assassination attempt that shakes her dedication to crime-fighting.
Barbara Gordon, Murderess/The Tightening Web
Detective Comics 497-498
“A weary Batgirl turns herself homeward to thoughts of rest and sleep after a vigilant patrol over the sleeping city of Gotham… But as the Darnight Damsel speeds into action, she is unaware that before another night falls, an event will happen to jeopardize her very reputation, and brand her secret identity as…Barbara Gordon, Murderess.”
Batman Family
This series takes place while Barbara is a Congresswoman, with Dick as her assistant.
She appears in issues 1, 3-7, and 9-17.
Flawed Gems
Secret Origins 20
This is Barbara’s Post-Crisis origin story.
In Control/Out of Control
Suicide Squad 48-49
In Barbara’s first full-fledged story as Oracle, she confronts the Mindboggler and becomes an official member of the Suicide Squad.
Oracle Year One: Born of Hope
Batman Chronicles 5
The origins of Oracle.
Batman: Cataclysm
In this arc, Barbara rallies and organises the police force in the wake of a devastating earthquake. She’s in these issues:
Shadow of the Bat 73
Batman 553
Shadow of the Bat 74
Nightwing 20
Detective Comics 721
Robin 53
Batman: No Man’s Land
Barbara is the controller and chronicler throughout No Man’s Land. She’s most prominent in:
No Man’s Land 1
Shadow of the Bat 83
Batman 563
Batman 565
Detective Comics 732
Legends of the Dark Knight 119
Shadow of the Bat 87
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 54
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 55
Batman 567
Detective Comics 734
Legends of the Dark Knight 120
Nightwing 38
Nightwing 39
No Man’s Land Secret Files
Shadow of the Bat 93
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 60
Batman 573
Detective Comics 740
Legends of the Dark Knight 126
Batman 574
Detective Comics 741
Azrael: Agent of the Bat 61
Shadow of the Bat 94
Barbara narrates the novelisation.
Batgirl Secret Files and Origins
Barbara narrates the story of her successor.
Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey
Oracle recruits Black Canary.
Birds of Prey: Wolves
Barbara and Dinah confront conflict that helps develop their partnership.
The Hunt for Oracle
Nightwing 45
Birds of Prey 20
Nightwing 46
Birds of Prey 21
Barbara and some of her closest allies are forced to protect her identity. It’s finally revealed to Dinah.
Between Dark and Dawn
Birds of Prey 69-73
Oracle battles Brainiac.
A New Morning’s Resolution
Birds of Prey 85
Barbara battles the virus he left behind.
Batgirl Rising
Batgirl 1-3
Barbara accepts Stephanie Brown as the third Batgirl, becoming her mentor.
