Batgirl was no doubt one of the most controversial characters in this opening act of the DC New 52 (followed shortly by Superboy's emo look and the taped on Superman logo). Taking Barbara Gordon after years of handicap residency and then giving back use of her legs and suiting her up again, this was no small costume reboot. Written by Gail Simone of Birds of Prey fame, Gail handled the pre-release press well and with grace. She responded to questions and even held a dialogue with a comic news writer about the controversial topic. But in the end, all the answers pointed towards, "Wait and see." And so when September 7th came around, did she deliver? Oh she delivered. More or less. Off the bat, (HA!) Babs is shown geared up and ready to go. Gail puts you right in the action as Batgirl handles her first criminal encounter. She does a good job of getting you in the mindset of Miss Gordon through her thought exposition with things like, "Tonight, I'm Batgirl!" and Adrian Syaf does an amazing job of showing these expressions on her face, especially in contrast with the grimness of the crime scene. However, her exposition also shows a disjoint between her attitude and her thoughts. With things like, "Did ? (I completely did!)" and then sharply followed by, "Fight a monster, become a monster." I'm not sure if I got a complete sense of what type of Batgirl Babs was trying to be. The strong and terrifying Cassandra Cain? Or maybe the happy fun having Stephanie Brown? But maybe Barbara doesn't know, herself. Gail also introduces explanation of Bab's ability to walk again. She calls is a "miracle" (obviously hyperbole, not literally) for now and we should be content with that information in the first issue. After all, Gail has a huge amount of time to tell the rest of Bab's recovery story. It's not something you just handle completely in the first issue. Later on, Gail has the big-bad meet up with Batgirl in a scene that haunts both the reader and her. To come face to face with something you've relived in your thoughts again and again, Gail shows how human Batgirl really is. That even heroines can be given pause at unfortunately ordinary horrors. These moments definitely made the book. Yet, there are also many off moments that marred the otherwise great story. The inexplicable cop blaming Batgirl? (unless of course that's a distraction that is revealed in the next issue?) The riding of a motorcycle in a building a la True Lies? The silliness of the big-bad's dialogue? Gail Simone knows Barbara Gordon Oracle, no doubt. But, I think that for Gail knowing Barbara Gordon Batgirl? For now, it can be summed up by Batgirl's own admission, "Rusty." I wish that this issue was as perfect as what I was building it to be in my mind. But overall, I think that Batgirl has great potential and that Gail Simone is the one to give Barbara Gordon the respect and story she needs to retake her place as a superhero in the DC New 52.