So far, Birds of Prey has been bordering on drivel; it’s been cheesecake art to the extreme, and I’ve just had the horrible gut-feeling that Gail Simone has lost touch with the characters. In this first issue of a new story arc, the focus is mostly on Barbara Gordon as we find ourselves moving into the ‘Death of Oracle’ saga; it’s an interesting dynamic and her interactions with Batman are fantastic throughout, showing that Simone really does understand Barbara and her relationship with Bruce. The scenes with the rest of the Birds, meanwhile, still felt clunky and uninspired, like there was something missing constantly; it was better than in previous issues, granted, but far from perfect. The art by Ardian Syaf is great, a much needed improvement over Ed Benes; it’s no longer cheesecake-like, but manages to maintain the same glorious sense of style and innovation a book like this requires. All in all, this is a great jumping on point for new readers, and should hopefully be the start of a new era for the Birds of Prey.