Batwoman: Elegy (2010)

Wonderful, absolutely wonderful. The story, the genesis of the character, the absolutely exquisite artwork. This really is one of my favorite graphic novels ever. Kate Kane has the intensity, strength, drive and darkness to be a hero in Gotham and she is a character who is likely to be held in great affection by female readers encountering their first female superhero. I wish could be a teenager again and have this be my first foray into graphic novels - I would be giddy with glee (mind you, Death in the Family made a pretty huge impression of its own).

Great read. ( )

This was the first GN I had read about Batwoman. I enjoyed the strong character (former marine with a tragic past) and the storyline involving her twin sister. ( )

Full review posted on Across the Litoverse

Kate Kane has taken over as Gotham City's caped crusader in the wake of Batman's apparent death in the DC event Final Crisis. Kane's a former marine, forced out of the U.S. Armed forces under the tenets of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", a policy barring gay and lesbian soldiers from serving openly in the military; however, her drive to protect Gotham, and her desire to overthrow a mysterious cult that tried to kill her six months earlier, motivates Kane to transform herself into the vigilante Batwoman.

As Kane rises to power, a new madwoman and her minions threaten the good citizens of Gotham with a toxic death cloud and an unrelenting urge for chaos. But Alice—the Lewis Carroll–quoting High Madame of the Religion of Crime—has more than poison in her arsenal, and the dizzying revelations she carries will alter Batwoman's life forever…

To start, I have to praise J.H. Williams III and his remarkable, panel-shattering artwork. Whenever Kane dons her iconic suit and takes to the crime-filled streets of Gotham, readers are treated to non-linear fight scenes saturated with Kane's taste for blood-red accents, and the very layout of Williams's panels take on a highly-stylized, shattered design that begs for hours of careful study.

Of course, due credit should be given to author Greg Rucka who's been praised for his nuanced, thoughtful depiction of Kate Kane, the modern incarnation of Batwoman herself. Here, Rucka takes the time to explore the motivations behind Kane's vigilantism and fills out her backstory with salient political issues, namely her dishonourable discharge under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." She's sacrificed a career with the armed forces to live an honest life, and her aim to bring justice to Gotham's streets makes perfect sense in this context. When it comes to personable, complicated superheroines, I can think of no better vigilante to start with than Batwoman.

Ideal for: Readers craving lush, groundbreaking artwork and a capable, complicated superheroine; Folks who'd like to see LGBTQ issues rendered in a thoughtful, action-packed story arc; DC fans and members of the Bat-clan. ( )

Batwoman: Elegy is what got me to finally start reading comics. The art was insanely good, and the story was excellent. I decided to read it to check out a prominent lesbian superhero in Gotham, it was so great I was hooked. An excellent read, it not only deals with Batwoman's new origins, but also with the very culturally relevant issue of Don't ask, Don't tell. I was amazed at the depth of the story and the truly prolific art. I recommend it to everyone. ( )

Kate Kane, daughter of an army colonel and ex-military herself (after being kicked out of West Point for violating Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell), re-invents herself as the Batwoman. She’s been involved in a fierce battle with a religious cult and now stares down their newest leader, a Lewis Carroll-quoting woman known only as Alice. But all is not what it seems on the surface….

Roughly half of the book is set in the present as Batwoman faces off Alice, while the second half of the book mostly deals with Kate Kane’s background and how she became the Batwoman. (One of my favorite quotes in the book: “The bat they shine in the sky…Civilians think it’s a call for help. The bad guys think it’s a warning…But it’s more than that, it’s something higher. It’s a call to arms… …I’ve found my way to serve.”) I love reading the back stories of characters, so I really enjoyed the second part, although the action-packed beginning was a great pull into the story. I was also impressed by how well the Lewis Carroll quotes could fit into the story and realized someone must have done some serious research to manage that feat! There were so many great little details, like cameos of Batman and the real-life Lt. Dan Choi. I loved the relationship between Kate Kane and her father, and how he is her “Alfred,” if you would pardon the comparison. In addition, I was happy that Kate was realistically characterized (especially considering that she is a lesbian character – I was glad to see she wasn’t one big stereotype from start to finish) and is presented as a person with both strong points and flaws.

And the art work in this book was just phenomenonal. There are so many great things about the art – from the panels that look like a bat cutting across the page, the vivid colors set against otherwise dark backgrounds, the cinematic angles, and the wonderful illustrations of Kate Kane, Batwoman, and Alice in particular. As others have mentioned, even if the story wasn’t any good, this book would be worth checking out for the artwork alone. ( )