Dick Grayson proposed to his long-time girlfriend Barbara Gordon in last month’s Convergence: Nightwing/Oracle #1, and while the cover of this week’s second issue suggests that the two lovers will finally tie the knot, there are a few hurdles to jump on the way to the altar. First, Barbara turned down Dick’s proposal. Second, the bloodthirsty Hawkman and Hawkwoman of the Flashpoint alternate reality are attacking Gotham City. In this issue, Nightwing is on the front lines fighting the Hawks while Oracle is tackling a technological threat from behind a keyboard, a situation that should delight readers that lamented the changes made to these characters in the New 52.
Writer Gail Simone has spearheaded Barbara Gordon’s story for most of the last decade, and this miniseries feels like the end of the narrative Simone was building before the New 52 took Barbara out of her wheelchair and back in her Batgirl costume. With Simone shifting focus away from superhero comics, it’s uncertain if she’ll ever return to Barbara, but if this is her last story with the character, at least it’s with the version she writes best. Oracle may be in a wheelchair, but that doesn’t diminish her strength and determination, traits artist Jan Duursema captures with an intense shot of Barbara pulling her hair back before she gets to work. It’s not the typical depiction of superhero power, but that’s what make Barbara Gordon as Oracle so captivating.