Birds of Prey #11 // Review
Dinah hates time travel. She’s been jostled through a lot in the recent past. Her whole team has been in a series of dangerous and awkward situations...and they’ve just now been pulled through a portal to some strange wilderness. Their clothing is torn. She correctly identifies that this is NOT a good sign. She’s about to find out why in Birds of Prey #11. Writer Kelly Thompson continues a fun series of adventures with the all-woman team of heroes as aided by artist Javier Pina, Robbi Rodriguez and Gavin Guidry. Jordie Bellaire brings the color to the page.
It’s a wilderness that the team finds itself in. (Kind of a big one.) There appears to be an active volcano off in the distance, but it’s far enough away that it doesn’t appear as though it’s going to be any serious issue. That being said, the team isn’t exactly safe. For one thing, they’re in the middle of a jungle and completely lost. For another thing...there’s a small stampede of very angry-looking dinosaurs that seem to be rushing their way toward them. They’re tired and exhausted. They can’t run away from the threat. They’re going to have two face the danger headlong.
Thompson is working with an ensemble of heroes that is just large enough to fit the plot that she’s running through the pages of the issue. It’s a clever balance between different elements that are all put to the test through yet another gauntlet of danger that threatens to crush them. Thompson keeps the action coming without forcing it. Given all that Thompson has going on around the edges of everything, it would be exceedingly easy to cram each page with WAY more exposition than may be needed. To her credit, Thompson focusses thoughts and dialogue in and amidst the characters quite specifically on very immediate concerns first...allowing bigger anxieties to work their way in and around the edges of the narrative.
The art team fluidly moves around perspective on the action. Thompson’s pacing looks clean and natural as brought to the page by a large art team that features a very earthy sort of an atmosphere that clings to every panel courtesy of colorist Jordie Bellaire. It’s all quite well-rendered, but it lacks the stark visual appeal that would give the action a bit more punch. The action might get a bit tangled-up in places, but the drama is maintained throughout.
Thompson and company continue to largely shrug-off the usual sort of weirdness that so often accompanies a multi-dimensional chase through pocket dimensions in favor of something more closely resembling a breakneck chase. The clever bit about this is Thompson’s ability to modulate the aggression of the action as the team continues to struggle through the dangers of their current predicament. It’s all more than a little crazy, but it’s fun and Thompson is able to maintain a great degree of energy throughout the issue. Through it all, Dinah continues to be a very appealing central character.
