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''Batgirl'' was an ongoing monthly comic-book series written by Bryan Q. Miller with pencils and inks done by Lee Garbett and Trevor Scott. Running from 2009 to 2011, this series features Stephanie Brown as [[Batgirl]], [[Legacy Character|the third person to bear the title]], while she simultaneously attends Gotham University. This is the second ongoing series to be named after and feature the [[Batgirl]] character; the previous series focused on the preceding Batgirl, Cassandra Cain.
Stephanie Brown herself is a teenager with what can only be described as a complicated relationship with the world of crime and superheroics in and around [[Batman|Gotham City]]. The daughter of the Cluemaster, a B-List [[Criminal Mind Games|Riddler knockoff]], Stephanie came to despise her father and crime in general because of the traumatic childhood his escapades created. She adopted the identity of 'the Spoiler' and, true to her title, went around and [[Spoiler|spoiled]] her fathers crimes. Soon she began fighting criminals apart from just her father and became one of the numerous costumed vigilantes operating in Gotham City. However, unlike the ''other'' vigilantes, [[Overshadowed by Awesome|she put the 'normal' in]] [[Badass Normal]]. Stephanie did not have the [[Crimefighting with Cash|technological support]] or [[Training
After the ''massive'' fan revolt began to die down [[DC Comics]] recognized that they had made a mistake [[Author's Saving Throw|and it was revealed that Dr. Thompkins had not let Stephanie die, but had faked her death and smuggled her out of the country for her safety]]. She eventually returned to Gotham City and resumed heroism as the Spoiler, but with continued opposition from the other established masked heroes of the city.
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* [[Bat Signal]]: Batgirl responds to the primary signal, reasoning that it is the ''Bat'' signal, not the Bat''man'' signal. However, when she is suspected of murder the police lure her in by shining the signal and ambushing her when she answers.
* [[Battle in the Center of the Mind]]: Oracle and Calculator face off within Barbara's subconscious.
* [[Blue Eyes]]: Stephanie has classic, beautiful blue eyes.
* [[B-Movie]]: Stephanie and Supergirl [[Show Within a Show|go to]] a cliche'd, badly acted and cheesy ''[[Dracula]]'' film when Supergirl stops by one night for a visit.
* [[Buffy-Speak]]: "How else are we gonna solve the mystery of the thingy stolen by the invisible super-guy?"
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* [[Insistent Terminology]]:
** Barbara originally refused to call Stephanie "Batgirl" for a variety of reasons, both personal and professional, and it was when she finally did that helped Stephanie accept that she had earned the name.
** Klarion the Witch-Boy...[[Sting (music)||dum, dum...]]'''''[[Sting (music)||dum]]'''''
* [[Instant Awesome, Just Add Ninja]]: Wendy remembers the night that she and Stephanie first met (During a [[Crossover]] with ''[[Red Robin]]'') as the night with the ninjas. Stephanie herself simply describes them as "assassins."
* [[It Makes Sense in Context]]: The regular use of [[In Medias Res]] often means that the initial scenes of an issue can not be explained using information that readers currently possess, forcing them to wait for later panels (Or even ''issues'') to provide the proper context.
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* [[Laser-Guided Amnesia]]: When Oracle and the Calculator [[Battle in the Center of the Mind|are fighting within their minds]] Oracle "deletes" the Calculator's memories of her real identity. However, it is revealed in ''[[Birds of Prey]]'' [[Deconstructed Trope|that her messing with his mind has had some horrendous consequences that the Calculator believes will ultimately prove fatal]].
* [[Legacy Character]]: She picks up the immediate mantle from Cassandra Cain, becoming the third "real" Batgirl in current continuity, but she also struggles with the even larger burden of living up to Barbara's original legacy. This is exacerbated by the fact that Barbara [[The Obi-Wan|serves as her mentor.]]
* [[Lighter and Softer]]: A stark contrast to the [[Darker and Edgier]] stories we normally get from Gotham, helps that Steph is such a [[Plucky Girl]] and good person.
* [[Lotus Eater Machine]]: The [[For the Man Who Has Everything|Black Mercy]] makes an appearance in the series finale, issue #24.
* [[Medium Awareness]]: The narration captions seem to at least semi-realize they exist in a fictional story, as they occasionally refer to locales and events as they fit into the larger story.
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* [[Mythology Gag]]: The issue "Field Test" of the first arc of the series, ''Rising'', pit Stephanie against the villain [[Shock and Awe|Livewire]], a [[Canon Immigrant]] from the [[DCAU]] that first appeared in ''[[Superman: The Animated Series]]''. Livewire had also guest-starred in an episode of ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'' before being imported into the comics. This episode, "Girl's Night Out," which was her first appearance in Gotham City and any Batman related media, featured her fighting (and being defeated by) Batgirl.
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: You could rename this trope Pulling a Stephanie Brown.
* [[The Obi-Wan]]: Barbara is Stephanie's.
* [[Obviously Evil]]:
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* [[The Pollyanna]]: Stephanie describes herself as such. Barbara's final line of the series is to affirm this belief.
{{quote|"That's my girl--Pollyanna to the very end."}}
* [[The Power of Trust]]: When Detective Gage says that he trust Batgirl, even if he does not know exactly why, Stephanie actually says the word "[[Squee]]" in her internal monologue.
* [[Precocious Crush]]: Stephanie has become somewhat infatuated with the detective that is shaping up to be [[The Commissioner Gordon|her contact with the local police]], but the age difference (And the implication that he has some serious relationship baggage) will probably preclude any sort of actual relationship.
* [[Psycho Electro]]: Livewire, the [[Shock and Awe|electric]] villain Batgirl fights in in ''Rising'' arc.
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{{quote|'''Batgirl:''' "Peek-a-boo."
'''Clancy Johnson (The Grey Ghost):''' "Gah! (''Drops binoculars'') Those were expensive!" }}
* [[Sting (music)|Sting]]: Klarion the Witch-Boy verbally inserts his own "dum, dum...'''''dum'''''."
* [[Stop Helping Me!]]: Batgirl wants to get Clancy Johnson to stop being the Grey Ghost before he hurts himself or gets somebody else hurt.
* [[Strange Minds Think Alike]]: Their thoughts were not very strange, but during the "The Flood" arc many of Batgirl's and Oracle's [[Inner Monologue]] narrations were identical copies of one another.
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'''Batgirl:''' "[[Casual Danger Dialogue|You're funny.]]"<br />
'''Supergirl:''' "[[Casual Danger Dialogue|I try.]]" }}
* [[Took a Level
* [[Trademark Favorite Food]]: Steph and her mom eat waffles at pretty much every meal. It is apparently her mom's way of bonding. Heck, even Damien was seen eating them with Steph more than once!
* [[Triple Shifter]]: Though she does more heroics in the daytime than [[Batman]], her primary hours of hero duty are still during the night. Since she also has a full class schedule at Gotham University this leaves her very little free time for sleeping. As with most triple shifters the severe health and psychological problems that come with sleep deprivation are not mentioned, but the comic does deal with her almost constant exhaustion and she frequently oversleeps for both school and hero activities.
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* [[Wangst]]: In-universe, in the [[B-Movie|cheesy, over-acted]] [[Show Within a Show|movie the girls are watching]] the various Draculas will ''not'' stop whining about how alone they are. Or rather, how '''''ALONE!!!!!''''' they are.
* [["Well Done, Son" Guy|"Well Done, Daughter" Girl]]:
** Stephanie spends the early issues just looking for some validation and appreciation from Barbara, which she finally gets in issue #3. In that same issue, Scarecrow's fear gas revealed Stephanie's deep-rooted fears of being a failure as a superhero (to Batman) and as a girlfriend (to [[Robin|Tim Drake]]). In the Batgirl/Red Robin crossover in issue #8, her fears are assuaged when Tim tells her he is proud of what she has become.
** She looked up to Batman during her tenure as Robin, and even asked him for validation during her death scene in War Games. When Bruce returns, however, [[What the Hell, Hero?|she lets]] ''[[What the Hell, Hero?|him]]'' [[What the Hell, Hero?|have it]] instead of looking for his approval, as she recognizes that he was not a very good mentor/father figure.
** Damian Wayne's [[Comedic Sociopathy]] and hostility with Stephanie is clearly all driven by his desire for approval and acceptance from Batman, ''either'' Batman, and he views her as a clear threat to that approval. What makes it so painful, especially to Stephanie, is that he clearly has no clue that his efforts are just driving his father figures further and further away, as he constantly tries to impress them with violence and aggression when all ''they'' want is for him to learn compassion.
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:DC Comics Series]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Comic Books of the 2000s]]
[[Category:Comic Books of the 2010s]]
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