All week, writer Kelly Thompson and artist Leonardo Romero have been sharing their lineup for a new Birds of Prey team on social media. Today DC Comics officially released details for Thompson, Romero, colorist Jordie Bellaire, and letterer Clayton Cowles‘s relaunch of Birds of Prey. The team lineup includes BoP mainstay Black Canary, plus Batgirl Cassandra Cain, Big Barda, Zealot, and Harley Quinn.
Here’s how DC describes the forthcoming Birds of Prey relaunch:
Dinah Lance is one of the DC Universe’s most elite fighters, and combined with her sonic scream, she’s a fearsome foe in any scenario…but sometimes even the Black Canary needs help. Faced with a personal mission brought to her by a mysterious new ally, and up against near-impossible odds, she re-forms the Birds of Prey with an unrivaled group—Cassandra Cain, Big Barda, Zealot, and Harley Quinn—with only one goal: extraction of their asset at any cost. What could possibly go wrong? This all-new, all-deadly Birds of Prey is still breaking hearts and faces after all these years!
Originally comprised of Black Canary and Barbara Gordon’s Oracle, the team was introduced in 1996 and would eventually expand to include dozens of female heroes from across the DC Universe. The Birds of Prey team was created by Jordan Gorfinkel and Chuck Dixon, and starred in a series of one-shots before Dixon and artist Greg Land launched their first ongoing series in 1999. The team has gone through a number of iterations and ongoing series since then, most recently as Batgirl and the Birds of Prey as part of DC’s Rebirth initiative.
Birds of Prey is the latest teaming for Thompson, Romero, and Bellaire. The trio previously worked together on the Kate Bishop-starring Hawkeye series in 2016-2017. In a statement announcing the new series, Thompson and Romero expressed their enthusiasm at reteaming and working for the first time at DC on this particular series:
“When I say this is a dream come true for me, I mean not just working on the iconic Birds of Prey title, but also the characters we were able to fold in, and the creative team we assembled,” said Birds of Prey writer Kelly Thompson. “Leonardo Romero and Jordie Bellaire were two of my first partners-in-crime making superhero books and I’ve been trying to make this happen ever since. It won’t surprise anyone to learn that Leonardo and Jordie are even better than they were the last time we worked together—and working together on this wild book is pure magic.”
“I couldn’t be happier to announce my first monthly project for DC! With this book, I’ve had the opportunity to not only draw some of the most badass women in the DC Universe, but also to work once more with the best people in our industry, Kelly Thompson and Jordie Bellaire” said Birds of Prey artist Leonardo Romero. “I missed the dynamic we had on Hawkeye, so I’m very excited to have our team back together! Can’t to show you all what we’ve been doing!”
Check out variant covers for Birds of Prey #1 by Stanley “Artgerm” Lau (open-to-order), Chris Bachalo (open-to-order and 1:50), Nick Bradshaw (1:25), Romero (1:100), and Frank Cho (open-to-order gatefold) below. The issue is set to arrive in stores and digitally on Tuesday, September 5th.
