Cassandra Cain

Batgirl
Artwork for the cover of Batgirl: A Knight Alone trade paperback. Art by Damion Scott.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	as Cassandra: Batman # 567 (July 1999) as Batgirl: Legends of the Dark Knight # 120 (August 1999)
Created by	Kelley Puckett Damion Scott
In-story information
Alter ego	Cassandra Cain
Team affiliations	Batman Family Young Justice Justice League League of Assassins Titans East Outsiders
Notable aliases	Kasumi, One Who Is All, the Nothing, Cassandra Wayne
Abilities	Able to intuitively read body language and anticipate her opponent's actions Master martial artist.

Cassandra Cain is a fictional character in the DC Universe who served as Batgirl from 1999 to 2009. The daughter of assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva, she was deprived of speech and human contact during her childhood as conditioning to become the world's greatest assassin. Consequently, Cassandra grew up to become an expert martial artist while simultaneously remaining mute, developing very limited social skills, and being illiterate. Cassandra first appeared in Shadow of the Bat #83 and then in Batman #567 (July 1999) and was created by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott (though it was Alex Maleev who designed her costume). Cassandra was the first Batgirl to star in her own ongoing Batgirl comic book series. An Asian-American, she is also the first non-white member of the Batman family and remained one of the most prominent non-white super-heroes, until she was replaced with the white Stephanie Brown in 2009.

Fictional character biography

No Man's Land

Cassandra Cain was first introduced during the No Man's Land crossover storyline (1999). She is one of Oracle's agents in Gotham. In that arc, Gotham was leveled by an earthquake, declared a "no man's land," and isolated from the rest of the United States. After proving herself by saving Commissioner Gordon's life, she is given the Batgirl costume with the approval of both Batman and Oracle. She becomes Barbara Gordon's ward. In this story arc, Cassandra cannot speak at all and can only communicate through gestures and drawings.

Batman eventually learns about Cassandra's past and how she murdered a businessman when she was eight years old, after Cain transmitted a video he had made of the murder to the Batcave. Nevertheless, Batman continues to accept Cassandra after she takes several bullets to save the life of a hired assassin, proving her devotion to protecting human life. This action illustrates the major difference between Cassandra and the other members of the Batman family; while the other characters were motivated to fight crime by the murders of loved ones, Cassandra is fighting crime to atone for a murder that she herself committed. ^[1]

Batgirl

In 2000, Cassandra became the first Batgirl to be featured in an eponymous ongoing comic book series. A telepath "rewires" Cassandra's brain to think with words and understand English, but at the cost of her ability to read people's moves. As she had relied completely on this ability to fight, she is unable to effectively fight crime. Worried, Batman takes away her costume and starts training her in defensive skills.

Cassandra's birth and childhood are revealed in the Batgirl series. David Cain had sought a perfect bodyguard for Ra's al Ghul. He found a potential mother when he saw Sandra Wu-San fighting her sister Carolyn in a martial arts tournament. Believing that Sandra was holding back for Carolyn, Cain murdered Carolyn and lured Sandra into a trap, sparing her life in exchange for giving birth to his child and leaving that child for him to raise. She agreed. After the birth of Cassandra, Sandra set out to become Lady Shiva.

Cain trained Cassandra from birth how to be an assassin. She was not taught to read or write; instead, reading body language was her only language. She was able to read people's movements and predict what they were going to do. When she was eight, Cain took her to kill a businessman. As the man died, she read what he was feeling, realized what she had done, and ran away from Cain, resurfacing again during the "No Man's Land" story arc.

Cassandra soon discovers that assassin Lady Shiva can read people like she used to be able to and asks Shiva to reteach her.^[when?] Lady Shiva accepts on the condition that they would have a duel to the death a year later. As Cassandra would rather be "perfect for a year" instead of "mediocre for a lifetime", she accepts the offer. When the women fight in a year's time, Cassandra dies within minutes. Shiva then restarts her heart, realizing Cassandra had a death wish, so that they can have a real fight. In the subsequent fight, Cassandra beats Shiva but does not kill her.

Cassandra defeating Lady Shiva.

Though not known for her private life, Cassandra does have a one-time romance with Conner Kent after meeting him on a cruise ship. He was the first boy she ever kissed, and she even visited him at his home in Smallville, though the relationship never turned serious.

Batman regards Cassandra very highly. During War Games (2004), he relied heavily on her to help control the violence of the gang war in Gotham City.^[specify]

Following War Games, Batgirl moved to Blüdhaven with Tim Drake (the third Robin) at Batman's suggestion and with his financial support (Nightwing had been injured during the crisis, and the Gotham City Police Department had declared all costumed heroes illegal). There, Deathstroke took on a contract from the Penguin to kill Batgirl and decided to let his daughter Rose (the current Ravager) do the job instead. Cassandra beat Rose by playing on her emotions to leave her open for a critical strike, giving Deathstroke no choice but to get her medical attention.

During this time, Cassandra starts developing a friendship with a girl who works at the local coffee shop and even a very short-lived relationship with a boy named Zero. Unfortunately, her friends would all be killed in the Blüdhaven disaster.

Cassandra also went undercover for Batman in the Justice League Elite, working under Sister Superior to track and eliminate metahuman threats to the population. She worked with Batman's old fellow JLA members Green Arrow and Flash, and formed a certain bond with Coldcast, who was the first person she revealed her real identity to. Although he was subsequently accused of murder, she and the rest of the team soon realized that he had been manipulated by renegade Elite member Menagerie, who was also being manipulated by the spirit of Manchester Black as he tried to drive his sister to destroy London. As the JLA fell, the Elite, united by the spirit of the deceased Manitou Raven, freed Vera and vanquished Black, although the team disbanded after this last mission.

Cassandra gathered evidence that indicated that Shiva could have been her mother, and sought out Shiva to confirm this. After being proclaimed by Nyssa al Ghul as the "One Who Is All", the students of the League of Assassins split their allegiances, half following Shiva and the others Cassandra. In the ensuing confrontation, Cassandra was mortally wounded by her "adoptive brother", The Mad Dog while heroically saving one of the students under her leadership. Shiva revived Cassandra in a Lazarus Pit, then answered Cassandra's questions on her parentage. When Cassandra asked Shiva if she had killed more people since their last battle and Shiva said that she had, Cassandra asked if she would ever stop. Shiva responded "It's why I had you," and Cassandra agreed to fight her to the death once more.

In an evenly matched battle, Cassandra managed to break Shiva's neck, paralyzing her. She appeared ready to place Shiva in the Lazarus Pit, but Shiva pleaded with her not to do so. In response, Cassandra impaled Shiva on a hook hanging over the pit, apparently killing her. Although Cassandra's intent regarding this action is unclear, whether to kill her or let her fall into the pit and be revived, it has been confirmed that Shiva is alive in One Year Later. Cassandra then abandoned the identity of Batgirl and returned to her life as a wanderer.^[2]

One Year Later

"One Year Later": Cassandra Cain. Art by Freddie E. Williams II.

Cassandra took on the role of a villain by becoming the head of the League of Assassins following the One Year Later continuity jump, as established in Robin #150 (2006). Robin (Tim Drake) captures David Cain and brings him to the League of Assassins as ransom to free Cassandra, only to find that Cassandra is the new leader. Cassandra produces a gun and tells him to shoot David and join her league; upon his refusal she shot David herself. Tim and Cassandra engage in a fight, which ends when the platform they are fighting on explodes. By the time Tim comes back to the original location, Cassandra and David are gone and the ninjas' necks have been snapped. Tim had secretly recorded the conversation, clearing his name but branding Cassandra as a murderer at the same time.

Cassandra then appears in Supergirl #14, battling the title character, (Kara Zor-El), in her role as leader of the League of Assassins. She is hired by Dark Angel to kill Supergirl, and attempts to do so by kidnapping Supergirl's friend Captain Boomerang. Supergirl arrives at the League's Tibetan headquarters to confront Cassandra, where they fight. Cassandra uses swords that emit red sun energy which strip away Supergirl's powers. But as Cassandra prepares to kill her, Supergirl mysteriously extrudes crystals from her body which injure Cassandra.

This story is shown to follow Robin One Year Later, as in Supergirl #14 there is a file in the Batcomputer titled 'Cassandra Cain & the League of Assassins', showing this takes place after she battled Robin. In Teen Titans vol. 3 #44, it revealed that Cassandra battled Supergirl first, before attacking Teen Titans with the Titans East.

Cassandra also reappears in Robin.^[specify] Cassandra approaches Dodge, a wannabe superhero with teleportation powers, wanting him to steal a drug that gives humans metahuman strength in exchange for money. Cassandra (with an ally) plans to use the drug to create an army. She also makes another appearance where she murders the businessman who was producing that drug. Robin had been unable to legally bring him to justice.

Cassandra with the rest of the Titans East on the cover of Teen Titans #43. Art by Tony Daniel.

Cassandra is also on the roster of Titans East and is once again wearing the Batgirl costume.^[3] Cassandra remained in the role of a villain, under the command of Titans East's leader, Deathstroke. It is revealed in Teen Titans vol. 3 #43, that she is being drugged by Deathstroke. In issue #44, after a rematch with the Ravager and a brief confrontation with Robin, Robin injects a counter serum (prepared in case Deathstroke regains control of his daughter again) to Cassandra. She apparently regains control over herself, with a desire of revenge by killing Deathstroke for violating her like Ravager and Terra before her. In Issue #45, Cassandra is allied with the Teen Titans (to which Miss Martian comments that she is more in control of herself now), and faces Slade, Match, and other former Titans East teammates, before being subdued by Risk. Soon after, Cyborg, Raven, and Duela Dent summon former Titans Nightwing, Donna Troy, Beast Boy, and Flash (Bart Allen), who joins in against Slade's team. Batgirl attempts to kill Deathstroke, but is stopped and knocked unconscious by Nightwing, who demands that Slade face the courts. Unfortunately, Deathstroke escapes from the Titans with the help of Inertia, and after the battle is over, Batgirl and Duela Dent both vanish without a word.

52: World War III

Following the events in Infinite Crisis, 52 fills in the one-year gap where One Year Later left off. Cassandra was left behind while Batman, Robin, and Nightwing left for their year long trip and Harvey Dent was charged with protecting Gotham instead of her. Deathstroke approaches Cassandra and preys on her desire for a loving father as well as her feelings of abandonment. Although occurring off-screen, Deathstroke managed to inject Cassandra with drugs from a distance, that warped her mind allowing for him to manipulate her to his liking.^[4]

Batman and the Outsiders

In October 2007, DC announced that Cassandra would be taking up the Batgirl identity as a member of the Outsiders in the upcoming Batman and the Outsiders ongoing series to be written by Chuck Dixon, which appears to, or is hoped to, begin resolving the controversy. ^[5]

Cassandra retakes the Batgirl mantle joining the Outsiders at Batman's request at the end of Batman and the Outsiders #2. Cassandra moves into their apartment but does not show much desire to socialize with her teammates. Batman also offers membership to Green Arrow, who is furious to learn that the former leader of the League of Assassins is on the team as well. While on a mission, Green Arrow and Batgirl battle one another, and end up gaining an unusual sort of respect for one another. The team as a whole begins to slowly accept Batgirl into their ranks, when she frees all of them from the Chinese military.^[2]

Following the events of Batman R.I.P. (2008), the Outsiders have been left in disarray with the loss of their leader. Batgirl, believing that Batman brought her in as a contingency, takes command of the team, while they attempt to locate Batman.

Batgirl (2008)

In February 2008, Dan DiDio revealed during a convention panel that writer Adam Beechen would be writing a new Batgirl mini-series. Beechen himself said that the story would resolve why Cassandra has acted the way she has and will be a set up for new Batgirl adventures.^[6]

In that series, Cassandra moves into Wayne Manor and desires to kill her father and Deathstroke for what they did to her. She uses the Batcomputer to locate them but is attacked by Nightwing, who claims she cannot be trusted. Robin and Batman give her the benefit of the doubt.

During the series, Cassandra learns that Cain and Deathstroke started up a school training Cassandra's "sisters." When Cassandra hears that the school's purpose was to "cripple the meta-hero community," she believes Oracle is about to be assassinated and rushes to her base of operations. She locates Cain on a rooftop and engages in a one-on-one fight, eventually sending him over a ledge. When he loses his grip, she tries to save him but fails; he falls to another part of the rooftop. Batman, who had followed her, accepts her into the family again and says he will adopt and make her his daughter.

In a first issue of a 2009 Batgirl series, set after Bruce Wayne's apparent death during Final Crisis, Cassandra has become disillusioned and passes her Batgirl identity on to her close friend Stephanie Brown. Her current whereabouts are unknown.^[7]

Controversy

Critical reception of the One Year Later storyline had been mixed.^[8][9] In general, the portrayal of Tim Drake has been praised, whereas Cassandra's depiction "rings false even given the One Year Later".^{[10][dead link]} Upon being asked if Cassandra's characterization was editorially mandated, writer Adam Beechen stated that "When I came to the book, I was told that the first arc would deal with presenting Cassandra as a major new enemy for Robin. From there, I worked out the details of just how that would come about with our initial editor, Eddie Berganza, and then his successor, Peter Tomasi."^[11] In a follow-up interview, he clarified further, stating "They didn't present me with a rationale as to why Cassandra was going to change, or a motivating factor. That was left for me to come up with and them to approve. And we did that. But as far as to why the editors and writers and whoever else made the decision decided that was a good direction, I honestly couldn't answer."^[12]

In recent interviews and press conferences,^[13] Dan DiDio and others have stated that Cass will "be going back to basics," like in her early adventures before she was able to talk. Later, Geoff Johns was quoted saying: "We will be addressing in Teen Titans exactly what the deal is with her. Is she a bad guy? How? Why? She was a completely different character before "One Year Later," so let’s find out what happened."^[14]

According to Wizard Magazine #182, the storyline was "one of the most controversial changes to come out of DC's 'One Year Later' event", and "fans rose up in arms, organizing websites and letter-writing campaigns to protest the change." Dan Didio commented "I'm glad to see there was a reaction created, it shows that people care about the character and want to see something happen with her".^[15]

Costume and equipment

Her costume as Batgirl was composed of black skin-tight leather. Her mask covers all of her head with the exception of the eyes, which were darkened, and symbolic stitches surround the mouth of the mask. Instead of Barbara's yellow bat-logo, Cassandra had a hollow, yellow-rimmed black one. This costume was originally created and worn by the Huntress in the early stages of No Man's Land.

Like the other members of the Bat-Clan, Cassandra also wore a yellow pouched utility belt, which contained grappling hooks, batarangs, mini-explosives, tracking devices, a hand-held computer, binoculars, plasti-cuffs, and smoke pellets. However, Cassandra rarely uses any of these devices as Batgirl.

Titans East showed some slight differences in Cassandra's costume, such as a yellow interior to her cape, as well as a classic "capsule" utility belt as opposed to the pouches. However, in Teen Titans (vol. 3) #43, the once hollow bat-symbol appears to have been filled in and her cape is once again completely black, and there is a new line of stitching going up the forehead of her cowl that was not there on previous costumes. This particular version of the costume may only be the result of the artist's interpretation, as her appearances in Supergirl and Outsiders had Cassandra in her standard Batgirl costume.

Training and abilities

As a child, Cassandra received intensive training by her father, along with several other members of the League of Assassins, including Bronze Tiger, Merlyn the archer, and a series of instructors hired by Cain, including Alpha. Upon taking the mantle of Batgirl, she was trained further by Batman, Oracle, Black Canary, and then by Lady Shiva, and has received supplementary instruction from Onyx. She was also very briefly trained in detective methods by Tim Drake during their time in Blüdhaven.

In Batgirl #14 the writer, Kelley Puckett, places Cassandra in a position within the story in which her skills are analyzed by a group of government experts. Through this panel, the creative team reveal to the reader that the character is written as having no metagene. Her genetic status was felt to be incompatible with her recorded abilities by one of the experts, however, who stated: "Her individual moves are borderline human. It's her aggregate speed that's metahuman. Look -- humans can throw a 100 miles-per-hour fastball, smash concrete blocks with their heads, and run 4.2 forties. What they can't do is all of that at once. It's not so much physical as... as mentally impossible. Too much to coordinate."^[16]

She also seems to have developed a resistance to pain. On more than one occasion she has been described as "being able to take a bullet wound and not even bat an eye.".

Language skills

As a side effect of Cain's training, Cassandra's brain developed learning functions different from most. Having been brought up by Cain deliberately without speech, the communication centers of her brain learned body language instead of spoken or written language. Thus, she originally had as much trouble learning spoken and written language as a normal individual would have in learning body language. Although she was able to learn some very basic things ("no," "yes," "me") the same way a normal person can learn to recognize smiles and frowns, it took a telepath rewiring her brain to teach her to speak and understand English. Even then, she only spoke with extreme difficulty (very falteringly, short sentences with long pauses, frequently using the wrong words, etc). In Batgirl #67 Oracle performed a number of tests on Cassandra, determining the severity of the problem:

In the new mini-series Batgirl, the first issue delves into an explanation as to Cassandra's increased verbal and literary skills. It is explained that during the year in which Batman, Nightwing and Robin were abroad, Cassandra and Alfred took it upon themselves to help develop the skills that she lacked due to her less than conventional childhood. By day she took speech and ESL courses. The formal training aided her thought processes related to language and thus her verbalization, improved rapidly.

Collected editions

In other media

Cassandra Cain as Batgirl appears in a cameo alongside Robin (Tim Drake) in the video game Batman: Dark Tomorrow.

In one episode of the Justice League series based in the DCAU, a girl is seen with Tim Drake (in an alternate timeline) that bears a resemblance to Cassandra. The creators of the show have stated this as an uncredited cameo.

Cassandra Cain (as Batgirl) is set to appear in the upcoming MMORPG DC Universe Online.

Notes and references

See also

• Bette Kane — Earth-2/Golden Age Bat-Girl
• Barbara Gordon — Earth-1/Silver Age Batgirl
• Huntress — Second Batgirl
• Batwoman — Other female counterparts of Batman

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Cassandra Cain

• Interview with Puckett