Hey, there. We've got a fresh batch of great submissions for the
Superhero of the Month &
Girls Read Comics Birds of Prey contest for you right here. Enjoy!
![]() |
| Laura's Black Canary & Poison Ivy |
"Black Canary because she seemed kind of challenging. It seems like there have been very few variations for her outfit and one of the key features has always been lots and lots of fishnet. I wanted to make it more practical, but at the same time keep her recognizable. I've always liked primarily black costumes with a
splash of bright color, so I did the edging, zipper, and buckles in gold to highlight her hair.
"I picked Poison Ivy because I really like the idea behind her character, but more often then not her tendency for teasing seduction has landed her with some pretty slutty vine-tentacle undies that kind of grate at my nerves. I had in mind natural cotton with a nice heavy drape to help accentuate her figure without laying absolutely everything out on display at once. That being said, it still takes a healthy dose of confidence to wear. Her hair flower is extremely poisonous, of course, and she doesn't mind its roots hugging her neck affectionately one bit."
![]() |
| Shannon Fowler's Starling & Black Canary |
"Through my redesign of Black Canary I wanted to give her more reasonable riding wear, as well as cold climate attire. Staying with her traditional color scheme I created a leather set which gives her that 'bad girl' style she's always had, while keeping her protected. I kept her signature fishnet -- just with a little switch up -- accessorized with a belt and combat boots, and gave her a customized 'BC' helmet to top it off.
"With Starling, I gave her a new bright purple corset top, added some leather and a pair of cargo skinny jeans. Her being a combat specialist, I accessorized her with an ammo belt for her gear, a gun in hand and some fun spiked heal shoes to give her that edge she deserves."
![]() |
| Claire Napier's Black Canary & Huntress |
"Black Canary: I picked hotpants with at least a couple of inches on inner thigh coverage because it would be going definitively off-model if an artist decided to show her bare cheeks during their run. And because nobody wants a wedgie of any sort whilst they are kicking heads. The big padded shoulder protection with loads of space between the leather and her actual shoulders would keep her safe(r), but also give her the ability to move or reach without experiencing a sudden cutting crotch pain. Short sleeves and proper bike gloves would give her ease of movement and protect most of her skin. The yellow elements hopefully lends some iconic validation to my design. A neck scarf is an element I pinched straight out of girlsploitation wardrobes, which luckily harks to the halter or sleeveless collared bodysuits she's been wearing for the past few years. Ponytails are sassy and bountifully sexy as well as practical, and the symbolism 'matches' with the cheerleader-style megaphone thingy. I like accessories.
"Huntress: I gave her spiked arms -- you can't comfortably stand shoulder to shoulder with anyone like that. The modified bomber jacket and sportswear-y clothes in place of superhero leather or spandex is a nod to her Batgirl sewn-up mouth, and because I like how angry the character has always been when I've read her. 'I'll do it myself', kinda thing. The shape of the collar on her jacket and the hairstyle are a lazy bit of 'Catholic girls look this way', but I think it works. Purple Docs for s***-kickin', and because their cultural history lends itself to a cross, DIY heroine."
![]() |
| Matthew Ray's Huntress and Batgirl |
"I decided to simplify both costumes w/ Huntress getting by in a tank and leather pants/jacket, and Batgirl giving a nod to Batman's outfit."
![]() |
| SilverLocust's Black Canary & Huntress |
"Black Canary: In the last BoP run, more than once you would see the team at a bar, casually dressed except for Dinah she would be there in her leather coat and fishnets. I wanted to give her a look that if she wore it out was a bit more subtle. For a hand to hand fighter, the coat makes a lot of sense as a type of protection, but I wanted to give her a little more protection on her forearms so I added the Asian-inspired armor. I also maintained the fishnet crosshatching but did it in a shirt and vest pattern, and brought back the shape of her classic boots, but in a flat.
"Huntress: I went back and reviewed all her costumes. They all were in the lilac and purple family with blues, so it felt right to stay with the color concept. A large number of female characters in Gotham have worn these colors (Batgirl, Catwoman, Spoiler, etc), but Helena had has her own signature feel and I tried to maintain it while updating it. I brought back the original belt buckle design and leg and arm utility belts she used long before Stephanie Brown."
[Update]![]() |
| Sebastian von Buchwald's Black Canary & Lady Blackhawk |
“Redesigning Dinah was a pretty smooth process. I know the character from
Justice League Unlimited and from a handful of comics, so I knew more or less what I wanted. She's a fighter, so I didn't want her to have anything that was loose and could lead to her being grabbed and losing the upper hand. That includes the leather jacket (she's a biker so she has to have one) which is completely zipped up, the hair which I shortened and, along with the sneaker-like shoes, she should be ready for any brawl. I had to incorporate her signature fishnets and, while browsing for refence and ideas, I stumbled upon pages of the New 52
Birds of Prey where either Jesus Saiz or Javier Pina rendered them as more of a protective mesh than regular fishnets which I thought it was brilliant so I used that.
"Lady Blackhawk was much harder to tackle due to me knowing only the most rudimentary of things about the character which is why her costume is still fairly grounded in the current version. The hat seemed silly so I got rid of that and the skirt, though very sexy, just didn't work from a practical point of view. She uses guns so she can rock the long hair and she needed a holster so that's in there too. When I was looking up for some info on her in Wikipedia, I learned that the second Lady Blackhawk uses an eyepatch which I felt was just the thing I needed to make the design pop out a bit more.”
![]() |
| Philip Rice's Black Canary & Katana |
"For Canary, I chose to replace the classic fishnets with scale mail. I think it gives a shape similar to fishnets but would provide a lot more protection. The rest of her costume is a mix between her classic costume and the New 52 design. For Katana, I was fooling around with samurai armour at first, but I decided to go with a kimono-inspired costume with a few Western influences (the buttons and it being fastened right over left). I wanted both of their looks to seem functional, which is why Black Canary wears her hair up and Katana wears it short."
There you have it! What do you think of the designs in this batch? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to
check out all of the Birds of Prey submissions sent in so far. There's still time to send in your redesigns, so be sure to check out the
Official Contest Announcement for special contest details!
