Mega-rod! Mega-rod! Mega-rod! (Birds of Prey #101, Cover Date Feb. 07)

Characters:

Main Heroes: Oracle, Barda, Huntress, Zinda, Judomaster, Manhunter

Main Villain: Spy Smasher

P'Shat

Having freed to mob boss's daughter from the Mexican prison, Zinda flies the group North, where they are intercepted by U.S. fighter planes while still in Mexican airspace. After a fight scene between Barda and various aircraft, Zinda's helicopter is blown out of the sky. Saved at the last minute by Barda's boom tube, they take a limo to turn over the mob boss, but are instead arrested by the agents. Meanwhile, Manhunter is off on her own trying to free another group of prisoners -- the "real" targets -- and Oracle is meeting with Lois Lane with Misfit in charge.

Drash

Repeated usage of the word "Mega-Rod" cures a lot of ills, but this story isn't really keeping it's plot twists in line. If the secret plan was to make it look like the Birds of Prey had been killed so they wouldn't be followed, why are they risking Barda going off to fight to planes? Did she not know the "secret plan" that she was a part of? Isn't is only supposed to be secret from the bad guys? But Spy Smasher tells Oracle that all of her agents will be dead or in jail within 48 hours, and promptly has the "dead" Birds arrested, so she apparently wasn't fooled either. What the heck kind of secret plan fools Zinda, but not Spy Smasher?

Meanwhile, while the cover shows Manhunter being arrested by armed agents, the issue actually ends with everyone BUT Manhunter being arrested. Kate is just off fighting Miguel, a large shirtless Mexican who apparently is always on call for the prison's shirtless- fighting-Mexican needs.

But, hey, at the Mexicans actually have some Hispanics on staff. The All-Caucasian Birds remain in all-White mode.