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Warning: Spoilers for Batgirl #3!Some Batman fans don’t realize that the League of Shadows and the League of Assassins are two separate entities. Ra’s al Ghul always had the League of Assassins, but when adapted for the screen in Batman Begins and later Arrow, the organization was renamed the League of Shadows. In hopes of synchronizing the comics with adaptations, DC introduced the League of Shadows in the comics as a separate group, furthering confusion.
Batgirl #3 by Tate Brombal, Takeshi Miyazawa, Mike Spicer, and Tom Napolitano brings the League of Shadows back into DC Universe canon. Cassandra Cain reluctantly teams up with Lady Shiva, and after taking refuge with her Order of Shiva, she discovers that her mother is running the current iteration of the League of Shadows.
Some fans may assume that the League of Shadows is just the League of Assassins under a different title, like in DC’s movies and TV shows. But there are major differences between the two ninja factions in DC Comics lore.
What Is the League of Assassins as Established by Batman Lore?
Debuts in Strange Adventures #215 by Neal Adams
The League of Assassins was originally founded by Ra’s al Ghul, who typically leads it to this day, in hopes of bringing a collective of the world’s most skilled killers under one roof. While the group itself first graces the pages of DC Comics in Strange Adventures, it isn’t officially named until Detective Comics #405 by Dennis O’Neil, Bob Brown, Frank Giacoia, and Ben Oda two years later. Anyone willing to join the League of Assassins had to be willing to be a member until death, and if they ever failed in their missions, they were targeted by the League.
While the centuries-old Ra’s al Ghul will always be the Demon’s Head, different leaders have been appointed to lead operations within the League of Assassins. The first known leader of the League is Doctor Darrk, appointed by al Ghul, followed by Sensei. Ra’s al Ghul’s forgotten daughter and Talia al Ghul’s half-sister, Nyssa Raatko, led the League as the firstborn and appointed heir by Ra’s after his death. Under Nyssa’s leadership, she appointed Lady Shiva as her sensei. Once Nyssa was killed in a car explosion off-panel, Cassandra Cain was appointed the new League of Assassins leader.
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Leading the League prompted a sudden, villainous change of character for Cass, prompting some to speculate that she had been the victim of some sort of brainwashing. Once she became a hero again and splintered off from the pack, Talia al Ghul claimed the throne for herself. That being said, Ra’s al Ghul always comes back eventually, and when he did, the League was under his grasp once more, where it remains to this day – at least, as far as Batman knows.
What Is the League of Shadows, One of DC’s Newer Shadow Organizations?
Debuts in Detective Comics #952 by James Tynion IV, Christian Duce, Fernando Blanco, Alex Sinclair, John Rauch, Allen Passalaqua, and Sal Cipriano
The League of Shadows didn’t exist in DC’s comics prior to the League of Assassins being renamed for the Christopher Nolan movies – or, rather, the title never existed. That changed in 2017, not long after the return of Ra’s al Ghul to power. There was always more of a mysterious and – for lack of a more appropriate word – shadowy presence about the League of Shadows. Originally, the League of Shadows was presumed to just be a rumor concocted by Ra’s to scare his followers into submission.
In actuality, as much as Ra’s used the League of Assassins to ingratiate himself with the elite using the power and money of the ruling class, he never trusted said ruling class to shape the world as he deems necessary. In response, he created the League of Shadows, hoping its purpose would be to stop mankind from destroying itself. He appointed Lady Shiva as its leader, but upon learning of his true intentions for the League of Shadows, Shiva turned the League against Ra’s, claiming it for herself in total.
What Is the Difference Between the League of Assassins and the League of Shadows?
One Is Order, the Other Is Chaos
The way that Ra’s al Ghul might describe it, the main difference between these two organizations is that the League of Shadows is more destructive for the sake of destruction, while the League of Assassins is all about order and balance. Most of Ra’s intentions for the League of Assassins revolve around providing balance, as it technically exists as a necessary evil. He created the League of Shadows to offer an opposite League to enforce that balance, but under Shiva’s influence, it has become something far more chaotic, to the point that Ra’s pleads for Batman’s help to stop them.
Under the leadership of Nyssa al Ghul and Shiva, the League of Shadows could actually be about helping the people within it.
At the time of its inception, the League of Shadows seemed to exist solely to cater to the needs of Lady Shiva. That being said, this new Batgirl series could offer the organization a new purpose, especially as Batgirl #3 recontextualizes Lady Shiva as a caring, practically motherly figure to the Order of Shiva, sympathetic to the needs of her worshipers (another contrast to Ra’s and his Assassins). Under the leadership of Nyssa al Ghul and Shiva, the League of Shadows could actually be about helping the people within it. Batman’s old foe Ra’s and his League of Assassins can’t uphold that same vision.
Batgirl #3 is available now from DC Comics.
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