WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Batgirl #40 by Cecil Castellucci, Carmine Digiandomenico, Jordie Bellaire and Andworld Design, in stores now.
When Barbara Gordon was shot through the spine by the Joker in The Killing Joke, her future as Batgirl was put in jeopardy. However, when it became clear that she'd have to rethink her crime-fighting strategy, a solution presented itself. Babs was among the most brilliant members of the Bat-Family, so she learned how to use her brain, and not brawn, to bring criminals to justice. As Oracle, Barbara organized the Birds of Prey, served as Batman's woman in the chair and helped train a young Cassandra Cain to take up the cowl herself.
Yet, in the years following the New 52, Barbara Gordon returned to her role as Batgirl, leaving the position of Oracle open for the right person. And that person has presented herself: Francine Charles, better known as Frankie. She might be a great Oracle, too -- if the original security protocols set up by Barbara herself don't kill Frankie first.
Who is Frankie?
When Barbara moved into a houseshare in the Gotham neighborhood of Burnside, her housemate was an old friend from physical therapy: Frankie Charles. Like Barbara, Frankie is a brilliant programmer and computer operator with restricted mobility. Her weakened muscles require her to use crutches to get around some places.
After a strange programming snafu with a dating site goes horribly awry, Frankie learned Barbara's secret: Barbara and Batgirl are one and the same. However, Frankie soon became a valuable ally to Barbara, using her knowledge of computers and programming to offer her assistance, the same way Barbara offered assistance to Batman long ago.
The Evil Oracle
The most recent Batgirl arc, "Oracle Rising," pitted Barbara Gordon against her own old Oracle AI. Criminal mastermind Lex Luthor visited the A.I. known as Oracle. The original program had, in the years since Batgirl abandoned it, evolved. It assembled a machine body for itself. Then, Lex corrupted the system in an effort to spread his own agenda.
Initially, a league of villains known as the Terrible Trio tried to use the A.I. as a weapon, but Oracle took command of them instead. Her objective? Destroy Batgirl. Oracle feels slighted by Batgirl. She sees her user's return to her Batgirl identity as an act of abandonment.
In order to exact revenge, Oracle targets what she sees as one of the core elements keeping Batgirl away from her: Burnside. She sends the Terrible Trio to set charges throughout the neighborhood, which upon detonation, light the whole place ablaze. At the same time, crowds riot. While Batgirl tries to control Burnside, Oracle acts, predicting Batgirl's every action before she can make it.
Enter Frankie
That is, until Frankie takes a seat in Oracle's chair. There, she tries to reprogram and control Oracle in order to avoid certain devastation for Burnside. She fights with the Oracle A.I. in order to offer Batgirl support. In doing so, she officially takes up the mantle she had already unofficially assumed: Oracle.
Naturally, the A.I. tries to wrestle control from Frankie, resulting in a battle of programming wits between the old A.I. and Barbara's new best friend. All this amounts to one thing: we have two Oracles. And both of them are fighting for Barbara's attention.