Remaining Bats of the New 52
Week of 9/21/11
Batman
I want to say right off the bat (pun not intended) that I don't like the art in this issue. I don't think the artist is intentionally bad, like I do the Green Lantern guy, but the style's not to my taste. (I know that the writer comes first on the list of names on the cover of a comic, but I can't identify whether the names that follow are Penciller - Inker or Cowriter - Artist or whatever so I hesitate to name names when talking about the art.)
We start off with Batman inner-monologing about a contest the Gotham Gazette runs where people finish the sentence "Gotham is..." with three words or less. Words like "damned" and "cursed' are used a lot, as are the names of villains, such as "Gotham is Two-Face," meaning a city of conflict and paradox. Among the most frequent answers is some variant of "Gotham is Batman," which Bruce appreciates.
As he is thinking about this, he is fighting what appears to be a mass-breakout from Arkham with all his best-known villains involved. Then the Joker shows up and, while indulging in entirely in character Joker-type banter, proceeds to help Batman with the fight. This does not surprise Batman at all.
Later, Batman explains to Jim Gordon that he was investigating a guard on the take who decided to open all the cells to create a diversion while he got away. Jim asks about the Joker helping him, but Batman tells him it's ridiculous.
It appears that Batman is meeting with the Joker in the Batcave and showing him his new computer interface contained in his contact lens that will allow him to be in constant contact with the bat-computer, but Bruce asks him to take off the "E.M.P. mask" and we find Dick Grayson underneath. He is concerned about the effect of this constant link-up on Bruce's mental health, but they meet up with Tim and Damian in Wayne Manor proper before the conversation can continue. (Damian is adorably wearing red converse with his tux. He's such a little punk.) They go to a fund-raising event and it turns out that the "Gotham is.." narration boxes were actually just quoting Bruce's speech as he implores his listeners to think more on what Gotham will be and invest to rebuild the city. Vicki Vale introduces him to a new mayoral candidate (Lincoln March) of whom I am already suspicious, but he overhears Jim Gordon talking about a developing case on his cell phone and skedaddles.
Batman meets up with Harvey Bullock, who comments that he notices Batman has reverted to his original type and shows him a cadaver pinned to the wall with many knives. Harvey says that the name the man used was false, they have no idea who he is, and that the knives were strategically placed to avoid all major arteries and organs so that the man remained alive and in pain for a very long time. Batman takes one of the knives, which is an antique throwing knife with groves filled with mercury to improve accuracy through the air. They have owls painted on them, and Harvey wants to know if Batman thinks they have anything to do with the old wives tale about the c-, but Batman interrupts him with "I know what you mean." I do not know what Harvey means. Let him explain it to me, Batman!
Batman first notices the smell of paint thinner and lights up a near-by canvas, causing the words "Bruce Wayne will die tomorrow" to appear in flame. He also gets some DNA from under the victims fingernails and uses the new interface to send it to the bat-computer, and Alfred sorrowfully tells him that the match came back as...Dick Grayson! Dun, dun, dun!
Thoughts:
I don't know if this is a mind control storyline or an elaborate trickery storyline, but I implicitly trust Dick Grayson. After "The Skeleton Key," I don't think there's anything Snyder could have done that would not have disappointed me, and while solid, I can't stop comparing this issue with its worthier predecessors. It's like the next thing Shakespeare did after Hamlet. However, I did really like it, I'm intrigued by the twist at the end, and there are really nice character moments throughout. For example, when Batman first meets with Harvey, Harvey mentions that he's noticed that Batman's reverted to his original type. This issue does, however, render Detective Comics more confusing. There, we had Bruce on the run from the police who have been ordered to attack him by Mayor Hardy, with only Jim Gordon trusting him the same as always. Here, he meets up not only with Jim, but with Harvey Bullock also and neither of them mention the conflict or make any attempt at secrecy. It almost gives credence to the fan rumor that Detective Comics was originally intended to be a year one like Action Comics but changed into a present-day at the last minute when it was too close to being done to be materially altered. If Jim Gordon hadn't lit an existing bat-signal in that issue, I'd whole-heartedly believe it. As is, I'm still suspicious. I wish I had more to say about this issue on its own merits but I think I'm being too unfair in comparing it to what came before to talk anymore about it, so I'll simply conclude with: buy pile.
Nightwing
Dick Grayson is happy and excited to be back in his Nightwing costume, and despite a little disappointment that his Batman days are over, I am too. I didn't get to read much of the original Nightwing run (basically just what crossed over with Birds of Prey enough to be included in their graphic novels) but I liked what I saw of the character in Battle for the Cowl, and think that it's a better permanent fit for Dick than dark, brooding Batman. (Though I will say that in terms of the costume itself, I preferred what he wore during Battle for the Cowl. The light blue fit his character better while still looking badass, and the black and red's such a striking pallette I'd prefer it to be the sole property of Batwoman, who wears it better. And I hate the red eyes in the mask.)
Nightwing crashes through the window of a subway train in order to take out a psychopath in S&M gear who's stabbing commuters. He does so easily even though th bad guy is much bigger, but interestingly the blood from the people he's killed pools across the villain's bare chest in a rough parody of Nightwing's own stylized bat-signal, which likely has symbolic importance considering what comes later.
On his way home, Dick swings past Haly's Circus, which is back in Gotham for the first time since Dick's parents' died. Though he's visited the circus before in other cities, he's been finding excuses to avoid them in Gotham and is not entirely sure why.
Elsewhere, a man with brown hair and sunglasses gets off a bus and viciously slays the two guys who try to mug him.
Next day, Dick goes to Haley's circus (apparently Dick not only lives in an apartment in the bad side of town, but is such a slob that he leaves his costume right out on the floor after patrols even though one of his walls is essentially one giant window. Does he secretly want to get caught?) He realizes that the real reason he's been avoiding the circus is that Gotham twists the things you love, and he doesn't want his circus twisted. Dick remeets the ringmaster, a clown who's understandably upset about the fact that they only have a green wig for him in Gotham (are they trying to get him killed?), and an acrobat about his age. She introduces him to her new partner, whom I originally thought looked suspiciously like the guy getting off the bus, but on second read his hair is longer and if they've been in the city for three days he wouldn't just be getting off the Greyhound. The acrobats talk Dick into trying the trapeze again, but he screws up intentionally so he'll look out of practice.
Walking home, Dick is thinking about possibly hooking up with the female acrobat while she's in town, commenting that redheads drive him crazy (then get back together with Barbara Gordon like I want you to!), when he's atttacked by what is obviously a professional assassin in a costume with wolverine blades on his wrists, who calls him by name. The cops show up and start shooting at the assassin while Dick ducks into an alley to get into his Nightwing gear. I can only assume that Dick thought the cops would be fairly safe since they have guns and the assassin only knives, but the assassin does a somersault, lands between them, and takes out both their throats with one swipe, so it looks like Dick left two Gotham cops to die just so he could get into costume. I really don't think we need that kind of ambiguity in the first issue.
As Nightwing and the assassin fight, the assassin claims that Nightwing has no idea who he's protecting. "Dick Grayson is the fiercest killer in all of Gotham. And he doesn't even know it." Dick's surprise allows the assassin to strike at the water tower behind him, and the water slams him down onto a dumpster far below where he feels two of his ribs break. Issue ends with the assassin standing over him.
Thoughts:
I really liked this issue. It's nice to see Dick back as Nightwing, I loved the stuff with the circus, and the tie-in with Batman is definitely going to be interesting. Right now my theory is mind-control, but we'll see what the writers do. I would have found it more interesting if the assassin had been more of an anti-hero, going after Dick because he's "evil" but unwilling to kill innocents who get in his way, but I guess they wanted to put Nightwing in danger right away. I'm really looking forward to issue 2.
I know I'm a week behind, but I will try to finish up the current week's comics before Wednesday when I start buying my #2s. I have to say I was disappointed in this week's crop, so hopefully it won't take as long.
Batman
I want to say right off the bat (pun not intended) that I don't like the art in this issue. I don't think the artist is intentionally bad, like I do the Green Lantern guy, but the style's not to my taste. (I know that the writer comes first on the list of names on the cover of a comic, but I can't identify whether the names that follow are Penciller - Inker or Cowriter - Artist or whatever so I hesitate to name names when talking about the art.)
We start off with Batman inner-monologing about a contest the Gotham Gazette runs where people finish the sentence "Gotham is..." with three words or less. Words like "damned" and "cursed' are used a lot, as are the names of villains, such as "Gotham is Two-Face," meaning a city of conflict and paradox. Among the most frequent answers is some variant of "Gotham is Batman," which Bruce appreciates.
As he is thinking about this, he is fighting what appears to be a mass-breakout from Arkham with all his best-known villains involved. Then the Joker shows up and, while indulging in entirely in character Joker-type banter, proceeds to help Batman with the fight. This does not surprise Batman at all.
Later, Batman explains to Jim Gordon that he was investigating a guard on the take who decided to open all the cells to create a diversion while he got away. Jim asks about the Joker helping him, but Batman tells him it's ridiculous.
It appears that Batman is meeting with the Joker in the Batcave and showing him his new computer interface contained in his contact lens that will allow him to be in constant contact with the bat-computer, but Bruce asks him to take off the "E.M.P. mask" and we find Dick Grayson underneath. He is concerned about the effect of this constant link-up on Bruce's mental health, but they meet up with Tim and Damian in Wayne Manor proper before the conversation can continue. (Damian is adorably wearing red converse with his tux. He's such a little punk.) They go to a fund-raising event and it turns out that the "Gotham is.." narration boxes were actually just quoting Bruce's speech as he implores his listeners to think more on what Gotham will be and invest to rebuild the city. Vicki Vale introduces him to a new mayoral candidate (Lincoln March) of whom I am already suspicious, but he overhears Jim Gordon talking about a developing case on his cell phone and skedaddles.
Batman meets up with Harvey Bullock, who comments that he notices Batman has reverted to his original type and shows him a cadaver pinned to the wall with many knives. Harvey says that the name the man used was false, they have no idea who he is, and that the knives were strategically placed to avoid all major arteries and organs so that the man remained alive and in pain for a very long time. Batman takes one of the knives, which is an antique throwing knife with groves filled with mercury to improve accuracy through the air. They have owls painted on them, and Harvey wants to know if Batman thinks they have anything to do with the old wives tale about the c-, but Batman interrupts him with "I know what you mean." I do not know what Harvey means. Let him explain it to me, Batman!
Batman first notices the smell of paint thinner and lights up a near-by canvas, causing the words "Bruce Wayne will die tomorrow" to appear in flame. He also gets some DNA from under the victims fingernails and uses the new interface to send it to the bat-computer, and Alfred sorrowfully tells him that the match came back as...Dick Grayson! Dun, dun, dun!
Thoughts:
I don't know if this is a mind control storyline or an elaborate trickery storyline, but I implicitly trust Dick Grayson. After "The Skeleton Key," I don't think there's anything Snyder could have done that would not have disappointed me, and while solid, I can't stop comparing this issue with its worthier predecessors. It's like the next thing Shakespeare did after Hamlet. However, I did really like it, I'm intrigued by the twist at the end, and there are really nice character moments throughout. For example, when Batman first meets with Harvey, Harvey mentions that he's noticed that Batman's reverted to his original type. This issue does, however, render Detective Comics more confusing. There, we had Bruce on the run from the police who have been ordered to attack him by Mayor Hardy, with only Jim Gordon trusting him the same as always. Here, he meets up not only with Jim, but with Harvey Bullock also and neither of them mention the conflict or make any attempt at secrecy. It almost gives credence to the fan rumor that Detective Comics was originally intended to be a year one like Action Comics but changed into a present-day at the last minute when it was too close to being done to be materially altered. If Jim Gordon hadn't lit an existing bat-signal in that issue, I'd whole-heartedly believe it. As is, I'm still suspicious. I wish I had more to say about this issue on its own merits but I think I'm being too unfair in comparing it to what came before to talk anymore about it, so I'll simply conclude with: buy pile.
Nightwing
Dick Grayson is happy and excited to be back in his Nightwing costume, and despite a little disappointment that his Batman days are over, I am too. I didn't get to read much of the original Nightwing run (basically just what crossed over with Birds of Prey enough to be included in their graphic novels) but I liked what I saw of the character in Battle for the Cowl, and think that it's a better permanent fit for Dick than dark, brooding Batman. (Though I will say that in terms of the costume itself, I preferred what he wore during Battle for the Cowl. The light blue fit his character better while still looking badass, and the black and red's such a striking pallette I'd prefer it to be the sole property of Batwoman, who wears it better. And I hate the red eyes in the mask.)
Nightwing crashes through the window of a subway train in order to take out a psychopath in S&M gear who's stabbing commuters. He does so easily even though th bad guy is much bigger, but interestingly the blood from the people he's killed pools across the villain's bare chest in a rough parody of Nightwing's own stylized bat-signal, which likely has symbolic importance considering what comes later.
On his way home, Dick swings past Haly's Circus, which is back in Gotham for the first time since Dick's parents' died. Though he's visited the circus before in other cities, he's been finding excuses to avoid them in Gotham and is not entirely sure why.
Elsewhere, a man with brown hair and sunglasses gets off a bus and viciously slays the two guys who try to mug him.
Next day, Dick goes to Haley's circus (apparently Dick not only lives in an apartment in the bad side of town, but is such a slob that he leaves his costume right out on the floor after patrols even though one of his walls is essentially one giant window. Does he secretly want to get caught?) He realizes that the real reason he's been avoiding the circus is that Gotham twists the things you love, and he doesn't want his circus twisted. Dick remeets the ringmaster, a clown who's understandably upset about the fact that they only have a green wig for him in Gotham (are they trying to get him killed?), and an acrobat about his age. She introduces him to her new partner, whom I originally thought looked suspiciously like the guy getting off the bus, but on second read his hair is longer and if they've been in the city for three days he wouldn't just be getting off the Greyhound. The acrobats talk Dick into trying the trapeze again, but he screws up intentionally so he'll look out of practice.
Walking home, Dick is thinking about possibly hooking up with the female acrobat while she's in town, commenting that redheads drive him crazy (then get back together with Barbara Gordon like I want you to!), when he's atttacked by what is obviously a professional assassin in a costume with wolverine blades on his wrists, who calls him by name. The cops show up and start shooting at the assassin while Dick ducks into an alley to get into his Nightwing gear. I can only assume that Dick thought the cops would be fairly safe since they have guns and the assassin only knives, but the assassin does a somersault, lands between them, and takes out both their throats with one swipe, so it looks like Dick left two Gotham cops to die just so he could get into costume. I really don't think we need that kind of ambiguity in the first issue.
As Nightwing and the assassin fight, the assassin claims that Nightwing has no idea who he's protecting. "Dick Grayson is the fiercest killer in all of Gotham. And he doesn't even know it." Dick's surprise allows the assassin to strike at the water tower behind him, and the water slams him down onto a dumpster far below where he feels two of his ribs break. Issue ends with the assassin standing over him.
Thoughts:
I really liked this issue. It's nice to see Dick back as Nightwing, I loved the stuff with the circus, and the tie-in with Batman is definitely going to be interesting. Right now my theory is mind-control, but we'll see what the writers do. I would have found it more interesting if the assassin had been more of an anti-hero, going after Dick because he's "evil" but unwilling to kill innocents who get in his way, but I guess they wanted to put Nightwing in danger right away. I'm really looking forward to issue 2.
I know I'm a week behind, but I will try to finish up the current week's comics before Wednesday when I start buying my #2s. I have to say I was disappointed in this week's crop, so hopefully it won't take as long.