It's time for another 2-in-1 showcase spectacular as we wrap up "The Dark Things" crossover that ties in with Brightest Day.
We begin with JSA #42, with Kyle Rayner joining the fun on the dark side of the moon. After Kyle explains his mission, Obsidian convinces Jade to join with him, and they are merged into a being controlled by the Starheart, and yet both have their own voices speaking through it. So Kyle and Jadesidian (the combo is not named in the story) fight, with the Jade part angered at Kyle for “dumping” her for Wonder Girl, Donna Troy, after her death. During the fight as well Kyle’s ring also gets depleted of its power quite rapidly, and surprisingly in fact.
Meanwhile, Doctor Mid-Nite has found Starman near death, and tells him not to worry and that he will save him, as he hurries to find where Alan Scott has Dr. Fate, Faust, Jay Garrick and Wildcat. Mid-Nite then sneaks behind Dr. Fate and removes the helmet and releasing Faust, Garrick and Wildcat. Garrick gets Starman’s gem, and Wildcat goes after Scott, and realizes that “Scott” is nothing more than a construct created by Starheart.
The real Alan Scott, as we find out, is on Earth and making quick work out of Power Girl and Supergirl. Just as Scott retakes control of Power Girl, he is suddenly called away and poofs out of Dodge, and releases Power Girl. They are then called to head over to Mr. Terrific who needs them for a theory. And we end the issue with more of the Jadesidian fight with everyone, with Alan Scott appearing at the end.
And that is where we kick things off in JLA #48. After a brief expository scene at the moon, we shift back to Earth where Terrific, Power Girl and Supergirl discuss some technobabble way of stopping the magic based chaos on Earth.
We cut to Doctor Mid-Nite who brings the gem to Starman, who is able to re-energize and join the fight. Dr. Fate then, with the help of Jade’s resistance, is able to separate Jade and Obsidian, and Jade gets called into the White Lantern Corps (see the Brightest Day mini-series). The Starheart has been released from Obsidian, and Jade is restored to life, but Obsidian still wants to merge with Jade, but Jade gives Kyle enough of a boost to get Obsidian out of there.
Batman then realizes that Jade is crucial to defeating the Starheart, and has her go up against him. And it is at this point that we see things have calmed down on Earth because the calvary of Mr. Terrific, Congo Bill, Power Girl and Supergirl have arrived to help even out the odds against Starheart’s constructs. Jade provides a distraction of sorts as Starman swoops in to blast Scott and Jade takes down the Starheart crystal at the heart of the giant structure. It works as Alan Scott is able to break free of the Starheart’s hold.
We end with the usual parting of ways, Mr. Terrific hands Dick Grayson a vote of confidence, and Jesse Quick is given an invitation to join the League and she accepts. We see Jade and Obsidian being tested and told they need to never go near each other because of what happened. And we end on Supergirl wondering why she, a Kryptonian who should be susceptible to magic, wasn’t affected by the Starheart the way Power Girl was. And we end on a reflection of Supergirl wearing a dark version of her costume.
Alright, very good end to the story, Dick Grayson’s first as fully fledged leader of the Justice League of America and while the focus wasn’t completely centered around him, it did have some good Batman moments.
The art was still a bit off, and I found it kind of jarring that in the JSA issue Dick was wearing a blue cowl and cape, but in the JLA issue it was a black/brownish cowl and cape. Editing folks, editing!
Overall the story turned out to be good, slow start and pacing issues aside; it really did come together nicely and was a nice showcase for what the Robinson penned JLA might be heading towards. Of course Jade, Obsidian and the Lanterns were a focal point of the story, but in the end it really felt like a JLA proper story as opposed to a JSA, featuring the JLA story.
Justice Society of America #42:
Justice League of America #48:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Brightest Day
Anyone else confused? Intrigued? Amused? Totally psyched?
Released August 16th on the DC blog “The Source” was this picture drawn by David Finch and revealed to us the “White Lantern Batman”.
So who is this Dark Knight that now shines in the Brightest Day? Is it Dick Grayson? After the events of Batman and Robin #13 are we to believe Dick is really dead? Could he have been reincarnated to accept the mantle of the White Lantern Batman? Is this Deadman’s doing?
Or is Batman and Robin #13 a clever ruse?
Could it be that Bruce Wayne has found an ingenious way back to the present that circumvents the machinations of Darkseid and prevents the holocaust that has been foretold?
Hopefully Grant Morrison and DC keep their cards close to the vest. There is nothing like spoilers to ruin a good storyline. Mr. Morrison has something cooked up for us in his own byzantine and convoluted way and we’ll have to wait till November to find out. Until then we’ll have to pick up the crumbs that are tossed our way in the pages of “The Return of Bruce Wayne” and “Batman and Robin”.
As for my answer to being amused, confused, psyched etc. I’m all of the above.
Posted by Dark Knight Dave
Two comic books for the price of one review this month as we continue the JLA/JSA The Dark Things crossover Brightest Day tie-in event.
We start in JSA #41 where we see that a Starheart controlled Obsidian and Dr. Fate have taken out the Shade and Faust, and capture Wildcat and Jay Garrick Flash. And we see the JSA All Stars try to hold their ground while all sorts of chaos is going on. The combined JLA and JSA confer on the ruins of the JLA Watchtower Dick goes into leader mode, splits the teams up in terms of the most susceptible to magic heroes to go back to earth to handle the chaos, while the least susceptible try to save Starman (his gem was ripped out of his chest at the end of the last JLA issue) and save Alan Scott and Obsidian from the control of the Starheart. We end with Dick pulling out a big gun to help out, that of Mister Miracle.
And that brings us to JLA #47. We begin with more exposition explaining scenes of fighting on earth and in the construct that the Starheart has created as Mister Miracle tries to get the team into the center of it to face Alan Scott. While this is going on, there is a bunch of inner dialogue, mostly from Donna Troy and Mister Terrific, praising Dick Grayson’s role as a leader. Gee, I hope the Bat-Team reads this book as I’ve got a bad feeling about Dick’s future after Bruce Wayne returns to the DCU proper. But that is a rant for another day. It should also be noted that Jade can tell Alan Scott is still very much alive through the chaos of the Starheart as the team is fighting various constructs of old Golden Age Green Lantern villains and characters.
We then see that Alan Scott, now calling himself Starheart, I guess having his Parallax moment here, he and Hal Jordan could probably now have a neat discussion about being taken over by the entities that granted them their powers, has Wildcat, Faust and Garrick as prisoners. We close the issue with Jade being confronted by Obsidian in an effort to lure her into the Starheart, when all of a sudden Obsidian is blasted by none other than Jade’s old lover Green Lantern Kyle Rayner. Kyle then bluntly tells everyone that the Guardians sent him to kill Alan Scott, and we’ll continue in JSA #42.
Things do pick up this month as this was a more enjoyable set of books as opposed to the drawn out nature of the last two months worth of issues of this storyline. We do get more of the Dick Grayson as a leader that drew me into covering this series to begin with, which is a good thing, even if it feels like it probably won’t last the year. I’ll say though that it feels like the JLA issue did move the story along better than the JSA one, I’m not entirely sure why though. I know Robinson is the current JLA writer, but why should that affect the JSA side of the storytelling? I’ve seen books tie into event minis written by the same writer that flowed better. Bagley’s art is still missing for me as well, but at this point it isn’t as distracting as it was when the book was creeping along at a very slow pace.
Justice Society of America #41:
Justice League of America #47:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Red Robin #15 is carrying on Fabian's first storyline of the series, with Tim Drake in crutches going to see the resurrected Captain Boomerang, who murdered Tim’s father in Identity Crisis. The real question I had when I saw this page was why was Tim Drake in crutches?
In this issue, Fabian takes care of the problem he set up in Gotham Gazette of Vicki Vale finding out the Bat-Families secret identities. You know the thing that Chris Yost could not be bothered to deal with in his “fantastic” run on the comic. Well, about a year and a half later, we finally see resolution to this issue, even if it has really achieved nothing, but I am glad that Fabian is tying up a loose thread rather than leaving it be.
The issue has Fabian creating another new rogue for Red Robin in the Scarab, sadly this rogue is useless and foiled by the end of the issue, so in other words, will probably never be heard from again. Shame, she looked like she could be a good character, but Fabian seems to have a bigger plan involving Anarky going on, who was the villain from the last few issues of his run on the old Robin title.
Anyway, back to the crutches and Vicki Vale thing. Tim decides to take care of Vicki Vale by staging a stunt where he will be crippled by Scarab during a press conference, with Vale in attendance. It’s a good idea, even if the playing out of the idea is a bit awkward, and would make the reader say, what a cop out. Tim uses a stunt double to trick Vale that he cannot be Red Robin if Tim has to walk around in crutches all the time. It’s stupid, but it’s better than bringing Vicki Vale into the Bat-Family and letting her know their secrets.
The art here as always with Marcus To is solid and dependable. There truly is nothing more I can say about it, good art, nothing more, and nothing less.
I said last month about how I don’t want Tim to regress back to who he was and to stay his own man as Red Robin. Sadly, Tim has to discuss his plan with Dick and how he almost needs Dick's approval. We also have a mildly interesting scene where Batgirl, which would have worked if Tim were still Robin, but Damian is Robin now. Maybe that’s just a nitpick though.
I do look the fact that Tim will be going up against Anarky in the next few issues. Looking back on the last few issues of Robin when Tim took on Anarky, Anarky beat Tim as Robin, however Red Robin beat Anarky, so it’s obvious Anarky would have a score to settle with Red Robin instead of just going after Damian.
All in all, this series is getting back on form thanks to Fabians writing. A couple of issues ago I would have said Tim was a character in the DCU that I really hated where he was going, with his emo attitude and self depreciating “I can’t do anything right” attitude. Fabian is attempting to fix that issue here; sadly he has a lot of stuff to fix before Red Robin can truly be seen as a solo hero in the DCU in my eyes. But if anyone can save Tim Drake, Fabian Nicenza and Marcus To can.
Red Robin #15:
Reviewed by Suavestar
After reading Detective Comics #867, my head was left unsettled and unbalanced. It was hard for me to tell if this was a good issue or not. On the one hand, you have a pretty good beginning, the ambiguity and anticipation really rings true, while on the other hand, after those first few pages, the story becomes bland and uninspired, only serving the fact that this issue only has a certain number of pages and the promise of said pages is completely forgotten as it force feeds us some sort of storyline. But, the book fails in it’s origin, the fact that David Hine isn’t at the top of his game and the fact that there was some sort inner turmoil within the DC office, is and was, the downfall of this book. But this makes me sad in a way. To see such a great title being dragged down by mediocre runs and inconsistency only damages the books reputation as well as the reputation of the Batman character with issue #867 being the prime example of this. Even though this issue has it’s shiny gems of real content, like Dick’s research into the “Joker Juice” or the beginning, it isn’t enough to redeem this issue, if it ever had a chance. But, in the end the story is told way to fast with a generically written cast of characters, horrible and unoriginal dialogue, and poor delivery.
This issue starts off with a man, while getting ready for work, receives a text message that says to meet at Blue Skies Mall at 1pm. The man kisses his wife goodbye, goes to work, and leaves work to get to the Mall in time. The man, now at the mall puts on a green wig, cracks a vial, and inhales its contents which changes his appearance. Now looking like the Joker the man reeks havoc upon the mall along with a whole gang of Joker look alikes. The police are called and arrive promptly on the scene. Using non-lethal force they make their way into the mall. Meanwhile Oracle pages Batman saying that there is a disturbance at the Mall and that he should have a look. Batman shrugs this off saying that he has better things to do and to call him when things get really serious. Back at the Mall one of the main Jokers get’s bored and produces a gun, shooting one of the cops who had responded to the emergency. The cop pulls out his gun and shoots the man that we first met in the beginning, killing him. Cutting to the morgue Batman and Gordon realize that the smile on the deceased man has faded, and that the real Joker likes to leave his victims laughing so it couldn’t have been The Joker who organized these attacks. At the bat cave, using a blood sample he took, Batman is able to discover that the Joker Juice is missing the Hydrogen Cyanide (the most lethal element of authentic Joker venom) although Strychnodide is present which produces the trademark smile, the Strychnodide combined with methamphetamine, MDMA, and nitrous oxide could increase energy levels while causing uncontrolled hilarity and muscular spasms. Gordon shows Batman a fake Joker who seems like he is the ring leader behind these Joker gangs, and while most fake Joker’s get their Juice from the internet this guy is sampling his own product. We are then taken into the past where the real Joker is chasing a young man on a rooftop, Batman intervenes and beats The Joker, but at the last minute The Joker releases his venom much to the young man’s expense, the young man who is apparently The Joker’s 13th victim that night, dies and get’s thrown into the back of a van with the other 12 victims. But he isn’t dead and we come to the realization that he is the man who organized the attacks. Back in the present day, the impostor Jokers, along with their leader, stage a mass demonstration in memory of the man who died in the beginning. To extinguish the demonstration the G.C.P.D are called in, while Gordon replaces everyone’s live rounds with rubber ones. As Batman and The Question look on, the demonstration turns violent, three cops are killed and the gang leader is nowhere to be found. Back at the bat cave Oracle shows Batman a Batman imposter who says that too many good people have died because of the imposter Jokers. That its time now for the citizen’s of Gotham to take up arms and reclaim the streets.
Truth be told, given the time, David Hine could have done great things with this issue, because of the fact that the elements of the story are there, but the problem is that it was planned out haphazardly and executed very poorly. Even with the time constraint couldn’t Hine possibly given us a better written story? He had a great thing going but something went wrong between the initial conception and the day it hit the shelves. Sure the drama at DC did contribute to the failure and yes, Hine was rushed, these are provable facts that are pretty obvious. But that doesn’t mask the fact that this issue was just horribly written. Hine’s lack of creativity and originality becomes very apparent as he falls and stumbles his way through page after page of banality. The characters within the pages are monotone with no real emotion or value and everything that was achieved with Dick as Batman is completely forgotten here. At times it was hard to form a distinction between Dick and Bruce, while the actions and dialogue of the other characters are entirely forgettable. It’s hard to feel like this story means anything to anyone. The lack of content is displayed on a massive scale, we forget all that has happened to the characters and all that will happen to them which only raises a lot of frustrating questions like: Is this story really pushing the Batman character forward in one direction or another? Or is this simply filler put on display to achieve something that it not fully realized? Not pushing the Batman character forward and force feeding us crap causes the content to lose all of it’s credibility, where it’s initial greatness is forgotten and causes the aforementioned content to revel in it stupor.
The art in this issue cannot be fully explained honestly if I were to praise it. The art is just plain horrible. With it’s cartoon look and overdone colors, it is what I imagine the inside of a septic tank would look like. The colors are just a sludge of nothingness, with no signs of boldness or cleanliness to be found. Scott McDaniel’s pencils lack a seriousness and edge to it, and like the writing it is the most bland and tasteless pencils I have seen in quite sometime.
Overall this isn’t a very good issue, it’s failure to deliver distinctiveness, originality, and creativity are only a couple of the many major drawbacks. It was too rushed, and offers no real content or push and rests in its own muck and bad taste. This issue was just horrible with very little in the way of redeeming qualities, as Hine has completely lost control of his talent causing us, the reader, to only hope that he will get his head together and give us a great book with the next issue.
Detective Comics #867:
Reviewed by Dane
Batman: Under the Red Hood is the next film in the series of DC animated films released by Warner Bros. It marks the first time Batman has a solo film that isn't related to another film project. I don't think fans will be disappointed by this film at all. I was pleasantly surprised by the film as I immediately try not to have high expectations for them.
When Batman: Under the Red Hood was first announced, I had to instantly go back and read the Batman: Under the Hood storyline. I wanted to see if making this a film was feasible. There are some obvious changes that were made to the film, but that is because it is a film. I understand that films can not be one hundred percent true to the original source material. The thing I was most interested in was whether or not they would mention Superboy Prime's punch into the wall of time. They did change that around, but I thought it worked out just fine. If they changed something like the Joker using a gun instead of a crowbar and then an explosion, I would have been upset.
The film does a nice job at mixing the past and present together to make sense. It helps a lot for fans of Batman who do not read the comics as well as first time viewers. This marks the first time Jason Todd has appeared in DC animation and they needed to make sure they did a good job at introducing the character to not only inform you of who he is, but also why he is important to the Batman Universe.
As far as the voice cast, another superb job. Casting of the various characters was perfect. Bruce Greenwood took a unique direction with his Batman voice that made you understand the pain that he has felt after loosing his partner. Although it worked for this film, I would hope that when Greenwood is voicing Batman in the upcoming Young Justice series, he has more than sadness to express. John DiMaggio as the Joker was a unique take that I just might have to say, could be the new definitive Joker voice. It is a mix of sadistic, crazy, and funny, and it works perfectly. Jensen Ackles as Red Hood did an amazing job as well by really making you understand where the character is coming from. The supporting cast of Wade Williams as the Black Mask and Neil Patrick Harris as Nightwing also felt right.
As far as the special features go, I am reviewing the blu-ray version of the film which has more special features than the other versions released. The digital copy of the film is always a nice addition. One of the documentaries is about Jason Todd's death and the fans' involvement. It was good, but it was off-setting when I kept seeing images of Tim Drake and Dick Grayson shown when Todd was the only one being talked about. We also get a first look at Superman/Batman: Apocalypse. Based on the animation alone, this looks much more promising than Public Enemies. The DC Showcase was for Jonah Hex this time. I felt as if they chose Hex because of the release of the live-action film that didn't fare so well at the box office. It was good, but not memorable. The final documentary talked about the history of Dick Grayson as Robin. This was the best special feature ever released on these films.
Overall, I think Batman: Under the Red Hood was a fantastic film that did take some liberties in certain areas of the film, but it still worked and made the film entertaining. I would rate this at the top of the DC animated films as of right now. I can't help but to start to imagine, what they are going to do with Batman: Year One next year.
Batman: Under the Red Hood:
Reviewed by Dustin
As many followers of this site and the podcasts that come with it know, there is a movement right now spearheaded by the host of Batgirl to Oracle: A Barbara Gordon Podcast to get Batgirl: Year One back on the slate for production by DC Universe Animation. It is a worthy cause, but after watching Batman: Under The Red Hood, and considering most of DCU’s “comics-to-screen” adaptations so far, it kind of makes me think it’s a blessing in disguise that the Batgirl: Year One mini was taken off the table.
Now, if this was an original story, I’d say “okay, its decent enough” and I know Hollywood has a tendency to place fast and loose with adapting source material (just ask Stephen King about The Shinning, and I kid you not, before Coppola took the reigns The Godfather would have been set in Kansas City and the Corleones would have been a bunch of hippies), but this is a case where the actual story could be told on screen and didn’t need to be all convoluted to fit a certain director’s vision. It’s a comic book cartoon, how hard is it to translate from the printed page to the animated screen, I mean that is exactly what they did in the 1960s with stuff like the Marvel cartoons.
Alright, to start with, what the heck is so wrong in keeping with the original A Death In The Family source material? Jason Todd was on the quest to find his mother, finds her in Ethiopia who got into bed with The Joker who beats Tood to near death in a warehouse, ties up the mother and leaves them both to die in an explosion. Why the heck is it some random plot by Ra's al Ghul with the Joker working for him in Slovakia? Family themes were all over that story, there is no need to completely change it for whatever reason they want to give.
In fact, why the heck is Ra’s even in this to begin with? He is supposed to be dead when Under The Hood was coming out? Do we really need him to provide exposition to Batman about how Jason was resurrected? I hate to borrow a phrase with bad connotations among comic book fandom, but its comic books, we don’t have to explain it! Or let me put it in the words of Grant Morrison in a recent Comic Con panel, “it works cause ITS FICTION!” All they had to do was just have Jason causally refer to remembering being in some kind of Lazarus Pit or whatever, heck Talia al Ghul would have fit nicely into this story, why did they use her and not Ra’s?
No mention at all about Bruce’s state of mind at the time of Under The Hood, going through the crap of Identity Crisis and War Games and pretty much isolating himself, another great theme of the story that is completely done with. I mean why is Nightwing there but not Tim Drake Robin? A throwaway line goes a long way in filling gaps that I understand can’t be filmed in a tightly formatted story.
Speaking of Tim Drake, aesthetically speaking why the heck were the teen Todd flashbacks and the memorial of the Tim Drake costume? Todd was still rocking the vintage Golden and Silver Age version of the Robin costume at the time of his death. Sure it wasn’t Dick Grayson, but tell me that emotional punch of the famous image of Batman cradling Todd doesn’t get you more because it’s a classic Robin outfit on the boy.
I did like seeing Nightwing’s inclusion, but, wasn’t he nursing a bad leg at the time? They kind of allude to this in the film, but in the books he is drawn with a brace on his leg, but whatever. The more important issue I’m having with Dick Grayson is why is some two-bit thug fully aware that Nightwing is in fact Batman’s old partner Robin? I can buy The Joker having an inkling that the first Robin and this Nightwing guy are one and the same, but some thug? Yeah it is that throwaway line of exposition I was saying should be there, but coming from the wrong person and the wrong way. So everyone is aware of the history of the Bat-Family is basically what this movie is telling us, never mind the fact that Batman himself is supposed to be an urban legend.
Now I did like the turf war going on with Black Mask being put against Red Hood with Batman going after Red Hood, but something about Wade Williams’ performance wasn’t doing it for me. Reading the comics I kind of imagined Roman Sionis a bit like Michael Corleone, maybe Tony Soprano as well. Calm on the surface, but raging when called upon to do so. I watched this movie, and I’m thinking of screwball comedy versions of mafia gang leaders; something to snicker at and not to be feared of. The voice just did not sync up to what I have in mind when it comes to Black Mask at all, and that took me out of his scenes completely.
This really is indicative of the problem with the comics-to-screen adaptations. Too much time is spent cutting and reshaping the story to fit the limits of the 75 minute time frame, they really are better off making completely original stories and working within their continuities like Green Lantern: First Flight and Wonder Woman, or give the team the freedom to delve into the story by expanding the running time. Otherwise they are going to be stuck churning out stuff that bears some resemblance to the source material but in the end seems very half baked because of it.
Batman: Under the Red Hood:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
When Batman: Under The Red Hood was announced as the latest animated feature that DC was coming out with, I have to confess that I wasn’t very excited about the announcement, and in the following weeks I couldn’t understand why people were talking about it so much. Whether it was on this website, other Batman websites, or general comic book websites, I just didn’t understand why people were so excited about a glorified cartoon. At the time, I thought that there was no way that this would be good for the Batman Universe, there was no way that this animated movie could be meaningful because of the fact that (a) there was no way the creators behind the feature could possibly fit the entire Jason Todd story into the plot, (b) if they did (I felt at the time) it would make the film drag on and on, that’s only to say IF they could fit it into 75 minutes worth of animation, and (c) how respectful would it be to the source material and the fans in general? The whole animated feature thing (with a few exceptions) fails to meet a certain mark that I personally set in my mind, as often these films feel thin and uninspired, falling into a meaningless category that I, for the most part, ignore and regard as nothing but a one trick pony. They lack a certain element that makes them distinct and memorable in the sense that I feel that I can’t believe in what is happening on the screen. I complained and complained mostly to my friends that this was just going to be another piece of trash stuck on the bottom of a garbage can, that we were being set up for a big disappointment that we were suckered into buying. And let me just state now that I was devastatingly wrong, little did I know all I needed to do was shut my mouth.
Under The Red hood could have been horrible, shuffling through the mud to progress a story to it’s horrible end, or it could have played the “I’m dead, but now I’m alive to enact my revenge” card. Both of which are just disgusting. Thankfully though, everyone that participated in this little gem has taken the high road and actively took the material to heart to present a coherent, meaningful, respectful, and memorable piece of a collective movie experience. Not only did it meet and exceed my expectation, it single-handedly made me believe the animated feature is a viable medium to which you can tell a story. This movie peeled off my immediate misconceptions of how this specific subject matter could and would be handled. Whether it was the strong dialogue or the majestic flow of the story, the movie is woven with the most delicate and sweeping moments of everything that you hold dear, and all the misconceptions I’ve previously mentioned is quickly forgotten as you are engrossed in the story that is told, and the action sequences that are perfectly choreographed with such grandeur that your mouth will be hanging open throughout the whole movie. The movie succeeds because of the fact that it isn’t trying to beat you over the head with the major plot points and twists it takes into consideration the fact that we’ve all seen this before, but that not to say the movie is bland and unconvincing, the twists and major plot points of the story still hit as hard in this movie as the first time you read the source material.
Although, plot points were cut out and some were completely re-written the film stays true to the original vision of the writers and artists that created it. The art in the film is nothing short of impressive, Bruce blends into the background while striking a distinct presence in a given scene while the spikes of color come as a surprise, the cape and cowl are pure black, and while the cape doesn‘t have the romanticism it has in the comics, the overall bat suit is perfectly drawn, it breathes fear and respect whenever it is shown. The Joker is also drawn well, this Joker is physically scarier and a lot more sinister than your average Joke. They don’t over do it, but don’t undercut him either. With the attention to detail, the Joker’s back room plastic surgery, mangled, disfigured face folds in and out as he talks and laughs showing the same old smile we are all familiar with while evoking a certain sense of insanity and madness. As for Jason Todd, I don’t think the artists in the film really brought anything new to the Red Hood persona, besides the striking red, I do think they did Jason as Robin really good, you can almost feel Jason trying to make his way out of the warehouse before the bomb explodes, you feel his pain and desperation, which helps you emotionally connect with him, and to help you understand why he’s so mad at Batman and why he wants to beat the Joker with a crowbar. The art overall is a true winner, it is boundless and flawless, as it flashes, turns grim and has that down to earth realism that bounces effortlessly between the dialogue which works to the fullest of it’s ability to deliver a complex and subtle stream of words, that is not too preachy or overly wrought. You can tell Judd Winick didn’t overdo the dialogue, the way Dick and Bruce interact and react to each other, the innocence of Jason Todd and his interaction with Bruce, are just two examples from a plethora of well written and smart script. Winick also succeeds with the relationship in the film, the way Dick and Bruce fight and look out for one another, the way they seamlessly work together each of them knowing where the other is, what their gonna do, and if they need help. Or the Bruce and Jason relationship that starts out innocent enough with Jason in the full spring of youth, joking around with Bruce and, like Dick, working with him, to a troubled teenager who is over aggressive, brash, and is upset at everything, to a vengeful, spiteful dark shade of what he used to be when he was a boy. They all work together like they should and like they do in the comic books.
The dialogue in the film is hit and miss for me. Bruce Greenwood feels misplaced to me, like he doesn’t truly get the overtone of Batman his voice just doesn’t have that extra push into darkness and fear that I have come to expect, it almost feels like he half performed it. While Greenwood’s Batman growl/voice isn’t very good, he does a very good Bruce Wayne capturing that honest, good-hearted Fatherly figure, you can really feel the remorse and pain in Bruce’s voice and Greenwood knocks it out of the park, as a whole though I think he did a very good job portraying the voice of the Dark Knight, although stiff at times, Greenwood becomes both Batman and Bruce Wayne. John DiMaggio as The Joker struck me as odd. I didn’t know he had such a thick talking voice, it sounds like he drank some bourbon and ate gravel after screaming all night. While it is a great voice I don’t think it matched at all, and maybe I’m used to Mark Hamil’s high pitched squeal, but The Joker in the movie doesn’t match the voice and while the look of The Joker has been attuned somewhat to DiMaggio’s voice, his voice fails to match the physical Joker, even though he has a great voice. But where DiMaggio succeeds is with the laugh. The Joker’s laugh is haunting, as it should be, it sends chills down your spine and gives you goosebumps, it sounds as if he is laughing so hard his voice is breaking and that he can’t laugh any hard and as soon as you think it’s going to break it tops itself in a symphony insanity and madness. Neil Patrick Harris as Dick Grayson/Nightwing was also a weird casting choice, honestly I couldn’t see Doogie Howser voicing both sides of Dick Grayson and while he can sound forced and cheesy at times he does a fairly good job at playing Dick. And finally, Jensen Ackles as Jason. While nothing really stuck out to me he doesn’t fail at bringing the true believable qualities that Jason has or doesn’t have to the screen, you can hear the anger in his voice and you buy into it which makes Jason an even more tragic character. Overall though, while it isn’t the easiest thing to do (voice Batman characters), I have a newly found respect for all these actors and their work in this film which I must wholly applaud.
All in all, the film doesn’t fail to hit it’s mark, in fact, it not only hit its mark, it far surpasses it. To me, the greatest triumph of this movie is how the creators, actors, and whoever else balanced the emotions and the emotional struggle the characters feel and go through, it brings to life a deep sadness that lives within all of us that have read the source material and have suppressed, you just can’t get this kind of thing with a comic. At the end of the film I was heartbroken, not only because of Jason’s tragic life but because it brought back the emotion I felt when I first saw Jason being murdered. It brought it out of my subconscious and brought it to the light where I was forced to face it. And the fact that this movie was done so well lends to the overall success of this film. Truly a great watch for any Bat-fan.
Batman: Under the Red Hood:
Reviewed by Dane
I think we can all agree with a singular statement: Batman: Streets of Gotham is, at best a sub-par, if not brief and forgettable chronicle of Batman’s trials and tribulations. Nothing within the past 4 or 5 issues has really stuck out in the sense that you want to whip it out and read it again. Sure, if we’re really pulling at strings, the whole Carpenter/Director thing was alright, and the introduction of Colin and his conversations with Damian were ok. I guess what I’m really trying to say here is that the book on one hand is struggling for content all the while trying to make a statement for itself, but it cannot mask the fact that the book is just weak. Time and time again the book fails to be memorable. It feels like the stories that are contained within the pages are just throwaways that weren’t good enough for Detective Comics or Batman. If I could say that it was inconsistent it wouldn’t be inconsistent in the way that those books are, it would be inconsistent in the sense that DC is pulling these stories from the trash, dusting them off, and throwing it at a wall to see if possibly something would stick. And so it goes, and although I’m sure I could come up with another handful of bashing remarks for the series as a whole, let’s take a look at this particular issue for a little bit.
The issue begins with Anthony Marchetti being released from jail after spending 37 years in Blackgate Prison. While riding in a car that was sent to pick him up, he looks forward to taking a “private” shower before going out to his favorite restaurant to eat a certain meal that he has been craving for those 37 years. He asks about the state of the crime world nowadays and states that he intends to put a bullet in Bruce Wayne’s head. We then cut to Hush killing Manhunter, obviously it’s Hush practicing his lethal execution of the bat-family again. When he finishes his practice, he steps out of the warehouse and into the rain where he takes off his Hush mask and shows his reconstructed face, of course, mirrored to look like Bruce’s face. In the next scene we see Thomas Elliot getting ready to go to Arkham Asylum to use his influence as Bruce Wayne to influence the release of the villainous Jane Doe so that she can help him with an unknown plan. Elliot’s car ride to Arkham is interspersed with Thomas Elliot finding some old journals that date back to before he was born. Within these pages we learn that Marla Elliot never liked Martha Wayne, after Martha’s father lost their family fortune to a bad business investment. While the Elliot’s are waiting on Thomas Wayne to show up for a business meeting, Martha tries to swindle her way into having Roger Elliot invest in a free clinic for orphans and runaways. Roger Elliot brushes her ideas off, saying that he doesn’t need a free clinic to gain good press. He pays people in public relations to do that for him. He then tells her that he could use the tax write off and tells her to call him next month. Then we see Thomas Wayne drunk, surrounded by women as he makes his way to the Elliot table. Thomas stumbles to the table and nearly falls on Martha, causing her to storm off. Thomas tries to apologize, but Martha says “It doesn’t matter, I doubt we’ll meet again.”
As you may have noticed, Batman isn’t in this issue at all. There is no (to say the very least) flashback to Bruce under the cape and cowl, nor a single panel of Dick as Batman. The only image of Batman is among the dead Bat-family and maybe this was supposed to be an artistic statement or a sign of things to come, but it is too subtle and doesn’t get it’s point across. If that was it’s intention, (and yes I am drawing at strings here) it is not effective at all. While there are new elements thrown into the Hush story it isn’t enough to strive towards anything. Sure, the Jane Doe and Martha Wayne plot points are supposed to come as shocking twists, it doesn’t deliver it’s intended purpose. And although you can state your case in saying that this is the prelude to the actual story-arc, it isn’t a well done prelude. Although all that I have said has a negative connotation to the issue, it was hard for me because I like Paul Dini’s work. The truth of these facts put up against my personal praise for Dini’s work created a standstill in this review with the question being how could I love his work but dislike Streets of Gotham? As I struggled over this I suddenly realized that while I like his writing, his comic book writing isn’t very good. Sure, his work on Batman: The Animated Series was good, but I was in love with that piece of work. I wasn’t a Paul Dini fan, I was a Batman: The Animated Series fan. There is a distinction between the two. Yes of course I can praise his work on The Animated Series , but can I truly praise all of his work, in particular his comic work? No, because Streets of Gotham is bland and uninspiring, and every other reason I have already stated. Does that make me a Paul Dini fan? No, because I only like this one thing that he did, that one time. But of course that isn’t to say he’s over the hill and shouldn’t write anymore, sometimes his comic writing does work and he deserves all that praise that he receives, but it just doesn’t work for me. I feel like he just brushes this series aside to make room for the other things he does, not putting the quality and time into the book, but most of all I feel that he doesn’t really care how the story comes out and how it’s presented. And it’s starting to rub off on me, as I feel myself not caring, as this title moves closer and closer to being dropped from my pull list.
As for the positive side of things, I have to commend the artwork of Dustin Nguyen, he is consistently at the top of his game, showing us his fearlessness and downright artistic master craftsmanship that is both shining and honest especially in it‘s darkest moments. His pencils are gentle and not too line heavy that evokes a sense of immediacy, detail, and sharpness that not only tells a story but moves it with such grace and minimalism, it’s hard to believe that there is a story behind the majestic artwork. The other thing I can commend in this issue is John Kalisz’s colors, while I didn’t notice it at first, after my second read through the subtle colors struck me as something fresh and brand new, it has all the right tinges of color in all the right places while not overdoing, and masking Nguyen’s pencils. Overall the artwork is the only source of worthwhile redemption in this issue.
While it is unclear on whether or not this issue delivers anything immediately worthwhile, what is clear is the fact that it was Dini’s failure to give us anything of substance that really brought this issue down.
Batman: Streets of Gotham #14:
Reviewed by Dane
Retcon or Rebirth?
In my last profile I concentrated on the reigning Batman, Dick Grayson. Dick is seemingly at his high water mark as he has successfully solved such mysteries as the identity of the Black Mask and the enigmatic Oberon Sexton. He did so in the best tradition of the master detective, Bruce Wayne.
So what of Bruce Wayne?
As many of comic book fans know, Bruce is now tumbling through time headlong towards what might be an apocalyptic end. It is Grant Morrison that has been given the keys to this storyline that is driving us towards the return of the Bruce Wayne Batman. As with anything that Morrison writes, it is complicated, mysterious and a bit byzantine in nature.
If anything, Morrison does challenge the intellect. Sometimes he succeeds as in the current “Batman and Robin” books and sometimes he leaves us with a version of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” as in Batman #700. (Yes, I didn’t think it was all that great.)
So what is Morrison doing with Bruce Wayne now? Are we witnessing a whole new formulation to the Wayne Batman mythos?
We are all familiar with the traditional birth of the Batman. Wayne’s parents were brutally murdered in front of young Bruce’s eyes and he dedicated the rest of his life to fighting crime to avenge his parents. His inspiration was a bat that flew into his study.
Ah, but now there is more. After being sent back through time by Darkseid not only is Bruce Wayne coming into close contact with his own ancestors and the earliest environs of Gotham City, he is being totally immersed in a new Bat mythology. This immersion includes the formation of a clan of “Bat-people”, Wayne being dubbed the “Man of Bats” and an early religious like totem the “Bat Beast”.
As Morrison would have it, a whole new reality is being formed surrounding the introduction of Wayne into the past. This also includes a curse on the Wayne family and by the third “Return” issue another religious totem worshiped by the Bat People in the form of the cape and cowl that Bruce himself brought back.
The Batman mythos is no longer inspired by the surprise visit of a solitary bat it now includes a whole new storyline based on Bruce Wayne himself!
So I ask you, ret-con or rebirth? Can we accept a mythos where Bruce Wayne is actually the inspiration for Batman? There are three more issues to go in the series. Morrison may have built himself an out as hinted in the second “Return” issue where Wayne speaks to Dr. Hunter and says, “So you’ll just have to trust me.”
I guess we’ll have to trust Morrison also.
Posted by Dark Knight Dave
Volume two of the Under The Hood trade picks up with Batman #645, and we are treated to a retelling of Jason Todd’s Post-Crisis origin. It should be noted that in Todd’s brief Pre-Crisis form (made his debut early in 1983) his origin is nearly identical to Dick Grayson’s, right down being orphaned and being taking under Bruce Wayne’s wing! This retelling, as well as an incident with Captain Boomerang, is interwoven in-between Bruce and Alfred trying to determine what exactly happened, which includes finding out that Todd’s casket is empty. In a way this was done to retcon Todd’s bratty behavior as being the result of a “mean streak” and thereby explaining why Todd would be driven to where he is as The Red Hood
In order to combat The Red Hood, The Black Mask enlists the aid of Deathstroke and his Secret Society of Super Villains. Two of them, Captain Nazi and the Hyena are shown, a third, Count Vertigo surprisingly shows up in midst of the fight with Red Hood and Batman. While Batman causes Hyena to go after Count Vertigo, Red Hood kills Captain Nazi, an act that Batman berates Red Hood about.
Batman #648 starts out with Jason sending a message to Wayne Manor, one that causes Alfred to deduce that Todd somehow has The Joker held captive. While this is going on Todd as the Red Hood is busy taking on The Black Mask himself, but it turns out to be a ruse as it isn’t Todd under the mask at all! We then see Todd with a tied up Joker. Batman arrived in time to see the faux Hood revealed and offers proof to Black Mask that it isn’t the real Red Hood, after realizing where Todd is, Batman leaves to confront him.
Underscoring the climatic showdown with Batman, Todd (no Red Hood mask for the rest of the story) and Joker is the on-panel destruction by Chemo of Bludhaven, also seen in Infinite Crisis #4.
The battle that rages throughout #650 is essentially a chance to give contrasts to what Batman does, his moral code, and what Todd is doing, as well as Todd quipping about Bruce’s tactical style of fighting. In the end Bruce is able to subdue Todd before Todd can blow Joker’s head off, Joker then shoots an explosive, and we are left with Batman looking through the debris, and the fate of both Todd and Joker are unknown (as well as Nightwing’s which is discussed by both Bruce and Jason as they watch Chemo go off).
The trade wraps up with what surely should be the start of movie, a chronological account of what exactly happened to bring Jason Todd back among the living.
Batman Annual # 25, written by the same scribe, Judd Winick, as is the rest of the story, and illustrated by Shane Davis who also did #646, Doug Mahnke had done the chores on #635-639, 641, 645 (it should be noted that Tim Drake appears on the cover of #645, but only appears in a one panel group shot in issue #635 in the entire trade), 647-649, Paul Lee for # 640 and Eric Battle did #650. The story goes through Todd’s death, and the whole Superboy time wall punches, and the idea that six months after being buried, Todd was reanimated, but with severe brain damage and couldn’t say who he was. A year later Todd’s fight-or-flight instincts took over and he made an escape from the hospital that he was in and took to the streets. He was then found by Talia al Ghul, daughter of Ra’s, and both she and her father tried to nurse and train the boy (they knew exactly who he was) to health in the hopes that he’d be their protege. Exactly how this fits in with Talia’s own son Damian whom be showing up in Grant Morrison’s run soon after this was published was never mentioned.
Ra’s becomes disappointed after a year that Todd is still very much in a vegetative state and decides to cut the whole project. Talia dumps Todd into a Lazarus pit behind Ra’s back and telling the boy to run and sets things in motion for Todd’s revengeful ways against Bruce for not killing the Joker for his murder. It is shown that Todd contacts Tommy Elliot, Hush, and becomes part of the mind games war Hush is waging with Bruce. And we see that it was in fact Jason at first in the graveyard battle in Hush, only switching himself out with Clayface after seeing Bruce not having much of a reaction to a returned Jason Todd, and it ends with Todd resolved to the fact that he must confront Batman and The Joker.
Well, this is certainly an entertaining story and worthy of being shown in a movie format. Issues with Winick’s story telling abilities and what has happened with the Jason Todd character in the ensuing years aside, this was a good tale, perhaps as good as any to show why Bruce Wayne’s moral code exists and how one can be lost to the darkness of one’s goals for revenge via going well over moral lines.
That being said, the story does cause one to see the shame of what was done with the Jason Todd character since. If this had been a one-off or Batman was able to get through to Jason and get him back on the straight and narrow path, maybe things would be different for the character. In fact there was an attempt to push Todd to being less Punisher like, but Todd went right back to the “only way to fight crime is to kill criminals” approach in both Battle For The Cowl and Batman & Robin and seemingly got his butt handed to him by Dick Grayson both times leads that approach to be pretty much a one-trick-pony status.
But enough talk about how stale and broken the character has become, the movie should stand as a nice standalone piece, as most of the DC Universe animated films have, though the 75 minute running time does concern me a bit. While a good story can take place with cutting out most of the 8 issue arc with mostly throw away pieces of dialogue and whatnot, it was disconcerting with what they did with Superman/Batman: Public Enemies which both cut entire storylines but changed around elements of the story to better fit a video version narrative. Especially considering it looks like they are going to include stuff from the Annual, when quite frankly just the stuff with Batman, Red Hood, Black Mask and Joker should make a good tight movie, with allusions to other things that happen during the storyline through dialogue and whatnot.
In any event, both of the trades are nice and quick reads and a good standalone story, if you don’t think about what has gone on since!
Batman: Under the Hood-Volume 2:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Red Robin #14 is the second part of Fabian’s “Hit list” storyline, and also, his return to Tim Drake's life.
Last month I wrote about how it was great to see Fabian back on the book, and I was looking forward to more. It was only later that I started to think that something wasn’t sitting right with me. After I had sent Dustin the review I had realized what it was, Tim was in the exact same position he was before Bruce left. Tim was not actually growing up. He was still a teenager and I had felt like I had read the stories of Tim going through all of this already, and frankly I didn’t want to read them again. There’s a new Robin in town, and it ain’t Tim.
#14 starts off with someone who I thought was Tim looking at his hit list, but after reading the dialogue, I figured out it was Damian. It was here I noticed that Marcus To is really only doing one face for Tim, Dick and Damian to share.
Fabian is writing this issue to give the reader exactly what he thinks they want, which is Red Robin VS Robin. But at the same time, Fabian gives some page time to advance other threads. Instead of just an entire issue of Damian trying to beat the daylight out of Tim, we have the advancement of Red Robins hit list, Tim dealing with being the new boss at Wayne Enterprises and of course, the revelation of who Tim has on his hit list, which is a who’s who of the DC Universe, heroes and villains. We also see a heart to heart on Tim’s tactics between Tim and Dick Grayson.
The issue ends with a mysterious person handing Black Manta’s not quite so bad-ass twin a briefcase full of money, and asking him to kill Tim Wayne.
So, that was issue #14, and I may have skimmed over things, but to be honest, this issue is full of threads that Fabian is branching out, that actually taking the time to explain them all and what they could involve what take an extra page of word to type. For the most part, I enjoyed the threads, and the knowledge that these are things that although are small now, will be branching out to bigger things in the near future. I do hope that Tim distances himself from the Bat-Family sooner rather than later, as two issues into Nicieza’s run, and I am already bored of the constant interactions between Dick and Tim. If this book were Batman and Red Robin, I wouldn’t mind. But this is Red Robin’s book and he needs to be given the stage to shine on his own.
The art by Marcus To for the most part, is fantastic. He is really hitting his stride now. He has a distinct style, and with the exception of male faces, he can draw a damn fine page. The fight scene between Tim and Damian in this issue was well choreographed, and I can see To and inker Ray McCarthy getting better on the book from here.
So, this is Red Robin #14. A good solid issue, with only a few nitpicks. However in this day and age, where there are at least 7 Bat-books out a month, and prices only going up, Red Robin really needs to start showing why it is a must own book.
Red Robin #14:
Reviewed by Suavestar
Dick Grayson, leader of The Justice League of America’s adventures continue with issue # 46 and part 2 of the epic summer crossover with the JSA Brightest Day banner event. Well, not much to say about this issue Batman related wise, as really this is pretty much a filler issue essentially waiting for the current JSA story to wrap up and join this one with July’s issue # 41.
Dick and the flying Batmobile do get a nice moment at the beginning of the issue as Dick officially recruits Supergirl to the team, after Supergirl had been going wonkers thanks to the Starheart in the previous issue. But again this issue is a complete wheel spinning issue with everyone trying to figure out what to do about the Starheart that carried Jade back to Earth from Oa and to rescue Green Lantern Alan Scott and Obsidian from its clutches.
There still is something off about Mark Bagley’s art, especially with Dick Grayson’s costume and it is just as bad as it was when Bagley was on the Batman title last year. It is a bit jarring to see such a difference in the Dick Grayson Batman, in these pages and the Dick Grayson Batman in Batman, Detective, Batman & Robin and any other issue Grayson is appearing in. For example, he puts in a cameo in this month’s issue of Justice League: Generation Lost and looks how he is supposed to look; but Bagley seems to be going for some sort of combination of Bob Kane and David Mazzucchelli (Year One’s artist). That would be fine if that was the look everyone else drawing Dick’s second run as Batman did, but it’s not; and the brownish hue to the costume isn’t helping the matter.
In any event, the July JLA and JSA books should pick up the pace of this story, especially since it ends with Starman’s power source literally ripped out of his chest by Alan Scott. There is also still the notion about the “Magnificent Seven” (Superman, Bruce Wayne, Wonder Woman, Barry Allen, Hal Jordan (sorry Wally & Kyle fans, but DC considers them to be the iconic versions of Flash and GL), Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter) returning to the title. When exactly, and how is starting to be a good question as this book seems to have been a bit of a disjointed mess for quite some time.
Justice League of America #46:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Character Profiles Part One
The State of the Dick Grayson Batman
In this year of the Batmen, we are being treated to many different types of Batman characters portrayed by different personalities assuming different secret identities.
My attempt here is to study the dynamic behind all these portrayals and what its like to have so many Batmen being represented. In additional to our traditional characters let’s not forget that coming soon we also have a “First Wave” Batman, a Batman “Odyssey”, the Terry McGinnis Batman and the “Earth One” Batman.
But first and foremost amongst these is Dick Grayson, the reigning Batman, and secondly and certainly no less important is the once and future Batman, Bruce Wayne.
Let’s start with Dick Grayson. Has anyone else noticed that his star is on the rise? The Dick Grayson Batman seems to be on top of world and his success at being Batman is seemingly at its apex. For example let’s look at the events culminating in Batman issue #697. After suffering through the effects of Black Mask’s toxin and enduring the machinations of the Penguin and the Mad Hatter, Dick assumes the mantle of the world’s foremost detective. He even goes as far as to take a bullet to provide himself with the most essential clue to his case. Impressive.
In doing this, he then manages to assemble a team to rival no other in the DC universe and lead them to victory over the Black Mask. This team? None other than Red Robin, Robin, Man Bat, Huntress, Catwoman, Manhunter, and Batgirl amongst others. Quite a group of Gotham’s greatest luminaries and testimony to Dick’s leadership skills. And like a true leader Dick goes the final mile alone. Despite the after affects of the toxin Grayson penetrates Black Mask’s lair defeating him in an epic struggle and revealing to the world the identity of Dr. Jeremiah Arkham. It is Dick’s finest hour as Batman and is summed up by the closing soliloquy as provided by Grayson himself.
“I am not Bruce Wayne. But when lives are lost and the entire city was at stake, I did what I had to do. I did what Batman had to do. I acted as the Dark Knight. To the best of my abilities—I became him. And I succeeded not as Dick Grayson. And not as Bruce Wayne. But as Batman.”
If that doesn’t mark the moment as Dick Grayson, “Batman triumphant” I don’t know what does.
If you want more testimonials as how this new Batman is regarded how about this from Tim Drake in Red Robin issue #13. As Dick leads Damian and Tim off a rooftop he tells them, “Guys, let’s try to have some fun.” How does Red Robin reply?
“Those words coming out of Batman’s mouth. It feels good. More than that, it feels right.” “Dick has done exactly what I expected he would—put on Batman’s cowl without getting lost in the shadows.”
This is from the heir apparent to Wayne industries and the man who took on Ra’s al Ghul in Red Robin #12. And who, by the way, had to be rescued by the Grayson Batman as he was thrown out a skyscraper window by Ra’s. The Dick Grayson Batman knew where to be.
Our last testimonial comes from the hardest nut to crack of them all Damian Wayne. In Batman & Robin #10 a convalescing Damian is being “nursed” back to health by his mother, Talia. As Talia belittles Dick she says the former Boy Wonder is, “barely fit to wear his mentor’s mantle” to which Damian spits back, “Your wrong! Dick Grayson is…” and he is cut off by Talia.
High praise from the world’s most petulant 10 year old super hero. A rare glimpse to how he really feels about Dick Grayson.
So there you have it my friends, the Dick Grayson Batman a worthy successor to the Wayne Batman. And I didn’t even touch on his leadership role in the JLA where Earth’s mightiest heroes defer to this leadership. And what of Bruce Wayne? Well, as he ultimately crawls his way back through time he will be the next subject of “The Year of the Batman” character profile.
Posted by Dark Knight Dave
For a man who needs no introduction in our little world, we would expect nothing but the best in-between our old favorite comic book’s pages or at least a hint of the quality this man has bequeathed upon the Batman franchise consistently for so long. The man I’m talking about is of course Dennis O’Neil. O’Neil’s return to Detective Comics for a stand alone issue does not disappoint whatsoever. While I was initially hesitant on the fact that he wasn’t writing Bruce Wayne’s Batman and the fact that I thought he would mix up Dick with Bruce, all of those thoughts were immediately erased upon learning that Dick was narrating his own personal story starting from an incident that happened back in his old Robin days. To say that Dennis O’Neil hit the nail on the head when it came to Dick’s voice is an understatement. He not only nailed it, he took a monolith of a building, where it once was unsteady and swaying, and built a solid foundation upon which Dick thrives and becomes the Batman. Dick is no longer just putting on a cape and cowl and chasing down bad guys. He becomes the legend. He becomes Batman’s true calling. He fills in every little gap where once it was empty. Dick is now Batman, it‘s his personal story, in his voice, and his Batman. There is not much that’s wrong here. O’Neil is a master and he just proved that he knows more than any other writer who has ever touched a Batman book all the while weaving a great story all in a single issue.
What singles this issue out, besides what I’ve already mentioned, is that it flashes back to Dick’s old day’s as Robin teamed up with Bruce’s Batman as they are on their way to investigate an art gallery robbery. The art shifts from Dustin Nguyen’s newer pencils to the older days of Batman, it does this seamlessly and does not interrupt or rudely distract, it matches the story perfectly and lends to the story while pushing it forward and making it clear as day that we are in a certain time period and in a certain context which puts us (the reader) in the right mind set to experience what’s being presented. Nguyen’s pencils are spot on as always. David Baron’s colors are gentle and relaxing when we see Batman flying around in the Gotham Night, but intense when there is a need for it. The art overall is at its best here and doesn’t fail to impress.
Our story starts off with Batman getting into a fight with three men who he ran into while trying to find a medallion in an old abandoned house. Batman falls through the floor and finds the medallion under some dirt thus triggering a flashback to the old days. The Joker is in front of the house we’ve just seen, but in this instance it’s a grand and sweeping mansion. The Joker kills the guard at the front gates and in the mansion steals a medallion but before he can leave a man wielding a sword stops him. Meanwhile Batman and Robin, now Bruce and Dick, are cruising the town looking for trouble when an old woman rushes up to them and frantically tells them that there is a dead man lying on the sidewalk. Batman tells Robin to wait in the car while he goes and investigates. In the mansion The Joker makes his exit while the sword wielding man’s attention is focused on the recently arrived Batman. The two fight and Batman of course, ends up victorious. While the fight is going on Robin is shadowing the Joker as he bumps into a man named Loomis secretly pulling the chain from the medallion in Loomis’ pocket. Robin takes the Joker down and the Police arrests the Joker, Loomis, and the man with the sword. While riding in the back of the police van the man with the sword triggers a bomb he had hidden in his pants and the Joker and Loomis run off into the night. Later on Loomis is caught and put on trial for murder. As evidence, the district attorney at the time who we all know is Harvey Dent, presents the chain the Joker had slipped into Loomis’ pocket when they bumped into each other. Loomis is found guilty and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. For good behavior he is released early though he is now an old dying man. One night he is visited by Batman and questioned about the night he was arrested along with the Joker. Although Dick was shadowing the Joker from the mansion till he was arrested, he never saw The Joker toss the medallion, as the only thing that was recovered was the chain. So Dick, using his detective skills, surmises that the Joker ditched it in the mansion and thus we are brought back to the beginning of the issue with Dick fighting the three men and finding the medallion. The issue ends with Dick going back to Loomis’ house and while exhausted, thinks he catches a glimpse of the Joker leaving Loomis’ apartment. Upon entering, Dick states that he has found evidence that will clear Loomis of all charges and clear his name only to find out that the Joker was in fact there and that he killed Loomis with his laughing gas.
While it is truly a great issue I really hated that this issue ended and that it was final. I feel that what was great about this particular issue will be forgotten and Detective Comics will go back to what we were presented with before O’Neil did this stand-alone. I wonder if and hope that David Hine will take into consideration and continue what has been done here but as evidenced in his previous work mainly on the Azrael book it honestly isn’t something to be truly excited for. But I have my hopes. Also I think it’s about time we get an honest Batman and Joker story where they both pull the right punches and are constantly out doing each other. It has been two years since the release of The Dark Knight and Heath Ledger’s Joker, that now it’s appropriate to have another Joker story instead of these hints as evidence in Grant Morrison’s Batman #700, this issue and various other appearances. But I must commend O’Neil’s treatment of the Joker, there is a great separation from Ledger’s Joker and the Joker presented here. While Ledger’s Joker is dark, sinister, brooding and psychotic the Joker presented here is a lighter version going back to the days where he wasn’t dark and brooding but a maniacal laughing stock busting out joke after joke while doing all the things that Ledger’s Joker hinted towards and in some cases matched. But the highlight here is the Dick Grayson Batman as I’ve said before. He is fully formed and distinct, and very beautifully written. Whereas before it was the constant reminder that this is Dick and not Bruce, O’Neil makes the distinction, gets into Dick’s brain and settles there while pumping out dialogue that feels free, flowing, and natural and is what I personally think Dick would say, act, and react like. Like Bruce before, O’Neil gives Dick’s Batman a good amount of humanity, clarity, and overall character progression, he sticks to the image of The Dark Knight as we know it while creating a distinct incarnation of Dick both as a human being and as Batman. I feel closer to Dick Grayson than I ever have before whether it was Nightwing or Robin the only thing that comes close for me is Dick’s Origin story and that has been done over and over again, this issue brings forth a new Dick Grayson and refreshing all that‘s been done before. This story makes huge leaps and bounds in the psyche of Dick Grayson and Batman as a whole and it’s brevity only adds to it, it’s only a glimpse or taste, it leaves us wanting more though we know we probably wont get any more and in that way among better, greater things is what makes this issue the most memorable issue I have read in a very very long time.
Detective Comics #866:
Reviewed by Dane