Absolute Batman #17 main cover by Nick Dragotta (DC Comics)
ABSOLUTE BATMAN #18
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art by ERIC CANETE
Main Cover: NICK DRAGOTTA
Variant Covers: CLAYTON CRAIN, DAN PANOSIAN, ERIC CANETE, KARL KERSCHL
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: 3/11/26
Make a wish.
That’s the theme of Absolute Batman #17.
In this issue, we are introduced to the Absolute Universe of Pamela Isley who of course goes on to become Poison Ivy. She’s definitely not the biggest start among Batman villains, but she’s got an intriguing background nonetheless.
Like many of this universe’s rogues gallery, this version of Poison Ivy is different from what we have seen in other iterations. Yet it is true to the character and also very good. Scott Snyder has done it again and it works.
We meet a young Pamela in a flashback atop Gotham’s Heart Building with her mother. We learn from Ivy’s narration that her mom is sick but we don’t learn with what exactly although it reads like some form of brain cancer. It’s something so many of us can relate to, and helps make Ivy a more sympathetic villain.
It’s her mom that initially gives Pamela the nickname “Ivy” because of her love for climbing trees behind her cabin. She hands Pamela dandelion and tells her to make a wish before blowing the pedals off of it. Another relatable moment for anyone who ever blew the cotton off the fuzzy dandelions on the playground.
We’re then brought to the present where some kind of monster and then Ivy confront an officer in the same building.
Trees and plants have overtaken it when Batman gets inside it. He learns from Alfred several officers went in with a sound weapon and Batman sees them. Alfred disputes that saying no humans were detected on the floor Batman is on.
That’s because the officers have now become some plant monsters. It’s a very science fiction type of situation, but in this universe it works.
We next go back in time again, this time only a week. Bruce is in the sewers looking for Waylon Jones to see if that necklace is helping him recover and only finds shedded skin, indicating Waylon is actually growing. He’s not sure if he’s actually helping Killer Croc or making his problem worse. More on that shortly.
After being escorted out of the sewer, Bruce goes to see Dr. Thomkins about Harvey Dent and finds out he’s gone. This hits Bruce deep given how close he is to Harvey and pushes him closer to the edge of giving up.
Bruce then walks the street wondering about his crusade as Batman. He says Batman was never supposed to be the story but after the encounter with Bane, Batman has gone mainstream in a way Bruce never intended. It’s the kind of internal debate you are more likely to see in a Spider-Man comic but it works really well here
I’m guessing this is a setup for some kind of crisis in a later issue. You don’t see Batman stop very often and it would be a fair bit to think we’ll get as part of the storyline of Batman should just hang it up and if he’s making things worse. You see it in a lot of different Batman stories and it’ll be something we likely see here too
We move forward to the fight against the plant monsters and Batman realizes he encountered them before at Ark M. and tells Alfred to look up the name “Isley”
Yet another flashback comes up, this time to an older Pamela. She’s been studying fusing human cells with not just plant DNA but other DNA as well. She’s also lacking enough funding for her work. Now this reads more like a standard superhero origin but at least you’re a little more sympathetic towards her here.
The classic Ivy origin with a twist.
At the same time, Bruce goes to see Joe Chill who suddenly doesn’t want to see him. The dynamic between Bruce and Joe Chill has been one of the best things about this series.
Another future seed planted? I guess this is part of the reason why this is one of the best selling comics out there right now.
Back to the present, Batman learns Pamela is supposed to be dead before rescuing Officer Gordon. He then starts to climb a giant plant.
Another flashback: Bruce goes to see his mother, who is talking to Jim Gordon. She mentions she wants to do something, but she’s worried if it comes out everything will change. Bruce walks away without seeing her and continues contemplating his effect as Batman.
We cut back to the fight where Batman makes it to the top and how Pamela got her powers is explained alongside the fight. Several other “Pamelas” emerge before Batman encounters the horrific, true Poison Ivy. It’s an absolutely visually dizzying fight.
We cut back again to Martha on the phone and the big reveal at the end: she’s a member of a certain super secret organization. Let’s welcome this universe’s Court of Owls. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of them in issue 18.
Analysis
I said it in the review of #16, but I LOVE this series. It’s a different but familiar take on the characters we know and love. It’s really the way to go when you have a character that’s nearly 90 years old. The trick is to not lose the heart and core of the character.
You can’t help but feel sympathetic for Pamela, especially with what her mother is going through. She also makes a point regarding corporations and how funding for research is handled and it makes you think about how research is paid for in our own world.
It’s also good that we are getting a little more introspection from Bruce. It’s clearly setting up a crisis of purpose storyline that Batman often experiences. This rendition of it will be very different however given the changes to Batman’s origin and his mother’s secret we learn about on the final panel.
The story and artwork are top notch as usual too. Snyder has done it again.
Final Grade
I continue to enjoy Absolute Batman. Snyder’s take on these characters continues to be familiar but also unexpected that it keeps each reveal fresh and exciting. It’s become par for the course and that is a huge praise for Snyder and everyone else involved. Reading Absolute Batman is a monthly highlight for me. The only drawbacks to issue 17 are there were too many flashbacks that I lost track of when some of the encounters happened (Bruce walking and going to talk to his mom mainly). It’s also not exactly clear who is responsible for Pamela’s transformation, but that reveal could and will likely come in a future issue.
I can’t wait to read it.
