In Batman ‘89: Echoes #4, all heck breaks loose at Arkham Asylum, and Bruce finally dons the Batsuit for the first time this miniseries.
Batman ‘89: Echoes #4 main cover by Joe Quinones. Image: DC Comics
Title: Batman ‘89: Echoes #4
Writer: Sam Hamm
Artist: Joe Quinones
Colors: Leonardo Ito
Letters: Carlos M. Mangual
Main Cover: Joe Quinones
Variant Covers: Sebastian Fiumara & Jahnoy Lindsay
Release Date: September 11, 2024
Please Note: This comic book review may contain spoilers
Batman ‘89: Echoes #4 opens at Arkham Asylum, with a sedated “Robert Lowery” (Bruce Wayne) telling Rahim to get a message to Drake Winston. It’s the location of a Nepentholene capsule on his utility belt. When used, this drug prevents the human brain from forming new memories, or so readers are told from Alfred Pennyworth in a brief interlude back at the Batcave.
Pennyworth, who has been kept in the dark throughout all of this, confers with Drake, who reveals that the drug is intended for Bruce. Readers already know that it’s probably to counteract the effects of Dr. Crane’s fear gas while he investigates the mysterious death of Dr. Hugo Strange. Before Drake heads out to fulfill Bruce’s wishes, he tells Alfred that the whole Batman “business model” is flawed, that Batman needs a support team and can’t do it all alone.
Meanwhile, at Dr. Harleen Quinzell’s private practice, the rising star Dr. Q is performing therapy with Selina Kyle (who is donning her Catwoman mask). Kyle lets it slip that she’s upset at Barbara Gordon, who received a bunch of files at the end of the previous Batman ‘89 miniseries from Kyle. Since then, it seems that Gordon has been dodging Kyle’s calls, and Selina isn’t having any of it.
When Dr. Q reveals that she’s giving up her private practice, Selina erupts, threatening Harleen and demanding to be treated three times a week, regardless of Dr. Q’s TV schedule.
Elsewhere, the feds learn that the “Robert Lowery” they captured isn’t the Firefly, that it’s someone undercover who likely burned up the body in the blast in Batman ‘89: Echoes #1, then posed as Lowery. At Arkham, Crane cleans up all his files and records, as he gets word that the feds are on the way.
Harley Quinn shows up, decked out in a classic Harley-inspired costume, to interview “Robert Lowery” as part of her “persona therapy” schtick. Crane uses this to send in Mark Desmond (also known as “Blockbuster” in DC Comics) to break up the party. Artist Joe Quinones has some fun here, casting Desmond as Arnold Schwarzenegger. Desmond’s trigger, apparently, is clowns, so he goes ballistic on Quinn, “Lowery,” and Maynard (this universe’s Riddler that Quinones fan-casted as Martin Short).
Bruce and Maynard work together to take Desmond down long enough to escape with Dr. Q. Drake, meanwhile, rigs up an explosion that sends everyone into a frenzy and places Arkham in lockdown. It stalls the GCPD and the feds, who both arrive at the scene only to succumb to an attack by a fully realized Scarecrow.
Scarecrow’s costume reveal is imposing, haunting, and gothic. It’s almost all black, with straw jutting down from the top of his stovetop hat. It’s a close ringer for Scarecrow’s outfit in The Long Halloween, albeit bulkier.
Batman ‘89: Echoes #4 variant cover by Jahnoy Lindsay. Image: DC Comics
On the roof of Arkham Asylum, Maynard meets Drake, who is suited up in a suit that looks like a cross between Nightwing’s red garb and something that is slightly Batman Beyond-inspired. It’s a cool suit, only second-best to Bruce’s transformation into his classic Burton-era Batsuit.
The issue ends at Arkham, with Harley Quinn, Scarecrow, Robin(?), and Batman finally altogether in their costumes, ready to do battle once more.
Though Joe Quinones’ art is absolutely fantastic and such a joy to view with each turn of the page, this book has been and remains such a tedious read. There are layers upon layers of backstories, misdirections, subplots, secret motives, and more. It feels like 5 or 6 spy novels interwoven into one 6-issue miniseries, and at best, it’s a mind-boggling and dizzying read, especially with Batman ‘89: Echoes’ inconsistent release schedule.
Simply put, it’s maddening, overstuffed to the gills with everything from too much story, too many characters, and too many cuts between events both past and present. Catwoman makes her return in this issue, and because we haven’t seen much of her since the first miniseries, her motivations and characterization seem out of left field, completely unhinged, and out-of-character for the Burton-verse.
How Many Villains Are In This Book, Anyway?
Let’s count them:
- Harley Quinn (Dr. Q)
- Scarecrow (Dr. Crane)
- Riddler (Maynard)
- Firefly (the deceased Robert Lowery)
- Blockbuster (Mark Desmond)
- Barbara Gordon? (She’s an antagonist to Bruce Wayne)
- Dr. Hugo Strange (deceased but alive in flashbacks)
Beyond the plot points and overstuffed exposition, we don’t get to see Bruce Wayne suit up as Batman until this issue. Again, for a book that sometimes takes three-to-four months between issue drops, that’s a long time for readers to wait for Batman to appear. Yes, there was a fake-out sequence in Batman ‘89: Echoes #1, but that doesn’t count. All in all, this book is beautiful but aggravating.
