In this review of The Bat-Man: First Knight #1, on the filthy streets of 1940s Gotham, a young Bat-Man faces undead monsters and a vast conspiracy as war looms over America.
The Bat-Man: First Knight #1
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist: Mike Perkins
Colors: Mike Spicer
Main Cover: Mike Perkins
Variant Covers: Ramon Perez, Marc Aspinall, Jacob Phillips
Release Date: March 5, 2024
This review contains spoilers.
Main cover to The Bat-Man #1 by Mike Perkins (Credit: DC Comics)
The Bat-Man: First Knight #1 begins in 1940s Gotham, a mysterious man in a huge mansion speaks over the radio, calling his followers to action. Elsewhere, Commissioner Gordon investigates a murder in a diner, finding the Councilman Hodges decapitated. Hodges’s “date”, a prostitute named Ruby who works for Maxie, says a gang stormed into the diner, beat Hodges, then took his head off.
Bruce Wayne, playboy of Gotham picks up the Commissioner in a hot car, and they discuss the multiple murders of city officials, as well as their fears of war with Hitler’s Germany, and what to make of the mysterious new Bat-Man. After being dropped off, Gordon tells another cop that he befriended Wayne after his parents were murdered in front of him, and he believes Bruce is a serious man underneath the frivolity.
Gordon calls the Mayor, telling him dark forces are murdering city officials, but the mayor shrugs off his warning just as strange deformed men break in with massive knives. The Bat-Man smashes through the skylight, trying to defend the Mayor. He lures the creatures to the rooftops, but is thrown off. A friendly Rabbi, Jakob Cohen, takes him into his synagogue, and offers him encouragement. Both men fear the coming Nazi threat as well as the same dark forces of prejudice in America. Thanking Cohen, Bat-Man dashes off.
At Wayne Manor, alone, Bruce changes, just as a film producer and Julie Madison, actress, arrive to complain about Wayne Enterprises pulling funding from their film. Bruce calls his company and reinstates funding, as well as security for the crime wave, and the two filmmakers leave.
Lifting a print from the knife he took from the monsters, Bat-Man visits Gordon at the station late at night. He asks for help matching the print, and Gordon reluctantly agrees.
Maxie the pimp ejects a violent customer who is beating one of his working girls, then meets Bat-Man in the alley. The girl, Tillie, tells Bat-Man that the monsters are linked to a man called Johnny the Whip, and are zombies.
Bat-Man contacts Gordon at Blackgate, waiting for the execution of a prisoner. Gordon says the print belongs to a criminal executed months ago, and Bat-Man realizes the connection. He shuts down the power to Blackgate just before the prisoner is executed, lets the prisoner go, but the guards capture him and turn on the electric chair.
Image Credit: DC Comics
Analysis:
Legendary writer Dan Jurgens finally gets a Black Label title with The Bat-Man: First Knight #1, and in a fascinating twist, the man best known for his powerful writing and art for the Death of Superman produces a hard-boiled Bat-Man tale! Jurgens layers melancholy and world-weariness throughout the piece, from the newspaper headlines that open the first page (very reminiscent of the first page of Batman: Year One), to the focus on the seamier side of life in Maxie the pimp and his working girls. A bit surprisingly for Jurgens, the imagery is quite gritty, with a vivid severed human neck in the first few pages, and we see Maxie the pimp roughly eject a violent customer from the bed of the prostitute he’s beating. Though Jurgens works hard to layer in deeper themes to justify the darkness of the material, particularly with the conversation between Bat-Man and the Rabbi, the level of characterization still feels a bit shallow. As a result, the shocking violence and grimy sexuality ends up feeling a bit more like exploitative content rather than a deeper examination of the themes hinted at. Ultimately, Bruce’s relationships and character are a bit too shallow in this story to hold up to the shocking content – in fact, quite literally shocking in the final brutal page.
On a panel to panel level, Jurgens puts in a lot of effort. The patter of the dialogue is nicely thoughtful, with slang and dialect given distinction from today’s Zoomer references. The pop culture references, like Little Lord Fauntleroy, are carefully considered, reaching back to what would be popular at the time, as well as still being reasonably accessible today. Despite my critiques about the overall depth of character, theme, and contrast with the level of content, Jurgens is definitely putting in a lot of craft and skill he’s accumulated through his decades-long career, and I applaud that.
Artist Mike Perkins and colorist Mike Spicer provide extremely detailed, textured, and evocative art throughout the book. Gotham of the mid-century feels vivid and textured. The layouts and lighting effects are also really well done, with several beautifully done splash pages, like Batman smashing through the Mayor’s skylight. Black Label was originally marketed as a creator-focused line, and the art has generally been top notch as a result. Perkins and Spicer definitely uphold that tradition here.
Ramon Perez’s variant shows the Bat-Man’s mask and cape highlighted by a bright yellow oval spotlight – playing with the classic colors of the Bat symbol. Marc Aspinall’s Pulp Cover variant shows Bat-Man behind one of the zombies, with some very nicely rendered trade dress calling back to old paperbacks. Jacob Phillips’s 1-in-25 incentive variant shows Bat-Man coming in the window as a zombie rears behind him, a bright light distracting the hero as the red light of the city backlights him.
Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with an advanced copy of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally on Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
