It’s time for Ian and Steph to discuss the latest chapters of Batman: Wayne Family Adventures again! There are so many different takeaways this time! Let’s find out with our review of Batman: Wayne Family Adventures #67-69.
Steph: Hi Ian! Man, do we have a variety of genres to review within Batman: Wayne Family Adventures #67-69 today!
Ian: It’s quite the roller coaster! Let’s dig in!
Steph: First is Ivy’s introduction, #67 Branching Out!
Ian: I have to admit, I have a few personal quibbles with this one. How did it hit for you?
Steph: We start out with her first-time appearance, learning she is already an “ex-ECO-terrorist”, so she’s already had her redemption?
Ian: And you hit exactly my main complaint.
Steph: Otherwise, I feel like Steph and Cass should have arrested her right then and there.
Ian: I know WFA is supposed to be friendly and nicer than main Gotham, but I’m just really frustrated that they have villains with massive body counts redeemed off-panel.
Steph: I would agree, but I feel like that’s too big of a story to tell in this format. I mean, the main canon “Ivy” book is on issue #7 of her “redemption story,” and it’s not looking too promising there. If this is meant to be fun and nice, skipping the long, drawn-out process is fine with me. I like that Harley would be with a reformed Ivy, anyway.
Ian: That’s true. I just don’t like the way a lot of canon books ask us to pretend that Ivy never did anything wrong.
Steph: For sure. But they did make a point here to say “former,” so I gave it a pass. I LOVE her character design. It reminds me of the Harley Quinn animated series but is even more relaxed.
Ian: I think they were definitely going for that Lake Bell-voiced version of Ivy. Which I do enjoy. And I like that Steph and Cass bond by being pathetic at taking care of plants.
Steph: Yes! It was so cute. I love that, despite Ivy’s determination to hate them, she can’t help but give them a hand and warm up to them a bit.
Ian: Who could hate Steph and Cass? Even if they do water their plants too much!
Steph: We do get a bit of the redemption arc, in a way. She might not be killing people anymore, but she’s still not a nice person…yet.
Ian: True. I maintain my reservations, though!
Steph: Fair enough. Now on to #68, Thankful. I cannot believe the family was all going to be out of town! I haven’t kept up with “Red Hood and the Outlaws.” Is there a “going home for Thanksgiving” crossover there?
Ian: That’s so bad! Though I do like the reference to Alfred as Penny-One. One of the few N52 elements I kinda miss. I haven’t read the paywall issues of Red Hood: Outlaw, but so far, they haven’t referenced anything with Jason going home for Thanksgiving. They have referenced Jason playing video games with Damian, so there’s still a link between the two worlds.
Steph: I loved that everyone made adjustments to their plans because Alfred is that important to them. Is that Penny-Two standing next to Alfred at the end?
Ian: Let me check quickly.
Steph: I couldn’t tell if that was supposed to be Julia or Selina. They are often drawn similarly, though Julia is usually darker.
Ian: You know, I think you might be right! I don’t think it’s Selina. I do think that’s Helena next to Barbara. It’s really cool seeing Azrael and Batwing, even if it’s just as civilians walking to dinner!
Steph: Me too. Oh, lol, I totally missed them! Lucius is there too! So I’m going to head-canon that Selina is there off-panel.
Ian: She sneaks in late and steals some pie and a kiss, of course!
Steph: 😁 Very sweet and cute episode, all in all. Giving Alfred the love he deserves. And the being alive that he deserves.
Ian: How do you think it compares to last year’s Thanksgiving episode? I think the problem was that the Batkids weren’t the best in the kitchen? 🙂
Steph: Yes, the death pies. I felt that one was a well-intentioned, poorly-executed love for Alfred. Though funny, I’m glad this is different, and there was even MORE Alfred love, and it was even more successful.
Ian: Indeed! Can’t repeat the same gags all the time!
Steph: Nope. They keep it fresh. We will end on a cliffhanger again with #69 Hunted (Part 1). I have to say; though I love it when Starbite does the art, it’s when they draw Barbara that I get the most excited and the most let down when they DON’T draw her. There’s something about how Starbite draws Barbara that makes her shine more than any other character.
Ian: Interesting! I, of course, like it best when Starbite draws Steph. But Babs is fantastic – this episode gives me really strong late 90s/early 2000s Oracle/Birds of Prey vibes, and I adore it. Oracle is a very hard character to write in modern superhero comics because she’s a character who needs to plan, and planning is very hard to plot. Requires more of a puzzle brain than I think many writers these days have. How do you think our intrepid heroine will escape this deadly danger she’s found herself in?
Steph: Oh, she won’t have any problem at all. I don’t think that’s the point. The question I have is, what game is she playing? What is she trying to get out of these guys?
Ian: An excellent question! And will she do it alone? I have a feeling that the Family in WFA will give her a hand, even if she COULD totally win on her own!
Steph: I thought it was hilarious that they plan to keep her captive, unrestrained (because she is in a wheelchair), in a room with a computer! Like…even if she was a layman, she could still use it to get help.
Ian: Those cowardly and superstitious villains are nothing if not foolish!
Steph: I don’t know if she plans to take them all out and have them arrested, or maybe she’s waiting around to see who the big brain is. I would guess that these guys are just the muscle. No sense in spooking off the main brain early.
Ian: Do you think that Nightwing or the Batgirls are more likely to be Babs’s Family Backup?
Steph: Hmmmmmmmmm. You know, I don’t know. I’m thinking like a significant other when I say probably the Batgirls. Only because I think it would be too hard for Dick to sit around while Babs lets people beat her up.
Ian: I think you might have something there!
Steph: My husband watched me get eye surgery through a window, and he said it took all his willpower not to slam on the glass and stop them from hurting me.
Ian: I forget – are Dick and Babs dating in WFA?
Steph: Yes? I think so.
Ian: I can’t wait for the next issue of this arc!
Steph: Me too! I love it when a plan comes together.
Editor’s Note: You can find Batman: Wayne Family Adventures #67-69 and all other past chapters exclusively on the Webtoon platform. You can find all other reviews from the series here at The Batman Universe.
