By Chris Fenn
This is the penultimate issue of Zero Year, and I quite enjoyed this issue. There are some bits I thought were really good, some bits I wasn’t too keen on and some bits that I didn’t get at all.
One of the bits I just didn’t get was the opening page of the issue. I don’t know who the homeless person is, if he is supposed to be anybody, and it isn’t made clear what favour Batman requested of him. I don’t know if this is something that will be made clear in the final issue.
This could be something minor, or perhaps a lack of thinking on my behalf; I remember there being the ‘Tokyo Moon’ references in the build up to Dr. Death and they were sort of lost on me until pointed out. It could just be the case that I’ve only been reading these issues as they come and not in one big sitting so the plot isn’t as fresh in my mind as it could be.
One thing that I really liked was the colouring of the issue. It’s rare to see Batman out in the day, and it makes sense in this story, but seeing such vivid colours of the Savage City reminds me a lot of the original colouring of The Killing Joke. The psychedelic backgrounds and multi-coloured robots really contrast with the oppressive nature of the story and it’s really pleasing to look at.
Capullo’s pencils are at his usual high standard, and I love the sleeveless Batman look; granted out of this story it wouldn’t make much sense but I do like the ‘Cowled Commando’ costume.
Snyder seems to have nailed The Riddler’s voice in this story; he’s intelligent and smug to the point of outright arrogance. I love how he distributes little fun facts to his victims when he thinks he’s about to kill them. This is definitely a villain I want to see come back in future storylines, especially in the capable hands of Snyder.
I like how Batman is portrayed as fallible and doubtful; I like how when he and Lucius are talking where to strike Batman guesses, and acknowledges that it’s a guess and if he’s wrong then it’s all over. Remember this is Batman’s New 52 version of Year One, and he is supposed to be making mistakes and not omnipotent or omniscient.
There’s a brilliant heartfelt moment where Bruce sends a message to Alfred admitting that Alfred was right and acknowledging his own mistakes. It always warms my heart to see Bruce show his true emotions to Alfred, and seeing him say “I love you Alfred” almost brought a tear to my eye. I haven’t been the biggest fan of Snyder’s Batman; I’ve felt in the past he has been too consumed by rage and unwilling to seek help from his extended family, but this moment has really sold me on Snyder’s ability to write an emotionally balanced and fleshed out Batman and I hope we can see more emotional responses like this.
I also really liked the scene where Bruce tells Alfred he loves him for a more cinematic reason. Seeing the air force prepare their jets adds real immanency and urgency to the story and pushes the pace on a lot quicker; now Batman has to beat the Riddler and be quicker than Jim in order to save Gotham from destruction.
This has been a really good issue of Batman, but I will still be happy to see the back of Zero Year. One more issue to go before I can get truly excited about Snyder and the main Batman series again!
For more comic views and reviews follow Chris on Twitter at @fenneth1989
Posted on June 26th, 2014
Category: OUT OF THE LONG BOX, REVIEWS
Tags: Batman #32 Review, Bruce Wayne, Chris Fenn, DC Comics, Greg Capullo, Riddler, Scott Snyder, Zero Year
Reviewed by Chris Fenn
I’ve followed all of New 52 Batman – from issue #0 to the subject of this review, issue #27. I have really enjoyed what Scott Snyder has done, and knowing he was going to re-do the origin of Batman I was slightly sceptical. How do you do what Year One did but better?
Well, Snyder took the approach of not re-telling Year One, and I think it has worked wonders for him. As this is a review for issue #27 I’m not going to harp on about how I loved the Red Hood bit (even though I did) but for anybody reading this who hasn’t started from the first issue, I’d honestly say do so as it is a good arc.
Okay, so this issue starts off in 1946 listening to a woman sing us a song. Now unless I’m missing some subtext all I can find this page does is lull you into feeling nice and relaxed to blast you with the stark contrast of page two. Batman is on the run from Loeb and his swat team and he is losing – this is a young and inexperienced Batman and it is tense watching him squirm.
As you might guess, considering this is a prequel, Batman gets away and is rescued by Jim Gordon. During the rescue there was a nice nod to Year One where Gordon takes off his glasses and says he’s blind without them, which I found to be an amazing detail to include. For the bulk of Gordon’s appearance he explains to Batman why he wears the coat that was given to him as a bribe – something that caused friction between Bruce and Gordon in an earlier issue, and I thought this sort of mirrored why Batman puts on the cowl.
Gordon isn’t the only man to speak to Batman from the heart, as Alfred shares his opinion on why he thinks Bruce prowls the night. What is so great about this, and Snyder is to be commended for it, is he doesn’t pick the obvious choice of justice or vengeance – he instead says it is to punish those who failed Bruce; Alfred, Gordon and the city. This is accompanied by what could possibly be my favourite picture of Batman skulking on a phone wire during a flash of lightning.
The conclusion of this issue seems like a mid-season finale. It ends a small arc in the story, but creates so much suspense for the next issue – it’s like it’s pulling the reader in by the eyelids. A great issue to a great story; I cannot wait for issue 28.
For more comic views and reviews follow Chris on Twitter at @fenneth1989
Posted on January 27th, 2014
Category: OUT OF THE LONG BOX, REVIEWS
Tags: Batman #27 Review, Bruce Wayne, Chris Fenn, Comic Blogs, Comic Reviews, DC Comics, Jim Gordon, Riddler, Year Zero
“What do you want with this city, Batman?!”
Zero Year continues in Batman #24 with a double-sized (and priced) issue that wraps up Bruce Wayne battling the Red Hood gang, and shows the emergence of two very key figures in the Batman universe. One of whom you can probably guess from the cover image – yes, Batman makes his first full appearance in Zero Year, or at least the Batman we know.
This issue gives us the origins of the Batcave, it shows us a young and determined Bruce Wayne standing up to the hellish Red Hood gang, led by the mysterious Red Hood One, who has been blackmailing half of Gotham into carrying out his plans under the disguises of their masks and generally forcing everyone to dance to his tune. His identity I had guessed back in issue #0 of Batman, but it’s nice for this to come full circle and show us the origins of some of Batman’s deadliest foes.
Scott Snyder is on good form here. The Batman we get presented with isn’t ready for the war he begins waging, far from it. He makes mistakes, his costume is still in prototype, but the important thing, and the lesson Alfred reminds him is that he’s going to become a symbol, he’s going to play a part, and people will believe in him. Bruce voices his concerns that people will quickly be able to figure out that he and Batman are one and the same, when Alfred reminds him people want to invest in something that gives them hope, recounting a tale from his old acting days when he would take on characters – the audience want to believe in what they see.
There is a beautiful two-page spread in the book that’s clearly a nod to Bob Kane’s Detective Comics #27 famous cover. The homage has been done a lot of times before, but it still had me smiling when I saw it. Just like the fact Batman wears to-the-wrist gloves in this, again a nod back to his origins in the original pulp books of the thirties.
Everything about Batman in this issue is bare bones. He’s a rough, shaven-headed rich boy who finally has his plans in motion, it’s just whether they will work or not that remains to be seen. You can see the team of Snyder and Greg Capullo have painstakingly plotted this, tying up old threads laid down way back in issue #0, and showing us parts of Batman’s origins that we’ve never seen before, not even in the hallowed Year One, which Snyder is seemingly doing his best to avoid drawing from, mainly a good move, as we want this to feel fresh and new and not a rehash of the same old origin.
When Gordon first encounters Batman in this issue he threatens to shoot him. Seeds are being sown here for where their alliance and friendship will one day blossom, but that trust isn’t there yet, but it will come, and I really hope this is another part that is explored in Zero Year.
Capullo’s pencils, as usual, are full of the kinetic energy he always brings. His angles are experimental and unique. He never draws a boring page, and just they way he has Batman moving in this, it reminds me of how Bruce Timm portrays him with the fluid motions of the Dark Knight. There’s a lot of love for the world of Batman from these two and it comes across on the pages.
This issue is definitely worth the extra money DC are asking for it, and for those wanting a Bat-fix before the release of Arkham Origins then this will scratch that itch. Go buy it.
For more comic views follow Glen on Twitter at @glenghiskhan and check out his blog for more reviews at www.glenludlow.blogspot.co.uk
Click HERE to view BATMAN comics
Posted on October 14th, 2013
Category: PANELS OF INTEREST, REVIEWS
Tags: Batman, Batman #24 Review, DC Comics, Detective Gordon, Greg Capullo, new 52, Riddler, Scott Snyder, Zero Year
By Glen Ludlow
Villains Month from DC marches on as the spotlight falls on the Riddler for this standalone issue of Batman. Batman is missing and Wayne Enterprises is left to defend itself from the wrath of former employee Edward Nygma.
The Riddler is back in town to reap a revenge against those who tormented him when incarcerated at Arkham Asylum, whilst simultaneously pitching his wits against a supposedly foolproof security system.
To begin with, it’s not a bad book. Ray Fawkes handles Nygma with a narcissistic quality you would come to expect from someone who brags they are Gotham’s smartest criminal. His riddles keep those involved, and us as readers guessing as to his motives for his schemes. Are they grand? Are they based on need or revenge? All in all I would have liked the issue to have been a little longer. Just when I was beginning to get into the story it was over.
The art by Jeremy Haun is satisfying. By no means is it amazing, but as an artist he’s growing and handles the script well. I particularly enjoyed how he depicts Nygma, breathing a true villainous quality into the master of puzzles. The book may be a cash-in but Haun shows he belongs in Gotham, and I’d like to see him make more visits.
In conclusion, it’s not a bad book, it’s a little lightweight, but I enjoyed it a lot more than the previous offering with the Joker. Worth picking up if you see it on the shelves.
For more comic views follow Glen on Twitter at @glenghiskhan and check out his blog for more reviews at www.glenludlow.blogspot.co.uk
Posted on October 1st, 2013
Category: PANELS OF INTEREST, REVIEWS
Tags: Batman, comics, dc, Glen Ludlow, Riddler, villains month
.jpg?150,233,0,,80,1088094271)
