Batman Comics

Happy Wednesday, Bat-friends and Bat-foes! New comic day once again, and as always there are some great things waiting for me at The Beguiling. There’s been a lot of internet buzz lately about DC’s announcement that someone’s coming out as gay, and I’ve got a post about that coming later this week, but first things first. What are you reading today? Here’s what’s in my pull file:

Batman Incorporated 1 – Grant Morrison returns to the Bat-verse with the continuation of his pre-relaunch Batman Incorporated story. Bruce Wayne has publicly stated that he’s financially supporting Batman, and Batman goes around the world setting up franchises while learning more about the evil organization Leviathan. I’ve loved Morrison’s work with Batman; he understands the character so well, and brings a very special twisted sensibility that works perfectly in this setting. Now that Damian is Robin, I’m excited to see how Morrison writes the little Wayne brat. Chris Burnham’s art was superb on the previous run of this title, so that’s another reason to pick this one up. Plus, nobody forget, issue 3 has Matches Malone on the cover, my little fangirl heart is all aflutter!!

Batman: The Dark Knight 9 – Keeping the Night of the Owls showdown active while we wait for the upcoming conclusion in Batman 10 and 11, Red Robin heads back to Gotham for a showdown with a Talon! This kind of demonstrates exactly why B:TDK is not my favourite comic – what do Red Robin and the Talon have to do with Batman being the Darkest of Knights? That said, I won’t complain about seeing more Red Robin, we all know I love me some Tim Drake, and overall this title has been fun to read.

Teen Titans 9 – Two Tim Drake comics in one day? I may never recover! The Titans and some other dudes continue fighting a bunch of bad guys in a weird hellish arena, and more importantly, some creepy character in a hood is stealing Red Robin’s style. When it comes to feathered capes, there can be only one! Here’s the cover, by Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, and Andrew Dalhouse, click to enlarge and fully enjoy the wingspan.

Thanks to Dee for the shiny new ‘pull file’ header image, based on Dustin Nguyen’s cover for 2011′s Batman 80 page giant.

Good evening Gotham! I didn’t get to write about my pull file last week, but the comics were so good I thought I’d just share a few quick thoughts and pictures from the three issues. The Night of the Owls is in full swing and the Bat-family spreads through Gotham city, protecting prominent citizens from the Talons’ attack. I’m not going to recap what happens in each issue, since you should be reading these comics already, but spoilers will definitely occur.

Batgirl 9, written by Gail Simone, art by Ardian Syaf and Vicente Cifuentes.

I especially liked the art in this issue. Check out the colour and the way the panels are designed on this page:

It was a good story, so I’m sorry, but I have to say it. Why do they have to team up Batgirl with the only female Talon? Boys and girls can’t mix and fight each other these days? Once I got past that, however, I was definitely drawn in to the story and enjoyed this issue of Batgirl.

Batman 9, written by Scott Snyder with art by Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion, and Rafael Albuquerque.

This book had one of those Batman-makes-you-want-to-cheer moments that we all know and love, and I just couldn’t resist sharing it.

Damn straight! As Batman says, he gets to “play rough” because the Talons are not only incredibly strong and unnaturally regenerative, but they’re also undead (so he doesn’t have to worry about killing them). As such a strong and brilliant warrior, Batman would have to be holding back when fighting against the average Gotham criminal, so I can only imagine that in a way it would feel great to let loose a little. I also wanted to mention that I’m into the backup story, both for the story and the artwork. It’s been interesting to read about Alfred’s father Jarvis and I look forward to the revelations that come with the conclusion of his story.

Batman and Robin 9, written by Peter Tomasi, art by Lee Garbett, Andy Clarke, Ray McCarthy and Keith Champagne.

As much as I’ve enjoyed the father/son focus of this book, it’s also exciting to see Damian get the focus of the issue and really lead the action. Damian’s mission is to protect an army general who’s overseeing night training, so Damian gets to display his skill at commanding several units of trained soldiers, which is pretty amazing for a ten year old. Also there’s this – what happens when the Talon says that tonight he finishes what he started:

I know real owls’ heads turn all the way around, but even for a Talon that’s gotta hurt – from Batman’s son, I would expect nothing less.

That’s it for me today. As always I’d love to hear what you think about the Court of Owls or anything else going on in the Bat-world right now, leave a comment or send me a tweet!

Holy regular updates Batman! Is it pull file time again? It sure is, and I have three great comics to read this week. Even better – I can read them tonight instead of waiting days and days like last week!

Batgirl 8 – A new villain poses a challenge for Batgirl, but even more interesting to me, apparently we learn some sort of Gordon family secret that’s never before been revealed! What could it be? The Gordons have already lived through an affair, divorce, insanity, and paralysis… that’s just off the top of my head, there’s definitely a lot going on with this family. I can’t wait to see what they’ll have to deal with this time, but I wonder if it will even register as a problem when viewed against the rest of their history.

Batman and Robin 8 – Everyone knows how much I love this series, and issue 7 was excellent. Batman rescued Robin from Nobody (although really, does Damian Wayne ever need rescuing? Probably as often as his father does) but the ending took a distinct turn for the worse. The theme of this series since the relaunch has been Bruce’s attempt to connect with his son, and to help Damian grow from assassin to life-preserving crime-fighter; it’s a great focus to their developing relationship and for this comic title. So far it feels like Bruce hasn’t managed to truly connect with Damian, but I’m hopeful that we’ll see them sort things out soon.

Batwoman 8 – This issue continues the interwoven story structure that worked so well previously, although it does sort of feel like things are all over the place sometimes. This is the last issue with art by Amy Reeder. I like how she draws Batwoman very much, and wanted to share the cover she did for this issue. The use of colour is so perfect, and I love how the rain just seems to glow in the light of the buildings.

Writer: Judd Winick

Artists: Dustin Nguyen, Derek Fridolfs

Date: June 2012

Batwing 8 was really good. I had been unsure as to whether I wanted to continue reading this comic, though in the end I would’ve kept with it a bit longer for sure because I’m looking forward Marcus To’s upcoming art and the Court of Owls tie-in. After this issue, I’m reading it for itself, and to find out what happens with Batwing as a person. Warning, there will be spoilers ahead, including about the identity of Massacre.

The story since issue 1 has been about Batwing developing as a Bat-brand vigilante and finding his Mission, while also searching for Massacre, who’s been out killing former African vigilantes. Here in issue 8 we finally discover who Massacre is, and although I had my suspicions from the beginning (and I was totally right) it played out really well. I definitely felt engaged in the story and captivated by the relationships and effect on Batwing himself. Here’s the amazing moment where he realizes that General Keita was not the man behind the mask:

David (Batwing) realizes here that Massacre is his brother Isaac, who was a child soldier with him in Keita’s army. As I was reading this I couldn’t help but compare David with Bruce Wayne. They were born into wildly different circumstances, and they grew up almost in different worlds, but they each lost family to tragedy, and turned to crimefighting to help heal their grief. The two men talk when things finally quiet down. This was the part that really got me interested in Batwing, and in where David will go as a character after this.

Is there anything better than a Batman who believes in you? I don’t think so. The other thing that I enjoyed about Batwing 8 was Dustin Nguyen’s art. He has a very particular style, and although this is less detailed than some of his other work, especially in the backgrounds (maybe they didn’t give him much time?) I really enjoy how he drew Batman, Robin and Nightwing as well as the art we’ve already seen of Batwing himself. Here’s a great moment with our Gotham crew, ready to jump off the page:

So there we are, Batwing 8. It was sad, but in a good way, and definitely worth reading. If you’re reading it I’d love to hear what you think about this issue and where they’re going from here, comments are always welcome.

Last night some friends and I saw the Dark Knight Rises prologue, and it was amazing! Even with all the leaked set photos I’ve seen online there were things in the 6 minute prologue that I was not expecting and not prepared for. How on earth will I be able to stand waiting until July?? I’m going to have to console myself with comics, so here’s what I’m picking up tonight:

Batgirl 4 – Barbara continues her journey back to full Bat-power. I enjoy this book, but I want to know more about how Babs got from point A to point B. It almost feels unfair to focus on her past instead of her present, but I feel like we need to know before we can move on. Actually, there’s an interesting parallel between her road to recovery and vigilantism and the reader’s own growing knowledge of Batgirl’s story. Plus, she’s awesome.

Batman and Robin 4 – My favorite bat-title! This will make up for a long day working at Wayne Enterprises. The last issue ended on quite a cliffhanger, so today we’ll find out how Batman and Robin get out of that situation. Also, in issue 3 Robin defied Batman’s explicit orders to stay home from patrol, and that was part of an escalating pattern of bad behavior. How will Daddy Batman react to that?

Suicide Squad 4 – Regular readers will know that I haven’t been following this series, but @zuzuhaha has been reading it so I’ll give it a try. The story is going to cross over with the Dollmaker plot in Detective Comics, and that should be fun. I’d like to understand the Joker’s connection to Dollmaker more clearly, and I’m both nervous and excited to see how this version of Harley Quinn interacts with her Mister J.

Batwoman 4 – This book has been consistently engaging, exciting, and gorgeous, so I’m definitely looking forward to reading it tonight. I just looked at the first few pages and the artwork is beautiful, different styles juxtaposed in a way that uses the possibilities inherent in the comic art form to its great advantage. I also love the use of bright orange and reds, it’s refreshing.  Here’s the cover, by J. H. Williams III;

So that’s what I’ll be doing with the rest of my night. In other news, my scanner is still broken, so I’m not sure when I’ll be able to post actual updates about the comics that I’ve been reading. I also have ambitious plans to write more Matches Malone and a few other things, so wish me luck!

Writer: Peter J Tomasi

Artist: Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray

Date: Dec 2011

This issue really brings the father and son theme to the forefront, opening with Daddy Batman trying to figure out how to raise Damian to be a good, moral person – not an easy task given Damian’s early childhood education.

I love seeing Bruce share his inner thoughts with Alfred, it shows us how important that relationship is to Bruce (and kind of sets up a parallel, reminding us that Alfred never tried to be Bruce’s father). Gleason and Gray capture Batman at his best, I’ve been very into the art in this series so far. Check out the Bat-Ass at the top of the page:

The Dynamic Duo head out and intercept a weapons shipment, in a very exciting fight sequence. Once they’ve subdued the criminals (Damian managing not to kill anyone this time around) we have another Great Moment in Wayne Parenting as Daddy Batman tells Damian “Don’t think I didn’t notice the restraint you just showed, Robin. Refusing to pound these felons with the excessive force you wanted to is commendable.” Alfred thinks Bruce could have done better and tells him so in classic Alfred style:

Damian’s still a troubled little boy, and Bruce has a few other ideas about how to deal with that, including one that I never thought I’d see outside of fanfiction – he buys a dog! With the new canine addition to the Wayne family and the return of the Bat-Pole entrance to the Bat-Cave, the relaunched Batman & Robin clearly connects itself to the earlier incarnations of these characters, even though Robin’s a different person.

There’s also a whole storyline going on that involves Batman Incorporated, in issue 1 we saw the Russian Batman killed and here in issue 2 the killer confronts Batman in the final pages. This works to place Batman & Robin in the larger context of the DCnU, which is helpful given how many Bat books there are and the still-fuzzy details of exactly what’s changed in the relaunch. When we combine that with Daddy Batman and the exciting work to protect Gotham City, we get an excellent series that and an issue that I really enjoyed reading.

Writer: Peter J Tomasi

Artist: Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray

Date: Nov 2011

My Rating: Great issue, a fresh start to the Dynamic Duo but grounded in the Bat-history we all know and love.

I love seeing Bruce Wayne as a father, and in many ways this issue is about how he handles exactly that. He and Damian begin working together as Batman and Robin and they get off to a difficult start. As usual, here come some spoilers (I’m also assuming you’ve read the end of Flashpoint!) If you haven’t yet, go read this book yourself and then come back to discuss – I’ll wait, and it’s well worth it.

Bruce starts in the study, in a scene that’s reminiscent of an important moment in Frank Miller’s ‘Batman: Year One‘, and also of Morrison’s Batman stories. Speaking to his father’s bust, Bruce says “Tonight’s the night, Father. It’s time for a change.” Damian met his father at the same age Bruce was when he lost his own, and that seems particularly meaningful tonight, on the anniversary of Thomas and Martha Wayne’s deaths. As they prepare for patrol, Bruce opens up to Damian in a way he hasn’t before.

Bonus points for the return of the Batpole. Also, “Sometimes I think your secrets have secrets” is a great line, but how sad for Damian to think that about his own father. I guess Damian’s overall hostility shouldn’t be surprising, but it really shows how much Bruce will have to overcome in order to get closer to his son – and Damian’s got a lot of growing ahead of him. As Batman goes on to explain the changes he plans to make, I realized that this represents a big shift in his whole outlook. He’s making an effort to focus on the future, on the potential of his relationship with Damian, on what they can do for Gotham, rather than on the loss that brought him to the life he’s now leading.

I think this change is a result of the letter Bruce received from his father. That really gave him some closure, and let him move on from it in a different way than he ever had before. This book also connects the relaunched Batman with the symbols that have always represented Bruce’s chosen path in life – the bell ringing as he sits in the study considering the future (that was a Morrison thing, right? I can’t get to my back issues right now!); the pearls that fell from his mother’s neck as she died; I’m surprised that I couldn’t find more actual bats in this issue.

This next page is one of my favourites, for sure – I love that Batman has to teach someone how to have a heart. It’s kind of perfectly fitting for Damian to be exactly as cynical as he is, to force Bruce to counterbalance that. How is it that Batman is the one with the better sense of humour? I for one am loving this.

Batman’s boat can do anything. One other thing I wanted to mention is the art, as you can see from the pictures above it’s amazing. I love the colour palette, how the pages work together and sort of flow as a whole, and the art really works to enhance the story and the mood of what’s going on. If it continues to be this good, Batman & Robin will remain one of my favourite comic series.

Batman 713

Writers & Artists: Fabian Nicieza, Steve Scott, Daniel Sampere, Andrei Bressan, Walden Wong, Rich Perrota, Rodney Ramos

This is the wrap-up issue leading into the DCnU reboot, and it’s written as a retelling of the Batman story. It opens with “This is the story of a boy who lost his parents, but through that loss gained a noble purpose in life. He grew up obsessed with fighting crime — with the idea of never letting any other innocents suffer as he had.” Our narrator describes Bruce first taking on the cowl, then working with Robin, and as the story progresses the artistic style changes to match the era depicted. Here’s a panel I really enjoyed, I haven’t seen Batman looking that cheerful in years.

As the tale continues we realize that the narrator isn’t Batman himself, and I started to wonder if it was Joker. He refers to the first Robin as “an incredibly annoying child”, after all. But, the level of detail and care for the characters showed it couldn’t possibly be Joker telling this story. Who else, then, would give only one brief mention of all of Jason Todd, as though the only important parts of his involvement with the Mission were when he showed up and then when he died?

And at the same time, criticize Tim’s Robin as a “mistake”? I was so upset by that! But once you read it and figure out who the narrator is, it makes sense. As a wrap-up story I did like this issue, especially the way it’s drawn and the suggestion at the end that the Bat-cave needs a Bat-pole – it really really does.

Justice League of America 60

Writers & Artists: James Robinson, Daniel Sampere, Wayne Faucher

This issue also tied up loose ends – specifically, the entire Justice League. Over the course of the story as they remember old battles and think about their own futures, everyone on the JLA decides to quit! It’s a pretty good way of opening up space for the new JLA, since at least nobody has to die.

They reminisce about a few huge fights, I had a hard time getting into that and understanding the impact of those battles on these heroes, possibly because of how it was written and possibly because those situations happened in books I haven’t read. There were also some great moments and beautiful art, like Supergirl killing an evil robot bare-handed:

I love that she wears super-shorts under her super-skirt! Helps protect the super-modesty. We also have a really interesting moment where Congorilla brings up Batman Inc and African superheroes in general (I stuck two pages together for ease of reading, it didnt look exactly like this in the book):

He makes a good point, I think — Africa is a big place and I’m not surprised that there are already superheroes working there. But why is that the only person who sees this is a Scottish man-turned-Gorilla? It reminded me of how white the JLA is, and the whole superhero world. One thing I really hope to see as the DCnU launches and then grows is more diversity, both in terms of creators working at DC comics and also in the characters portrayed. There was that great image showing other heroes posed like Wonder Woman (Batman’s awesome!), that’s such a prime example of how women are represented differently. I think the comic world in general, and DC within that, has a lot of room to grow and this relaunch is a great opportunity to bring in a wide range of characters. I hope they live up to the possibility.

Writer: Peter J. Tomasi

Artists: Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray

Date: June 2011

My Rating: Great story, beautiful art and lots of fun, as a Batman comic should be.

There was so much goodness in Batman & Robin 22, I can’t even tell you. I definitely reccommend buying this issue and adding the series to your pull file, it just gets better and better.

The plot is our standard ‘child traumatized by father’s death at the hands of a costumed villain, swears revenge on everyone’ situation. This “White Knight” glows and wears wings, and goes around finding relatives of inmates of Arkham Asylum (past and present). Then he convinces them to kill themselves so they can no longer “add to the world’s pain”.

What really sets this story apart is the awesomeness of Dick and Damian. Check out this page where the Dynamic Duo and Alfred talk about what defines us as people (click to enlarge, as always):

I can’t get over how Damian’s face is drawn, and his body language – it adds so much to the dialogue. He puts on this sneering, scornful front, but inside he wants Batman’s reassurance that he belongs on the good team. Kind of reminds us that he’s, like, eight years old or something insane like that.

They’re interrupted when Arkham itself starts to glow, and they head out to discover that the GCPD (why were they already on the scene?) has been temporarily blinded by the flash of bright light. I love Gordon, staying calm even though he has no idea what’s going on or if his sudden blindness is permanent. The art is beautiful, look at how Batman is shadowed against his own cape as he jumps into action.

Inside Arkham, cells are filling up with glowing water which will soon drown the inmates. The White Knight has stuck photos of dead family members to each resident’s cell, but for one notable exception:

Gotta love that Joker!! No regard for his own possible demise, I’d expect nothing less. There’s also a great picture of how he reacts to the sudden in-cell shower, and you’d never guess what he does when the cell fills up entirely.

Zsazs manages to get out of his cell, so Batman follows the White Knight up to the roof while Robin stays to subdue Zsazs and stop the water filling the cells from killing everyone. With his usual style, Damian does just that:

Love the sound effects! Meanwhile, the White knight manages to wound Batman, but a little spear through the side won’t prevent Batman from a snarky comeback.

Projectile sharpened ears are the best bat-suit modification I’ve ever seen.

Well! I’ve shown more pictures than usual while still leaving out a couple really great parts. This book was drawn and coloured beautifully, it’s an exciting story, and Batman and Robin are the perfect combination of badass and funny. Overall, an awesome issue in a great series. Have a great night, Gotham city!

Writer: Tony Daniel

Artists: Tony Daniel, Ryan Winn

Date: April 2011

My Rating: Holy Classic Capers, Batman!

This month’s Batman was action-packed and felt very classic to me. Even though Batman and Robin themselves are different, Dick and Damian instead of Bruce and Dick, I was strongly reminded of old-school 60′s Batman — and yet it was also more realistic!

I love the cover of this issue, and although my plan had been to show covers in the Pull File posts, there’s no reason not to include one here! The colours are great, Batman is Badass, and I really like the text at the bottom. I’m also fascinated by the tears in his costume – you can see the mesh of the armor he wears under the grey cloth of the suit, and I think I remember other issues recently where tears in the shirt show flesh. Did he upgrade the batsuit?

So this bad guy The Sensei is searching for an evil mask (“The Beholder”) that gives amazing powers. Batman and Robin are on the job, as are The Peackock and her kid brother Luki Lo, who have spent their entire lives dedicated to finding and destroying The Beholder. Meanwhile, The Riddler and his daughter Enigma (someone write a story for me with Robin and Enigma, k?) are also messing with Batman and seem to be involved in a larger plot of their own.

There’s a great two-page spread, where Sensei has just donned the mask and got all powerful, and Batman attacks. I wanted to share it, but my scanner only fits one page at a time. So, this image isn’t awesome, but it’s better than nothing

Triumphant in the end, Batman sees Peacock (Miss Lo) and Luki off as they return home. Pretty sure the kiss here is a memory, rather than actually happening at the airport, but still – Dick gets around, eh? Awesome. I am going to make a point of watching for further Dick Grayson Kiss Moments (TM) and will be sure to keep everyone updated!

OK, that wraps it up for me. Leave a comment with your thoughts on Batman 707 or any other Batman comic, and have a great weekend!