by Judd Winick (writer), Mark Bagley (art), Rob Hunter (inks), Pete Pantazis (colors), and Jared K. Fletcher (letters)
The Story: After spending long periods of time cutting out pictures of Batman smiling and interviewing teleporters, Two-Face finally invades the Batcave and throws it down with the Dark Knight.
What’s Good: The fact that the atrocious Bat-Two-Face costume was just a mere hallucination.
What’s Not So Good: Everything. Ever since the idea that one of Batman’s A-list rogues would work so hard to teleport to the Batcace was introduced, this story took a turn for the far worse. What the hell Winick?! I thought you were an underrated writer when it came to writing rich, dialogue-driven character studies for capes. Instead we get a lacking attempt (not to mention an uncharacteristic move) from Two-Face, as he tries to psychologically break down Batman. Reading the Dark Knight repeatedly say, “I am Batman” made me lose hope in this title. Winick ultimately falls short in making Grayson mature from this easily forgettable event. Instead he leaves us with a pathetic man who tries so hard to convince himself (and the readers) that he is Batman.
As for the art, the return of Tony Daniels will be warmly welcomed, as Mark Bagley’s work in this concluding issue assures us that his style doesn’t suit the Dark Knight. Everyone looks too cartoony, and the action and violence aren’t exciting nor entertaining. Furthermore the “supposed to be” memorable character revelation moment (the return of the lame D-list villain, Black Mask) falls short and silently. I have no problem spoiling that one for you, since I’m assuming that such a lame character wasn’t worth anticipating. It’s really disappointing that Bagley never captured the cold and the gritty, and the dark world of Batman.
Conclusion: The final chapter of Dick Grayson’s first adventure as Batman is one open-ended disappointment that doesn’t leave you excited for things to come. I hope Tony Daniel is able to redeem himself after the mess he made in Battle for the Cowl, and really jump-start this title. It’s disappointing that DC has allowed Batman to become such a weak series.
Grade: F
-Ray Hilario
Filed under: DC Comics Tagged: | Batman, Batman, Batman #691, Batman #691 review, Batman review, Black Mask, Comic Book Reviews, comic reviews, Jared K. Fletcher, Judd Winick, Mark Bagley, Pete Pantazis, Rob Hunter, Two Face, Weekly Comic Book Review
Yeah, maybe I was a little too harsh. I guess I was just really disappointed that Winick didn’t deliver. I’m sure I’m not the only one that feels this way with this arc. Especially since he got pulled off from this book…
As for the cliffhanger at the end… Meh… It looks like it can possibly be another forgettable story line. But I’ll still pick it up, and I’m hoping I’m wrong. Thanks for reading!
What did you think of Blackest Night Batman #3? Were you expecting to read something about Bruce Wayne, like me?
That’s a really harsh review. I liked the book, and what about the cliffhanger at the end? That looks great to me.
Hey Ray,
I saw some flaws in this book too, but I have to say that I really like Dick Grayson as Batman better. There’s much more story to tell, because he’s got so much more to prove. That being said, I think that you’re right that we’re just getting a lot of repeated variations on “I am Batman” in so many books, which makes it feel like Dick’s character development is in stall mode. That may be a problem with having him in so many books – when I follow just one (usually Morrison’s BM&R), there’s a lot less repitition and variants on the same note.
DS