Here are today's Guest Reviews by
Jeremy Sims from
Batwatch for DC's; Batman Annual #2, Batman Incorporated #13, Detective Comics Annual #2, and Batwing #23. I have also added my rating after each review. If you have any questions about my rating or want to discuss anything just leave me a comment.
Batman Annual #2 - Cages
A special ZERO YEAR tie-in! Bruce Wayne's first year as the Dark Knight has just barely begun...and already dangerous elements are coalescing, leading Bruce toward his final destiny.
Preview
Surprisingly Tasty
I have to say that I'm pretty interested in this issue. First and foremost, we get to see the first work of a new writer, Marguerite Bennett writing alongside the famous Scott Snyder. (former writer of Vertigo's American Vampire and current writer of Batman, Superman Unchained and Vertigo's the Wake and Long Road to Hell) Wetting my appetite even further, we have a promising preview which shows a few well written pages which include the reveal of Batman committing himself to Arkham Asylum. Finally, we have some intrigue with rumors of a character called Anchoress who is supposed to be the first inmate of Arkham which is quite an accomplishment since Arkham, if I am not mistaken, was established over a hundred years ago.
Since Marguerite Bennett follows me on Twitter the question for this review is whether I will be hoping real hard she doesn't notice my review or whether I will gladly send it to her praising her for her first foray into comics?
In this issue, Batman tests Arkham's new security measures and Anchoress finds someone to listen to her tale of woe.
This was quite the yummy treat. Now only was it sweet, but it also had a lot of meat seasoned well and grilled to perfection.
I'm not sure what's up with the food references. Perhaps my subconscious is telling me its time to eat.
I haven't been a huge fan of most of the Bat Family annuals. Many of them seem to take one story that would fit nicely into a single issue and expand it by adding a bunch of unnecessary fluff.
This issue stands head and shoulders above those.
Read the rest of Jeremy Sims' review on Batwatch
My Rating
Cover & Solicit - 3/5
Art, Colors & Inking - 3/5
Layout & Flow - 3/5
Story - 3/5
Verdict -3 - (Buy Batman Annual #2) SAVE 10%
Batman, Incorporated #13 - The Dark Knight and the Devil's Daughter
Batman saves the world and loses everything.
Preview
The Big Picture Vs. Small Details
It's hard to believe we are finally at the finishing line for Batman, Incorporated. From hovering Batmobiles, shuffling superhero idenities and the birth and death of a Robin, Morrison's (former writer of Rebellion's 2000AD and Batman and current writer of Batman, Incorporated) run on Batman has been wild. Though I've read it all, I read much of it in trades, and I have to imagine that reaching the conclusion to this journey is really surreal for those of you who have waited month to month for seven years just to see this through to the end.
Grant Morrison has said that he thinks Batman fans will hate this issue because it's depressing. Even if the issue is great, it's going to be a little sad just to know that Morrison, the guy who brought us so many interesting concepts, will no longer we writing the Bat.
There is no doubt that Batman, Incorporated #13 will have some interesting concepts, but will it be interesting like a train wreck or interesting like a great work of literature?
In this issue, Batman faces off against Talia and has a little talk with Commissioner Gordon.
I'm not the best Batman expert. I've done what I believe to be an excellent job keeping up with Batman news for nearly a year now, I have some worthwhile skill at analysis and commentary, and I have loved Batman and followed comics loosely for over ten years, but until I founded BatWatch nearly a year ago, I did not read every issue as it came off the press but rather stuck to those stories I knew I enjoyed. Realizing I needed some background to comment on Morrison's complicated Batman arc, I went back and started reading some of his issues when I began to prep for BatWatch, and after reading just a few issues, I came to a simple conclusion that I believe fits this issue fits perfectly. Grant Morrison is great at coming up with cool, big picture ideas, but in the actual detailed execution of plot, he's not the best.
Read the rest of Jeremy Sims' review on Batwatch
My Rating
Cover & Solicit - 2/5
Art, Colors & Inking - 2/5
Layout & Flow - 1/5
Story - 2/5
Verdict - 1.9 - (Buy Batman Incorporated #13) SAVE 10%
Detective Comics Annual #2 - Face in the Crowd; Contained Multitudes; Harvey Bullock, This is Your Life
It's a terrible, dangerous time to be a cop in Gotham City. At a time when police are being targeted for assassination, Gotham's Finest also face a threat from within, as a shape-changing identity thief has infiltrated the GCPD and threatens to destroy it from within. Will he unravel the mystery behind this secretive killer before he loses any more of the few allies he has left on the force?
Preview
Law and Order: Super Crime Unit
I've been very happy with John Layman's work on Detective Comics as a whole, but I have to admit I was a bit disappointed in his latest issue. It was not bad, but wherein I expected a lot of intensity from the new arc featuring The Wrath, I instead got a rather bloated and overly simple story of Wrath sending his acolyte to do some dirty work for him. Layman usually squeezes the most out of every panel, but I definitely felt he could have skipped some scenes and put a lot more substance in Tec' #22.
The annual will hopefully be a different ballgame. The assassination of cops is the name nature of the crime in this particular case file, and that certainly sounds like the work of The Wrath, but there might be a lot more to this case than meets the eye.
Does Batman prove himself to be the World's Greatest Detective in 'Tec Annual #2 or is Batman too distracted with the needless fill to solve the case?
In this issue, Batman is on the search for a villain who can be anyone.
John Layman has been the only guy really focusing on the detective aspect of Batman, and this issue plays to that aspect of the Bat even more than usual. This issue has a genuine mystery in place even if the suspects are few and the evidence inconclusive. Still, it's nice to see Batman put the pieces together, and I was kept guessing as the story unraveled.
Read the rest of Jeremy Sims' review on Batwatch
My Rating
Cover & Solicit - 3/5
Art, Colors & Inking - 3/5
Layout & Flow - 4/5
Story - 4/5
Verdict - 3.6 - (Buy Detective Comics Annual #2) SAVE 10%
Batwing #23 - Smash
Luke Fox’s personal life is already in turmoil, but as Batwing he must confront a dangerous new threat in the form of assassin for hire Lady Vic as she makes her first appearance in The New 52!
Preview
Feel Good Action
Batwing needs a hit in a bad way. The series, unless I somehow missed something, is the worst selling DC Comics series to be spared from the chopping block. It's hard for me to imagine DC's desire to be racially diverse will keep Batwing afloat for long, so it seems the only hope is for the writing to be so great that new readers will somehow find and embrace this series, yet that is so much easier said that done. Palimotti (former inker for Jonah Hex and writer for Power Girl and current writer for Batwing, All-Star Western, and What If? AVX) and Gray (former writer for Jonah Hex and Power Girl and current writer for Batwing and All-Star Western) have done a good job delivering satisfying stories, but without new readers ready to give this series a chance, it's all for naught.
Focusing on the comic itself, we've got a lot on the table. Batwing and Batman are working together in an attempt to rescue Luke's father, and forces are continuing to mount against our newbie hero. The assassin Lady Vic is set to make an appearance as well, and I suspect she will be more than happy to insert her Katar into Luke's heart and send him to an early retirement. We are still getting to know Luke and his world; let's hope Batwing lives long enough for us to see where this all leads.
Is Batwing's triumphant first adventure also his tragic end or does Batwing still have a little fuel in his thrusters?
I just realized as I finished this issue that it has more or less filled a whole in my reading that was left gaping when James Tynion IV (current writer of Talon, Red Hood and the Outlaws and Batman) took over Red Hood and the Outlaws and turned it into Mind Wiped and the Drama Queens. RHATO used to be good, plain fun, and that pretty well encapsulates this book with Luke Fox as the main character.
Read the rest of Jeremy Sims' review on Batwatch
My Rating
Cover & Solicit - 3/5
Art, Colors & Inking - 4/5
Layout & Flow - 3/5
Story - 4/5
Verdict - 3.7 - (Buy Batwing #23) SAVE 10%
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