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Batman and Robin #3

Rock — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 11:48:03 +0000

Batman and Robin #3 is a perfect blend of great story telling and amazing art. With the splitting and then reconnecting of Batman and Robin, this episode is also a lot more chock-filled with emotions as well as actions than other comics.

Story: Grant Morrison is a rather ingenious writer and came up with some really excellent ideas for this issue. From the splitting of Batman and Robin to the creation of a new villain, the story rages a never-ending war against boredom and simplicity and paves a path for quick paced, content full comics. The story also has a strong emotional base as well as action, due to the struggle of Dick trying to fit into the role his father crafted and trying to discover where he fits in.

Art: Frank Quitely did an astounding job creating art for Batman and Robin #3 that perfectly corresponded to the story, mostly due to the relationship between Quitely and Morrison. Quitely also has an amazing command over color and utilizes it to his whim, expressing emotion, anticipation, action, and any other thing he can think of. He also pays very close attention to detail and even in the large fight scenes still manages to capture every single aspect in his artwork.

Overall: Batman and Robin #3 is one of those comic books where neither the writing or the drawing is better than the other, but put together they become a powerhouse of emotion and control over the reader. If you want a comic book that will affect you in ways no other can while at the same time entertaining you, look no further.

Batman #690

Rock — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:44:19 +0000

Batman #690 is unfortunately one of the slightly mediocre publications in the Batman series, due mostly in part to the writing style of Judd Winick.

Story: The plot mostly revolves around stories that are already not very strong, such as having a long battle between notorious muscle man Clayface, and this causes the plot to lack in sustenance and support. Judd Winick does a poor job of building Dick’s character as Batman and his style in doing so can be slightly grating on the readers. Most of the plot also has a tendency to feel like something Winick needed to include as filler, seeming as if he wasn’t able to come up with enough ideas for this issue.

Art: Mark Bagley, the main artist behind the issue, does a good job of matching the hectic style of the story to the artwork, but at times this can become a little overdone and the panels a bit crowded. However, he does do a wonderful job with variations between strips as well as an excellent job portraying the true emotions of the characters.

Overall: Batman #690 isn’t exactly the worst comic book ever, but it certainly is also nowhere close to the best. Its lack of a substantial plot is very detrimental to the feeling of the book and makes it a little hard to read and take seriously. That taken into account, the art does a relatively good job compensating for the lack of plot and makes the overall experience more than bearable.

Batman #686

Rock — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 17:17:10 +0000

Part one of “What Happened to the Caped Crusader?” doesn’t disappoint thanks to Neil Gaman and Andy Kubert.

Story: Batman #686 begins with friends, and enemies, coming together to reflect upon the life of the Caped Crusader. Alfred is the host of the memorial service and plays meet and greet with all who arrive, like the Riddler, Selina Kyle, and the Joker. The meat of this issue are the two flashback stories of Catwoman, Selina Kyle, and Alfred that tell how they each killed Batman.

The two stories cause more confusion than a clear explanation of what is going on, but they are both crafted well. The first flashback is told by Catwoman and her relationship with Batman, while Alfred tells a story of how he helped fill Gotham with so many villains. Like I said, Gaiman causes confusion with these 2 conflicting stories, so it will be very interesting to see where he goes with this in Part 2.

Art: I don’t have much to say except that Andy Kubert’s art complements Gaiman’s writing style very well. He was able to pack each panel with an impressive amount of detail really bringing to life this story.

Overall: An excellent issue and Kubert and Gaiman do not disappoint. The only drawback with the issue is the confusion it creates because the direction it will go in is unclear. Don’t let that deter you though. This is still a must have issue.