Category: Comic Books & Graphic Novels

Written by Tony S. Daniel

Art by Tony S. Daniel; Sandu Florea; Norm Rapmund; Guillem March;  Tomeu Morey; Ian Hannin; & Jared K. Fletcher

SUMMARY:

Reprinting Batman # 692-699, this 200-page collection from 2010 consists of the six-part Life After Death, along with the Riddle Me This two-parter (both from 2009-2010).  In Life After Death, Dick Grayson’s Batman is mostly solo containing the latest Gotham gang war. 

As the mysterious Black Mask’s False Face army and the Falcone gang feud over Gotham City’s underworld, the new Batman runs a lethal gauntlet to decipher Black Mask’s identity.  Further, Dick must keep a wary eye on Hush (aka Tommy Elliot), as he is busily impersonating the presumed-dead Bruce Wayne for his own evil agenda.  With trigger-happy mobster Mario Falcone on the loose (along with his impetuous niece, Kitrina), Batman faces a dire task pursuing a trail of corpses re: Black Mask’s False Face operatives. 

Not only does Black Mask have Fright, Dr. Death, Hugo Strange, and the Penguin on his side, he even manages to ensnare Batman himself as one of his expendable, mind-controlled False Face pawns.  Pushed to his physical and mental limits, a battered Dick must prove his resilience, ingenuity, and detective reasoning just to survive. 

Even with the help of Damian Wayne’s Robin; Catwoman; Alfred; Huntress; Oracle; and a network of heroes (in brief cameos), Batman finds himself in deep trouble.  The war concludes with a showdown between Batman and the second Black Mask. 

The chapters are:

• “Part One – Awakening”
• “Part Two – Charades”
• “Part Three – Fractured Pieces”
• “Part Four – Smoke and Mirrors”
• “Part Five – Mind Games”
• “Part Six – Liberator.”

Haunted by residual exposure to Hugo Strange’s nightmare toxins, Dick tackles a bizarre serial murder mystery.  Initially, it seems that Mr. Zsasz has left behind a grisly series of corpses.  An uninvited Riddler joins Batman & Commissioner Gordon’s investigation.  Sensing a copycat, the trio finds more victims, killed by someone using Firefly’s and then Mr. Freeze’s gimmicks.  Could it be the evil magician Blackspell?  Or perhaps Firefly? And who tries to kill the Riddler with fake Joker toxin?   The new Batman senses someone knows more than he is telling, as perhaps nothing is what it seems.  

•  “Part One – Black Magic Tricks”
• “Part Two – A Means to an End.”   

REVIEW:

Not only can Tony Daniel draw stellar Batman action-mystery thrillers, he can adeptly write them, too.  The macabre Life After Death saga depicts Dick Grayson far more like a young Bruce Wayne than a seasoned ex-Robin, and this concept really clicks.  Readers can embrace Dick as the new Batman, much like how Wally West assumed the Flash’s mantle from Barry Allen. 

As both writer and artist, Daniel credibly builds Dick up as a more realistic Batman – one who isn’t a virtually omniscient sleuth (like some previous Batman writers have portrayed Bruce Wayne).  Dick’s interactions with Catwoman and Huntress are also well-played, particularly when an unexpected kiss leads to chilly tension with Barbara Gordon. 

One should be aware that this six-part storyline is brutal, in terms of the violence and horror quotient.  It makes sense that a comparatively restrained Dick must resort at times to his mentor’s ruthlessly aggressive playbook.  To thwart the new Black Mask, a gritty and tenacious Dick (thanks to Daniel’s masterful work, including the wise choice to minimize Damian’s presence) makes readers believe that he is indeed Bruce Wayne’s worthy successor.

Enhanced by Guillem March’s eye-popping artwork, Daniel also delivers a vintage and equally ghoulish Batman mystery in the Riddler team-up.  Instead of a conclusive (and likely forgettable) outcome, Daniel cleverly ends it with Dick putting together the pieces of only one baffling jigsaw puzzle.  A second, far more daunting enigma is smartly left for another time.  Somehow, it makes a satisfying means to end this smoke-and-mirrors whodunit by leaving ample room for a sequel. 

Though this book definitely isn’t kid-friendly, Daniel’s creative team makes an emphatic statement boosting Dick Grayson’s relentless mission as the new Dark Knight.

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

The cover images are included, as is a table of contents specifying individual chapter titles.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                  8½ Stars

Note: With a different cover, this book was subsequently released in paperback form in 2011.

Written by Bill Matheny & J. Torres

Art by Christopher Jones; Terry Beatty; Heroic Age; Phil Balsman; & Travis Lanham

Cover Art by Jeff Matsuda & Dave McCaig

SUMMARY:

Released by DC Comics in 2007, this 144-page collection consists of The Batman Strikes! # 11-14 and # 16-18, which were published in 2005-06.  This book adheres to the artistic look of the animated series, The Batman.  The stories consist of:      

Issue # 11 (Man of Service): The Penguin aggressively targets both the Dark Knight and Bruce Wayne in his latest scheme, as a high-profile umbrella art exhibit falls under attack.

Issue # 12 (Break-In at Gotham Central): Jailing Bane’s creator, Lopez, the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) is under siege from Bane.  Batman & GCPD detective Ellen Yin try to stop him.  

Issue # 13 (Prowler): In the first half of a two-parter, Batman & Catwoman’s latest ‘date night’ finds them stalked by a mysterious cat-like predator.

Issue # 14 (Sands of Time): The conclusion pits Batman, Catwoman, and Ellen Yin against the wrath of Ethan Bennett’s monstrous Clayface.

Issue # 16 (Hit and Run): A carjacked Batmobile sets up a three-way showdown between Batman, Ethan Bennett’s Clayface, and the Joker.

Issue # 17 (A Question of Identity): The Riddler threatens to publicly expose Batman’s identity, as the Dark Knight and Detective Yin are in a desperate race to thwart him.

Issue # 18 (The Greenhouse Effect): Batman & Batgirl’s new tag team faces off against Poison Ivy.

REVIEW:

For fans of the animated series, this volume’s unremarkable visuals won’t be a deterrent.  In terms of the writing, these re-imaginings of the Penguin, Clayface, Bane, and Poison Ivy earn points for creativity.  As in the animated series, only the lukewarm Joker is a disappointment — beyond a ridiculously hipper look, his revised persona resembles more of a goofy (and cheap) knock-off of Batman’s greatest foe. 

Otherwise, this volume is modestly entertaining for the pre-teen crowd, as none of the tales are weaker than the others.  This kid-friendly version of Batman meets all expectations, as supporting appearances from Alfred, Ellen Yin, and Batgirl also prove well-played.  For young Bat-fans, with plenty of reading material, The Batman Strikes! Vol. 3: Duty Calls is a safe choice for parents.  

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

There is a two-page cover gallery: specifically, # 11 (Jeff Matsuda & Dave McCaig); # 12 (McCaig); # 13 (Christopher Beatty; Terry Beatty; & Heroic Age); # 14 (McCaig); # 16 (McCaig); # 17 (McCaig); and # 18 (Matsuda & McCaig), which doubles as the paperback’s cover image.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                   6 Stars

Written by Ty Templeton; Hillary J. Bader; & Kelley Puckett

Art by Bo Hampton; Brandon Kruse; Joe Staton; Terry Beatty; Rich Burchett; Stan Woch; Lee Loughridge; Linda Medley; Timothy Harkins; & Albert Tobias De Guzman

Cover Art by Ty Templeton

SUMMARY:

Released by DC Comics in 2018, this 240-page trade paperback consists of Batman & Robin Adventures # 19-25 and Annual # 2 (all from 1997).  Primarily written by Ty Templeton, these eight Bat-tales inspired by Batman: The Animated Series are:

• Issue # 19: Duty of the Huntress.  A grief-stricken Helena Bertinelli is among the few survivors from a mob massacre at a family party in her honor.  Vengefully pursuing justice as the masked Huntress, Helena relies on her late father’s secret journal for guidance.  The Dynamic Duo try to contain a desperate Helena, as her vigilantism may prove more dangerous than she realizes.

• Issue # 20: Through the Long Night.  Batman & Robin pursue a cache of deadly guns.  Meanwhile, the Gotham City Police Department (Harvey Bullock among them) has an ongoing betting pool re: how many goons the Dynamic Duo will nab that night.

• Issue # 21: Why Is a Raven Like a Writing Desk?  With Batman temporarily out of town, it’s up to Batgirl (Barbara Gordon) to decipher some baffling clues one night to rescue her abducted dad from the Riddler.

• Issue # 22:  Fifty Fifty.  Batman & Robin search for a kidnapped and partially-reformed Two-Face, who is using a temporary coin to make his ominous heads-or-tails decisions.  When a bloodthirsty gangster’s thugs threaten a mutual female friend of Harvey Dent & Bruce Wayne, the Dynamic Duo ultimately finds out that Two-Face has some unexpected tricks up his sleeve.

• Issue # 23: Crocodile Tears.  Gotham reporter Summer Gleeson nonchalantly badmouths the Dynamic Duo on television while expressing less-than-sincere sympathy for Killer Croc.  She doesn’t realize that the fugitive Croc now has a romantic crush on her.   

• Annual # 2: Token of Faith.  In a sequel to the animated episode, Zatanna, the Dynamic Duo faces the decrepit Hypnotist (a forgotten adversary from Bruce’s past) when a mystical amulet is stolen from Wayne Manor.  To recover the amulet, Batman contacts the Hypnotist’s next likely target: Zatanna Zatara.  Remembering their youthful past together, it’s up to Batman & Zatanna to rely on her late father’s tutelage to thwart the Hypnotist.

• Issue # 24: Touch of Death.  Batman contends with Poison Ivy and ominous government agents who are pursuing Ivy’s new acquaintance: a young boy, whose skin exudes a lethal chemical. 

• Issue # 25: Demon in the Sky.  Claiming to have tapped into the massive power of an alien flying saucer, Ra’s Al Ghul forces an injured Batman & Robin to pursue him to the edge of Area 51 and potentially beyond to stop his latest global destruction scheme.    

REVIEW:

As expected, these mostly kid-friendly stories adhere to the visual style of the cartoon series.  Yet, as a parental heads-up, there’s a rare glimpse of mass murder and blood on the opening page of the Huntress tale.  Of these eight stories, it’s impressive that they all could have inspired excellent TV episodes. 

While Token of Faith, Why is a Raven Like a Writing Desk?, and Fifty Fifty are this collection’s best tales, Through the Long Night scores re: Bullock’s inept efforts at cheating on his squad’s betting pool.  Also, Crocodile Tears makes for an unusual read, as both Killer Croc and Summer Gleason take surprising turns.  As for the biggest surprise, Demon in the Sky shifts Batman’s long-standing feud with Ra’s Al Ghul into a previously-unexplored direction re: a purported UFO encounter.

Extra credit goes to writer Ty Templeton for some terrific cover art, as he is the primary asset for making this book as entertaining as it is.  Batman & Robin Adventures, Vol. 3 proves a real winner for Bat-fans.  

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

Full-page renditions are included of the covers by Ty Templeton (Issues # 19-25) and by Joe Staton & Terry Austin for Annual # 2.  A random image from the book’s various stories add an extra decoration to mark the beginning of the next tale.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:               8 Stars

Written by Brian Azzarello

Art by Eduardo Risso; Clem Robins; Patricia Mulvihill; & Dave Johnson

SUMMARY:

Collecting Batman # 620-625 (from 2003-2004), this 144-page paperback was published by DC Comics in 2004.  Suspected of setting up Killer Croc’s vicious murder-for-hire of his own sister, elusive Angel Lupo is Batman’s latest obsession.  Shaking down the likes of Croc, the Ventriloquist, and the Penguin, the Dark Knight’s judgment is further impaired by the gunshot double-homicide of two parents in an alleyway, leaving a catatonic young boy behind. 

Haunted by nightmares of his own childhood tragedy, Batman is convinced that Lupo will kill to escape, despite some evidence to the contrary.  Not only must the Dark Knight survive the bloody onslaught of new Gotham thugs, ‘Fatman’ and ‘Little Boy,’ he is hard-pressed to hunt down Lupo first before others gunning for him do.  Chance clues from Gotham City police detective/pre-Spectre Crispus Allen and even The Joker may convince Batman that he has made a fatal series of misassumptions

REVIEW:

Gritty and grimy, Broken City justifies its bleak title — Batman’s Gotham City is depicted as an urban noir cesspool (complete with murky deluges of rain).  Justifying deliberately grotesque artwork, Brian Azzarello’s vile storyline is even uglier.  Beginning with Batman’s heavy-handed narrative, it’s evident that Azzarello is pushing Bat-noir far too hard. 

For instance, Azzarello’s Dark Knight spends excessive time conversing with his sleazy informants (that is, when he isn’t beating intel out of them).  There’s a hint of dark humor re: Croc’s ruined dentures, but it isn’t sufficiently explained why Batman defeating Croc is so utterly routine.  Also, Batman endures some bloody poundings from rookie tag team, ‘Fatman’ and ‘Little Boy.’  What isn’t satisfying is Azzarello’s failure to reveal exactly how an outmatched Batman reciprocates. 

Without divulging a total spoiler, one plot twist involves a partially-eaten homicide victim who was pregnant.  While this grisly detail supposedly sends Batman after the right suspect, Azzarello’s creative indiscretion is what readers should find highly suspect.  Let’s just say another late twist re: why Scarface and The Ventriloquist want Lupo dead makes one ponder how a highly implausible ‘love connection’ could have ever occurred.  Even as an intriguing development for a regular Bat-villain, Azzarello hardly makes a convincing case justifying another icky sub-plot.

One final twist, however, is worthy of a Law & Order TV episode.  Despite all the unrepentant sleaze leading up to this shocker, it still achieves a haunting effect.  The problem is that Azzarello doesn’t necessarily give Batman enough clues to make this last deductive leap.  Instead of peddling an unnecessary Joker scene, Azzarello should have indicated that Batman’s personal insight finally kicks in.  Sadly, this chilling double-homicide sub-plot is an all-too-realistic allusion to domestic violence (and easy access to guns).     

Hence, what’s intriguing re: Broken City is how Batman’s erroneous investigation has other players game his incorrect suspicions into a killing spree.  The storyline’s only worthy contribution to the Bat-mythos is a variant on Bruce Wayne’s traumatic nightmares over losing his parents. 

To Azzarello’s credit, he ingeniously doesn’t reveal the three hurtful words that young Bruce shouts at his parents shortly before their tragic deaths.  Any parent who remembers childhood can likely deduce what spiteful words are coming out of a child’s crushed feelings.  Otherwise, Batman-Meets-Law and Order: SVU is the closest approximation one can make to Azzarello’s sleazy effort to meld the Dark Knight with gritty Mickey Spillane-style noir.

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

Former Batman Editor Bob Schreck provides a single-page introduction.  Another single page gives biographical synopses for Azzarello; Risso; Robins; Mulvihill; and Johnson.  Although not acknowledged as a cover gallery, all six of Johnson’s stylishly noir, full-length covers conclude this book.   

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                        2 Stars

Written by (See Credits Below)

Art by (See Credits Below) & Lettering by Rob Leigh

Cover Art by Jason Pearson

SUMMARY:

Released in 2010 by DC Comics, this 126-page paperback showcases the five Joker’s Asylum one-shots of 2008.  The Arkham Asylum rogues profiled are: the Joker, the Penguin, Poison Ivy, Scarecrow, and Two-Face, with Batman in a supporting role in these grim Gotham City noir tales.  As the Joker gleefully plays master-of-ceremonies from his cell, the stories are:

• The Joker: The Joker’s Wild! (Writer: Arvid Nelson and Artists: Alex Sanchez & Jose Villarrubia).  The Joker commandeers a televised game show and takes its live audience hostage.  As the program’s unpredictable new host, he divulges the ‘real’ human monsters behind-the-scenes.    

• The Penguin: He Who Laughs Last …! (Writer: Jason Aaron and Artists: Jason Pearson & Dave McCaig).  Buffered by a flashback of young Oswald Cobblepot’s retaliation against a cruel prom-related prank, the present-day Penguin enjoys a flourishing relationship with a grateful young woman he frees from captivity.  Yet, his dark propensity for avenging personal slights may well come into play.

• Poison Ivy: Deflowered! (Writer: JT Krul and Artist: Guillem March).  Targeting a trio of sleazy Gotham businessmen, serial killer Poison Ivy isn’t deterred by Batman’s relentless pursuit.  

• Scarecrow: Dark Knight of the Scarecrow (Writer: Joe Harris and Artist: Juan Doe).  A cruel high school clique’s  sex-laced parlor game targets one of psychiatrist Jonathan Crane’s young female clients.  As his nefarious alter ego, the Scarecrow aids her retaliation.

• Two-Face: Two-Face, Too! (Writer: David Hine and Artists: Andy Clarke & Nathan Eyring).  Similarly disfigured as Two-Face, an ex-firefighter naively reaches out to Harvey Dent.  Declining this offer of friendship, Dent abducts his would-be savior and his innocent spouse for a deadly game of torture.

REVIEW:

The best way to describe this wicked concept is pitching the Joker as DC’s answer to Tales from the Crypt’s Crypt Keeper. Make no mistake: DC Comics irresponsibly fails to identify Joker’s Asylum for adults only, especially how its grisly content glorifies evil. 

Unlike the hideous-looking “The Joker’s Wild!,” the four subsequent visual styles are surprisingly good to varying degrees.  However, it’s the gutter-level tripe passed off as macabre fun that merits far greater scrutiny.   Depicting the least amount of violence, “The Joker’s Wild!” is closest to a Tales from the Crypt-style TV tale since an ironic ‘moral’ comes into play.  Telegraphing its own cleverness, Arvid Nelson’s contrived Joker fable is a dubious sign of things to come.

Enhanced by excellent visuals, the Penguin love story’s ambiguity falls short of its potential.  If read straightforward, one should notice a close resemblance between present-day ‘Violet’ and the flashback’s conceited ‘Allison.’  Yet, writer Jason Aaron doesn’t acknowledge this obvious visual element — not even by Penguin simply acknowledging that Violet looks like someone he once knew. 

Considering that Violet’s fate is telegraphed, one might construe that this cruel episode is merely playing out in the Penguin’s imagination. If so, then the Penguin is merely foreseeing the bleak outcome, should he ‘rescue’ the enigmatic Violet from underworld human trafficking.  By that interpretation, the Penguin’s ambivalent psyche delivers this compilation’s most sophisticated story. 

There’s nothing remotely subtle about Poison Ivy’s “Deflowered!”  The book’s best artwork doesn’t disguise scantily-clad sleaze sensationalizing Ivy’s serial killing scheme.  Including Ivy’s impersonation of a prostitute, her gratuitous mayhem is the equivalent of Batman guest-starring in a porno/slasher flick.  Had Ivy’s over-sexualized look been toned down, JT Krul’s plot might have worked better.  Since the Joker relates this story, one infers that he knows of Batman’s secret identity, Alfred, and the Batcave.  Despite this inexplicable plot hole, Batman’s interactions with Alfred and Commissioner Gordon are perhaps this gruesome story’s only redeemable asset.      

Describing the final two stories, they’re merely a ghoulish excuse for barrel-scraping Bat-entertainment.  For instance, in spite of excellent work by Andy Clarke and Nathan Eyring illustrating Two-Face’s segment, there isn’t an iota of taste, plotting-wise.  Just look at the last page as a reprehensible creative choice dumped on readers. 

Considering far lesser degrees of depravity that DC Comics might have deployed (i.e. a witty Riddler caper, had he been included), The Joker’s Asylum opts for vile and misogynistic content for no justifiable reason.  Wasting good artistic talent, this depraved compilation gladly exploiting Batman’s villains as unrepentant psychotics is pure trash from DC Comics.   

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

Full-page reprints of all five covers are included.  Two full-page images of The Joker’s wicked facial reactions staring through his cell door finish this book.

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                      1 Star