Written by Judd Winick.
Art by Ed Benes; Mark Bagley; Rob Hunter; Jack Purcell; Ian Hannin; JD Smith; Pete Pantazis; Jared K. Fletcher; Tony S. Daniel; Sandu Florea; & J.G. Jones.
Cover Art by J.G. Jones.
SUMMARY:
Released in 2010 by DC Comics, this 128-page Batman Reborn book collects Batman # 687-691 (first issued in 2009). The opening story, “A Battle Within” is meant as an epilogue to the concurrent three-part Batman: Battle For The Cowl mini-series. Alfred Pennyworth and Dick Grayson, along with Damian Wayne and, in a cameo, Tim Drake, are heartbroken over the believed-dead Bruce Wayne. In the Batcave, they are presented Bruce’s last Bat-cowl by Superman and Wonder Woman after it has been recovered from the Final Crisis battlefield.
Reluctantly accepting the Bat-mantle, Dick Grayson launches a public blitz to convince the world that he is the same legendary Dark Knight as Bruce Wayne. Privately joining the grieving Wonder Woman, Superman, Black Canary, and Green Arrow at Bruce’s gravesite, Dick implores them to not let the monsters out there know that the original, fear-inducing Batman is gone.
Prior to officially becoming a new Dynamic Duo, Dick (still as Nightwing) & Damian tackle Doctor Phosphorus. Afterwards, the four-part “Long Shadows,” has Dick’s Batnan, with Alfred’s help, subsequently going solo thwarting multiple Gotham City threats, including Clayface, a Punisher-liker psychotic, and the Scarecrow. With his GCPD routinely outmatched in these crises, Commissioner Gordon is already getting a sense that there’s something different about this Batman.
Meanwhile, a similarly suspicious Harvey “Two-Face” Dent enlists a mercenary teleporter to help him finally infiltrate the dormant Batcave. It’s there where Dent forces a showdown against the exuberant pretender he believes is impersonating Gotham’s Dark Knight.
Correlating to writer Tony Daniel’s Detective Comics run, a desperate Penguin finds himself, among others, forcibly recruited into Black Mask’s scheme for a hostile takeover of Gotham. Other grim surprises further await the new Batman, including a tease of a Batcave mystery related to Dick’s tragic origin.
REVIEW:
Even if Long Shadows isn’t a vintage storyline, it explores well the Dick Grayson-as-Batman concept. Unlike Tony Daniel’s intense noir-like take on Dick’s Batman, writer Judd Winick treads closer to Paul Dini’s playbook in deploying an entertaining middle-ground stance. Long Shadows, for instance, has some gritty action scenes without resorting to ghoulish ultra-violence. Case in point: the climatic Batcave face-off certainly qualifies as intense mayhem.
Winick also smartly re-asserts Dick & Alfred’s poignant rapport, such as when they establish a new downtown Bat-Bunker. Curiously, Dick’s own backstory with Two-Face isn’t exploited. Yet, the vile hatred he inherits as Batman from this old adversary is still well-played. Its best element surfaces when Harvey Dent correlates the original Boy Wonder (someone else Dent has long despised) to this new Batman. Describing Dick’s vicious clash with Two-Face as growing pains is an understatement, but how he ultimately responds is worth the price of admission.
Along with Winick’s solid plotting (despite not explaining Damian’s absence for most of this storyline), the artwork is generally excellent (i.e. the first chapter). Long Shadows, accordingly, is an underrated read that is well worth exploring.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Six full-page covers are included, including J.G. Jones’ variant for Batman # 687, which doubles as this book’s cover. A brief intro explains Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne’s roles as the new Dynamic Duo.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 7 Stars
