Art by: Greg Capullo
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: April 16, 2014
Madness Is Coming At Ya
Zero Year has been Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo's ambitious retelling of Batman's origin. It's been great because of the winks and nods at the past while establishing it's own mythos. The final chapter, Savage City, is here and the title is fitting. Gotham City is barely recognizable. Where the first two parts seemed familiar enough to grasp, Savage City is different. This difference is not just a surprise to the reader, but to Bruce Wayne as well.
The issue opens with a flashback/dream sequence reminiscent to the Tokyo Moon bit that started the Zero Year story. It's quick, eerie and I'm sure will pay dividends in the future. This is Scott Snyder, you know. Then, after a shout out to No Man's Land, we get to the heart of the matter, Bruce Wayne didn't come out of Dark City unscathed. In fact, it looks like he's been out of it for a while..
While he was out, Gotham has transformed into a wild land being held hostage by the Riddler. Scott Snyder has transformed the Riddler from a funny little villain into an evil, sadistic madman and the Riddler has transformed Gotham into a hellhole. Luckily, not everyone has bowed down to Nygma and they are about to be joined by a "Psycho in a Batsuit".
Scott Snyder likes to set up a story and then turn it on it's head. Savage City turns it on it's head and then makes you do an illegal headspin on an Alfonso Breakin' Board. It's fun, but you may be a little dizzy afterwards. Even though it's mostly exposition and setup I really liked it and can't wait to see it unfold. That being said, I had a few problems with this issue.
First was the time frame of Bruce's coma. How long was he out? It appeared to be a pretty long time and that rubs me the wrong way when thinking about the amount of time this whole story takes place in. It is such a good story, so I can overlook it, but I know some people (Eric here at Weird Science for one) who will be bothered by it.
Second, what the hell was Alfred doing the whole time? Waiting by the phone in the Batcave it seems. He tells Bruce he thought he was dead, but did nothing about it. Plus, he tells Bruce a way to save the people of Gotham. It's a plan he could have done himself how many months ago. Boo to you Alfred.
You will never hear me boo Greg Capullo's art. It's always so detailed and great that having him draw a overgrown and wild Gotham seems unfair. It looks fantastic in it's dilapidation. Kudos also go to Danny Miki and FCO Plascensia on ink and colors respectively. They combine with Capullo to truly make this the best the DCU gets each month.
Bits and Pieces:
Batman #30 starts the Savage City story and everything has changed. While the story is heavy on setup and exposition, it is great and has me wanting the next chapter now. I'm sure every Batman fan is already invested in the story, but this arc is one every DC fan should be reading.
8.5/10
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