Batman #20 Review

I am Satisfied

Written by: Tom King
Art by: David Finch, Danny Miki, Trevor Scott, Jordie Bellaire and Deron Bennett
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: April 5, 2017

This is the ending of the I am Bane arc and while some have their eyes on The Button story coming up next, I have been looking forward to this finale for a while.  Yea, not just two week, but a while. Tom King has promised that as this story comes to an end, it will shed light on lot of things that have happened since the beginning of Rebirth and that sounds awesome to me.  So, how does Batman and Bane beating the living crap out of each other give us some of the answers to some of the questions we've been asking?  Let's find out...


The issue opens up with Batman and Bane squaring off in Arkham, but quickly heads off in a whole other direction...backwards.  We go way back to the beginning of Tom King's run and watch the Dark Knight urban surf the Gotham Air plane into certain death...or something else.  There is a very intimate narration going on here, but it's hard to figure out just who it is just yet.

Back in Arkham, Batman may be close to yet another bloody death, but that's not stopping his trash talking.  Actually, it seems to have launched it to a whole new level.  With the narration and what we are seeing, it really looks like what is happening is what I've suspected all along, Batman wants to die.

This whole idea goes back even before Tom King took Batman over with Rebirth.  The ending of the New 52 (or DC YOU if you want to be technical about it) was all about Batman dying and coming back and from that point on, Bruce has been real concerned with ending his life with "a good death", one that his parents would be proud of.  He even asked Alfred that straight up while riding that plane into the harbor.

Of course, things took an odd turn when he was saved by Gotham and Gotham Girl and that's where the mysterious narrator picks back up.  Gotham and Gotham Girl were the way out for Bruce, but that door slammed shit right in his face.

Back again with Bane, Batman is getting more than a door slammed into his face now and Tom King gives us a little rundown of the last twenty issues and that's when the narration gets clearer as to what Bruce's endgame has always been.  Then we find out who is talking...I won't spoil it, but it's very personal and while Tom King took a huge chance going this route, I think it paid off in the end.

The issue ends with Batman taking back everything by letting go of everything as well.  While it may not be the clear cut ending that some may want, I really liked it as a glimpse into Batman closing a huge chapter in his life and hopefully moving forward bigger and better.

I really liked this issue as a Batman issue.  Sure, it didn't quite tie up the two arcs that it should have and because of that, I am deducting some points, but it does a bit more than that as well.  Tom King shows us what's been at play his entire Rebirth run and it's not pretty, some may be angry and others will love it.  Yep, it's that kind of issue and I'm in the third group.  I also love David Finch's art here, but that is no real surprise as it's been outstanding every issue he's been on.

Bits and Pieces:

Those looking for a clear cut ending to the I am Bane (and I am Suicide) arc may be disappointed, but Tom King is going bigger here.  The reader gets to see what's been driving Bruce since even before Rebirth started and it's the big picture reveal that grabbed me.  The story and art were both outstanding and if you have been a fan of Tom King's run, I think you'll be satisfied and ready to move forward.

9.0/10