Batman-451
Written By: Marguerite Bennett, James Tynion IV
Art By: Renalto Arlem, Adriano Lucas
Letters By: Deron Bennett
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: August 16, 2017
Art By: Renalto Arlem, Adriano Lucas
Letters By: Deron Bennett
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: August 16, 2017
*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*
To say that the Batwoman book has been struggling as of late
would be putting it too nicely. We got stuck in the Many Arms of Death
storyline for what felt like forever and just when we finally thought we had
gotten out of it, we got another flashback issue that dealt directly with the
events of that storyline. Needless to say, we need something new and we need it
immediately. So, we are starting a new story with this current issue. The
question is, will that story be something completely new, or will it continue
to deal with the story that we’ve been getting up to this point? It’s hard to
say and honestly I have little faith in this book to provide me with anything
entertaining. It’s easily one of the worst books that DC is putting out right
now. Let’s just jump right in and hope that we’re wrong.
Our issue begins with Kate’s monologue about what the symbol
of the bat means. We get a flashback to when she was rescued by Batman as she
remembers the moment that she knew she wanted to become Batwoman. However, as
we turn the page, we see that the future of Gotham City isn’t so bright. The
symbol of the bat has changed drastically in a new time known as the Reign of
the Bat. Kate’s monologue reveals that Bruce is no longer with them. Kate now
stands in a warship as they make their approach to Gotham. A man walks up behind
her and gives her a status update of the mission. It’s revealed that Kate hasn’t
been back to Gotham in quite sometime and that the last time she was there was
when she buried Julia alongside Bruce.
While the man was originally unable to be identified, it isn’t
long until we see that it is non-other than Red Hood himself, Jason Todd. He
agrees to keep her safe as she dawns her mask and goes into the city. Gotham seems
to be a police state now but there is one section that is peaceful thanks to an
agreement between the powers that be. The area is called Free Gotham and it is
run by the former Gotham City Police Department. We see Renee Montoya and
Harvey Bullock talking outside of their headquarters about what the city has
changed into. Harvey heads off as Montoya returns to the office. Once inside
she is suddenly started by an intruder but puts her gun away as soon as she
sees that it is Kate Kane.
Kate and Renee talk for a while about moving forward on their
plans against the new regime which is utilizing the power of Brother Eye. However,
they aren’t able to talk for long before the building is barged into by
soldiers dressed as Batman. They open fire and engage with Kate and Renee. It
would seem that Kate and Renee are able to take them out relatively easily but a
stray bullet gets off one of the soldiers guns and hits Renee in her chest and
exiting through her back. Kate runs to Renee’s side and tells her that she is
going to be okay as she phones in for medical support which Jason sends from
his warship. Renee and Kate then speak for a while as Renee confesses her
feelings for Kate and the two share a kiss. Kate then carry Renee to safety as
she vows to do what she needs to make Tim Drake pay for what he has done to
Gotham. This is where the issue ends.
I’m actually pretty torn on this issue. On one hand, it gives
us a new and entertaining story that I’ve been craving from this series. That
said, it means the big reveal about Kate working for Colony is actually just a
future timeline story. The creative team has been looming this thing over us
for half a year now and that’s the big reveal? It’s kind of disappointing but
at the same time I’m actually looking forward to more of this story.
Unfortunately, it seems that this was only a one issue story that will be picked
up later in Detective Comics. Now, this issue had a lot of problems too. It
paints such a grim picture of the future and I’m not even sure that I buy the
way that these characters have changed so much but I guess I’ll deal with it.
Ultimately, there are two writers listed on this book and it’s very clear to me
which one wrote the previous 6 issues and which one wrote this issue.
Bits and Pieces
This was okay and has me intrested.This isn't the first time Tim has a big of the DC future, there was a Teen Titans run that sorta did this Pre-Flashpoint,and I think Harvest of the N52 was a version of Tim. Anyway it's different because this seems to have bigger stakes, aiming it to be something more important. And big plus for me this the first future timeline to ever show Jason Todd. One downside though was this art.
ReplyDeleteFor me this is a positive 6.5