Batman: Urban Legends #11 Review

Half and Half

Writer: Vita Ayala, Mohale Mashigo, Mark Russell, Ram V

Artist: AnandRK, Nikola Cizmesija, Arist Deyn, Karl Mostert

Cover Price: $7.99

Release Date: January 11, 2022

Batman: Urban Legends #11 does something that I've been hoping would happen in a while.  We start four brand new stories this month, two of which are longer 6-issue minis.  Now, the danger of being stuck with a stinker for months is scary, but hopefully, that's not the case here.  Screw it, let's find out right now...

The first story, a Batman and Zatanna "team-up" by Vita Ayala, is a decent start.  I love seeing the early days of Bruce and Z, and Ayala does a good job with them.  Unfortunatley, there isn't much of a story here yet, and what we do get feels a bit like the Batman / Wonder Woman part of the Superfriends story from Tom King's Rebirth run.  Nikola Cizmesija's art has more of a cartoony feel than I'd expect from a darker story like this, but it wasn't any deal-breaker.  I will save judgment until at least the next issue because little happens beyond the setup and cliffhanger, but I liked what we got so far.

Next is Ram V's three-issue backstory for his Wight Witch character from Catwoman.  If you aren't familiar with the Wight Witch, don't worry because even readers of Catwoman are mainly in the same boat.  The character has changed a bit since their first introduction, but my biggest question is why we even needed this story?!?  I guess it's to get Ram V's name on the cover (he's as hot as Hansel right now!) because this is a whole lot of nothing.  Anand Radhakrishnan's art is unique and exciting to look at, but it does not help tell the story and even clutters it up a bit.  Every character has fans, so the three Wight Witch fanatics out there will probably get pumped up for this.  The possibility of seeing Ghostmaker is the only thing that's slightly interesting to me.

The three-part "Eternity in Gotham" by Mohale Mashigo is next, and this one was a pleasant surprise.  The story picks up after the Jeff Lemire Eternity one-shot that came out in 2012 (if you have the DC Infinite app, it's on there) that updated the character of Kid Eternity.  It has I-Zombie vibes going for it, and Mashigo sets things up so that every reader can jump onboard.  It's a spooky little setup with nice art by Arist Deyn.  I do like the character, so I may be biased here, but I am looking forward to continuing this story.

Last up is a Batman / Ace team-up by Mark Russell that I loathed.  The story itself is a complete slog to get through.  Karl Mostert's art is excellent, and everything in this story looks incredible.  However, the pacing is wack, and Russell messes up Tom King's unique Ace origin story and replaces it with a generic, watered-down version.  Along with that, we get a forced narration that I'm betting Russell hopes will hit with pet owners in all the land and a death that tried for feels but fell so flat!  The end promises a Super Pets story will continue from this, so we will see how it goes.  I pray to whatever god cares most about comics that it's better than this!

Bits and Pieces:

Batman: Urban Legends #11 continues to hit and miss with stories and art.  There is usually something to like, though, and I'm looking forward to continuing with the Batman / Zatanna story as well as the Eternity one.  The kicker is whether it's worth the hefty price of admission, and while that's totally a personal thing, this one didn't quite do it for me.  

6.0/10