Abyss? More Like A Miss
Writer: Joshua Williamson, G. Willow Wilson
Artist: Howard Porter
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: June 7, 2022
Cover Price: $4.99
I usually start my reviews with a little paragraph of what I've liked or disliked about the book leading into the current issue. The problem I'm having here is that Joshua Williamson's run feels incomplete. The Lex Luther / Batman Inc. story felt rushed, and a chunk of the run was part of the larger Shadow War story. I don't think this run will be remembered for much, if at all, but here we are with the final issue. Was it a good ending? Let's find out...
Batman #124 opens in Badhnisia, where we discover that Abyss is alive and well and back to their old tricks. I say that as if anyone knows much of anything about Abyss in the first place.
So, you think this is a Batman Inc. job, right? Wrong! Even though Batman tasked Ghostmaker and the rest of the new Batman Inc. to track down and take care of Lex's "experiments," he is making this his mission and is already in Badhnisia. So much for wanting to spend more time in Gotham!
The real reason that Joshua Williamson has Batman on the case becomes clear when we find out who this Abyss is. I won't spoil it here, but if you have been reading Williamson's run, it's the only other character he introduced and did any character work with. I'm not going to say that it doesn't make sense, but it is entirely underwhelming.
Check out our Video Review of Batman #124
From that point on, Williamson plays off the differences and similarities between Batman and Abyss, ramping up the tension with the chance that Batman may let a murder happen. I don't think anyone thinks he will, but when he explains his reasoning, it makes enough sense, plus you're left with a wink-wink that he would not have let it get that far anyway.
So, after all that, we might get yet another new addition to the Batman Inc. team (we'll see when the series starts in October) and a final issue that ties up the one (kind of) loose end of the run. The fact that this was the only thing Williamson could find to finish up is laughable in and of itself. In my mind, Williamson jumped onto Batman to help out DC when they let Tynion go off to Substack without a backup plan, but that doesn't make his issues any better. Besides maybe the Shadow War tie-in issues, Joshua Williamson's Batman run will be forgotten almost immediately. It wasn't horrible; it was just nothing. Sometimes, that's worse.
There is a Poison Ivy backup story that ties directly into the new series by G. Willow Wilson. If you are going to read that, I suggest checking it out. It's not 100% necessary but does a decent job of recapping and setting up the solo book.
The art in the main story and backup is good, but that's about all the big positives I can give.
Make sure to listen to our Weekly DC Comics Recap and Review Podcast to hear us talk more about this book. Check out Podcast Links & More Here: https://campsite.bio/weirdsciencecomics
Bits and Pieces:
Batman #124 was a forgettable issue that ends a forgettable run by Joshua Williamson. Whatever the circumstances surrounding him taking over the book, he barely had a story to tell, and it shows with this weak finale.
5.5/10
I've been saying this for a while now, but DC let Williamson bite off much more than he could chew. They gave him so many books and he failed miserably on all fronts. His Batman is a huge disappointment to me. And judging by Dark Crisis #1, I don't think he was saving his best for that, or if he did, well, that's an underwhelming end result. Your rating is spot on, if anything it's a bit generous. I knew he would bring back Cayha since he needed to check the "powerful female" box but nothing here was believable. She being all of a sudden a ninja who beats everyone left and right is ridiculous, as was Batman's attitude, even if the explanation made sense. I know for you as a Zdarsky fan, big things are on the horizon but as someone who's not so amazed by him I am very skeptical of that, too. If his "Batman - The Knight" is any indication it will probably be ok at best, disappointing at worst.
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