DARK WAS THE KNIGHT, VOL. 1 (OCT 10-16, 2012)

Welcome to 'Dark Was The Write', a mostly weekly column highlighting some of the less highlight-y titles connected to Batman and his dark city. Usually, the lead Batman title will get it's own review, and secondary issues get some love here! The Batman family of titles is by far DC's largest, so I won't always be covering everything released each week (like, I really don't like Batwoman), but there will usually be a healthy dose of Gotham City's problems represented.

Batgirl #13
"Death of the Family" Prologue
(W) Gail Simone
(P/I) Ed Benes

Batman and Robin #13
"Eclipsed"
(W) Peter J. Tomasi
(P) Patrick Gleason and Tomas Giorello
(I) Mick Gray

Although each of these issues features the same amount of offhanded remarks about the Joker, Batgirl #13 is labeled as a "Death of the Family" prologue, while Batman and Robin #13 is just beginning a two-part arc before rolling into the "DotF" event in December. The only slight advantage Batgirl has is that clown-masked men ambush Barbara and her mom at issue's end. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

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I used to read Batgirl regularly, until about issue four. I didn't understand why, and if frustrated me greatly, but Gail Simone was just not delivering the kind of quality work I'd seen in Secret Six. Alas, I cancelled by subscription, and the last time I saw Batgirl, it was for "Night of the Owls", an event that let me read all the tie-in issues without being privy to the ongoing story.

But I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised by Batgirl #13. In what I can only assume is the conclusion of the current arc, Batgirl faces the deadly Knightfall who's out to kill Batgirl and the rest of the Batman family. In some ways, Knightfall has a point when she explains how Batman and his crew have allowed Gotham to rot. It's the crux of writing meaner, grittier stories when Batman's actions should be cleaning up the city. Only in a comic book city do seven superheroes operate and crime never gets any better. In fact, it seems to get worse with the passage of time. Gotham in the 1960s was probably a very nice place to live, albeit a bit seedy. Nowadays, I struggle to understand how anyone living in this fictional universe even gives Gotham the time of day.

Knightfall is revealed to be Cherise Carnes, daughter to one of Gotham's most influential and powerful real estate moguls. It feels like whenever a writer needs an out of some sort, he/she creates a villain with some connection to Gotham that makes them feel superior to Batman and his cronies. It's usually some sewer-dwelling psycho given unwieldy power, but there also seems to be a good number of 'super rich' families inhabiting Gotham that have a surprising amount of vengeful offspring. I've read this archetype before, is what I'm trying to say, but Gail Simone manages to pull it off without sounding redundant and cliched.

The lead-in to "Death of the Family" at the end was sub-par. After reading Scott Snyder's explosive pages in Batman #13, I guess I just expected more. Though, I don't want to get myself into a situation where I'm comparing all the tertiary stories of this event to Snyder's main run because nothing will live up to it. Barbara's mother is attacked by Joker's minions, and three villains (of Batgirl's, I'm assuming) are released from prison by three mysterious strangers (unless they've appeared in the series before, in which case I apologize to regular readers of Batgirl who know these characters' significance) with the death of Batgirl on their minds.

GRADE: 7.5/10

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I don't have a lot to say about Batman and Robin #13. The story is so cliched zombie infection that I don't even want to discuss it. DC is committed to getting it's books out on time each month, and I commend them for that. The downside of this comes when artists aren't up to the task and single issues have a 10-12 person-strong artistic team. It's not terrible this month, but Patrick Gleason shares penciling duties with Tomas Giorello, and it's really one of the most jarring artistic changes I've seen in an issue in a long time. Gleason's minimalist style has worked well for Batman and Robin, showing a more fluid side of how the Dark Knight can be drawn. Tomas Giorello's style, however, leans toward detail and shadowing at every angle. It wouldn't be so frustrating if the art styles were a bit closer matched, but it feels like DC just picked any random artist and said "Finish up what Gleason left behind, kthanks," then left. This was a disappointing issue of Batman and Robin, for sure. Hopefully the "Death of the Family" tie-in issues will be better than this crapfest.

GRADE: 3/10

BATMAN AND ROBIN #12

STORY: Peter J. Tomasi
ART: Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

After a pretty awesome first arc and a better-than-average contribution to "Night of the Owls", Batman and Robin has really found a place as a title focused on the relationship between these two characters and how it differs from former Robins because Damian is Bruce's son. Damian is a very complex character that Grant Morrison created (kind of), built up quite a bit, then just left for everyone else to clean up. In many ways, it would be like having divorced parents with passionate political beliefs that were polar opposite from one another. Damian was raised a loyal Libertarian, and has been thrust into the world of Democrats that he's only now beginning to understand, though he still feels inclined to prove his self worth by any means necessary. Unfortunately, all of these excellent elements surrounding Damian's characterization only show up sparingly throughout this current arc, and not at all in this issue.

"Terminus Maximus" has been billed as the 'main arc' of the past three issues, yet until Batman and Robin #12, you could have fooled me and said the big story was "War of the Robins", a side story concerning Damian's desire to defeat each of the former Robins in an effort to prove himself the best of Batman's sidekicks. Indeed, the "Robins" arc is far more insightful and interesting, as it has to do with emotional ramifications instead of blind villainy. Damian is a 10 year old assassin child challenging much older, stronger men to bouts of strength and wits - tell me that's not more awesome than a plot about yet another psychotic villain who wants to kill Batman and give Gotham the "truth". However I feel about the quality of each story, "Terminus" takes the spotlight this issue, as DC billed the issue as "The Final fight with Terminus!" Though, this is the one and only meeting, let alone fight, that Batman and Terminus have had. I don't know why Peter J. Tomasi wanted to crush a six-issue story into three, but he does so here with as much grace as a Juggernaut in a china shop.

Terminus himself is a pretty by-the-books villain, one who believes that Batman has made the city worse through his actions. Now, Termy wants to make the city fear Batman by sending out an army of lunatics to brand civilians with a bat symbol. While that particular part of the arc is cool, the entirety of the attack on Gotham lasted less than one issue. This month, it's all about Batman vs. Terminus, though there's really not a lot of logic to it. Terminus takes his name because he's terminal, and also because he wants to terminate Batman, I'm going to assume. Beyond that, we don't know anything about this guy. He doesn't have a proper name, his sickness is never given adequate explanation, and his hatred for Batman never evolves past vague "your actions affected me negatively" emotions that aren't based in anything real.

It's a real shame that "War of the Robins" not only ends this issue, but also gets pushed to the severe edges of the narrative. As Bats and Robin take on Terminus and this thugs, Nightwing, Red Robin, and Red Hood show up to lend a hand to save their city from this villain-of-the-week. The panels featuring all the former (and current) Robins together are filled with witty banter and snaps at each other much like brothers in the backyard. It's really at this point, nearly 2/3 of the way through the issue, that things start getting interesting, and it's because Tomasi finally starts focusing on relationships for a moment.

Now that "Terminus" is in the past, we have Batman and Robin #0 to look forward to next month, hopefully shedding some light onto the formative years of Damian's life in the League of Assassins. Because really, I just want to forget Terminus was even a villain. Tomasi even had to throw in a biochemical warhead for Batman to stop to make Termy more that just another faceless threat. But even that didn't work.

GRADE

B

BATMAN AND ROBIN #11

STORY: Peter J. Tomasi
ART: Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray, Keith Champagne, and Dustin Nguyen

This week at Comic-Con International in San Diego, Scott Lobdell revealed that Tim Drake went straight from a regular kid - with a knack for detective work - to Red Robin, without actually spending any time as Batman's official sidekick. This change sent waves through the comic book community, most of them negative. Tim Drake is definitely as popular - if not more so - as Dick Grayson, so it's odd that DC would so easily let Lobdell change continuity all willy-nilly. The reason I bring up this revamp is that Tim is still included in Peter J. Tomasi's "War of the Robins" story that's been the best part of Batman and Robin the past two months, even though he (now!) was never technically a Robin.

Damian takes his fight to Red Hood this issue, and DC has labeled it in promotional materials as the beginning of the newest Robin's quest to defeat all the former ones, even though he technically did beat Tim Drake last month in a battle of morality and ethical dilemmas. Perhaps this is DC's attempt to clean up the Robin retcon by saying Tim's encounter with Damian wasn't an actual fight that falls under the classification of "War of the Robins". But that seems a bit silly.

Nonetheless, Red Hood's turn is here. Jason Todd returns to his Gotham apartment, exhausted, only to find himself ambushed by Damian. Batman's son truly is a great character. What could have simply been a new Robin content to live a life of servitude under his father's wing has become a complex ten-year-old child leading a life of someone thrice his age. This facet of Damian was explored throughout the first eight issues of Batman and Robin, as Tomasi looked to show that Robin has problems and issues more akin to weathered assassins than his peers playing in schoolyards. Of course, Damin is 10 years old, so he's still got some insecurities that come with that age. One of which happens to be an inferiority complex when it comes to his mantle as Robin.


Damian Wayne is Bruce's only biological son, but the man has two other sons who he feels more connected with. Damian's dilemma isn't an uncommon one for children raised by a single parent - he's figuring out how to manage a relationship with the absent parent. And in this case, Damian feels that in order to prove himself to his father, he must defeat Bruce's former surrogate children.


Unlike last month, Tomasi spends a majority of this issue focused on Terminus. This slowly decaying villain has sent out a cadre of super-powered thugs to brand as many Gotham citizens as possible with Batman's symbol. Terminus has managed to turn the city's symbol of hope (no matter how dark and twisted that hope may be) into one of fear...again. At one point, Batman's just standing in a plaza, surrounded by buildings all triggered to explode at the same time. "Leave my city ALONE!" screams Batman as he has a hundred million times before. Tomasi is taking the easy way out, making Gotham the scapegoat in this pissing match riled up by Terminus for reasons unapparent so far. Sure, Tomasi threw us a bone last month with some cryptic flashbacks into Terminus' life, but they did little to give meaning to this villain's actions. All we know is that Termy sees himself as Gotham's true son and seeks to knock Batman off his high-and-mighty pedestal.


With two plot lines running simultaneously, Tomasi should be focusing on "War of the Robins", a narrative that actually has a purpose and can give real insight to Batman's various sidekicks throughout the years - it's a character-driven plot that has a lot more potential. Terminus' plot to make the city his own is one that has been done to death for the last sixty years of Batman's history, and it feels like more of a support story that's getting too much limelight.

GRADE

C+

(COMIC) BATMAN AND ROBIN #10

STORY: Peter J. Tomasi
ART: Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

In the month after "Night of the Owls", all the Batman-related books are starting new story arcs. Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason's Batman and Robin #10 might be simultaneously the most interesting and the most boring new story of the bunch. Since Big Ol' Bats already has three series dedicated to his solo outings, Tomasi has been focusing on Damian Wayne quite a bit, not only dealing with his daddy issues throughout the first arc, but also with Damian's talent for strategic battle during last month's Talon incursion. This has been a consistently smart move on Tomasi's part.

Batman and Robin #10 kicks off "Terminus", but you'd barely know it if you didn't want to. The so-called Terminus takes a far, far back seat to the issue's main events. All the same, this guy obviously has criminal intentions, and his body seems to be falling apart. Terminus spends the issue regenrating in some crazy regeneration machine. That's it. I'm sure there will be more to this, but it also doesn't seem very interesting. At this point, Terminus is just some dude who wants to kill Batman - hold the phone! No, the real meat in this issue comes from the 'War of the Robins' storyline.

Bruce has called all the Robins, former and current (except for Jason Todd, for obvious reasons), together for a family portrait at Wayne Manor. One of the best things about the Robin mantle is that there isn't one type of person who becomes Robin - they come in all shapes and sizes and personalities. Within minutes, Tim Drake and Damian are at each other's throat. Dick Grayson loftily sits above their squabble, as his position as Robin can never be questioned (he's the O.G., baby!)

The feud between Tim and Damian is interesting, mostly because it stems from simple disrespect. Whenever Batman and Superman had disagreements, they never lost respect for one another, but neither boy here regards the other in any good light. For Damian, Tim is stuck-up and looks down on Damian, while Tim feels that Damian is a psychopath and unworthy of a title he and Dick worked hard to maintain. That's pretty much the description you're going to get anywhere else. The truth of the matter is much deeper, even if Tomasi doesn't know it.

Tim Drake was the son Bruce never had. Sure, Dick was the first Robin and literally had no parents and was adopted by Bruce, but they've always had a stronger working relationship (at least in my memory. Maybe I need to go back and reread old Silver Age issues). Tim, on the other hand, was the one who figured out who Batman was, the one with the detective skills to rival Bruce's own, and the Robin that took the name from respectable to iconic. Like I said, Tim was the son Bruce never had. Until Damian. Tim's real beef is that Damian is a real Wayne and Bruce's actual son. Obviously, it's painful to see your mentor and father-figure move on to a new apprentice, a new disciple. And sure Tim left of his own accord, but he keeps the mantle Red Robin, an obvious homage to his former title which means he still has deep emotional ties to the name and the job. Dick, conversely, left and took the name Nightwing, moved to a new city and generally tried to distance himself from Batman for quite some time.

Damian, of course, lives in Tim's all-encompassing shadow. Tim held the mantle for so long and did so well, it's obvious to Damian that Bruce is looking to make Damian more like Tim. The entire first arc of Batman and Robin was about Damian's issues with his upbringing as a killer, and in a sense, he was able to make a good step forward in dealing with those issues. But Tim is always there - a constant reminder of how good a Robin can be and how lacking Damian is compared to Tim.

The night after their blow-up at Wayne Manor, Damian calls all the former Robins together, even extending an invitation to Jason Todd, the Red Hood! When they all show, Damian declares "war" on them. Damian explains that at some point, he will confront each of them and defeat them at something they consider themselves the best. Of course, they all immediately assume Damian means a fight, but the little Robin's much smarter than that! His only goal with Tim is to get Red Robin to admit he'd had homicidal thoughts. Tim rebuffs this by saying he's never acted on those thoughts, which is what separates them.

I really do tend to enjoy superhero stories where the heroes are in-fighting, and the "War of the Robins" portion of Batman and Robin #10 is totally awesome. My psychoanalytical critique aside, these characters are all awesome and now, they've got an arc slowly building that will pit them all against one another in a variety of circumstances. FANTASTIC. Terminus will probably continue to be a boring sub-plot that will eventually slip it's way into the main story, pulling the entire arc down as a result, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, awesomeness.

GRADE

A

(COMIC) BATMAN AND ROBIN #8

STORY: Peter J. Tomasi
ART: Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

Every bit the epilogue issue, Batman and Robin #8 wraps up the Dark Knight's conflict with Morgan Ducard (a.k.a. Nobody) and starts putting together the pieces of his relationships with Damian. Peter J. Tomasi has done something that even many of today's best writers don't often show: downtime. To keep readers interested, characters are often simply thrust from one enemy/conflict to the next with no respite. And while I'm perfectly content not seeing my favorite superheroes on the toilet, I do enjoy seeing them without the mask on (figuratively), just being themselves.

This month, Damian finally listens to Bruce's recorded words (from previous issues) about their relationship. The fight against Nobody took it's toll on both Bruce and Damian, and Alfred enforces his 24-hour concussion lockdown, giving father and son time together that doesn't involve stopping a weapons deal or taking out the Joker. Damian also finally names his dog, a small nuance that reaches back to issue two when Bruce first buys the dog for Damian, and playing catch in the backyard is kind of like the end result of two issues-worth of growing tension and release.

Of course, Damian is still apprehensive, telling his father "And here I thought we didn't like each other," to which Bruce responds, "We don't understand each other. There's a difference." It's a fitting theme for this first arc of Batman and Robin under the 'New 52' banner. Just because they don't have difficult agreeing on anything, that doesn't mean they don't care for each other.

The issue starts dipping into cheesy territory when Damian explains, "I don't want to end up like Ducard...without a moral compass...I don't want to turn into a nobody. I want to be like you. I've always wanted to be like you." After all this time, Damian sheds his hardened skin after one close call with death. Knowing that Batman and his Robin had a relationship before the relaunch is almost necessary, or this scene loses most of it's meaning.

GRADE:

B

(COMIC REVIEW) Batman and Robin #7

Written by Peter J. Tomasi
Artwork by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray

And just like that, Batman and Robin picks up exactly where it left off last month; no flash-forwards, no frills. Even from the first pages, this has been my favorite issue of Batman and Robin thus far. I'm sure this is partly due to the completion of Peter J. Tomasi's first story arc and the satisfaction that comes with following a plot for months toward it's climactic conclusion. It's also because this is such a solid issue.

Morgan Ducard and Bruce go head to head this month, a proper bout that brings out the emotional instability in both men. Morgan still blames Bruce for 'stealing' his father away, and Bruce wants to kill Morgan for hurting Damian, and nearly does before stopping himself to show his son the meaning of restraint. The fight is incredibly fun to read, with expert shading from Mick Gray complimenting Patrick Gleason's subtle, yet descriptive pencilling.

The final pages, in which Damian murders Morgan - even after Bruce stopped himself from doing the same thing - are a terrific build-up for the next arc. My only complaint: Damian getting all religious with the "Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned," shtick. It's annoying and grating. Other than that small snafu, Batman and Robin #7 sits at the top, in terms of quality, for this series thus far.

GRADE:

A