Script: Judd Winick
Art: Doug Mahnke & Tom Nguyen
I know it’s fashionable to bash on Judd Winick, but I’m enjoying his current BATMAN story arc, Franchise. I’d guess part of the problem is the whole Red Hood ordeal seems to drive people a little nuts – Great, going to the Jason Todd well again. But I wasn’t drinking from the well the first time he was supposed to be back from the dead nor for that matter was I reading comics at all when he was Robin, so I suppose that insulates me a bit. There’s still some questions to be answered about the Red Hood and certainly there’s room for Winick to stumble into a clichéd, overwrought or simplistic resolution that would effectively ruin what he's currently doing, but for now the story is working.
I suspect this is very much a part of some greater effort to reposition Batman; to drag him out of the shadows a bit and reestablish his core beliefs as well as the artifacts and skills that I think most of us associate with the character. So we get utility belt Batman and strategic Batman and soon I think we’ll see detective Batman. And we get a big dose of no-kill Batman, which has become a major theme of late.
There’s been a great deal of speculation about Dick Grayson assuming the Batman mantle as part of the "one year later" gameplan. I don’ t see it happening. Bruce Wayne is Batman and while some fans might be willing to let Wayne age out of the role, the fact remains that no amount of DC gerrymandering can break that association. And you can be sure that if it actually were to come to pass, some editorial team five or even ten years from now would figure a way to reverse the deal (“Crisis in Infinite Bat Caves!”) and the Dick Grayson experiment would be relegated to whatever passes for message board discussion at that time. So, while it’s possible the recent events lead Wayne to hang up the cape and cowl, I think he’s really going through a period of self-examination at the end of which he comes out a more reader-friendly Batman. I also think the Red Hood is a somewhat purposeful vehicle designed not only to nudge Batman in the right direction but also to show just what Batman isn’t.
All that aside, this issue had several clever moments, highlighted by the exchange between Deathstroke and the Black Mask and a fairly good battle involving Batman, the Red Hood and some Injustice Society second stringers. And there’s just enough tie-in to the INFINITE CRISIS storyline to keep that thread alive without forcing it down the throat of the Batman only fan. (Is there such a thing anymore?)
And did I mention the great cover by Jock and the solid interior work? I have now.
Hey, I'm over here!
(Batman only fan)
Posted by: psychbloke | December 06, 2005 at 10:34 PM
Excellent! What did you think?
Posted by: Kurt | December 06, 2005 at 11:24 PM