Batman

Coming Soon

/ / Film News & Trailers
  • Title: Son of Batman
  • IMDB: link

Following the release of Justice League: War in two weeks, we now have our first trailer for DC Animated’s next project which will apparently by a (very loose) adaptation of Grant Morrison’s Batman & Son storyline that introduced Batman (Jason O’Mara) and the world to Damian Wayne (Stuart Allan). Morena Baccarin, Giancarlo Esposito, Thomas Gibson, and Cameron Bowen also lend their voices to the project. Although I have problems with Morrison’s story (which completely ignored the fertile ground laid by Mike Barr) and have trouble seeing how the addition of Deathstroke will help matters, I’m glad to see DC bringing back Damian in any form and I’ve got to admit this one interests me far more than Justice League: War.

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Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #2

/ / Comics

Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #2The second issue of Scooby-Doo! Team-Up takes Mystery Inc. to Batman and Robin‘s home town for a gathering of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City. Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #2 also allows Scooby-Doo to realize his dream as a super-hero sidekick when the Scarecrow‘s fear gas turns distracts all the heroes from the villain’s scheme to rob the city blind.

With the support and prompting of Ace the Bat-Hound, Scooby dons a cape and mask and the two canine crimefighters, both immune to the villain’s fear toxin, set out to save the day.

Delivering a Dynamic Canine Duo, Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #2 is another extremely enjoyable issue (while playing on iconic Batman panels along the way) from a title I hope DC never stops printing. The New 52 needs a serious jolt of the kind of madcap joy and comic book awesomeness that stories like this bring to clean the grit from several of DC’s current titles. Bring on the next Bat-villain; Scooby and I are waiting! Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Batman: Black and White #5

/ / Comics

Batman: Black and White #5Offering another quintet of black and white Batman tales, Batman: Black and White #5 is anchored by a Two-Face story from Len Wein and artist Victor Ibáñez which features a complicated two-pronged attack, misdirection, and an appearance of Nightwing in his pre-New 52 costume (complete with the fan appreciated finger stripes).

“Hell Night” from Ivan Brandon gives us Batman on one brutal night (with a late twist I don’t quite buy) and beautiful art by Paolo Manuel Rivera. Blair Butler and Chris Weston offer a bizarre story featuring the death of the Caped Crusader (sort of), and Jimmy Palmiotti and artist Andrew Robinson give us a story featuring Bruce Wayne mostly out of the Batsuit finding his “super-power” (but when he does appear as Batman it’s in the classic costume complete with the yellow ellipse Bat symbol).

Although I enjoyed the tone of Keith Giffen and Javier Pulido’s “Cat and Mouse” featuring a crook’s version of his encounter with Batman, it’s probably the weakest of this month’s stories. Worth a look.

[DC, $4.99]

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Beware the Batman #3

/ / Comics

Beware the Batman #3Katana‘s training continues as Batman gives his protege a crash course in underwater dirty fighting tactics and turns his attention to crime boss Tobias Whale and the sunken cargo ship of weapons the Dark Knight left at the bottom of Gotham Harbor.

Unwilling to let Whale’s salvage operation be successful, Batman and Katana set out to stop the criminal from reclaiming, and flooding the streets of Gotham, with his firearms. Batman even goes so far as to rely on Lt. Gordon (who seems a little more chummy with the vigilante in the comics than the TV-show that spawned them), even if he does so by giving the police detective an exploding Bat-phone.

Although Whale isn’t the most interesting of villains, the underwater setting works well and the legitmate threat of weapons hitting Gotham’s streets is incentive enough for our heroes to act. Katana is still in training, but it’s obvious from Batman’s relationship with Gordon the comic is taking place at least a few months down the line from the last episodes to air (although if the episodes hadn’t been prematurely pulled the gap might not be so noticeable). Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Batman and Two-Face #26

/ / Comics

Batman and Two-Face #26Continuing the “Big Burn” storyline Bruce Wayne attempts to talk some sense into Erin McKillen before the would-be crime boss he broke out of prison (under the guise of Matches Malone) and Two-Face take their vendetta to an entirely new level.

In more flashbacks to the series of events which led McKillen and Two-Face to their present war, Batman and Two-Face #26 offers a look at the death of Erin’s twin-sister Shannon (which has to be, without a shadow of doubt, the dumbest prison escape plan in the history of the written word). Letting her sister commit suicide (because in Gotham where everyone is on the take there was no plan that made a lick of sense), we see the horrifically stupid series of events that ended one sister’s life and has led the other obsessed with Harvey Dent’s death.

Although the comic has some nice moments, especially in the early scenes between Bruce and Erin, the flashbacks are so unbelievably dumb it wouldn’t surprise me if everyone who read this issue lost a couple of IQ points. Pass.

[DC, $2.99]

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