Batman ’66 #2 – Review

By: Jeff Parker (story), Ty Templeton & Jonathan Case (art), Wes Hartman (colors)

The Story: When Batman’s down and out, it’s up to his chum and his girlfriend to save his skin!

The Review: One of my favorite things about the sixties and in particular a certain type of story that was especially (some might even say inexplicably) popular during that period is the needlessly elaborate and complicated plots.  Granted, these plots often got so convoluted that you suspect even the writers lost track of what they were talking about, but there has never been a better time for complete and utter, anything-goes confidence in storytelling.

That’s why I take especial delight in Batman ’66.  Parker not only emulates the tone and syntax of the show with exceptional precision, he also channels the imaginative spirit of the era.  See, it’s not enough that Penguin puts Gotham’s economic activity to a standstill by blocking the harbor with a Titanic-crushing iceberg; he goes ahead and gets it recognized by the United Nations as a sovereign nation, making any incursion upon it an act of war.  There is just so much factually wrong and entertainingly right about this plan.

Batman Incorporated #12 – Review

By: Grant Morrison (story), Chris Burnham (art), Nathan Fairbairn (colors)

The Story: Who knew that bats could be a man’s best friends?

The Review: As we wind down to the climax of this series, I don’t think there’s any ignoring the fact that it hasn’t turned out to be the Batman masterwork that Morrison wanted it to be (if you didn’t gather that already from last month’s horrendously misguided issue).  While you have to take into consideration that he’s struggled against unforeseen relaunches and subsequent outcasting from continuity, in the end, Batman Incorporated has been a disappointing venture.

Even so, because this is Morrison writing Batman we’re talking about, the series does have its moments, and none can be better than seeing the full wrath of the Dark Knight unleashed upon an impossible foe.  Stripped of most of his supports, in the face of an enemy several dozen times larger than himself, he rises to the challenge by becoming a one-man army.*  With this scene, Morrison gets straight to the heart of why we love Batman, someone who refuses to be crushed under a heel or give in to circumstances, however inevitable they might seem.

Batman Incorporated #10 – Review

By: Grant Morrison (story), Chris Burnham, Jason Masters, Andrew Bressan (art), Nathan Fairbairn (colors)

The Story: Who needs a corporation when you’ve got a one-man army?

The Review: I used to do workshops in improv comedy—something I highly recommend for anyone who has an opportunity to do it.  As intimidating and nerve-wracking as it can be at times to create something from nothing, to me it feels like the creative process in its purest form: using whatever came to mind as a spark, teasing out every interesting thread, molding it into something coherent by instinct.  There’s a lot of risk, but that’s what makes it so thrilling to do and see.

Morrison writes the same way improvisers act, with similar variation in quality.  When he’s good, his work has an in-the-moment, totally present feeling which is irresistibly engaging.  When he’s not so good, there’s a borderline random looseness which makes you feel that he’s writing himself into a corner that he’s not quite sure how to get out of.  In the case of Batman Incorporated, he’s not quite there yet, but you do sense the story closing in on him.

Batman Incorporated #4 – Review

By: Grant Morrison (writer), Chris Burnham (artist), Nathan Fairbairn (colorist)

The Story: Batman doesn’t like a lot of people, so killing off his first love is not a great idea.

The Review: Probably the most distinguishing trademark of Morrison’s writing is the grand scope of his vision: his ideas stretch far into the future, and with his reputation, he can afford to imagine that much in advance.  For readers who stick with him to the end, the payoff of all the groundwork he’s lain down can be a very special satisfaction, but you’ll need patience to handle the frequently bewildering threads he’ll weave through every story arc.

This issue features a good sampling of typical Morrison fare: the fraught interweaving of past, present, and future events; seemingly out-of-context plotlines; charged, even melodramatic dialogue.  It’s the kind of stuff he’s known for, but very at odds with the spy-thriller feel this title had been going for.  Still, this is Morrison’s big pet project; it’s inevitable it’d have greater stakes than Batman globe-trotting for lookalikes.