BATMAN ETERNAL #1 (REVIEW)

Batman Eternal #1

Writer: Scott Snyder
           James Tynion IV
           Ray Fawkes
           John Layman
           Tim Seeley

Artist: Jason Fabok

Cover: Jason Fabok
          Tomeu Morey



The Rundown:
The story begins where it is set to end. Batman beaten and battered, tied to a broken Bat-signal, as the city burns around him. Flash forward to the present where Harvey Bullock is picking up a new recruit who was heavily sought after by Jim Gordon himself, Jason Bard, from the train station. Elsewhere, Gordon is in the middle of a gun fight with Pyg and his henchmen, protecting some children while waiting for Batman to make his entrance. Which he does just in time to save Jim and the kids from Pyg's gun totting airplane. Batman and Gordon pursue Pyg and his men, with Gordon taking the stray and Batman focuses on apprehending Pyg. Jim Gordon follows the man onto the subway tracks and has him cornered while ordering the perp to drop his weapon. After a count of three, Gordon fires a shot, but it passes through the man, hitting an electrical box behind him. This causes an explosion and a fire to start on the tracks, quickly followed by the derailment of the approaching subway train. Batman is able to save Jim Gordon, and warn Bullock and other officers who arrived at the scene.
The damage is massive, and the death toll will be enormous. Acting quickly, Hady calls for the arrest of Commissioner James Gordon. An act that is carried out by a hesitant Jason Bard who's on his first night on the job. But, is put at ease after Jim gives him his blessing to place him under arrest. Flashback to the "end" of the story, where we once again see a bound, broken Batman with a voice asking him if he can see the grand design in it all.

The Review:
An extremely well done initial issue for the new weekly Batman series. The story felt like it was the beginning of something huge and eventful. It left us with tons of questions and of course anticipating the next issue and how all of this plays out. From page one we are left wondering who was able to get the drop on Batman and engulf Gotham City in flames. Is it a new villain? A returning villain coming back in a huge way? Even the events involving Commissioner James Gordon left us with quite a few questions. Is Jim losing his mind? If not, then who is working him this way? And even with Jason Bard, are we about to watch Jim Gordon groom his future replacement? Or is he a part of what is happening? The appearance is given, but even Bard's backstory is very similar to that of Gordon.
The art work was top notch from start to finish. With almost every single panel telling the story nicely and being visually appealing. With it being a weekly title there runs the risk of having to speed through the work, here is hoping that upcoming weeks are just as good as this one was.
Overall, it was an amazing issue, with a team of writers (although three of them are consultants) that big it is expected that the story would be up to par, and in this case went above and beyond that. As did the art, and they complimented each other nicely. What is even better, is that we won't have to wait a month to see what happens next!

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DETECTIVE COMICS #30 (REVIEW)

Detective Comics #30

Writer: Francis Manapul
           Brian Buccellato

Artist: Francis Manapul

Cover: Francis Manapul





The Rundown:
Story begins with two females on the pier as we read "Welcome to Gotham City. This place has the potential to be great...for both of us." Batman is prowling the rooftops at night. In pursuit of a group of thugs using children to deal their drugs. He is able to save the kids, but one of the thugs gets away ironically with the gang that he recently stole drugs from. Batman pursues them, but is unable to catch them.
At an Extreme Motorcross event, Bruce Wayne talks business with the woman from the pier, Miss Elena Aquila. Her daughter, Annie, is a four time champion and is participating in the event. Elena pitches her proposal of Bruce and his company joining her in re-developing Gotham City's East End Waterfront. She gets him to agree as it is an attempt to restore hope to a decaying part of the city he loves. As news of the venture spreads, it appears that it will receive some corrupt political pressure. Down at the Waterfront, Mr. Squid, is dealing with the thug that stole from him and escaped Batman earlier. We get an idea of his namesake as he hoists his victims by the chain around their neck using a crane and then drops them into a tank with what appears to be a man-eating squid.
Back at the Batcave, Bruce is working on Damian's motorbike as he converses with Alfred. Discussing how he misses his late son, and how much Damian loved his bike. The alarms begin to sound as an intruder makes their way onto the grounds of Wayne Manor. As Bruce rushes to face to assailant, he discovers that it is Elena Aquila. She is engulfed in flames, and falls into his arms to the ground.

The Review:
Detective Comics has a new creative team, and after this issue, they are a welcomed addition. The first part of the story arc "Icarus" was a very nice beginning, taking things back to a detective based story. Which of course leaves questions to be answered. What is this new drug hitting the streets of Gotham? Who is this Mr. Squid character? Is he a main player or just another pawn? And what of the Aquila Family? Is Elena dead, critically injured or is it all a rouse? Some of you may even wonder if we were witnessing the beginnings of a future Bat-Family member. With what has been presented in this issue, Annie Aquila is in a very similar situation as Batman and some of the other Bat-Family characters. All of these questions will likely be answered in the upcoming issues, but it is definitely a sign of good writing.
The art, although usually not fan of that style, was done well and added to the required tone of the story. It also added to some of the mystery with only giving us a small glimpse of Mr. Squid's killer pet. How large and grotesque is this thing, we will have to wait and see, but am intrigued. Usually I would mention how it told the story well, and it did, however that is almost expected when the artist is also the co-writer. A skill in itself, but who better to translate your words to pictures?
Overall, it was a really good issue. The new detective focused direction is nice to see happen, given the title and all. Hopefully, fans of The Flash were given equal talent to follow the work of Detective Comics new creative team. As although only an issue into their run, things are looking to be really good. With it being the Year Of The Batman, that is another thing that is nice to see happening.

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