Batman was rebooted for the New 52 in D.C. comics. A notable change, is that like the rest of the D.C. heroes, Batman doesn't wear his underpants on the outside. There are a few continuity issues, but lets ignore them and enjoy it. If you had to place them in a reading order, I would read as follows:
After Batman Incorporated-
-Detective Comics: Faces Of Death
-Batman: Court Of Owls - Nightwing: Traps & Trapezes - Batgirl: The Darkest Reflection
-Batman: City Of Owls - (Night Of Owls is optional)
-Batman: Faces Of Death
-Batman Incorporated: Demon Star
-Batman Incorporated: Gotham's Most Wanted
-Batman & Robin: Requiem For Robin (Coming Soon 2014)
After Batman Incorporated-
-Detective Comics: Faces Of Death
-Batman: Court Of Owls - Nightwing: Traps & Trapezes - Batgirl: The Darkest Reflection
-Batman: City Of Owls - (Night Of Owls is optional)
-Batman: Faces Of Death
-Batman Incorporated: Demon Star
-Batman Incorporated: Gotham's Most Wanted
-Batman & Robin: Requiem For Robin (Coming Soon 2014)
Batman Detective Comics: Faces Of Death
Batman has been rebooted. So what's new? Nothing much. Ignoring that he is supposed to have only been around for 6 years, Detective comics doesn't really work will with Batman comics. For one, Batman has a bad relationship with the police, something that doesn't exist under the other Batman title. One thing they do share is that he no longer wears underwear on the outside.
Faces of Death starts of strong. Sadly it seems that most people who draw as well as write Batman aren't the best writers. Especially if they are artists before writers. Tony S. Daniel gives us killer art and an epic cliffhanger off the first issue. Sadly it's all downhill from there. Though we get excited when the Dollmaker and his creepy family of dead skin wearing freaks are introduced, the writing becomes uninteresting and at times stupid. It's like Tony S. Daniel lost interest after the first 2 issues and just wanted to finish it.
However, the first issue is pretty important as it sets up for Scott Snyder's later Batman arcs involving the clown prince of crime. You'd probably be better off just sticking with the first single issue comic than getting the trade, as the last half involves a boring story involving the Penguin and a guy who changes his face when need be. Completists should still probably have this trade beside Court Of Owls.
RATING:
Batman Story - 4/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 4/10
OVERALL - 7/10
At least we are left with this monumental cliffhanger:
Faces of Death starts of strong. Sadly it seems that most people who draw as well as write Batman aren't the best writers. Especially if they are artists before writers. Tony S. Daniel gives us killer art and an epic cliffhanger off the first issue. Sadly it's all downhill from there. Though we get excited when the Dollmaker and his creepy family of dead skin wearing freaks are introduced, the writing becomes uninteresting and at times stupid. It's like Tony S. Daniel lost interest after the first 2 issues and just wanted to finish it.
However, the first issue is pretty important as it sets up for Scott Snyder's later Batman arcs involving the clown prince of crime. You'd probably be better off just sticking with the first single issue comic than getting the trade, as the last half involves a boring story involving the Penguin and a guy who changes his face when need be. Completists should still probably have this trade beside Court Of Owls.
RATING:
Batman Story - 4/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 4/10
OVERALL - 7/10
At least we are left with this monumental cliffhanger:
Batman: Court Of Owls
Exciting from the get go. Batman is introduced stopping a riot inside Arkham alongside Nightwing, disguised as the Joker. Scott Snyder bursts onto the scene as the new writer for Batman. Something is watching Batman from between the very foundations that hold up Gotham City. It may or may not be tied to Bruce Wayne's family past and may or may not be tied to Gotham City's history. The real question is how has Batman not know that the Court Of Owls has been there from the very beginning?
That's my only negative so far with this. Writers have tampered with Bruce Wayne's past and secrets too much before and it doesn't always work. Fortunately, the Owls seem like a worthy and very scary threat for Batman.
Without ruining the story, Batman ends up discovering the Court Of Owls, something he thought was only a poem to scare children. Batman is eventually brought down under the city and trapped in a labyrinth. Batman is tortured psychologically (similar to 'The Cult') and so is the reader. We are forced to turn the book itself around and upside down to read this literally being brought into the maze with Batman as it leads to a masterfully drawn fight between a worn down Batman and Talon, a minion assassin of the Court Of Owls.
Court Of Owls is very exciting but sadly I believe it purely succeeds due to Greg Capullo's art, though at times cartoonish, is very dynamic and makes action very intense. Also, we get to see a lot of Batman being a professional and gloomy detective, investigating the very architecture and history of Gotham City. It fails in the writing and direction of the story. I feel as though Batman has been beating down to within an inch of his life too much an seems the only thing at stake is Batman himself. The other negative issue, is the explanation for the Talons. We have not been introduced to one new and long lasting villain, but instead just a puppet, of which there are many, for the Court Of Owls. The biggest problem with the Talons is that they have a scientific explanation for being undead? yep. Still good enough to continue with this Batman run though, especially since it ends with a cliffhanger.
RATING:
Batman Story - 9/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 6/10
OVERALL - 8.7/10
Also, we are introduced to a yet to be explained character by the name of Harper Row. Apparently she is explained in the next volume.
That's my only negative so far with this. Writers have tampered with Bruce Wayne's past and secrets too much before and it doesn't always work. Fortunately, the Owls seem like a worthy and very scary threat for Batman.
Without ruining the story, Batman ends up discovering the Court Of Owls, something he thought was only a poem to scare children. Batman is eventually brought down under the city and trapped in a labyrinth. Batman is tortured psychologically (similar to 'The Cult') and so is the reader. We are forced to turn the book itself around and upside down to read this literally being brought into the maze with Batman as it leads to a masterfully drawn fight between a worn down Batman and Talon, a minion assassin of the Court Of Owls.
Court Of Owls is very exciting but sadly I believe it purely succeeds due to Greg Capullo's art, though at times cartoonish, is very dynamic and makes action very intense. Also, we get to see a lot of Batman being a professional and gloomy detective, investigating the very architecture and history of Gotham City. It fails in the writing and direction of the story. I feel as though Batman has been beating down to within an inch of his life too much an seems the only thing at stake is Batman himself. The other negative issue, is the explanation for the Talons. We have not been introduced to one new and long lasting villain, but instead just a puppet, of which there are many, for the Court Of Owls. The biggest problem with the Talons is that they have a scientific explanation for being undead? yep. Still good enough to continue with this Batman run though, especially since it ends with a cliffhanger.
RATING:
Batman Story - 9/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 6/10
OVERALL - 8.7/10
Also, we are introduced to a yet to be explained character by the name of Harper Row. Apparently she is explained in the next volume.
Batman: City Of Owls
The Court Of Owls have unleashed their Talons out on Gotham City to kill every major figure with their priority being Bruce Wayne. With the rest of the Bat Family out on orders to protect the targets, Bruce and Alfred are left defend themselves at Wayne Manor from a small army of Talons.
As explained previously, the Talons are undead, so apparently this gives Batman an excuse to kill them. I know this works in Cosmic Odyssey and Final Crisis, in which Batman doesn't hesitate to kill aliens when it means saving the world, but i really find this a cheap plot distraction and poor character.
(Spoilers Ahead)
The artwork at the beginning of this feels rushed, with a change of artists midway. Batman finds and retakes Gotham City from the Court Of Owls way too easy before his final confrontation with the last Talon, a character called Lincoln March, introduced in the previous volume. Lincoln has outrages claims that he is Bruce Wayne's brother amongst other things that are too 'daring' to believe, so you know that Batman will triumph anyway. In end, Batman doesn't even beat him, but rather lets Lincoln blow himself up (supposedly) and let Batman get away. So Batman wins, by running away from a suicidal maniac after copping a beating, and solves nothing. We're left to believe that all the claims about the dark secrets of Wayne's family were so far-fetched that they weren't true. Not only that, we're given an insulting short story about how Alfred's father was murdered by a Talon? Whatever. The last half of the trade is a story explaining Harper Row and a retelling of Mr. Freeze's story that is somewhat refreshing, even though they turned him from a tragic villain to a tragically insane villain.
In the end, I feel as though the entire Court Of Owls story arc could have been collected into one trade. It all peaked with the epic labyrinth chapter in the previous volume. It's all enjoyable, but I guess Batman fans have high standards. Here's hoping Snyder's overrated run improves with Death Of The Family.
RATING:
Batman Story - 6/10
Art - 8/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 5/10
OVERALL - 7.2/10
As explained previously, the Talons are undead, so apparently this gives Batman an excuse to kill them. I know this works in Cosmic Odyssey and Final Crisis, in which Batman doesn't hesitate to kill aliens when it means saving the world, but i really find this a cheap plot distraction and poor character.
(Spoilers Ahead)
The artwork at the beginning of this feels rushed, with a change of artists midway. Batman finds and retakes Gotham City from the Court Of Owls way too easy before his final confrontation with the last Talon, a character called Lincoln March, introduced in the previous volume. Lincoln has outrages claims that he is Bruce Wayne's brother amongst other things that are too 'daring' to believe, so you know that Batman will triumph anyway. In end, Batman doesn't even beat him, but rather lets Lincoln blow himself up (supposedly) and let Batman get away. So Batman wins, by running away from a suicidal maniac after copping a beating, and solves nothing. We're left to believe that all the claims about the dark secrets of Wayne's family were so far-fetched that they weren't true. Not only that, we're given an insulting short story about how Alfred's father was murdered by a Talon? Whatever. The last half of the trade is a story explaining Harper Row and a retelling of Mr. Freeze's story that is somewhat refreshing, even though they turned him from a tragic villain to a tragically insane villain.
In the end, I feel as though the entire Court Of Owls story arc could have been collected into one trade. It all peaked with the epic labyrinth chapter in the previous volume. It's all enjoyable, but I guess Batman fans have high standards. Here's hoping Snyder's overrated run improves with Death Of The Family.
RATING:
Batman Story - 6/10
Art - 8/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 5/10
OVERALL - 7.2/10
Batman: Death Of The Family
Yep. Awesome. Just read it. Don't be fooled by any negative reviews. It is pretty much horror. Has an amazing vibe that gives you chills.
Instructions:
Snyder and Capullo nailed this one. There's a page involving a flashback between Bruce Wayne confronting the Joker in Arkham Asylum at the end. The looks the Joker gives is the most haunting in a comic book since Morrison's 'Serious House On Earth.'
RATING:
Batman Story - 10/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 10/10
OVERALL - 10/10
Instructions:
- Read all of it in one go.
- Read in the dark with one faint light.
- Read it again.
Snyder and Capullo nailed this one. There's a page involving a flashback between Bruce Wayne confronting the Joker in Arkham Asylum at the end. The looks the Joker gives is the most haunting in a comic book since Morrison's 'Serious House On Earth.'
RATING:
Batman Story - 10/10
Art - 10/10
Continuity - 10/10
Coolness - 10/10
OVERALL - 10/10