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blackbird9805's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
joshhansonhorror's review against another edition
3.0
It was alright. Better than most recent bat-books, but noting amazing. The Damien storyline is so problematic, and I hope that's mined in the upcoming books and not simplified or whitewashed.
iffer's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not a parent, but I definitely found the theme of Bruce and Damian, both anything from normally "family" types, and both with plenty of their own personal baggage, trying to learn to be family intriguing and affecting. I also enjoyed learning about Bruce's past with Ducard. Damian is a weird character, and his atypical "upbringing," if you can call being molded into a killer by his mother and training by the League of Assassins an "upbringing," justifies him not acting or sounding like an ordinary 10-year-old, the way in which he acts both like a snotty brat and creepy ice-for-veins adult is jarring, which I think is sometimes, but not always, the effect that Tomasi was going for.
bentheoverlordsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
I adore this series.
Damien is easily my favourite of the Robins, and I love his interactions with Bruce, and how he wants to connect to his father yet due to his upbringing it's hard for him. I also love the growth Bruce gets as a character in this series, trying to still be Batman yet also be a father to a boy raised by murderers.
The art is astonishing, but then again I love anything Gleason draws.
Tomasi and Gleason are the perfect team, and I will always adore their work.
Damien is easily my favourite of the Robins, and I love his interactions with Bruce, and how he wants to connect to his father yet due to his upbringing it's hard for him. I also love the growth Bruce gets as a character in this series, trying to still be Batman yet also be a father to a boy raised by murderers.
The art is astonishing, but then again I love anything Gleason draws.
Tomasi and Gleason are the perfect team, and I will always adore their work.
dominicangirl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal cruelty
standardman's review against another edition
4.0
Damian learning how to be Robin and Batman learning how to be a father.
Feels a little too much like a reset button was hit after the run with Grayson but it uses the villain well to explore the title characters and their relationship.
Feels a little too much like a reset button was hit after the run with Grayson but it uses the villain well to explore the title characters and their relationship.
rhganci's review against another edition
4.0
This volume seems entirely distinct from the other Batman books in the New 52, as it maintains its close connection to the Batman, Inc. spinoff storyline that accompanied the return of Bruce Wayne after FINAL CRISIS. It could conceivably take place in that old timeline, as nothing seems to have changed after the full-universe reboot--the Batman of this book seems much older, seasoned, and while the story involves chiefly his growth as a parent, it appears that that a more grizzled and world-weary Batman experiences that growth.
This story is mainly about fathers and sons, a parallel structure that works well as both a theme-heavy narrative and as a pretext for some pretty intense and visceral action sequences. NoBody is a good, but not great, addition to Gotham City's rogue's gallery, and as he squares off against both Batman and Robin we see some interesting background into what makes Batman both a principled hero and The World's Greatest Detective. I liked revisiting the comic book version of Henri Ducard in flashback, a familiar face from Nolan's movies whose influence on Batman's crimefighting Tomasi develops and expands over these eight issues. There are some good sequences that really delve into the morality of Batman's mission, and having a 10-year-old assassin not only as Robin, but also as his son, raises the stakes on that considerably. It's not just his own soul he's protecting with his action--it's his legacy's. The later chapters predictably attempt some hokey reveals and misdirection that just don't work, but they don't need to: this is a great book in connecting readers to Batman as a parent.
Patrick Gleason's artwork is awesome. There are a couple of really striking pages of super closeup art that made me stop reading and appreciate the carefulness of Gleason's styling of Batman. His cape hasn't looked so alive and distinct since Andy Kubert's art during BATMAN AND SON, and the neon-laced version of the Batpod (or whatever that thing is) was something I can't remember seeing in a Batman comic book before. Dark and colorful at the same time, BORN TO KILL had a lot to offer me as a reader, from an emotional storyline different from the other Batman storylines in the New 52 to some dynamic, striking artwork that conveyed that same emotional dynamic as well as a sense of Gotham City that will make reading BATMAN AND ROBIN a priority for me.
This story is mainly about fathers and sons, a parallel structure that works well as both a theme-heavy narrative and as a pretext for some pretty intense and visceral action sequences. NoBody is a good, but not great, addition to Gotham City's rogue's gallery, and as he squares off against both Batman and Robin we see some interesting background into what makes Batman both a principled hero and The World's Greatest Detective. I liked revisiting the comic book version of Henri Ducard in flashback, a familiar face from Nolan's movies whose influence on Batman's crimefighting Tomasi develops and expands over these eight issues. There are some good sequences that really delve into the morality of Batman's mission, and having a 10-year-old assassin not only as Robin, but also as his son, raises the stakes on that considerably. It's not just his own soul he's protecting with his action--it's his legacy's. The later chapters predictably attempt some hokey reveals and misdirection that just don't work, but they don't need to: this is a great book in connecting readers to Batman as a parent.
Patrick Gleason's artwork is awesome. There are a couple of really striking pages of super closeup art that made me stop reading and appreciate the carefulness of Gleason's styling of Batman. His cape hasn't looked so alive and distinct since Andy Kubert's art during BATMAN AND SON, and the neon-laced version of the Batpod (or whatever that thing is) was something I can't remember seeing in a Batman comic book before. Dark and colorful at the same time, BORN TO KILL had a lot to offer me as a reader, from an emotional storyline different from the other Batman storylines in the New 52 to some dynamic, striking artwork that conveyed that same emotional dynamic as well as a sense of Gotham City that will make reading BATMAN AND ROBIN a priority for me.
justkristykay's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
apageinthestacks's review against another edition
5.0
Actual rating: 4.5/5
I gotta say, I liked this so much more than I ever imagined I would. I've never read anything with Damian as the focus, and I've never really wanted to--his character to me was always just "whiny little brat", and that's not what I want to read about in a Batman comic (also, Batman being a dad? Cool idea, but again, not necessarily what I want from a Batman comic).
That being said, I've certainly changed my opinion after reading this (and am now looking forward to reading more, such as Batman and Son and the rest of this series). In the first issue, he was sort of exactly how I imagined, but I actually liked that, because it allowed for so much growth throughout these six issues. The writing could have been slightly better at times, but overall, I loved the main story and the dynamic between Bruce and Damian. And that's why I bumped this up to 5 stars, just because of what it did for me--it made me really, really enjoy a character I thought I would hate.
So yeah. I guess I'm a little bit of a Damian Wayne fan now. Who would've thought?
I gotta say, I liked this so much more than I ever imagined I would. I've never read anything with Damian as the focus, and I've never really wanted to--his character to me was always just "whiny little brat", and that's not what I want to read about in a Batman comic (also, Batman being a dad? Cool idea, but again, not necessarily what I want from a Batman comic).
That being said, I've certainly changed my opinion after reading this (and am now looking forward to reading more, such as Batman and Son and the rest of this series). In the first issue, he was sort of exactly how I imagined, but I actually liked that, because it allowed for so much growth throughout these six issues. The writing could have been slightly better at times, but overall, I loved the main story and the dynamic between Bruce and Damian. And that's why I bumped this up to 5 stars, just because of what it did for me--it made me really, really enjoy a character I thought I would hate.
So yeah. I guess I'm a little bit of a Damian Wayne fan now. Who would've thought?