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sherpawhale's review
4.0
it's been 6 years coming and change, but I finally read this. it's been awhile since I was reading all the new 52 I could get my hands on and afford to pay for trying to figure out comics, but Batwoman was one that I always wanted to read her back story on, especially since Greg Rucka was and Still Remains one of my favorite comic authors.
Really good back story here. I need to catch up on the current Batwoman run, but her back story here, so clearly defined by getting kicked out of the military for Don't Ask, Don't Tell, makes me curious how they'll continue to define her going forward. Kate Kane was clearly stamped by being a soldier who could no longer serve, to being so tied to her family stamp (not a fan of the shit they pulled in Detective Comics vol. 1 Rebirth).
Anyway, I'm not a big fan of the magics stuff in the book, with Alice and the Underdark, but it certainly wasn't helped by JHWIII's layouts. The man is good at art, but the layouts here were so messy that I found myself setting the book down instead of trying to figure out how the order was supposed to go. It all improved when it got to Jock's section. I love his art: good, clean lines, crisp panels, bold figures.
The last story here was my favorite, too. Something so fun about a clear detective story with outlandish vigilantes and villains. I'll take that any day over werewolves.
anyway, goodreads seems to be broken and this book isn't showing up in my challenge, so i deleted this and posted it again.
Really good back story here. I need to catch up on the current Batwoman run, but her back story here, so clearly defined by getting kicked out of the military for Don't Ask, Don't Tell, makes me curious how they'll continue to define her going forward. Kate Kane was clearly stamped by being a soldier who could no longer serve, to being so tied to her family stamp (not a fan of the shit they pulled in Detective Comics vol. 1 Rebirth).
Anyway, I'm not a big fan of the magics stuff in the book, with Alice and the Underdark, but it certainly wasn't helped by JHWIII's layouts. The man is good at art, but the layouts here were so messy that I found myself setting the book down instead of trying to figure out how the order was supposed to go. It all improved when it got to Jock's section. I love his art: good, clean lines, crisp panels, bold figures.
The last story here was my favorite, too. Something so fun about a clear detective story with outlandish vigilantes and villains. I'll take that any day over werewolves.
anyway, goodreads seems to be broken and this book isn't showing up in my challenge, so i deleted this and posted it again.
amck's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
alchemypotato's review
4.0
This collection really contains 3 different stories and I want to address them separately:
First up is Elegy with art by J.H. Williams III. The story for Elegy didn't blow me away but the art is gorgeous. The second story is Go, also with art by J.H. Williams III. It's an origin story and the strongest part of the collection. The third story features art by Jock, which was fine but definitely a huge step down over the beautiful art from the first two stories. The third story frankly wasn't that strong, art aside. While, paralleling Kate's case with Batman's is an interesting enough idea I didn't feel the execution really did it for me.
On the whole I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in the character, but be prepared the third story to not live up to the first two.
First up is Elegy with art by J.H. Williams III. The story for Elegy didn't blow me away but the art is gorgeous. The second story is Go, also with art by J.H. Williams III. It's an origin story and the strongest part of the collection. The third story features art by Jock, which was fine but definitely a huge step down over the beautiful art from the first two stories. The third story frankly wasn't that strong, art aside. While, paralleling Kate's case with Batman's is an interesting enough idea I didn't feel the execution really did it for me.
On the whole I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in the character, but be prepared the third story to not live up to the first two.
thirty37seven's review
4.0
"...I've found my way to serve."
I know absolutely nothing about Batwoman so I had to read this because I wanted to know what Batwoman was actually like. I got the feeling that the show wasn't the best representation of her character and reading this confirmed that for me. God, that show is so fucking bad and it's a shame because I think Kate is actually a good character, she deserves better than that horrendous shit. It's CW though, I don't know what I expected. I don't think they've ever made anything good in the duration of my lifetime.
The part where Alice reveals who she is to Kate is unintentionally funny to me. Alice, looking right at Kate's face, says: "You have our father's eyes." We then pan to Kate's shocked face...as she's wearing a mask that doesn't reveal her eyes. Now I know Alice would obviously know Kate's eye color since they're twins and she's saying it to fuck with her before she falls but in the context of that moment it doesn't make any sense because Alice can't see Kate's face. I was wondering "How the fuck can you tell, man?" when I first read it.
I love the complaints about how pale she is. Taking a glance at the sketchbook notes in the back shows that was the intent.
"Her skin is literally vampire white porcelain, very little color at all."
I know absolutely nothing about Batwoman so I had to read this because I wanted to know what Batwoman was actually like. I got the feeling that the show wasn't the best representation of her character and reading this confirmed that for me. God, that show is so fucking bad and it's a shame because I think Kate is actually a good character, she deserves better than that horrendous shit. It's CW though, I don't know what I expected. I don't think they've ever made anything good in the duration of my lifetime.
The part where Alice reveals who she is to Kate is unintentionally funny to me. Alice, looking right at Kate's face, says: "You have our father's eyes." We then pan to Kate's shocked face...as she's wearing a mask that doesn't reveal her eyes. Now I know Alice would obviously know Kate's eye color since they're twins and she's saying it to fuck with her before she falls but in the context of that moment it doesn't make any sense because Alice can't see Kate's face. I was wondering "How the fuck can you tell, man?" when I first read it.
I love the complaints about how pale she is. Taking a glance at the sketchbook notes in the back shows that was the intent.
"Her skin is literally vampire white porcelain, very little color at all."
talysalankil's review
4.0
Finally took the time to read this what with the new show. Pretty solid run (i mean, it's greg rucka), I love this take on Alice even if it's obviously impossible to keep up for more than a few issues. Also the "Cutter" story they included was brilliantly crafted.
libra17's review
5.0
I read Batwoman so far slightly out of order (the first three volumes of New 52 before the Elegy storyline; oops), so this collection fills in some blanks for me. I was aware of some of the major plot points here, but not all of them and not the story details.
Overall, the writing here was good. I like Kate as a character, her backstory is well fleshed out, her flaws are matter of fact (they're there, but they're understandable, not insurmountable, and not blamed on extraneous factors), and her introduction as Batwoman was very well done. My only real complaint about the writing is that there's some stuff going on that I had no idea about. The Religion of Crime and its warring sects? And this involves a werewolf and other 'monsters' somehow, even though batbooks usually don't deal with magic or supernatural storylines? I realize that there's probably explanation for this somewhere in the previous fifty-ish issues of Detective Comics, but that doesn't help me while reading this collection. In some other trade paperbacks that excerpt individual story arcs from larger works, there is a paragraph or so overview given to orient to the reader and explain parts of the story that might otherwise cause someone to scratch their head and wonder what the hell is going on. The actual New 52 Batwoman series has this, giving an overview of Kate's kidnapping and why she is Batwoman, so why not include something similar here?
Regarding the art, I go back and forth. There are some scenes that saved as a screenshot because I thought they were gorgeous, but most of the art was just sort of 'meh.' But that is my personal preference, though, and I have a similar view of the artwork for all of the Batwoman books I've read so far.
I do intend to continue reading Batwoman, mostly because I have heard really great things about the character and I've seen her in other media - specifically, the DCAU - and liked her. I also plan on at least giving the live action TV series a try despite the fact that live action isn't really my thing, and I plan to continue reading the comics. This collection, especially with the Cutter story, is a good jumping off point and I'm happy to have read it. The few gripes I have with the book aren't enough for me to dock it any stars.
Overall, the writing here was good. I like Kate as a character, her backstory is well fleshed out, her flaws are matter of fact (they're there, but they're understandable, not insurmountable, and not blamed on extraneous factors), and her introduction as Batwoman was very well done. My only real complaint about the writing is that there's some stuff going on that I had no idea about. The Religion of Crime and its warring sects? And this involves a werewolf and other 'monsters' somehow, even though batbooks usually don't deal with magic or supernatural storylines? I realize that there's probably explanation for this somewhere in the previous fifty-ish issues of Detective Comics, but that doesn't help me while reading this collection. In some other trade paperbacks that excerpt individual story arcs from larger works, there is a paragraph or so overview given to orient to the reader and explain parts of the story that might otherwise cause someone to scratch their head and wonder what the hell is going on. The actual New 52 Batwoman series has this, giving an overview of Kate's kidnapping and why she is Batwoman, so why not include something similar here?
Regarding the art, I go back and forth. There are some scenes that saved as a screenshot because I thought they were gorgeous, but most of the art was just sort of 'meh.' But that is my personal preference, though, and I have a similar view of the artwork for all of the Batwoman books I've read so far.
I do intend to continue reading Batwoman, mostly because I have heard really great things about the character and I've seen her in other media - specifically, the DCAU - and liked her. I also plan on at least giving the live action TV series a try despite the fact that live action isn't really my thing, and I plan to continue reading the comics. This collection, especially with the Cutter story, is a good jumping off point and I'm happy to have read it. The few gripes I have with the book aren't enough for me to dock it any stars.
tiedyedude's review
5.0
A kickass book! I can't wait to see what Ruby Rose does with this character. A very good introduction to Batwoman with some excellent art and amazing page layouts.
booknooknoggin's review
3.0
mostly a re-read with the exception of the last 3 issues which I had never read( The cutter story).
michaelrohmann's review
4.0
A nice introduction for people who are not familiar with Kate/Batwoman's story.
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