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cynz's review
3.0
It took me a while to get through it because there's something off about the combination of Frazer Irving's art and the colourist on this book. I didn't feel it, which is odd because I'm usually a fan of both Irving and Sinclair's work. Some great and iconic covers by Frank Quitely. The one shot at the end was a redeeming factor.
blackestclovers's review
4.0
Irving's work isn't as good as his SHADE or X-MEN work and that brings this down from 5. Still a great story, though. Dying to read BATMAN INCORPORATED now.
mcbenzie's review
4.0
I inhaled this; it felt like coming home after my disappointment with [b:Batman - Time and the Batman|13362464|Batman - Time and the Batman|Grant Morrison|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61ddyD99r1L._SL75_.jpg|18591054] and [b:Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne|8544958|Batman The Return of Bruce Wayne|Grant Morrison|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320544991s/8544958.jpg|13412756]. The insane promise of volumes one and two is fulfilled here with the return of three key villains, two of whom face off against each other, trying to use the new Batman & Robin team of Dick and Damian as pawns. Despite all the craziness surrounding his death and return, when the original Batman shows up it feels just right. And the setup for what comes next - Batman, Inc. - just makes me want to read that, too. (Even if I've heard it's not that great.)
Batman & Robin is some of the best Batman I've read in years. I hope there's more! ...Patrick?
Batman & Robin is some of the best Batman I've read in years. I hope there's more! ...Patrick?
frasersimons's review against another edition
1.0
Worse artist and the plot became more contrived and uninteresting. Rather not continue.
erutane's review
3.0
I like Grant Morrison, but I do not love the dialogue he has written for this Batman & Robin series. It was irritating to read to no end. I also hate this stupid Bat People stuff. At the moment I can't think of a single thing I think more stupid in the Batman universe than this Bat People stuff. (The Return of Bruce Wayne was just ridiculous.)But the illustrations were superbly out-of-this world weird and grotesque, bewitchingly stylish. And I suppose it was a decent beginning for Batman International- even if I think that was a silly idea as well.
literarygoblin's review
3.0
Any good story has its ups and downs, and it seems we finally met that downward decline in Batman & Robin, Volume Three. Following the strong and intriguing plots of the previous volume, I had high expectations for what I’d encounter in the next story arc, Batman & Robin Must Die!, but perhaps those expectations should have been lower.
From the first issue of this book, I felt lost - the script for this book was consistently flimsy and unclear, and it felt as if writer Grant Morrison had no intention of making it make sense. This, unfortunately, was quite the departure from the previous installments in this series, which always managed to bring together plot elements even if they didn’t initially make sense. I could see throughout this first arc that beneath the lackluster writer there was a promising plot that could have been very engaging, however, it continually got lost.
For me, one of the only real strengths of Batman & Robin Must Die! was Morrison’s characterization of the Joker. The strange style of writing suited this character perfectly, making all of the scenes featuring the Joker the most dynamic and interesting of the story arc.
The artwork of the first three issues as well was underwhelming and even distracting. Frazer Irving has a very distinct art style, especially when compared to other comic book artists, however, it is not a style that appeals to me. For the most part, his depiction of the characters was uncomfortable and strange (which only suited the Joker, who was drawn to perfection), and they became even more so when juxtaposed with panels that depicted Gotham, which is done so beautifully in comparison. Irving has a strong style, however, I don’t think it fits the stories of Batman.
Despite all these criticisms, which made me incredibly hesitant about what else was to come in the series, issues four and five of the book offered redemption for Batman & Robin. Four, entitled Black Mass, is a larger issue, giving Morrison the opportunity to truly wrap up the story he was telling in 1-3. The plot here was told much better than in the previous issues, although it still remained somewhat flimsy, and it felt truly like a Batman adventure. It had action and conflict that was engaging, and it once again showed us the relationships between characters, which felt all but forgotten in the issues prior. The end of issue three revealed the return of Bruce Wayne, and in Black Mass it was an absolute delight to see the way he and Dick Grayson bounced off each other. With just a few lines I could feel the familiarity and history between the two, and it was an absolute joy to see them work together again.
Another highlight of Black Mass was the change of artists - because this is a large-sized issue, it featured three artists telling the story. Irving’s art continued in this story, but it was the addition of Cameron Stewart and Chris Burnham’s style that really gave this story the Batman element that it had been missing. Admittedly, I was happy not to be looking at Irving’s style anymore.
Finally, the book ends on Planet Gotham, the issue that sets the series on it’s next course. It introduced an intriguing new plot that builds anticipation for the upcoming stories, however, this issue itself didn’t feel like much of a story on it’s own - it was simply Morrison laying the groundwork for what’s to come. Nonetheless, this last issue reinvigorated my excitement for the series, and I’m really hoping that the final book is as strong as books one and two, and Batman & Robin, Volume Three, unfortunately, the biggest letdown of the series thus far.
tabman678's review against another edition
5.0
Batman and Robin vol 3 is an amazing journey and a great cap to what has come before. AND a really good beginning to Batman Incorporated.
You know the drill, this takes place in a run of Grant Morrison Batman comics and at the very least (and I mean very VERY least) should have read the first two volumes of Batman and Robin and The Return of Bruce Wayne. Even still Batman R.I.P would be a help because this has lot's of familar faces and elements from that great story.
Hurt is back Masquerading as Thomas Wayne. The new Batman and Robin have to stop him and his ideas of Barbatos worship.The Joker is at play and the city is mass addicted to a new form of drug. All while Bruce is out of commison. (Or is he?)
My only real complaint is that it doesn't always feel like the city is in trouble until the second to last issue. But the art is great, it does a good job of telling the story. And the plot and characters check out. Morrison and his teams have done it again.
Well worth the read.
5 stars.
You know the drill, this takes place in a run of Grant Morrison Batman comics and at the very least (and I mean very VERY least) should have read the first two volumes of Batman and Robin and The Return of Bruce Wayne. Even still Batman R.I.P would be a help because this has lot's of familar faces and elements from that great story.
Hurt is back Masquerading as Thomas Wayne. The new Batman and Robin have to stop him and his ideas of Barbatos worship.The Joker is at play and the city is mass addicted to a new form of drug. All while Bruce is out of commison. (Or is he?)
My only real complaint is that it doesn't always feel like the city is in trouble until the second to last issue. But the art is great, it does a good job of telling the story. And the plot and characters check out. Morrison and his teams have done it again.
Well worth the read.
5 stars.
just_fighting_censorship's review
2.0
What the hell did I just read?
After the big reveal of the previous volume I was so excited to dive into this one...
Except I was immediately confused and remained confused for a good portion of the book. I actually thought that maybe my copy was missing pages, it wasn't.
In the last volume Grayson was searching for clues about where Batman was, he thought that he was maybe lost in time...? There was a ton of build up and then in this volume everything was just chaos. Did I miss something? Where was Batman? Who is this weird Wayne ancestor, and why was he saying he was Thomas Wayne? The Pyg storyline with the virus addition was interesting but was also completely overshadowed by the randomness of everything else.
I enjoyed the Joker plot line, but maybe that's just because I happy to understand something.
This whole volume just felt rushed and the return of Batman was very anti-climatic.
Also, Batman Incorporated....
After the big reveal of the previous volume I was so excited to dive into this one...
Except I was immediately confused and remained confused for a good portion of the book. I actually thought that maybe my copy was missing pages, it wasn't.
In the last volume Grayson was searching for clues about where Batman was, he thought that he was maybe lost in time...? There was a ton of build up and then in this volume everything was just chaos. Did I miss something? Where was Batman? Who is this weird Wayne ancestor, and why was he saying he was Thomas Wayne? The Pyg storyline with the virus addition was interesting but was also completely overshadowed by the randomness of everything else.
I enjoyed the Joker plot line, but maybe that's just because I happy to understand something.
This whole volume just felt rushed and the return of Batman was very anti-climatic.
Also, Batman Incorporated....