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rhyno0401's review against another edition
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
iffer's review against another edition
2.0
This wasn't bad, but I just didn't find it very enjoyable. I will admit that this could be that I just didn't "get" what was going on, both because there were likely many references/tie-ins to other Batman comics that I haven't read, and also because I didn't really read meticulously. However, I honestly think that a lot of this was Grant Morrison when he's a hot mess (on some sort of hallucinogen?), not when he's awesome, and since he has a built-in audience, no one raised a hand to ask him what the heck was going on. Most things seemed to come together in the end, but due to the fact that there were multiple "Batmans," and Batman always moves in the shadows, so the art is just dark, I found it confusing to tell who was who, and who was doing what. The flashbacks, flash forwards, hallucinations, etc. also made this unnecessarily confusing. I think it's a shame, because there were some good content/themes and art.
The beginning when Damian appears is entertaining, although he's a huge brat, and I enjoyed Alfred's lip to Master Bruce (as well as the fact that he really wanted to read Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code), but I wasn't interested in the prose section about the Joker's funeral with creepy 3D digital illustrations or the Clue-esque murder mystery involving B-superheroes. I am mentally cutting Morrison some slack with these, since it appears that he's trying to establish a bigger, more complex story.
I know that these are comics, but Talia (general insanity and cartoonish jealously of Bruce's romance) and Damian (totally oblivious to social norms and a complete bart) sometimes seemed too ridiculous to even belong in soap operas or comics, which may have been more obvious because of the seriousness of the themes in the issues.
The artwork was good, but sometimes too information dense for my personal preference.
The beginning when Damian appears is entertaining, although he's a huge brat, and I enjoyed Alfred's lip to Master Bruce (as well as the fact that he really wanted to read Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code), but I wasn't interested in the prose section about the Joker's funeral with creepy 3D digital illustrations or the Clue-esque murder mystery involving B-superheroes. I am mentally cutting Morrison some slack with these, since it appears that he's trying to establish a bigger, more complex story.
I know that these are comics, but Talia (general insanity and cartoonish jealously of Bruce's romance) and Damian (totally oblivious to social norms and a complete bart) sometimes seemed too ridiculous to even belong in soap operas or comics, which may have been more obvious because of the seriousness of the themes in the issues.
The artwork was good, but sometimes too information dense for my personal preference.
alukemartin's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
midniqhtr42's review against another edition
2.75
How are there 50 storylines in this goddamn comic book and yet none of them were satisfyingly tied up?????
mazikem's review against another edition
3.0
damian!!! i love him
the rest was kinda weird though... especially the joker part.
the rest was kinda weird though... especially the joker part.
crystalmbookshelf83's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
3.0
apageinthestacks's review against another edition
4.0
Really good stuff. Looking forward to reading the rest of Morrison's Batman, as I've only read Arkham Asylum and Batman: Incorporated.
justabookholic's review against another edition
3.0
*3.5 stars
One of the most anti-climatic story arcs I have ever read in my life. I feel as though most of my complaints would have to do with the feeling of missing issues/plot lines in this volume. Without the conclusion of the whole Black Glove (stupid name for an organization), the volume seems a bit like a jumbled mess when I read it. The "aftermath" of the main storyline/first plot line involving Damian and Batman meeting felt incomplete in its execution. Additionally, the Three Batmans mystery also seemed a bit chaotic and congested in the amount of moving parts involved. It felt like a hat on a hat kinda situation.
I was surprised to discover how truly violent Damian was initially as he seems a lot more calmed down under the guidance of Bruce in the later issues. I did find that I really enjoyed Tim Drake's role throughout the book. He was arguably the most decent and sane person in the entire book and I respect his candor. Sure he gets his butt kicked by a ten year old but hey, I still really like the the guy.
One of the most anti-climatic story arcs I have ever read in my life. I feel as though most of my complaints would have to do with the feeling of missing issues/plot lines in this volume. Without the conclusion of the whole Black Glove (stupid name for an organization), the volume seems a bit like a jumbled mess when I read it. The "aftermath" of the main storyline/first plot line involving Damian and Batman meeting felt incomplete in its execution. Additionally, the Three Batmans mystery also seemed a bit chaotic and congested in the amount of moving parts involved. It felt like a hat on a hat kinda situation.
I was surprised to discover how truly violent Damian was initially as he seems a lot more calmed down under the guidance of Bruce in the later issues. I did find that I really enjoyed Tim Drake's role throughout the book. He was arguably the most decent and sane person in the entire book and I respect his candor. Sure he gets his butt kicked by a ten year old but hey, I still really like the the guy.
zephyrsilver's review against another edition
2.0
Maybe it's just this version, but this really was named incorrectly. Most of this should have been in a separate book called "Batman RIP Prologue" or something along those lines.
I picked this up wanting to get to know Damian better. And I did for maybe the first third of this book. The rest had very little to do with him. The rest really was setting up for "Batman RIP". So, I'm a little annoyed that it was misleading about the content.
I've also never been a huge fan of Morrison's writing. There are somethings that he does fantastically; I loved the parallels between the exhibit Batman was at, with the fight he was in. (It'll make sense when you read the book). So little metaphor type things, he does well. He gets his symbolism and over-analyzing stuff down. The story itself... ehh... A lot of the plot line was very confusing. It sets up "Batman Inc" with some very lame Batman wanna-be's. I didn't see the point of that part, other than Morrison just trying to get people to read the rest of his work. I skipped a lot of the "Batman Inc" stuff, hoping to get back to Damian's story. It never happens. It just stays weird. Batman had a weird hallucination/dream-thing that I still don't understand at all. And there was a freaky, tiny Batman, that just made me laugh because it was so absurd. I ended up giving up because it just got too confusing and irrelevant to Damian's story.
The only reason I didn't absolutely hate this was that Tim was awesome in it. I've read so few books where Tim is more than just Robin behind Batman. He actually had lines in this story, and I found that I really like Tim. So now I'm off to read more about him so I can finally get to know him. He was really the best part of this whole mess.
I think the other edition is probably put together better, but this one really wasn't put together well at all. Disappointing.
I picked this up wanting to get to know Damian better. And I did for maybe the first third of this book. The rest had very little to do with him. The rest really was setting up for "Batman RIP". So, I'm a little annoyed that it was misleading about the content.
I've also never been a huge fan of Morrison's writing. There are somethings that he does fantastically; I loved the parallels between the exhibit Batman was at, with the fight he was in. (It'll make sense when you read the book). So little metaphor type things, he does well. He gets his symbolism and over-analyzing stuff down. The story itself... ehh... A lot of the plot line was very confusing. It sets up "Batman Inc" with some very lame Batman wanna-be's. I didn't see the point of that part, other than Morrison just trying to get people to read the rest of his work. I skipped a lot of the "Batman Inc" stuff, hoping to get back to Damian's story. It never happens. It just stays weird. Batman had a weird hallucination/dream-thing that I still don't understand at all. And there was a freaky, tiny Batman, that just made me laugh because it was so absurd. I ended up giving up because it just got too confusing and irrelevant to Damian's story.
The only reason I didn't absolutely hate this was that Tim was awesome in it. I've read so few books where Tim is more than just Robin behind Batman. He actually had lines in this story, and I found that I really like Tim. So now I'm off to read more about him so I can finally get to know him. He was really the best part of this whole mess.
I think the other edition is probably put together better, but this one really wasn't put together well at all. Disappointing.
writethruchaos's review against another edition
4.0
I've read some of the single issues in this volume before but it makes such a difference reading the entire arc in one place. From the art to the narratives, Grant Morrison's Batman can't be beat. This volume was dark, funny, violent, intriguing, and sexy, which seems to be what everyone wants from a Batman movie, right? Fun fact: Batman does crack jokes. And they are actually funny! Crazy, right? DC really needs to take a look at their source material sometime instead of revisiting the same five Joker plot lines. The first few chapters in this beast go into Damian's origin and I personally would love to see that on the big screen. My only critiques are that some of the issues included in this volume didn't seem to connect to the overarching narrative, but I could have missed some context clues. And, as usual, the writers skim over the fact that Bruce was sexually assaulted, leading to the birth of Damian. Maybe new DC isn't afraid to explore male sexual trauma but this era treated it like a normal one night stand even though Bruce clearly states he was drugged and doesn't remember what happened. Maybe one day they will get it right.