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daileyxplanet's review against another edition
5.0
The main arch of I Am Bane is pretty incredible. Bane has finally come to Gotham for his medicine, aka Psycho Pirate and Batman isn't gonna give him up no matter what.
Spoilers:
Love Bane storming Arkham Asylum very much like Batman would, I liked that juxtaposition. Speaking of which, there's plenty of comparisons between Batman and Bane and what made them who they are. They both suffered great tragedy but Bruce obviously had much better support and relief.
Bane is pretty savage on the Bat Family, reminiscent to the Death of the Family attack by Joker, so I'm surprised there were no tie-ins.
I've never read Knightfall, Tom King is definitely making me want to remedy that.
Spoilers:
Love Bane storming Arkham Asylum very much like Batman would, I liked that juxtaposition. Speaking of which, there's plenty of comparisons between Batman and Bane and what made them who they are. They both suffered great tragedy but Bruce obviously had much better support and relief.
Bane is pretty savage on the Bat Family, reminiscent to the Death of the Family attack by Joker, so I'm surprised there were no tie-ins.
I've never read Knightfall, Tom King is definitely making me want to remedy that.
captwinghead's review against another edition
2.0
** received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review **
2.5 stars
So, I had hopes for this one. Not particularly high hopes but hopes all the same. I enjoyed the first volume well enough but the second one was a travesty. So, when I started this one, I thought my opinion on this series can only go up. And… it stagnated.
The Good:
- The Batburger scene was glorious! Duke was back! The Batboys were back! It was a cute little scene with Duke meeting up with the Batfamily as Bruce warns them about Bane. There was the cute bit where Bruce intimidates the hell out of the guy working the register because he asks if Bruce would like to “Jokerize” his fries. “Richard” buys Damian a Happy Meal he isn’t very happy about. I loved them bickering like siblings!
- More of them acting like siblings! Please! Then we get Damian making fun of Jason’s hairline and Duke being concerned about joining the Dead Robin Club. And Duke seriously concerned about Bruce eating a hamburger with a knife and fork. This was so lighthearted and fun and I just wanted more of this! It was beautiful! I adore the Detective Comics series but Damian, Dick and Jason have not shown up in the last 2 trades so I really liked seeing them work with Duke on this. I really thought this volume was headed towards teamwork between Batsy and the Batboys and unfortunately, I was wrong.
The first issue is fantastic.
The second… not so much. King is trying way too hard to make this a serious, dark and edgy storyline and it’s not working. Still a lot of repetition as far as dialogue and Bane are concerned. The “I am Not” speech hinted at several Batman villains and I got the point after two.
Also, might want to stay away from reminding me of better iterations of Batman villains... just saying.
King’s intent to show Batsy and Bane as parallels of each other eventually made Bruce look delusional after a point. When he was a child, he still spoke to his mother - understandable. Then he grew up, became Batman and he still kept talking to her as if she was alive? Not in a “visit and talk to her gravestone” kind of way but in a "I see force ghosts" kind of way? I just can’t see Bruce doing that.
The Strange? Then the book recaps the last 2 volumes over like 7 pages for reasons?? Bane is just pontificating all over the place and it's like being at an amateur poetry slam for goths. "I give nightmares" "I am the night" "you forget, I am Bane". Like dude, take it down a notch.
It's way too much and the attempts make his and Batsy’s stories seem parallel was such a big stretch. They’re similar because Bruce were felt like he was trapped in a prison when his parents died and Bane literally was? What? Then I compare it to All Star Batman where better parallels were established for a relationship with Harvey Dent. Trying to force this connection between Bruce and Bane doesn't quite work.
Also, this is such a far cry from the Batman that distrusts supers he doesn't know. He's willing to trust and leave his city to these 2 nobodies, Gotham and Gotham Girl (urg) because they have powers? Is this Bruce Wayne? He would never do that. His biggest thing, even outside of the DCEU, is that the importance of being human and having that vulnerability is what makes you a hero. Being super powered creates a potential for a tyrannical rule and he knows that. This doesn't quite add up. I initially thought this was a cool idea but the harder Bruce leans into it… the more holes I see in his logic.
The Whuh? That whole issue was full of some of the spaciest, overindulgent dialogue like this exchange:
What?
The Gotham Girl storyline doesn't work for me because I think this should be 100% Duke or even Harper or some other established Batfamily member having these conversations with Bruce? I mean, I'm trade waiting All Star Batman so maybe he's having those conversations with Duke in that series but you've introduced Gotham Girl solely in this series; she was a side character to her brother in the first volume and I'm supposed to be invested and believe Bruce's investment. I don't and I don't like these overdone, metaphorical conversations and for something that got him so wrapped up in Bane's web, it ended with about two panels fixing her. It's just so... disappointing.
The Meh: The Bathound issue is short but pleasant. Again, this makes it clear that what appeals to me the most about Batman in this series is his interactions with the Batfamily.
Maybe I would have appreciated the Swamp Thing issue more if I knew anything about Swamp Thing. Batman is a passive member of this story. The ending once again is about Bruce Wayne trying to grieve which is usually something I find relatable but here, after reading him talking to to his mother while fighting Bane, it was just too much for me
Tl;Dr: The biggest reason I will be stopping here with this Batman series is that there just isn’t enough of an appeal for me. As I’ve said before, I’m not the biggest Bruce Wayne fan. I often find his character a little dry and boring but the one aspect of him that I respect is his intelligence. He’s cautious, studious, and near obsessive with researching and plotting out how to tackle his adversaries. I just… don’t get enough of that here. The concept of the Gotham/Goth Girl storyline confuses me. All the set up King is doing with these villains just isn’t appealing to me because everyone - everyone is so over the top and hyperbolic to the point of hilarity. I’m having more unintentional laughs than I think I’m supposed to and that’s not good. So, I’ll be getting off here and reading Detective Comics and All Star Batman instead. Yikes.
2.5
2.5 stars
So, I had hopes for this one. Not particularly high hopes but hopes all the same. I enjoyed the first volume well enough but the second one was a travesty. So, when I started this one, I thought my opinion on this series can only go up. And… it stagnated.
The Good:
- The Batburger scene was glorious! Duke was back! The Batboys were back! It was a cute little scene with Duke meeting up with the Batfamily as Bruce warns them about Bane. There was the cute bit where Bruce intimidates the hell out of the guy working the register because he asks if Bruce would like to “Jokerize” his fries. “Richard” buys Damian a Happy Meal he isn’t very happy about. I loved them bickering like siblings!
Damian: This isn’t what I asked you to purchase, Richard
Dick: It comes with a toy
Jason: If you don’t want the toy, I’ll take it
Damian: The toy is mine!
Dick: ‘The toy isth mine!’
Damian: I hate both of you!
- More of them acting like siblings! Please! Then we get Damian making fun of Jason’s hairline and Duke being concerned about joining the Dead Robin Club. And Duke seriously concerned about Bruce eating a hamburger with a knife and fork. This was so lighthearted and fun and I just wanted more of this! It was beautiful! I adore the Detective Comics series but Damian, Dick and Jason have not shown up in the last 2 trades so I really liked seeing them work with Duke on this. I really thought this volume was headed towards teamwork between Batsy and the Batboys and unfortunately, I was wrong.
The first issue is fantastic.
The second… not so much. King is trying way too hard to make this a serious, dark and edgy storyline and it’s not working. Still a lot of repetition as far as dialogue and Bane are concerned. The “I am Not” speech hinted at several Batman villains and I got the point after two.
Bane: I am not Crazy Quilt! I am not the Weasel! I am not Condiment King! I am not the Eggman. I am not the Walrus! Cuckoo -
Bruce: Okay, I - I think I got it
Also, might want to stay away from reminding me of better iterations of Batman villains... just saying.
King’s intent to show Batsy and Bane as parallels of each other eventually made Bruce look delusional after a point. When he was a child, he still spoke to his mother - understandable. Then he grew up, became Batman and he still kept talking to her as if she was alive? Not in a “visit and talk to her gravestone” kind of way but in a "I see force ghosts" kind of way? I just can’t see Bruce doing that.
The Strange? Then the book recaps the last 2 volumes over like 7 pages for reasons?? Bane is just pontificating all over the place and it's like being at an amateur poetry slam for goths. "I give nightmares" "I am the night" "you forget, I am Bane". Like dude, take it down a notch.
It's way too much and the attempts make his and Batsy’s stories seem parallel was such a big stretch. They’re similar because Bruce were felt like he was trapped in a prison when his parents died and Bane literally was? What? Then I compare it to All Star Batman where better parallels were established for a relationship with Harvey Dent. Trying to force this connection between Bruce and Bane doesn't quite work.
Also, this is such a far cry from the Batman that distrusts supers he doesn't know. He's willing to trust and leave his city to these 2 nobodies, Gotham and Gotham Girl (urg) because they have powers? Is this Bruce Wayne? He would never do that. His biggest thing, even outside of the DCEU, is that the importance of being human and having that vulnerability is what makes you a hero. Being super powered creates a potential for a tyrannical rule and he knows that. This doesn't quite add up. I initially thought this was a cool idea but the harder Bruce leans into it… the more holes I see in his logic.
The Whuh? That whole issue was full of some of the spaciest, overindulgent dialogue like this exchange:
Claire:is that what it is? This whole costumed life? It's being a hero?
Bruce: no. But most of the people who do it want it to be that.
Clarie what about the other people? The not most. (really? really?)
Bruce: you don't want to be them
Claire: are you them? (my phone keeps correcting this bc it's not proper grammar)
What?
The Gotham Girl storyline doesn't work for me because I think this should be 100% Duke or even Harper or some other established Batfamily member having these conversations with Bruce? I mean, I'm trade waiting All Star Batman so maybe he's having those conversations with Duke in that series but you've introduced Gotham Girl solely in this series; she was a side character to her brother in the first volume and I'm supposed to be invested and believe Bruce's investment. I don't and I don't like these overdone, metaphorical conversations and for something that got him so wrapped up in Bane's web, it ended with about two panels fixing her. It's just so... disappointing.
The Meh: The Bathound issue is short but pleasant. Again, this makes it clear that what appeals to me the most about Batman in this series is his interactions with the Batfamily.
Maybe I would have appreciated the Swamp Thing issue more if I knew anything about Swamp Thing. Batman is a passive member of this story. The ending once again is about Bruce Wayne trying to grieve which is usually something I find relatable but here, after reading him talking to to his mother while fighting Bane, it was just too much for me
Tl;Dr: The biggest reason I will be stopping here with this Batman series is that there just isn’t enough of an appeal for me. As I’ve said before, I’m not the biggest Bruce Wayne fan. I often find his character a little dry and boring but the one aspect of him that I respect is his intelligence. He’s cautious, studious, and near obsessive with researching and plotting out how to tackle his adversaries. I just… don’t get enough of that here. The concept of the Gotham/Goth Girl storyline confuses me. All the set up King is doing with these villains just isn’t appealing to me because everyone - everyone is so over the top and hyperbolic to the point of hilarity. I’m having more unintentional laughs than I think I’m supposed to and that’s not good. So, I’ll be getting off here and reading Detective Comics and All Star Batman instead. Yikes.
2.5
kiarrasayshi's review against another edition
5.0
No spoilers, but I loved the scene at the burger joint.
blairconrad's review against another edition
3.0
I continue to like, but not love, King's run. Bane's presence in Gotham didn't actually interest me that much, but I enjoyed Batman's chat with and the twist at the end of the book.
Spoiler
Gotham Girlrbreade's review against another edition
The jewel of this collection is "Every Epilogue is a Prelude," in which Bat declares his love for Cat and asks her to marry him.
kevinowenkelly's review against another edition
4.0
Builds on the great characterization he gave Bane in the previous volume and builds on those same themes; Bane's. "I WAS DONE!" is a wonderfully tragic line that stuck with me afterward.
I also loved the subtle (though unspoken) inversion this and the previous volume make of the original Knightfall story in which the two characters first met.
I also loved the subtle (though unspoken) inversion this and the previous volume make of the original Knightfall story in which the two characters first met.
scottpm's review against another edition
4.0
Great volume with superb art. Is it just me or does it seem like Batman is slowly sliding down to madness? The Annual story with Swamp Thing was cool!