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meemzter's review against another edition
4.0
Ahhhhhhh, my precious, dysfunctional batfam. Never change. (Literally they will never change).
But woah!!! As a former month-to-month DC reader it is always a little surreal and jarring to come back to the comics and realize how much I’ve been missing. There are familiar faces here, of course, but many of them have been reimagined since my days of hardcore keeping up with canon.
But look: if you are a batfam person - this collection is 18993% for you. Damian is not here (but idk if that’s bc he’s not here in the broader canon? I’m so behind) but other than that, all your fave batkids are getting the love and respect they deserve. Dick Grayson is probably the “main character” (which is perfect because he is my fave) but you will get lots of Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Cassandra Cain, and Harper Row. Batgirl and Spoiler also make appearances.
Robins-as-brothers is strong with this comic! As is the ever present and ALWAYS effective Bruce!Angst that all these kids carry with them.
The plot was sometimes a little confusing but I was also, admittedly, reading really fast due to my Goodreads challenge. This was probably a collection worthy of slowing down, rereading, and maybe even googling for context.
TLDR; batfam! Dick/Jason/Tim content! Dick having angst about his relationship with Bruce! Harper Row! Cassandra Cain! Literally what is there not to like.
But woah!!! As a former month-to-month DC reader it is always a little surreal and jarring to come back to the comics and realize how much I’ve been missing. There are familiar faces here, of course, but many of them have been reimagined since my days of hardcore keeping up with canon.
But look: if you are a batfam person - this collection is 18993% for you. Damian is not here (but idk if that’s bc he’s not here in the broader canon? I’m so behind) but other than that, all your fave batkids are getting the love and respect they deserve. Dick Grayson is probably the “main character” (which is perfect because he is my fave) but you will get lots of Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Cassandra Cain, and Harper Row. Batgirl and Spoiler also make appearances.
Robins-as-brothers is strong with this comic! As is the ever present and ALWAYS effective Bruce!Angst that all these kids carry with them.
The plot was sometimes a little confusing but I was also, admittedly, reading really fast due to my Goodreads challenge. This was probably a collection worthy of slowing down, rereading, and maybe even googling for context.
TLDR; batfam! Dick/Jason/Tim content! Dick having angst about his relationship with Bruce! Harper Row! Cassandra Cain! Literally what is there not to like.
lillanaa's review against another edition
4.0
I'm rating this very highly for the story, it has everything I love in anything batfam, and the mystery is compelling and fun while also having that serious undertone you want with any of this. My personal gripe, though, is the art falloff towards the end. Different artists were brought in for the later issues, and there are panels that are almost jarringly badly done, which is unfortunate for a comic that has such potential and had such good art towards the beginning.
colindalaska's review against another edition
1.0
Hey DC - would it kill you to ensure that Volume 1 of a new series is accessible to new readers?
Especially as this book changes artists and timelines so frequently.
Thanks.
Especially as this book changes artists and timelines so frequently.
Thanks.
unladylike's review against another edition
2.0
I've missed out on whatever huge thing happened that caused Bruce Wayne to cease being Batman and the uprising of tons of Robins, but I was able to accept that and take this book for what is was. What it is is a bad sci-fi mystery movie where the director keeps showing you the same incomplete flashback sequence, but you know the ending is going to reveal some twist that's different than what they're shoving in your face. But by the end, you just don't care.
The whole Mother analogy is played out to death on almost every page, it's obvious this is another book with Scott Snyder's name on it that's actually scripted by much less-talented writers, and the art style is so inconsistent that I wouldn't have been able to identify several key characters from one issue to the next if it weren't for their costumes.
I'm hoping the major gaps in this plotline will be explained when I get my hands on Batman vol. 8, but if not, I'll just catch the Cliff's notes version of this crappy arc.
The whole Mother analogy is played out to death on almost every page, it's obvious this is another book with Scott Snyder's name on it that's actually scripted by much less-talented writers, and the art style is so inconsistent that I wouldn't have been able to identify several key characters from one issue to the next if it weren't for their costumes.
I'm hoping the major gaps in this plotline will be explained when I get my hands on Batman vol. 8, but if not, I'll just catch the Cliff's notes version of this crappy arc.
tmwebb3's review against another edition
4.0
Liked this mostly for the inclusion of the whole Bat family. Decent art considering how many worked on it. Mediocre story, hopefully the next volume picks up the stack.
llymrie77's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sapphisms's review against another edition
1.0
My feelings can be summed up as 'disappointment'. Not even just a little disappointment- a lot of disappointment. For one of the biggest current titles featuring the entire batfamily, the plot line is fairly weak (and almost directly comparable to Marvel’s Black Widow Red Room storyline) and the characters don’t even resemble themselves. On top of that, there’s this nonsense about Bruce ‘designing’ his Robins, only for there to be no conclusion (or even a hint) at who the Robin is at the end of the volume. Everyone is a hollow caricature of themselves, and Jason probably couldn’t fight a mouse and win, apparently.
A shortened version of my review on babsreadsbadreads: Cassandra Cain's storyline is heavily watered down (and in almost direct parallel to Natasha Romanoff's older story, instead of her own), she's treated as a 'wise, silent Asian' stereotype, complete with Meaningful Hand Gestures about who you really are, Jason Todd (despite being written in almost all other pre52 and new52 titles differently) is a misogynist that takes Tim, a minor, out for a drink (the same guy that said he would decapitate anyone selling drugs to children), Dick Grayson is little more than a ball of insecurities (that he's never had before, even in the new52) and a nice ass (though I'm honestly not seeing it), Tim was basically the emotionless computer guy until he got upgraded to Ultimate Asshole where he tells Jason 'no wonder you're everyone's least favorite Robin' and pokes fun at him for dying.
Honestly, you're better off reading source material like Red Robin, Nightwing, or Under the Red Hood, because Snyder obviously didn't
A shortened version of my review on babsreadsbadreads: Cassandra Cain's storyline is heavily watered down (and in almost direct parallel to Natasha Romanoff's older story, instead of her own), she's treated as a 'wise, silent Asian' stereotype, complete with Meaningful Hand Gestures about who you really are, Jason Todd (despite being written in almost all other pre52 and new52 titles differently) is a misogynist that takes Tim, a minor, out for a drink (the same guy that said he would decapitate anyone selling drugs to children), Dick Grayson is little more than a ball of insecurities (that he's never had before, even in the new52) and a nice ass (though I'm honestly not seeing it), Tim was basically the emotionless computer guy until he got upgraded to Ultimate Asshole where he tells Jason 'no wonder you're everyone's least favorite Robin' and pokes fun at him for dying.
Honestly, you're better off reading source material like Red Robin, Nightwing, or Under the Red Hood, because Snyder obviously didn't
carleeiigh's review against another edition
3.0
Team up with the BOYS! And an amazing introduction to Cassandra Cain, with a little extra spice from Bluebird/Harper Row thrown in.
Cassandra Cain approaches Grayson with a file from Batman, talking about a supervillain named Mother who "crafts" perfect humans after abducting them. It all apparently ties back to a mission Dick and Bruce were on when he was still Robin, where Bruce may have requested the perfect sidekick to be crafted for him - the Robin boys have to team up to figure out what the hell is going on with Mother.
I loved seeing all the guys interact with each other. Dick always manages to inhabit too much of Bruce when he has to lead others on a mission, and I think the tension between all the Robins works pretty well. Harper Row is pretty hit or miss for me, but once she's accepted into the team and starts working properly with Grayson, she was pretty entertaining. Cassandra is amazing, I loved her brutality, but there's also a lot of innocence and love in her too. I didn't ever see her in the continuity before New 52, so this is is fine with me, I like her a lot.
The plot has a bit too much going on. While I loved to see Jason and Tim working together, they don't really do anything important to the story? Just kind of have a weird, convoluted side adventure. I never bought into the whole "Batman bought a Robin from Mother" thing, because obviously he wouldn't and didn't, but it was interesting to see the story play out.
Cassandra Cain approaches Grayson with a file from Batman, talking about a supervillain named Mother who "crafts" perfect humans after abducting them. It all apparently ties back to a mission Dick and Bruce were on when he was still Robin, where Bruce may have requested the perfect sidekick to be crafted for him - the Robin boys have to team up to figure out what the hell is going on with Mother.
I loved seeing all the guys interact with each other. Dick always manages to inhabit too much of Bruce when he has to lead others on a mission, and I think the tension between all the Robins works pretty well. Harper Row is pretty hit or miss for me, but once she's accepted into the team and starts working properly with Grayson, she was pretty entertaining. Cassandra is amazing, I loved her brutality, but there's also a lot of innocence and love in her too. I didn't ever see her in the continuity before New 52, so this is is fine with me, I like her a lot.
The plot has a bit too much going on. While I loved to see Jason and Tim working together, they don't really do anything important to the story? Just kind of have a weird, convoluted side adventure. I never bought into the whole "Batman bought a Robin from Mother" thing, because obviously he wouldn't and didn't, but it was interesting to see the story play out.
nmnf_06's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0