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A review by jexjthomas
Batman: Earth One Vol. 1 by Geoff Johns
4.0
Not the total rewrite of Batman's history I was expecting, but I liked that the changes made were original and unforeseen. It's not as gritty or dark as [b:Batman: Year One|59980|Batman Year One|Frank Miller|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327940389s/59980.jpg|2501570], which is by this point probably the definitive Batman origin story, but it also feels a little more human, a little more relatable. In Miller's famous work, Bruce Wayne often comes off as totally single-minded, a sort of more cunning Travis Bickle; here his quest to find his parents' killer seems more natural, almost like something any of us would do. In both works, Bruce Wayne is fallible, but Earth One finds him a little more down to earth, a little more likable.
Probably the biggest changes here would be
In all, the book is a lot of fun, and a fresh look at an origin story that has been done to death in every medium. Batman: Earth One may not strictly need to exist, and it isn't likely to become anyone's definitive version of Batman (since the Earth One line doesn't run in perpetuity like Marvel's Ultimate imprint), but I highly recommend that any Batman fan pick this up, if only for a breathtakingly fresh look at a character with nearly a century of history and continuity, often tangled and contradictory. Here Batman is presented clutter-free, free of history, free of baggage, free of ties to the rest of the DC Universe that place him in a context that makes him only an outsider among heroes, rather than an outsider among men.
Probably the biggest changes here would be
Spoiler
Thomas seen running for political office before being gunned down, against a less Penguin-y Oswald Cobblepot (who is still Gotham's Mayor by the time Bruce dons the cowl), Martha Wayne is an Arkham (an interesting development indeed, with interesting consequences), and, possibly my favorite change: Alfred Pennyworth is now a fairly bad ass ex-military guy who served with Thomas Wayne in Afghanistan (interesting parallel to Sherlock and Watson here?) and was originally hired not as the family's butler, but as head of security. This creates both a deep sense of responsibility for the Waynes' murder, and a dedication to Bruce--both raising him, and later helping the Batman--that isn't based simply on Alfred being a longstanding and faithful servant of the Waynes.In all, the book is a lot of fun, and a fresh look at an origin story that has been done to death in every medium. Batman: Earth One may not strictly need to exist, and it isn't likely to become anyone's definitive version of Batman (since the Earth One line doesn't run in perpetuity like Marvel's Ultimate imprint), but I highly recommend that any Batman fan pick this up, if only for a breathtakingly fresh look at a character with nearly a century of history and continuity, often tangled and contradictory. Here Batman is presented clutter-free, free of history, free of baggage, free of ties to the rest of the DC Universe that place him in a context that makes him only an outsider among heroes, rather than an outsider among men.