Review: Batman #22

DC Comics/$3.99

When DC Comics re-launched their line with The New 52! reboot, fans were both excited and skeptical about what changes would be made to the DCU and their favorite characters. The goal was to excise seventy-plus years of continuity and draw in new readers with a fresh, modern approach to their characters and the DC Universe. Now that we’re almost two years into The New 52!, it’s safe to say that their plan has, for the most part, worked. Sure, comic book fans have been divided over some of the changes made to the core titles, but speaking as a relative newcomer to the wider DCU, I’ve rather enjoyed this new universe. While I read Batman, Green Lantern, and the occasional Superman book growing up, I was pretty much a hardcore Marvel Comics reader. When I started picking up titles from The New 52! I found that I liked this reboot more and more, and the stories reminded me of my heyday of comics reading back in the mid-to-late 1980’s. Some good, solid superhero stories are coming out of DC these days, and for the first time ever I’m finding myself buying more DC comics than Marvel books.

The head of the pack when it comes to consistent quality, Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman delivers the goods month after month. So far we’ve seen three amazing story arcs played out, and their fourth has just begun. Zero Year, which began in Batman #21, gives us an extended origin story of the New 52 Batman. The origin of the Batcave, the construction of the Batsuit, and the early days of many of Bruce Wayne’s major villains are being revealed in this new arc. I typically dislike origin retellings, but this one keeps me turning the pages. The writing is very strong and the art is amazing, and one can only hope that Snyder and Capullo remain the creative team on this book for at least a few years longer. I feel that Zero Year, along with Night Of The Owls, The Court Of Owls, and Death Of The Family are some of the strongest Batman stories to come out since Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee’s Hush!

Batman #22 tells of one of Bruce Wayne’s run-ins with the Red Hood gang, who have stolen some of Wayne Enterprises high-tech weaponry and have started their plan to seize Gotham City in a grip of terror. We also see Bruce use his skills as a master of disguise to impersonate Oswald Cobblepot in an attempt to foil the Red Hood gang leader. It’s nice to be reminded of the detective side of Batman, as that’s what the character originally started out as- a costumed detective with unmatched skills in disguise and stealth. In this issue, Bruce Wayne’s uncle tries to convince him to come back to Wayne Enterprises and help run the company, as Bruce has been away from Gotham for years and only just returned to the city that took his parents from him. Zero Year does a great job at building up to the point where Bruce dons the cape and cowl and becomes the Batman, introducing major characters and villains early on and portraying them as they were before their alter-egos took center stage. As a whole, I think this story will be fantastic, and I can hardly wait a month until issue #23 hits stores!

As usual, Scott Snyder’s script is superb and doesn’t skip a beat, and Greg Capullo’s incredible pencil work creates a very dark and cinematic feel to the book. The art team is nicely rounded out by Danny Miki (inks), Fco Plascencia (colors), and Nick Napolitano (letters). Like I said earlier, this book consistently delivers on a monthly basis, and if you only read one DC title every month, you should be reading Batman!