Batman #29 Review

 

Rain, rain go away……………….

Snyder ends his second arc of ‘Zero Year’, and while it doesn’t touch the heights of the first one, it’s enjoying nevertheless.

There is a litany of references here, from Dark Knight Returns to Batman the Animated Series. But it’s his new inputs that serve to dazzle as he juggles multiple platforms until everything comes down in a mighty crescendo.

The way in which he re-imagines a key moment in Batman’s life (one I’ll like to see in the new Gotham show) is where he shines. His dialogue sparkles and the only place they falter is near the end.

And what more can I say of Capullo? He complements Snyder and Gotham so well, it feels like that’s all he’s been doing since he lifted his first pencil.

SPOILERS FOLLOW……………

As I said above, Snyder’s at his best at the beginning. His revision of why the Waynes went to see Zorro is both familiar and new. Thomas Wayne especially proves to be the unusual star of the first two pages in his interaction with his son. Especially with the iconic ‘Joe Chill’ pose framed behind them as a recruitment drive for the GCPD.

And the father-son thing recurs throughout the issue.

We come screaming back to the present as Bruce smashes his way through the flooded cavern. I would have loved a more planned escape than this brawl outage, but it works in the context of the dialogue.

And the storm is finally here! For those wondering what was going on in the Zero Year tie-ins, this issue is where you see that status quo emerge. Gordon leads an evacuation before receiving Batman’s call to go to Wayne Tower.

Apparently, the Riddler’s holed out there. It’s nice to see the Gordon-Batman partnership start here at a time when the city really needs them to work together. Apparently, Edward has got Helfern to whip up a way to route all control to Nygma’s servers the moment the power comes back on.

Meanwhile Batman goes to cut off the problem at the bud….in his awesome bat blimp! Blimps have been a rage in Zero Year but this takes the cake!

This guy isn’t staying an urban legend…..and while I’m not totally comfortable with the showboating from Bruce, you have to admire Snyder for mixing the outrageous with the dark so well.

Snyder doesn’t take the easy way out and painstakingly details exactly what the Riddler and Doctor Death are concocting. It’s admirable how detailed he is.

The blimp is sacrificed though as Batman manages to reach the tower (with another homage to Dark Knight Returns) while Gordon fails to stop Corrigan from turning the power back on.

Now comes the boss battle. This is where Snyder falters a bit as the father-son thing comes off too on the nose and the exposition kills the pacing.

Riddler manages to outsmart Gordon (with a five ton rock death-trap!) and gains control of the tower just as Doctor Death dies.

The fight though, if you can separate the dialogue (which is very interesting) from the actual battle, is actually quite well done. Batman gauges Helfern’s abilities and is able to counter them reasonably well until a shrapnel from a blast contributes to his ‘death’.

The conversation though brings to a close the ‘Tokyo Moon’ storyline. The soldiers seen in the opening? They were looking for Bruce Wayne apparently and died from the booby trap laid for them by the nomads they were chasing. ‘The Tokyo Moon’ is about how wherever you are; the Moon will always be there for you. But for Helfern, who lost his son in that desert trap, the moon is bright but hollow and he believes Bruce knew that –everyone is alone.

I have to get in how impressively grotesque Capullo draws him. It’s a horrific visage but at the same time, you feel a little sympathy for Helfern, who was in the end a pawn for the ruthless Nygma.

Nygma destroys the flood gates around Gotham and the water comes rushing in. As the blimps crash (end of the line for Loeb? Would have liked to see a more personal touch but…), Bruce reminiscences about that fateful night as he feels as helpless a second time in his life, watching Gotham go up in flames.

SPOILERS END………………..

Snyder crosses the ‘Dark City’ Chapter with a blockbuster finish, hitting much of the right beats and only doing a few missteps near the end. Capullo proves an able foil as usual; highlighting Gotham’s worst nightmares come to life.

So, I give it 9.0 out of 10

+Some amazing dialogues

+Amazingly detailed

+Capullo was born to draw Gotham and its inhabitants

+Riddler continues to be an excellent foil

-Too much exposition near the end