Many times as a reviewer I am given a title and will have to judge things without the context of the previous issues to go by, with that said let’s get into this. Interestingly this puts me in a unique position when reviewing this comic as my circumstances are similar to Batman’s. You see Batman 62 is a nightmare and neither of us know what is going on. He seemingly trapped by a villain and setting straight out of a horror movie. Batman awakes upside down and bound by a villain named Pyg. Pyg appears to be doing the typical villain monologuing while he has Batman “helpless”“. But everything in this set up is off? Batman has no memory of being captured, he seems to know Pyg by name and yet not know him. He knows Pyg is ranting and yet can’t hear him, everything is just wrong. At one point Batman even screams in fear or horror and then wonders at the why of it. There are some hints as to wat has happened to lead Batman to this situation from the previous issue. There is some indication that could lead one to believe that Batman has been drugged or otherwise mind altered as he vaguely recalls hitting Commissioner Gordon and possibly even hurting Alfred.
It’s all a jumbled mess, a delirious stream of consciousness inner monologue as Batman tries to put the pieces of this horrific puzzle together while trying to survive his encounter with Pyg. The narration is very much in the style Frank Miller has adopted ever since The Dark Knight Returns, so much so in fact I had to check to see if he got a writing credit but no. It seems that King is just that good at aping the legendary author’s style for this issue. This issue’s story plays out in a fashion similar to the film Natural Born Killers by Oliver Stone in which you are constantly left wondering what exactly is real and what isn’t because it’s a story told from the view of two insane people. Batman’s uncertain state of mind here makes everything you see and even everything is says suspect. Is any of this even real? I sure can’t say because without the context of the previous issue I’m as lost as the Batman is himself.
ART
At first the art wasn’t to my taste but as I began to understand this story it all made sense. The art is harshly garish like something from the ming of Argento mixed in with a heavy does of 70s grind house cinema. It is bloody and caustic to the eye. The art is as disorienting as the story and I think it might be just as suspect. I had planned on discussing flaws I noticed in the art such ar perspective and continuity errors but I’m not sure that this is appropriate. It may just be that these “errors”“ were done on purpose to add to the sense of untrusted reality that is the heart of this story. I have no way of confirming this but that is my deduction.
The alternate cover by Frank Miller, the man who long ago redefined the Dark Knight, is sadly generic, uninspired and doesn’t reference the story within. Man I miss Frank in his prime.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Batman 62 is a mystery but one wrapped in layers of visceral horror. It is a grand guignol in comic book format. It confuses and distorts and subverts and asks you to ponder the meaning of it all, to puzzle out the riddle of the tale and how it reflects on the recent events of Batman’s life. I don’t want to go into great detail as I think this is a story that should be experienced for oneself.
It’s an unusual turn for Batman but one that was both entertaining and thoughtful. I recommend it. 5 out of 5!
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
BATMAN 62
Writer: Tom King
Art: Mitch Gerads
Variant Cover: Frank Miller and Alex Sinclair
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