Review: Batman #70

“Tune in tomorrow. Same Bat Time, same Bat Channel.” – Ed Nigma

Synopsis:

This story is part one of The Fall and the Fallen. The issue opens at Arkham Asylum with an inmate quoting William Blakes Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Then we cut to the Batman confronting one of his many Rogues Gallery. He’s none too pleased with this villain’s latest attempt to dupe him. It shows with the way the Caped Crusader introduces his knee to the perps skull. Not happy at all. First issues in a multi-issue tale are always difficult to review because we’re not entirely sure where they’re going to go.

The Creative Team:

Tom King appears to be setting us up with a multi-villain confrontation and this is the first part of that story. We’re seeing a lot of our heroes Rogues Gallery and I’ve always maintained that Batman has the best Rogues Gallery of any superhero, especially in the DC universe. He’s having fun throwing these characters at the alter-ego of Bruce Wayne and this issue whets our appetite for more crazy fun that will probably be on the way in future issues. The mastermind behind this latest caper appears to be using Batman’s past fears to intimidate him, though he should know better by now. The Batman has put up with all of this craziness before, but now it’s all being thrust at him at once. Will this issues main villain succeed in cracking the psyche of the worlds greatest detective? Great stuff includes the Riddler’s opening riddle and the reveal of the main villain.

Mikel Janin and Jorge Fornes along with Jordie Bellaire succeed in bringing the right atmosphere to this tale. First with different shades of green that give way to blue and later on red, which reveals the emotional states of envy, indifference and finally anger. the contrast and shading create an eerie feel to the proceedings that make this issue seem incredibly creepy. Highlights include the first appearance of our hero in a green fog and the revelation of this issues main antagonist, who also emerges from a green fog.

In Conclusion:

80 years of Batman have had their ups and downs. At different times the character was going to be cancelled, but something has always happened to keep us fans on our toes and brought the Dark Knight back into prominence. This tale is one of the characters high points in terms of suspense building, a rogues gallery homage, and noir style mystery that keeps us guessing. This issue concludes with the same inmate that opened the tale. This time quoting another classic poem! To be continued. ***1/2 (8.9 rating)

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Writer – Tom King
Art – Mikel Janin, Jorge Fornes
Colors – Jordie Bellaire
Letters – Clayton Cowles
Publisher – DC

Author Profile

Kevin Given

Kevin Given has studied with â€œ Longridge Writers Group â€ and â€œ Writerâ€™s Boot Camp â€ a speech/communications major from the University of Maine Presque-Isle/Orono sites. He has created the â€œ Karl Vincent Vampire Hunter â€ franchise which includes novels and comic books. They can be found on amazon, Indyplanet and Kindle. For a limited time you can get digital copies of â€œ Karl Vincent: Vampire hunter â€ # 1 and â€œ Files of Karl Vincent â€ # 1 for free on Indyplanet. Kevin is producing the third novel in the series â€œ Dracula Rising â€ (working title) and developing â€œ Foul Blood â€ into comic book form. Don't forget to check out the YouTube show " Comics: Let's Talk " hosted by Kevin Given