Jace gets a new headquarters, Chubb faces the fallout of the arrest of Manray and Montoya comes to New York in I Am Batman #11, written by John Ridley, drawn by Christian Duce & Tom Derenick, colored by Rex Locus and lettered by Troy Peteri.
Batman: Urban Legends #17 is an in-between-arcs cooling off issue, so readers get a few one-off stories. And the theme of these stories: stars of DC movies that were supposed to come out this year! So have Black Adam, Aquaman, The Flash, and Riddler, Penguin and Catwoman. How many of these movies will we see this year? Who knows?!
Batman fights the Sword of Gotham, and learns a chilling fact about the sentient cityās enforcer, in Batman Beyond: Neo-Year #4, written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing, drawn by Max Dunbar, colored by Romulo Fajardo Jr. and lettered by Aditya Bidikar.
Matt Lazorwitz: Tell me, Will, do you happen to subscribe to Ed Brubakerās newsletter?
Will Nevin: That I do not. But something tells me it had some Batman content this week.
Matt: Oh, yes. Heās on the writing staff of the upcoming HBO Max cartoon, Batman: Caped Crusader, and he says in this weekās newsletter that the writing for the season is about done. Which still means thereās a bunch of time till it hits, because animation takes forever, but weāve got some new Bruce Timm-designed goodness getting closer and closer.
Will: And some future Patreon bonus episode content to create!
Iāve Got a Question for Youā¦
Matt: OK, I donāt know if I want to spoil the end of this book, and especially not at the top of the section, but the last page here? Itās been too long since we saw that version of that character.
Will: You told me you were hype for that appearance, and I could have deduced what was going on. Probably. But Iām very happy for you regardless of whether I figured it out before the last page.
Matt: Regardless of my niche excitement, though, thereās a lot going on in this issue, and I feel like weāre still on the right track. Yes, the focus was more diffused than it was last issue, with the Fox family back in play, but this feels like it was setting stuff up, and at least we are getting some hints as to how the work that Tanya is going to be doing will tie in with Jaceās adventures, and Tiffās growing rebellious streak is being developed to tie into the events we saw in that story from Batman: Black and White we talked about on last weekās podcast.
Will: I totally remember what story youāre talking about. But ā¦ I want to see if you remember it? Yeah, letās go with that.
Matt: Ridley and artist Olivier Coipel did a short where Jace is captured by a bunch of racist former Penguin goons, and he is saved by Tiff, who is his sidekick. The timeline on it wasnāt clear, whether it was in the main DCU, the Future State timeline or something else, but this issue seems to indicate that Tiff needs an outlet for her rage, and this is a superhero universe. What better way is there than underage vigilantism?
Will: And what is Batman without a sidekick, eh? So I see where this could be going. But yeah, your point about the timeline is an important one here ā Renee Montoya canāt be commissioner in two cities at once, can she?
Matt: Nope. So, that story, while probably not in the prime timeline, is at least an indicator of where Ridley wants to go with Tiff. And I think making her the angry sidekick makes sense for Jace. Heās a guy who has dealt with his own demons, and now he will have to help Tiff work through hers. I also think it will be fun to have him interact with her smartass attitude in costume, and while sheāll be difficult, she wonāt be a Damian-level brat.
Will: No one ā and I mean goddamned no one ā can be as irritating in a DC comic as Damian. (Until we get that TNG and Wesley Crusher crossover.) But, no, I think that would be good for JaceBat ā moving him to New York was a good step ā¦ getting him his own cast of characters aside from N.Y. politician and police tropes would be another solid move.
Matt: He has a few already; Iām thinking of Val and Hadiyah. But they really only show up in relation to Jace. And while I know I have said this book can feel a bit scattered with its large cast, I feel like we need to see more of these people as people. The scenes with Tiff and Tam this issue are a good example of that; good character building that doesnāt slow down the momentum of the issue as a whole.
And we donāt need more cops. Chubb is perfect to fill that spot, with Whitaker hanging around so sheās not talking to herself when Batman isnāt there.
Will: Speaking of talking, Ridley keeps bumming me out with his dialogue choices. People only use terms like āwokeā and āvirtue signalingā on internet cesspools/Fox News. Regardless of the characters or my political opinions, it doesnāt come off as authentic and it stops this comic cold every time he goes to it.
Matt: But he only says āmasksā once this issue, so that is moving in the right direction.
I agree on that point, but when he isnāt using buzz words, the dialogue is solid. As I said, I like the scene between the Fox sisters, and this is the best Montoya has sounded since Greg Rucka wrote her; not surprising since Ridley wrote her issue of The Other History of the DC Universe, a comic that is his best work to date.
Will: Ugggggh. I had already forgotten he used āmasksā again.
The Batman Movie Star Spectacular
Matt: So it seems like this issue was scheduled for when DC had four movies coming out this year: The Batman, Black Adam, Flashpoint, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Currently, Black Adam remains on the horizon, Aquaman was pushed back to March ā23 and Flashpoint ā¦ well ā¦ Iām expecting an HBO Max release on that sometime on a weekend when no one is watching TV, so the execs can blame abysmal viewership numbers on that.
But, like the Spice, the comics must flow, and so we get this issue of Batman teaming up with, or interacting with, characters that were on or supposed to be on the silver screen this year.
Will: Sometimes things work better in the planning stage, donāt they? Regardless of whatās happening with the DC movies ā and holy hell is there ever a lot going on with the various trainwrecks in front of and behind those cameras ā I thought this issue worked pretty well. Aside from the Riddler story. That didnāt count.
Matt: That was barely a story. It was more a four-page meditation on the Riddler being a dick.That almost felt like, āCrap, weāre four pages short. Uhhhhh ā¦ Letās just fill it with something,ā because both Dan Watters and Riley Rossmo are better creators than that particular story shows.
The Flash story is pretty timeless; the Aquaman story, while tied to the Laughing Fish, isnāt a particularly continuity-heavy story; and while the Black Adam story exists at a very particular moment in that characterās timeline, you didnāt need to know much to get his deal, I felt. But Iām familiar with him, so please correct me if Iām wrong on that one.
Will: I read something in some title about his transition from villain to anti-hero. ā¦ Was it an event that I started reading and stopped?
Matt: Itās been a slow process, and one where he very often backslides. It started in the early ā00s JSA book, and was a big part of 52, went full villain again during the New 52 and now heās back to being a member of the Justice League. This story takes place smack in the middle of that JSA series, when he leaves the team to become ruler of his native Khandaq again, where he has been, more or less, since. He has basically become DCās answer to Doctor Doom, a guy who rules a country with an iron fist in a velvet glove, but to the outside world, all they see is the iron. Only Adam isnāt quite the massive egotist that Doom is.
Will: And his ego was a point this short story got across very well.
Matt: Yes. Just because heās not as much of an egotist as Doom, it doesnāt mean he doesnāt have one, but Adam is more haunted, and desperately does want to be loved by his people. I think Alex Paknadel gets that just right.
The Black Adam story was my favorite of the bunch, including a martial art for immortals. Thatās pretty damn clever.
Will: The Flash/Captain Cold story was right there with it, and it was interesting to see two guys who youād think would be natural allies (Captain Cold and Mr. Freeze) struggle to work together. The Aquaman story didnāt do much for me ā mostly because Meraās facial expressions and characterization were so strange (Why are you yelling at Batman constantly?) ā but I thought the Jokerfish tie-in was fun. And the environmental angle didnāt beat you to death.
Matt: The Freeze/Cold dynamic was an excellent interaction. Snart prides himself on being a working class sort of guy, and Freeze is an intellectual through and through (Can we just change it to be Dr. Freeze, please? He didnāt go to all those years of school to be Mr.).
Dr. Will: I agree.
Matt: Freezeās sheer condescension that Snart was ājustā a civil engineer? You donāt have to wonder why Freeze doesnāt have a lot of loyalty among the Gotham hired goon set. He freeze-splains everything to them, I bet.
Dr. Will: Again, that was a lot of fun ā and you wonāt catch me disrespecting a civil engineer. Those folks make $$$. What did you make of Captain Cold saying about the Flash, āYeah, I hate the guy, but I wouldnāt want to kill him.ā Does that ring true?
Matt: Absolutely. The Rogues have a very specific code with three rules. 1) Itās always about the money. 2) Rogues donāt do drugs 3) Donāt kill unless you have to, and especially never kill a speedster; it brings too much heat. The Rogues arenāt the Arkham crowd; theyāre blue collar crooks who want to make a buck and get away with it. Killing a superhero is too much of a hassle. And the one time they did? There needed to be a whole miniseries to deal with that fallout.
Dr. Will: The more you know (about Flash villains).
People of Gotham
Matt: This issue of Beyond is the midpoint of this six-issue series, and so we get one of the big reveals here. The fact that the Sword of Gotham isnāt just some guy, but is instead a body hopping avatar? Thatās neat, if a bit Agent Smith.
Dr. Will: But not quite Agent Smith, right? Because these people can recover; they can go back to being themselves. Thatās gotta change Batmanās calculus when he goes to fight someone who could be anybody ā including, as we see near the end, his allies.
Matt: Very true.This issue is about 65% action, with Batman fighting a couple of Swords, but with Terry narrating, we get character work and learn how Terry thinks, which is important. I stand by our discussion of issue #2, that it was too all over the place, and I wish it had been used to introduce Beam Boonma, as I would like more of her. We got a good feeling for her last issue, but I would like more to show why Terry is willing to chance so much on her.
Dr. Will: You say that this is the halfway point ā and I believe you because youāre smart and you know these sorts of things ā but it in no way feels like it. The story as a whole feels a bit ā¦ aimless? We know that Gotham is out to get Batman, that the city is now the malevolent force itās only rhetorically been to this point. But why did it happen? Whatās the solution? Those are the questions we should be digging into at this point, but it doesnāt feel like they have even been broached. This is a mystery without the mystery.
Matt: I agree that this seems like a lot to wrap up in two issues. I only realized this was a six-issue miniseries when I was looking at the September DC catalog; I thought it was a 12-issue series based on the pacing, and with the title Neo-Year? I would have expected 12. Iām not necessarily justifying this, because this might indicate another problem, but did you ever go back and read the prologue from issue #7 of Urban Legends? That might answer some of those questions. Of course, the fact that you need to read a story from another series ā¦
Dr. Will: My god, can we stop putting essential reading in Urban Legends? Serialized stories without recaps make my tiny head hurt. But now that you say that, Iām at least interested to go back and take a peek. Because those are questions Iād like to have answered. Itās more engaging than a few more fight scenes, at least.
Matt: Itās the headline story, and itās like this weekās issue, where itās just a bunch of one-off stories, so no reading required beyond that issue. It explains Gothamās motivations, so that might be why that point hasnāt stuck out to me.
Dr. Will: The city is an asshole ā itās always been that. I want to know those nuts and bolts mechanics, Matt! How does an AI become sentient and take over a city? And how is Batman going to stop it? Those are the things I want this book to get on with.
Matt: Yeah, Urban Legends does answer some of those hows. I bet when this gets traded, that will be right at the front and it will mean a lot less confusion.
Dr. Will: Fiiiiiiiiine. Iāll read it before we take up the next issue. You bullied me into it. Feel good about yourself?
Matt: Maybe a little, but I feel bad about feeling good, if that helps? Oh, years of Batman comics have taught me to feel bad about good feelings. What have I done with my life?
Bat-miscellany
- Thomas Wayne is Batmanās father, whose death is part of what spawned the Dark Knight. But in this weekās episode of the BatChat podcast, we see him as much more: doctor, hero and ā¦ homicidal vigilante?
- A cult of cat splicers who worship Catwoman? Thatās some fun background in Neo-Year.
Matt Lazorwitz read his first comic at the age of five. It was Who's Who in the DC Universe #2, featuring characters whose names begin with B, which explains so much about his Batman obsession. He writes about comics he loves, and co-hosts the creator interview podcast WMQ&A with Dan Grote.
Will Nevin loves bourbon and AP style and gets paid to teach one of those things. He is on Twitter far too often.
