If you’re a fan of Batman, but wish there were more Ghost-Maker and Clownhunter scenes, fear not — Batman 2022 Annual #1 delivers. The extra-sized one-shot is all about Batman Inc. as Batman requests Ghost-Maker to take over the operation after Bruce Wayne’s, um, negative cash flow situation. In the special, writer Ed Brisson and artist John Timms set up the team, send them on a mission, and make you want more.
The idea of Batman Inc. is a great one first established by Grant Morrison. With all of Batman’s wealth, why not spread the love of what he does for Gotham across the globe? This issue acts as a reminder of that organization’s promise and effect on the Bat Canon, but also the relationship Ghost-Maker and Batman have prior to them both getting their costumes and fighting crime.
This issue opens with Bruce and Ghost-Maker fighting some bank robbers as they compete to see who can take down the most criminals. It’s a reminder that these two were like brothers, which further helps remind us why Batman would trust Ghost-Maker in the first place. Soon we’re whisked off to the new Batman Inc. headquarters and are introduced to the many Batman figures who fight crime across the globe.
Brisson does a solid job in establishing each team member as well as reminding us Ghost-Maker does things much differently. Timms renders each of these colorful Batman characters quite well, with each one looking quite different. Due to the heavy setup in this issue, you get the sense that this issue’s doing all the heavy lifting for subsequent stories, but it’s also a nice reminder of how large Batman’s presence has become across the globe. Still, Ghost-Maker is certainly the main character of this story, and he’s written well.
The good old days. Courtesy of DC Comics.
This one-shot also serves as an introduction to a new character that should be fun to follow. Once Batman Inc. goes on its first mission, I will admit the adventure is reminiscent of Resident Evil, but it gets the job done. Clownhunter also seems a bit off here, as he comes off as feeling a little aimless and/or unfulfilled. He’s a younger hero who needs a lot of training, but he never feels defined or all that complex in a story that could use some really solid Bat-heroes.
Customary of these annual issues, this issue does feel overly long and bloated. Could it have worked with fewer pages and a bit faster pace? Probably. There’s an example of just that when Ghost-Maker insists a character explains what happened to the town — then we get an entire page devoted to their tragic town’s fate. It feels unnecessary, or at least a bit obnoxious to stop the entire story so as to give us the backstory.
Timms draws a heck of an issue, with his customary dynamic layout design and attention to detail really delivering here. Ghost-Maker is a tricky character to draw thanks to his big pants and cape, but Timms doesn’t miss a beat. The colors by Rex Lokus are great, with great use of shine and light on characters. The shine especially on the new character’s shoulder tattoo is a particularly nice example of this visual excellence.
Batman 2022 Annual #1 makes a real strong case for a Batman Inc. series, as there are many colorful and interesting characters to man the team as well as Ghost-Maker, who largely remains a mystery. This issue is worth picking up if you want to get a few underused Batman characters into your comics reading diet, but don’t expect a trim story as it sometimes feels a bit bloated and slow. Still, it’s a lot like a fat vitamin pill: once it goes down, it’s all the good stuff.
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
You must be logged in to post a comment.