‘Batman: City of Madness’ #2 is absorbing and well written

Batman must defeat the Batman Below, but how?

December 12, 2023

Batman: City of Madness #1 was one of the best first issues of the year. The three-issue DC Black Label series gets its second chapter this week, further revealing the Gotham of Below and what Batman must do to save his city. It’s a second issue that gets a lot of key pieces in place for what will be a must-read finale.

Christan Ward does a lot of smart things to keep your interest up, delving into different key rogues while laying the groundwork for an epic finale. This issue could have easily been all table setting, but instead, we get his take on the Ventriloquist, more on Two-Face, and even Clayface. I won’t spoil some of the reveals, but let’s just say Two-Face is on a journey of his own. The idea of a third personality is explained in a way that connects him directly to Batman’s fight against a cosmic horror Gotham that resides underneath Gotham’s streets.

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The biggest surprise is the Ventriloquist, who ends up having a deep connection to Batman’s journey. You won’t see it coming, but it’s deeply impactful when he drops the connection. It helps justify why Batman goes it alone while humanizing Ventriloquist. Really, all the villains end up getting great writing, humanizing them and making you relate to their perspectives. It’s so good I thought to myself more than once, “Can this be canon? I want this to be canon.”

Speaking of humanizing, Ward continues to write Alfred in a compelling way. He’s still worried sick as he was in the last issue, but now that extends to Batman’s lifestyle while bringing others in, like Nightwing. You get the sense Alfred is practically in an unhealthy relationship due to the vigilante work the Bat family is up to.

Batman is not going to take his bs.
Credit: DC Comics

This series is pricier at $6.99, but it also feels like a steal thanks to how much Ward fits into the book. Extra-sized at 43 pages, I kept turning the page expecting to find the cliffhanger, but it kept going. There is a lot of creativity via layouts, but also artistry. The ghostly form of Court of Owls members hovering in front of a cityscape may make you linger longer than usual, and how he draws the Batman Below keeps your attention. There’s just so much to take in I can easily see people reading this more than once.

Letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou are also exceptional. The scene with Flamingo adds a nice flair to his word balloons, and the Batman Below doesn’t even have them in a sickly greenish-yellow font. The lettering suits a story like this that’s filled with a lot of characters, but also new ones with twisted backgrounds.

There are a couple of minor things that don’t quite work. Flamingo seems sort of stuffed in, just because, for instance. The way Nightwing enters the issue is comical as he’s stiff as a board flying through a window. It’s a bit nitpicking, to be honest, since there’s so much good on the page.

Batman: City of Madness #2 continues to be an exciting adventure with great writing and eye-popping art. This is an engaging read with a lot of “wow” factors and characters to empathize with every step of the way.

‘Batman: City of Madness’ #2 is absorbing and well written

Batman: City of Madness #2

Batman: City of Madness #2 continues to be an exciting adventure with great writing and eye-popping art. This is an engaging read with a lot of "wow" factors and characters to empathize with every step of the way.

Reader Rating2 Votes

8.5

Fantastic writing of every character

Hits at home the near-trauma Alfred is under

Villains are masterfully written

Is never boring even though its doing a lot to set up the finale

Minor things like Flamingo being in the book at all, or how Nightwing enters the story

9.5

Great

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