If Absolute Batman’s philosophy is to make Batman as epic as possible, it passes with flying colors. No other series shows how undeniably awe-inspiring the shadowy face of DC is. Speaking of colors, the creative team continues to thrive in this second issue, with Frank Martin commanding the page’s mood and clearly differentiating distinct spaces. Each setting has a prominent color, whether the light blue of an aquarium or the pale green of a basement light bulb. Not to mention Nick Dragotta’s beefy beast of a man, taking over the panels like a hungry hippo guzzling away crime. His use of unique perspectives makes the reader’s eyes dart around from one panel to the next, never boring us with repeated images.
On the script side, the issue opens with Batman Oldboy-ing his way through a crowd of Black Mask goons. Right away, the imagery is seared to public consciousness as a staggering visual that can be referenced for years to come. He has wings like a bat, he’s even upside down like a bat, they have made the most Batman Batman possible, a literal animalistic force of nature.
To cope with his loss, with how small it made him, 24-year-old Bruce Wayne has made himself larger than life, both literally and figuratively. Scott Snyder is well experienced at mixing action with natural exposition, making every dialogue and caption serve a purpose, either pushing the plot forward or giving an insight into a character’s headspace, oftentimes both. He makes a single 23-page issue thick with entertaining meat.
Credit: DC Comics
Alfred continues his role as the reader’s point of view person, and through the looking glass, we see Bruce’s routine. Without the privilege of old money wealth, he has a day job. How he balances that with his nighttime crusade is anybody’s guess. But these guesses make Bruce an enigma, we and Alfred are on the same page, both in constant wonder at what he does. We don’t know what he’s thinking except through traumatic flashbacks.
Alfred’s responsibilities that do not always align with Bruce’s also give them a refreshing dynamic, sometimes pitting them against each other. Despite all the differences, however, most of it still feels familiar. The novel changes do not change Batman all that much. His decisions may look different, maybe his logo and car are bigger, but they are essentially the same. Even the police’s response isn’t that revolutionary. Compared with Absolute Superman, these changes now seem conservative.
I didn’t think this series could top the energy of the first issue, but it’s close. Every aspect of the character is reinvented in favor of fun. From the wild Batmobile to his rogues. There are nice callbacks with them, the Rogue’s Gallery playing cards together, cracking gimmicky pun jokes for the readers, reminiscent of the animated series. But the series’ main villain seems to get the short end of the stick, being generic considering the opportunity to cut loose and go way out of left field. I guess we’ll just have to see.
Absolute Batman #2 gladly adheres to the “rule of cool”, each page turn feeling like a museum exhibit that reveals a newer, bigger, cooler thing at every corner. Unfortunately, the creative twists on Batman’s iconography pushing him to his highest highs don’t necessarily entail many new characterizations or fresh interpersonal drama absent from his other appearances. At least not yet. For newcomers, however, this buy is a no-brainer that will get you hooked on Batman comics in no time at all.
You must be logged in to post a comment.