When I heard that Matt Fraction’s Batman would strive to be more self-contained, I laughed and thought, “yeah, right.” But I’m here to say I was wrong. We last left off with Bruce and Tim badly injured, Tim driving the Batmobile after Bruce was shot by a corrupt police officer. However, this issue doesn’t do much to follow its predecessor’s direction. Instead, Fraction starts ramping up the conflict between Batman and Vandal Savage even further by contextualizing the ending of issue #2 when Savage appeared at the “crime scene” to blame Batman and Robin for the events that unfolded. As a result, the issue takes a different route than expected, but quickly builds towards, as the cover suggests, Batman’s confrontation with The Riddler. With this change in direction, one might wonder whether the issue winds up being jarring or is able to continue to remain engaging. If you don’t feel like reading this whole review, here’s my two-word answer to that: it depends!
DC
Many writers have posed the question: what makes Gotham a living character? Is it grit? Is it resilience? Or could it be its people? Well, if you ask Matt Fraction, it’s the people. This issue opens with such a sincere and charming opening that reminds readers of the impact that Batman has had on the people of Gotham. Through this moment, the issue opens with a more heartfelt air around it that emphasizes how special the people of Gotham are. That said, it seems that a tide of change is making waves and changing the norms we’ve grown accustomed to in Gotham – and that tide is coming in many forms. It could be Vandal Savage attempting to manipulate people into thinking Gotham’s protector is the enemy, or Doctor Zeller’s approach to “fixing” mental health, or just the realization that everything old is new again in Gotham. The players may change, but the cyclical nature of Gotham means new people try to bring about change by force while Batman remains a constant force of justice. Throughout the issue, Fraction takes his time slowly building towards the new threats in Gotham stacking up against Batman, and as a result of the brewing tension, the pacing in the issue maintains a steady pace that feels all too like the calm before the storm.
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Jorge Jiménez… what can I say? His ability to convey expressions rivals that of studios such as MAPPA or Studio Pierrot. So naturally, an issue engulfed in anticipatory conflict and mystery feels just as eerie as it should be. Whether it’s Batman’s cape flowing in a way that emulates the 2004 Batman show, sparring matches with Robin to seeing while talking about change, or even an interview through the lens of a smartphone, Jiménez continues to find creative ways to fill a page with detail and emotion. What helps emphasize the evocative expressions of characters or scenes, aside from Jiménez’s elastic line work, is Tomeu Morey’s colors. Morey’s colors are as vibrant as Kodak’s ISO 800 film, with hues that punch you in the face as hard as Batman hit Guy Gardner. Through the pair’s illuminative artwork, this issue comes to life just like every other the pair deliver. Each are some of the best in the game, with good reason too, and this issue is a great example of why. While not too much happens here, the pair make you think otherwise. Despite this issue focusing more on building up towards future conflict, the artwork here helps make the story equally captivating as that of prior issues.
Altogether, Batman #3 is an engaging story that maintains a certain amount of mystery needed to keep the story interesting. While we don’t know much about where things are headed, things start to piece themselves together throughout this story, as another potential threat to Batman begins to become clearer. Additionally, the story works well to be a reflection of how much our world has changed and how Batman, the character and title, have needed to adapt with us to remain relevant. Altogether, this story is another strong entry in the series that readers won’t want to miss.
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