Last month, I reviewed the final issue of Batman coming to us from the dynamic duo of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo.
Just to wrap things up, I thought I would review the 52nd issue of Batman, the last one as part of The New 52 from DC. So here goes!
BATMAN #52
Written by: James T. Tynion IV
Art by: Riley Rossmo, Brian Level
Cover by: Greg Capullo, Danny Miki
Alternate Cover by: Rafael Albuquerque
Colors by: Ivan Plascencia and Jordan Boyd
Published by: DC Comics
Cover price: $3.99
Previously in BATMAN: Echoes from Batman’s past ripple out into Gotham City’s future… .
OKAY, IT’S JUST WEIRD…
On so many levels, it’s just strange to me to be reviewing this comic. First off, I truly LOVED the Snyder/Capullo era on Batman. It will always be the Dark Knight storytelling that future Bat-stories will be measured against.
One of the great things that came as a result of Mr. Snyder’s time on this title was his bringing in Mr. Tynion to contribute now and again. As I understand it, James was a student’s of Scott’s, and they worked so well together that they worked on Batman together on many levels. I couldn’t begin to list all the Bat-tales Mr. Tynion has weaved over the past several years, but it’s just interesting to me that he also scripted the Batman Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles miniseries that also concluded this week!
He’ll be taking over Detective Comics soon, and I have my reservations about a team book concept there, but I’m definitely going to give it my attention when it comes out!
That said, I couldn’t think of anyone else (except maybe upcoming scripter Tom King) who could put an exclamation point on this wonderful series.
And he doesn’t disappoint! “The List” adds several details to Bruce Wayne’s journey to becoming Batman as well as how he functions today. There’s a certain book that threads through the various time periods in the issue, and it makes sense, particularly when you see that something removed from it has been returned. I also like seeing Bruce and Alfred interact, quite a bit of fun!
We meet a new Bat-villain in Crypsis, someone who apparently can walk through walls and reach through a person’s body to grab his or her heart. Yikes!
It’s an excellent story, fleshing out some things I didn’t know about Bruce as well as having quite a lot of action and energy. Well done!
IT’S NOT ART FROM CAPULLO, BUT …
First off, I was so happy to see the Capullo cover! Batman with a slight smile on his face? He certainly has grown during The New 52! I did enjoy the Albuquerque variant as well, but when I see Capullo, I’m there!
The artwork inside was pretty strong. We see a lot of the new Capullo outfit in battle sequences, and that was very well done. Probably my favorite page in the whole issue was Batman standing in the rain. He says, “Car,” and the Batmobile zooms up behind him. He jumps in the air, lancing on the car as it races under him. Oh, and I loved the last page as well. Nice pin-up!
I do have to give credit to the color team, who did a spectacular job on breathing life into the past as well as the present. I was particularly taken by the lighting (or lack thereof) in the Batcave. I always thought it shouldn’t be a bright as some people seem to think it is.
BOTTOM LINE: The Final Finale
I was really worried that the 52nd issue (DC and that number 52!) would just be a “filler” book, some kind of story that has been sitting around in a drawer for years, waiting for an empty spot to come open. I did NOT get that sense from this issue!
Instead, I discovered several things about Bruce that I didn’t know, including a great conversation between him and Alfred about a list of things Bruce has made in order to “make it through” his life without his parents. I enjoyed that.
I imagine there are some folks who decided to pass on this book since it didn’t have Snyder and Capullo working on it. I’m sorry if you decided to do that because you missed a great issue! It’s an excellent way to bring a high-power Bat-book to its conclusion while looking ahead to Rebirth. Nicely done!
Will I feel this oddly about Batman when the new team takes over? Not sure, but we’ll see!
[taq_review]
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Wayne Hall creates the Wayne's Comics Podcast. He’s interviewed Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, John Layman, Kyle Higgins, Phil Hester, Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray, David Petersen, Christos Gage, Mike Grell, and Matt Kindt. On this site each week, he writes his "Comics Portal" column (general comics comments and previews) and reviews comics.