Take Batman out of Gotham City, and what do you get? A chance for Scott Snyder, John Romita Jr. and company to strut their stuff in a variety of settings. And it’s great!
ALL STAR BATMAN #2
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artists: John Romita Jr., Danny Miki, Declan Shalvey
Published by: DC Comics
Cover price: $4.99
Previously in ALL STAR BATMAN: “My Own Worst Enemy” part 2! All aboard the train ride from hell! Batman and Two-Face continue their journey to Harvey Dent’s cure through an assassin-infested landscape. But can the Dark Knight continue his crusade across the countryside when Two Face turns one of his greatest allies against him?
SNYDER SHOWS US HOW TO WRITE MORE VILLAINS
As much as I dearly loved his run on Batman, I was always wishing Mr. Snyder would try his hand at some of the other villains in the Dark Knight’s rogue’s gallery. Now we’re getting to see just how that works.
And we’re seeing Batman in situations I didn’t expect, like getting shot?! Wow, that was a shocker! But leave it up to Mr. Snyder to be able to challenge the Big Bat and come up with ways he’s already thought of to thwart the plans of others. That’s one of the things I love most about Snyder’s Batman – he’s planned far ahead, so far that I can only respect that kind of foresight!
We don’t see Bruce Wayne at all, but that’s okay to me – Batman himself is quite enough, especially given the circumstances he’s in. I mean, taking Two-Face on a trip? That’s never a good idea!
And it’s not like Harvey Dent is the only baddie in this story. There are plenty more, some of them even teaming up! I keep thinking Mr. Snyder has told his best stories, but then one like this one comes along, and I’m happy to be wrong!
We’re seeing updated takes on a lot of long-time Bat-baddies, and just like with the Riddler, Snyder is making them more interesting than they’ve been in quite a while! Cudos! I won’t mention which ones appear here because they’re fun surprises when they pop up along the way.
I’m really intrigued by Batman’s new “sidekick!” These folks must have something revolutionary in mind for him!
STRONG, VIBRANT ART
Yes, I miss Mr. Capullo! Of course I do! But I’ve read where they say they’ll work together again sometime soon, so I’m greatly anticipating that!
But if we need to get a replacement, even if it’s only for several issues, Mr. Romita Jr. certainly is doing all he can to make me look beyond Mr. Capullo’s excellent run! The characters, the expressions, the action – It’s all truly striking! Way to go!
BOTTOM LINE: Full Speed Ahead!
This multi-part story has me by the short and curlies, and I’m waiting breathlessly for the next issue. $4.99 is more than a good price for all this excellent Bat-storytelling! Really!
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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.