Batman And ... 20. Just like old times.
Red Hood and Batman! Need I say more? P.S. This takes place before Red Hood and the Outlaws #19.
The Good
Batman is still angry, this time he's seeing red! The story continues to unfold as Batman is getting more-and-more desperate to resurrect his son, Damian, however at what cost? That cost would be the price of his allies. Peter J. Tomasi is really hammering out these issues. With every guest star in this issue so far has shown a different point-of-view with Batman and his one man mission to revive his son.
I for one am on board with what Tomasi is doing to Batman. He's making Batman relive the same feelings that he had when Jason died. However, nothing in Batman's path is going to stop him from achieving his goal. To see Batman like this is very unusual, as we are usually given a Batman that is in complete control of his emotions. Though with the death of Damian it has allowed Peter J. Tomasi to throw a wrench at the inner workings of Batman's mind.
You can tell that the premise of this issue is built around the ideal of trust. Peter J. Tomasi really makes things interesting with a fight between Batman and Red Hood. Resulting in a even more strained relationship between the two. Trust between Batman and his allies are slowly slipping from Batman's fingertips, and Tomasi is really taking everyone on a ride of how things are going to turnout for him.
Each issue, I enjoy seeing Patrick Gleason [penciller], Mick Gray [inker], and John Kalisz [colorist] art on this series. You can tell that they pay a great deal of attention to detail when it comes to design of locations, making each place very unique from the other. Also Gleason's pencils with Batman are still perfect. Batman is still sporting the 5 o'clock shadow that he grew from the last issue. It is always great to know that the artist is paying attention to little details like a beard. Plus the cover for this issue! Need I say more the cover artist did an outstanding job with it, it really captures the hostility in this issue.
The Bad
The fight involving Red Hood and Batman could have lasted longer, but the ideal of trust being broken was the main theme of this issue. So other than that this issue was perfect.
The Verdict
You can sense that the end of these guest star appearances is soon coming to a close. Batman is still bent on resurrecting his son and no one is going to stop him. With many of his allies slowing Batman down and telling him to leave Damian to rest in peace, it is only a matter of time that Batman realizes what he's doing is wrong. Or will it turnout to be a success? Anyway, with appearances made by Red Hood, Carrie Kelly, and Two-Face in this issue it is not long before we gain answers to our much wanted questions. Overall 4 out of 5.
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Batman & ... 19 -- With SCIENCE!
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