Batman and Robin #4
Summary
After the events of the previous issue, Batman and Robin have been captured by the illusive “Nobody”. In this issue, without giving much away, we see Nobody make Bruce and offer to join him, Bruce and Damian attempt a daring escape from capture and tensions running high between the father and son duo.
What I liked
Batman is not God: Before the New 52, Batman was becoming a ridiculous character.
(Spoilers for Batman RIP-Return of Bruce Wayne). However, I don’t know if it has been planned or if it was by chance but, the New 52 Batman (most notably in Batman and Robin and Scott Snyder’s Batman) is getting beaten a lot. It is not that I hate Batman, he is one of my favourite characters, but he is just a man and it is nice that this is being addressed.
Nobody: Nobody, N.O.W.H.E.R.E... It’s almost like the writers at DC are just running out of names! I kid, Batman’s new adversary “Nobody” is, to me, a blend of Red Hood (a corrupt variation upon the Batman idea) and Ra’s al Ghul (a hypocritical vigilante), but not a direct copy of either. He, like all great villains, believes he is doing the right thing; but at the same time, especially after the issue’s cliff hanger ending, we as the reader are left with a sense that there is more to his motivation than ridding Gotham of crime and decadence.
Respect: This point is twofold, and ends up being both a positive and negative criticism (see, “Haven’t we seen this before?” below for the negative). Whilst we have seen this slow build up of trust and respect before, when Dick Grayson and Damian were Batman and Robin, (in a run which I cannot recommend enough) it does feel different this time around. Damian used to disrespect Dick for trying to become his father - who he saw as a great warrior, yet now it feels as if Damian disrespects Bruce for not living up to his previous expectations. This subtle change is what I believe will make the story more interesting as, if Bruce cannot earn his son’s respect, Damian may drift to the, in want of a better term, “dark side”.
What I didn’t like
Haven’t we seen this before?: As I explained above, I do understand why there are tensions between Bruce and Damian, and moreover I do understand how it is helping the focus of the story, however I’m a bit fed up with it. In the previous Batman and Robin series we saw Dick and Damian not getting along, which always wound up with Damian in trouble. After several issues a friendship began to develop and by the end of Morrison’s run they had become a team worthy of the name “The Dynamic Duo”. What then proceeded were several arcs (and although one was really weird) where we had a focused and synchronised Batman and Robin. Although I liked that character development a lot and although I know we will eventually reach the same point with Bruce and Damian it is becoming a bit of a struggle to re-read the same sort of arguments Dick and Damian used to have.
Villain Redesigns: Because this issue was pretty good, this is a bit of a nitpick. Just before the New 52 was released, one of the major advertisements for the New 52 Batman was the villain redesigns seen in Batman #1. However, on the first page of this issue, we can clearly see that Two-Face is his old design (being less feral and less scarred over his eye). I know that Batman and Robin is a separate entity to Scott Snyder’s Batman, but at the same time, why would you show off the fact that the famous Batman villains have been tweaked and then only do those modifications in one Bat-Title.
Film?: Even more of a nitpick. Where did Nobody get that film of all the villains from? Because what’s happening in that film is a bit mad.
Verdict:
It is weird having a Batman and Robin arc that lasts more than three issues, but not unpleasantly so.This was a solid issue which resolves the cliff-hanger from the previous issue. Whilst there is not a lot of story progression this month, we are given more than enough foreboding for the future, which puts the very “dynamic” of “The Dynamic Duo” at risk. We are also given a fair share of action too.
8/10
