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trin's review
1.0
Here's the thing: when it comes to the main Bat-characters, Morrison interacts with canon in really interesting ways. There are a lot of fascinating discussions in here between Dick and Alfred, Dick and Damian, Dick and Jason. Morrison, one could say, gives good Dick.
I JEST -- and yet that is precisely the problem. Good god, the treatment of women in this book is gross. Morrison is apparently obsessed with body horror, and with destroying women's faces: this is a theme in both of the storylines in this volume. I could really do without ever having to look at a mangled face atop a highly sexualized body ever again. Morrison also throws some transphobia and homophobia in there, as a fun bonus! THESE COMICS ARE FROM 2009 -- in case, like me, you have a moment of temporal confusion and start to think you're reading about something from the '90s. This feels to me like Morrison read the collected works of Frank "Whores Whores Whores" Miller, and was like, TWO CAN PLAY AT THIS GAME, FRANKIE BOY.
Yuck. This is the type of comic that makes women not want to read comics.
I JEST -- and yet that is precisely the problem. Good god, the treatment of women in this book is gross. Morrison is apparently obsessed with body horror, and with destroying women's faces: this is a theme in both of the storylines in this volume. I could really do without ever having to look at a mangled face atop a highly sexualized body ever again. Morrison also throws some transphobia and homophobia in there, as a fun bonus! THESE COMICS ARE FROM 2009 -- in case, like me, you have a moment of temporal confusion and start to think you're reading about something from the '90s. This feels to me like Morrison read the collected works of Frank "Whores Whores Whores" Miller, and was like, TWO CAN PLAY AT THIS GAME, FRANKIE BOY.
Yuck. This is the type of comic that makes women not want to read comics.
lilli_w12's review
3.0
3.25. Dick and Damian’s dynamic is the best part of this book, as well as Dick struggling with the mantle of Batman. Alfred was cool, and I think it’s funny Jason’s actually a red-head. The villains were… interesting. I think I liked the first arc more than the second. The art was fine, I also think I preferred it in the first arc.
dembury's review
2.0
As someone who is pretty new to Batman (I've read a bunch of single issues as a kid and other stories in the DC world) I knew there was going to be some disconnect on my end going into this, but even considering that I thought this volume was a mess. The writing, the plot, the characters: none of it clicked with me.
The plot overall just seems erratic and disjointed, bouncing around from one villain to another to another to ANOTHER - seriously, why are there so many villains in here? They're also BIZARRE, even for a comic book world. Pyg is downright abhorrent, and Red Hood literally looks like a red tampon applicator. Whoever designed that costume needs to be fired. This huge cast is overwhelming and leaves so little time to breathe, or develop other things that are brought up, such as Dick's struggle to feel comfortable with the Batman mantle (the Batmantle?) and find his footing with Damian. Dick and Alfred were the only characters in this I enjoyed reading. Damian could have been cool, but I just struggle believing a 10-year-old could handle himself for a second in any of these fight scenes. He also uses "gay" as an insult and isn't corrected for it, which sucks.
The extreme violence against women was also just off the walls. It felt like it was also used primarily for shock value and never offered up any narrative/dialogue on that. Sasha's character ~almost~ went there, but it lasted for like 1 page and then was abandoned. Breadcrumbs, people, breadcrumbs. There is also not a single female character in this volume who is mentioned without being characterized in terms of her relation to/interactions with a man. So that was disappointing, especially when, again, Sasha could have been used in a much more dynamic way!
I'm looking forward to reading OTHER Batman stories my friends recommend because I know they can be told better than this. But honestly most stuff is written better than this, sooooo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The plot overall just seems erratic and disjointed, bouncing around from one villain to another to another to ANOTHER - seriously, why are there so many villains in here? They're also BIZARRE, even for a comic book world. Pyg is downright abhorrent, and Red Hood literally looks like a red tampon applicator. Whoever designed that costume needs to be fired. This huge cast is overwhelming and leaves so little time to breathe, or develop other things that are brought up, such as Dick's struggle to feel comfortable with the Batman mantle (the Batmantle?) and find his footing with Damian. Dick and Alfred were the only characters in this I enjoyed reading. Damian could have been cool, but I just struggle believing a 10-year-old could handle himself for a second in any of these fight scenes. He also uses "gay" as an insult and isn't corrected for it, which sucks.
The extreme violence against women was also just off the walls. It felt like it was also used primarily for shock value and never offered up any narrative/dialogue on that. Sasha's character ~almost~ went there, but it lasted for like 1 page and then was abandoned. Breadcrumbs, people, breadcrumbs. There is also not a single female character in this volume who is mentioned without being characterized in terms of her relation to/interactions with a man. So that was disappointing, especially when, again, Sasha could have been used in a much more dynamic way!
I'm looking forward to reading OTHER Batman stories my friends recommend because I know they can be told better than this. But honestly most stuff is written better than this, sooooo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
mel_morm's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sayre_94's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Follows the Dick Grayson on his first week as Batman. He and Robin (Damian Wayne) track down Professor Pyg. Robin disrespects Grayson and will not take any orders from him, putting himself into danger. Only when Grayson rescues Damian and the two of them defeat Pyg is the respect earned.
ndizz87's review
3.0
So this is my first book down for 2021 and I have to say, it was just okay. Immediately off the bat (no pun intended), I knew there was a giant chunk of information I was missing. This isn’t a stand alone story. It’s clearly bookended by other stories and I clearly came in not understanding any of the history up to the point we meet Dick Grayson as Batman and Damien Wayne as Robin. That already threw me for a loop. Batman is gone. Dick has to assume the mantle and leave his other persona, Nightwing, behind for now. The slim first volume doesn’t do a lot of catching the reader up on the events that take place before, so you have to work hard to try and piece together what the hell happened.
I had to do some research after breezing through to get that there was some big showdown with Darkseid and Batman “perished” during that altercation. We pick up immediately with Dick Grayson and Damien Wayne in their respective roles, but interestingly reversed. It’s now Robin who is the hard one, and Batman a more sympathetic person. It takes a second to pick up on, but it was kind of refreshing. Normally, Robin is the pure soul who is sticking up for Batman ideals and fresh-faced. Not with a Wayne in the role. I was shocked to see Robin is only 10 years old, but is certainly battle-hardened by his father and mother (Talia Al Ghul). Dick, on the other hand, is the perfect “Robin”, in a sense. Only he could assume the mantle of the Bat. However, his version is much more talkative, and more interested in upholding the philosophy and creed that Bruce had set forth. In a weird way, Robin is now Batman and Batman (a Wayne) is now a Robin.
We start out with Professor Pyg, who in my opinion, is one of the best of the newer villains. It’s a shame we don’t stick with him a little longer (although this is the first of four volumes so let’s hope he comes back). I loved the little dance scene that he does while Robin is tied up. He’s quickly caught by the police, but not before one of his new Dolltrons escapes after Robin fails to rescue her. I wanted to see more of the Circus Gang, but they are extremely short-lived. I thought there was a lot of promise there, but alas, they only appear briefly in the beginning.
The volume then launches into the main antagonist (from what I can deduce), Red Hood. He sets himself up as what Gotham truly needs: a vigilante that will kill. So now we have two previous iterations of Robin battling it out while a Wayne is in the current role. And let’s just say that new Robin’s mentality seems to align more with Red Hood than with Grayson. Red Hood, who now has a sidekick as well, Scarlet (the girl who escaped but was kind of a Dolltron - has a face sewed onto her real one), assassinates some high level mobsters. A fight ensues between the two duos which allows the Penguin (nice to see a familiar character) escape.
Their next encounter ends with a new assassin, the feared but flamboyant, Flamingo, who apparently eats people’s faces (as flamingos do). He rips Scarlet's sewed face and she seemingly leaves for good after that. Flamingo also puts five bullets into Damien, paralyzing him from the waste down. However, the Red Hood, in the final close, appears to have crushed him with a backhoe. Thankfully, Damien is the son of Talia, so I’m sure there is a lazarus pit somewhere closeby to help Damien walk again.
All in all, I’m intrigued but at the end of it, if I don’t pick up another volume, I won’t be upset. There wasn’t a whole lot of catching the reader up so there is a lot of information you have to work out yourself. I liked the exchanges and relationship between the new Batman and Robin, but I didn’t feel like I got enough of it. There were interesting new villains that were introduced and then set aside (hopefully for a return). I don’t know where they go next. It appears Scarlet has high-tailed it out of town, Red Hood is in jail, and Batman/Robin are in desperate need for some TLC. Time will tell if I will attempt to go farther into the rest of the volumes. As of today...meh. And that’s saying something of a Grant Morrison/Frank Quitely graphic novel. It’s no Batman: Year One, but it’s also not Gotham by Gaslight (thank the Lord for that!).
I had to do some research after breezing through to get that there was some big showdown with Darkseid and Batman “perished” during that altercation. We pick up immediately with Dick Grayson and Damien Wayne in their respective roles, but interestingly reversed. It’s now Robin who is the hard one, and Batman a more sympathetic person. It takes a second to pick up on, but it was kind of refreshing. Normally, Robin is the pure soul who is sticking up for Batman ideals and fresh-faced. Not with a Wayne in the role. I was shocked to see Robin is only 10 years old, but is certainly battle-hardened by his father and mother (Talia Al Ghul). Dick, on the other hand, is the perfect “Robin”, in a sense. Only he could assume the mantle of the Bat. However, his version is much more talkative, and more interested in upholding the philosophy and creed that Bruce had set forth. In a weird way, Robin is now Batman and Batman (a Wayne) is now a Robin.
We start out with Professor Pyg, who in my opinion, is one of the best of the newer villains. It’s a shame we don’t stick with him a little longer (although this is the first of four volumes so let’s hope he comes back). I loved the little dance scene that he does while Robin is tied up. He’s quickly caught by the police, but not before one of his new Dolltrons escapes after Robin fails to rescue her. I wanted to see more of the Circus Gang, but they are extremely short-lived. I thought there was a lot of promise there, but alas, they only appear briefly in the beginning.
The volume then launches into the main antagonist (from what I can deduce), Red Hood. He sets himself up as what Gotham truly needs: a vigilante that will kill. So now we have two previous iterations of Robin battling it out while a Wayne is in the current role. And let’s just say that new Robin’s mentality seems to align more with Red Hood than with Grayson. Red Hood, who now has a sidekick as well, Scarlet (the girl who escaped but was kind of a Dolltron - has a face sewed onto her real one), assassinates some high level mobsters. A fight ensues between the two duos which allows the Penguin (nice to see a familiar character) escape.
Their next encounter ends with a new assassin, the feared but flamboyant, Flamingo, who apparently eats people’s faces (as flamingos do). He rips Scarlet's sewed face and she seemingly leaves for good after that. Flamingo also puts five bullets into Damien, paralyzing him from the waste down. However, the Red Hood, in the final close, appears to have crushed him with a backhoe. Thankfully, Damien is the son of Talia, so I’m sure there is a lazarus pit somewhere closeby to help Damien walk again.
All in all, I’m intrigued but at the end of it, if I don’t pick up another volume, I won’t be upset. There wasn’t a whole lot of catching the reader up so there is a lot of information you have to work out yourself. I liked the exchanges and relationship between the new Batman and Robin, but I didn’t feel like I got enough of it. There were interesting new villains that were introduced and then set aside (hopefully for a return). I don’t know where they go next. It appears Scarlet has high-tailed it out of town, Red Hood is in jail, and Batman/Robin are in desperate need for some TLC. Time will tell if I will attempt to go farther into the rest of the volumes. As of today...meh. And that’s saying something of a Grant Morrison/Frank Quitely graphic novel. It’s no Batman: Year One, but it’s also not Gotham by Gaslight (thank the Lord for that!).
katie69's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ektambo's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
daileyxplanet's review
4.0
A great start to the Grayson Batman run. Professor Pyg is disturbing in a unique way. Pretty sure redhead Jason Todd is a reference to Rorschach. Scarlet is a very sympathetic villain.