[World of Bats] CASEFILE 001 -- Zero Year

[JLWWSM]

Issue 24 was my favorite issue in this week’s Casefile, by far. This panel is awesome!

@Jay_Kay

• In the first pages of this section, we see a new Batman costume. What do you think of it, and how would you rate it to other costumes in the past?

I can’t think of Batman costume I don’t I like. I didn’t even notice the purple gloves until I read the previous comments because I was focused on the story. But now that I’ve stopped and noticed them, I can’t unsee them.

@Jay_Kay

• Unlike in previous takes on Bruce and his relationship with Jim Gordon, we see in this story that they have far more bad blood from when Bruce was a child. What did you think of this break from the norm?

I applaud authors that do something new because it takes quite an imagination to bring something new to characters with long and rich histories. Having said that, it broke my heart to see the bad blood between them. Jim’s story with the dogs was just utterly heartbreaking and terrifying. I prefer Jim and Bruce to be allies without the cloud of bad blood.

@Jay_Kay

• In this selection, we see the twisted reimagining of Batman’s first Golden Age reoccurring “super-villain” Doctor Death, and in the background, the threat of The Riddler hangs over all of Gotham City. What do you think of these villains for this section of the story?

The bones creeped me out, so I’m probably biased in saying Doctor Death wasn’t my favorite. He was difficult for me to look at. I liked the Riddler’s riddle about the sisters giving birth to each other. I thought it was a good time to bring the Riddler into the story because I was completely not expecting it. Overall, I preferred the Riddler over Doctor Death for villains.

Other thoughts:

• I like Bruce’s haircut for this part of his life.
• Loved the twist at the end of issue 24 where we learn the leader of the Red Hood gang may have been killed a long time ago and presumably Joker took his place.
• Alfred thinking Bruce is punishing everyone by making them watch as he protects people better than his parents were protected is both sad and… maybe Alfred is on to something there?

[Jay_Kay]

#24 is a favorite of mine too, really fun first introduction to Batman.

@JLWWSM

• Loved the twist at the end of issue 24 where we learn the leader of the Red Hood gang may have been killed a long time ago and presumably Joker took his place.

That was pretty interesting. I think Snyder was trying hard to have the whole “multiple choice” angle for Joker in it, though I’m not sure how well it works.

@JLWWSM

• Alfred thinking Bruce is punishing everyone by making them watch as he protects people better than his parents were protected is both sad and… maybe Alfred is on to something there?

That was a great moment – both because of the Dark Knight Returns call-back with the art and the idea. It definitely feels like a real concern of what Alfred might consider this to be, a subconscious wish of Bruce to not only punish others for failing him but to punish himself for not being able to do anything…or join them. A horrible and irrational thought, but trauma has a way of making you irrational and horrible.

[ralphsix]

@JLWWSM

I didn’t even notice the purple gloves until I read the previous comments because I was focused on the story. But now that I’ve stopped and noticed them, I can’t unsee them.

You’re welcome!

[Jay_Kay]

• In the first pages of this section, we see a new Batman costume. What do you think of it, and how would you rate it to other costumes in the past?

I guess I’ll be the odd man out and say I really like this costume. It feels like a modernized version of that classic, original Golden Age costume, from the purple gloves to the more angular ears. I will say that it’s definitely an outfit that is best drawn by the original creator in Greg Capullo.

• Unlike in previous takes on Bruce and his relationship with Jim Gordon, we see in this story that they have far more bad blood from when Bruce was a child. What did you think of this break from the norm?

I think the idea of Bruce having a more personal vendetta against the cops from a young age has potential, but much like having a backstory for Gordon’s coat, I don’t know how necessary it was. It does give Bruce a good arc in terms of making him start trusting people in his War on Crime.

• In this selection, we see the twisted reimagining of Batman’s first Golden Age reoccurring “super-villain” Doctor Death, and in the background, the threat of The Riddler hangs over all of Gotham City. What do you think of these villains for this section of the story?

I’m a little mixed on Riddler’s usage here. On one hand, it’s great to see him have such a big story and having him be part of Batman’s origin like this. On the other, one of the fun things about Riddler in the past is him not only being a bit more small-time, but having the potential to reform in his own way, like what Paul Dini did with him as a private eye in his run on Detective Comics. Doing stuff like that with the character is a little harder when you make him a domestic terrorist of this scale. Still, I do find myself liking the take on this character overall.

As for Doctor Death, I think this is definitely a far more compelling, interesting take on the character than he was back in the Golden Age. He looks good and creepy and has an interesting hook to him. I wouldn’t mind if this take on the character showed up in future stories.

[ralphsix]

@Jay_Kay

On the other, one of the fun things about Riddler in the past is him not only being a bit more small-time, but having the potential to reform in his own way, like what Paul Dini did with him as a private eye in his run on Detective Comics.

I enjoyed that run quite a lot, in no small part due to how Dini used the Riddler. But it’s the Riddler…he has to be a bad guy…it’s what he was created for…and I really enjoy, for some reason, how he has that compulsion to always defeat himself by providing riddles.

[BatJamags]

I enjoyed the Riddler in Dini’s Detective Comics, if for no other reason than he was in it a lot. And like most Batman characters, Dini has a flawless command of his voice and personality. The private detective angle was cool in its own right, and I’d definitely read a miniseries based on it. I guess I’m glad it happened and it could even have stood to last a little longer, but I wouldn’t have wanted it to be a permanent change.

[Jay_Kay]

Yeah, the status quo always strikes at the villains who have even the most mildest of face turns, no matter how awesome they are as heroes. cries in Clayface

[Jay_Kay]

Alright, week three for the Zero Year Casefile is a GO! Like is said in the first topic, this is something a little different.

This being a big event, there are bound to be crossovers, and this one is no different, ranging from the usual suspects like Batgirl and Nightwing to surprising ones like Action Comics and The Flash, about 10 in total. You can see the list on the first post on the topic.

Now, to be clear, I’m not asking you to read ALL of them for this week. This is something I’m calling “Crossover Potpourri.” Basically, pick and choose which ones you want to read.

Only interested in reading the Bat-Family issues? Great! Are you a hardcore Superman fan and want to see his adventure? Cool! Let us know what you read, and what you think of how this story works as a crossover. Here’s also a couple of Discussion Questions:

• What books did you read for the Zero Year crossover? What characters fit in this story and what didn’t?

• Are there any characters you would have liked to have seen deal with the upcoming flood in Gotham City?

[msgtv]

Cool, finally have a place and time to jump into World of Bats for a while! Yeah for me.

[Jay_Kay]

Awesome! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

[msgtv]

Just downloaded the first two weeks, like how you organized this with the cross-over week. You dudes are cool. Now I have to go back outside and clear the driveway again. 6 inches of snow, followed by freezing rain, now high winds and the plow finally went by. Wonder how Batman would deal with this?

[Jay_Kay]

Thanks! Just wanted to make sure that there was enough for a week but not so much that it would overwhelm.

And yikes! That’s some weather. It’s let up a bit here, but I’m hearing it’s going to get really bad on Monday.

@msgtv

Wonder how Batman would deal with this?

I think something like this:

Batman and Robin on ice | Batman & Robin

[msgtv]

Ha, ha

[AlexanderKnox]

@Jay_Kay

I’m not asking you to read ALL of them for this week.

Oops.

Anyway, the stories featuring the women (Batgirl, Batwoman, and Black Canary) were the best. Dick’s story was pretty good, but Jason’s story fell into the trap that too many prequels do: introducing characters and situations that really have no business being part of the main character’s story yet. The others were fine.

[Jay_Kay]

I’ve been slowly going through all of them, so you’re far from alone.

[JLWWSM]

Batwoman was at its best in its one-on-one moments. Here’s a couple moments that stood out to me.

Happy Batsgiving. I loved this panel

BATGIRL ROCKED! I was captivated through the whole thing: visually and emotionally. It really captured fear, humanity, and bravery.

[BatJamags]

My tie-in choices (EDIT: Ended up reading all twelve, in the following order):

• Detective Comics: Ever read Year One? If so, you can skip this.
• Birds of Prey: Alright, while I maintain my position that it’s not Birds of Prey without Oracle, I decided to dip my toe into this story. Fairly mediocre, all things considered. Plot’s OK but Dinah’s characterization felt a little flat, and the main cast’s charm was always the main pillar of BoP in the original volume.
• Nightwing: This was decent. I’m not super excited about it, but it was a solid oneshot.
• Green Lantern Corps: I read this because I was curious how they’d tie Green Lantern Corps of all things into Zero Year. An interesting setup with some good moments, but unfortunately anything with Anarky in it is an automatic 0/10 from me.
• Batgirl: Pretty good. I had Henry pegged from his first panel, though.
• Catwoman: Got bored a couple pages in and stayed that way.
• Batwoman: I was going to actually talk about the issue but instead, I found this:
  
• Action Comics: Surprisingly one of the better ones. Pretty good look at an inexperienced Superman.
• Batwing: Great… until Russel suddenly had super strength serum for some bizarre reason. It really would’ve held up better if he’d just gotten his hands on a gun or something.
• RHATO: Honestly kinda confusing. Maybe it would make more sense if I’d read the rest of the series?
• Green Arrow: Pretty good. I can dig it. Get it? “Dig” it- Oh, forget it.
• The Flash: Just how many crooked partners did Gordon and Bullock manage to have in one year?!

[msgtv]

Okay, I jumped on this not realizing you had started a couple of weeks ago. But, I did not let that stop me. I had read this before so it was easy to burn through 21-29. Just a couple of quick thoughts.
This is Synder at his best. The opening in a couple of pages really brings us into the disaster that Gotham has become with very few words. This compares with his current run of JL which burns through plots like made, some of which seem more a collection ideas than a coherent story.

I just like this panel

In addition to Batman just trying to figure out how to be Batman, the turn that Bruce doesn’t trust Gordon works really well. It makes the coming partnership all the more interesting.

Onto the tie ins

[BatJamags]

Wow, those tie-ins were immensely repetitive. Batwoman, Action Comics, and Green Arrow felt the least samey of the ones that were actually good, so I guess those would be my favorites. But mostly, you’re looking at characters who are not important yet and are all in the same place at the same time and dealing with essentially the same problems.

[Jay_Kay]

Here’s my thoughts on a couple of the books:

Action Comics #25:

I love, love, LOVE this cocky, rough-’n-tumble beat-em-up Superman that Grant Morrison started with his New 52 run of Action Comics. He truly feels like a modern-day version of that classic Superman from 1939 who would break into the Governor’s office to get him to stop the execution of an innocent man with the actual killer punching at his back. Here, Greg Pak starts his amazing run on Action Comics not only doing that take justice, but also writes it in a way that shows us progressing into the older, wiser, calmer Superman we know today; someone who still has that heart and passion, but is more experienced and grown from his mistakes. It’s very compelling seeing this kid who because of his powers think he can do anything slowly learn that he can’t, and learn humility from it.

Also, the art by Aaron Kuder in this is brilliant – colorful, expressive, dynamic, each page by him looks absolutely stunning.

Batgirl #25:

One of the things that I like about these tie-ins is that it does what a lot of these big superhero stories sometimes forget to acknowledge and that’s the perspective of the average civilian in these events. Barbara Gordon will eventually be a superhero herself, but at this moment, she’s just a scared young girl trying to protect her brother and what little bit of her life before the flood she can carry, and not worry herself sick over whether her dad will come back.

Overall I really liked this issue. As a fan of the character, it’s good to see how resourceful and clever she was before she puts on the costume and starts being trained by Bruce. It’s also cool to see her interact with her younger brother before…everything happened.

Batwing #25

I can’t say I’ve read a lot of stuff with Luke Fox in it – I remember around this time liking the original Batwing, David Zavimbe, and was disappointed that DC decided to take out what was a unique hook of an African super-hero and replaced with yet another Gotham hero.

This issue was decent, though. Luke comes off likable enough – the jock who’s friends with the nerds is a solid archtype to build on, though it’s funny seeing him portrayed like this when in Tynion’s Detective Comics he basically comes off as a Tony Stark clone. As a tie-in it’s marginal at best, with the storm only relating to some hair-brained scheme of the nerdy kid turned Hulk terrorist. Props for using the story to presumably lead up to Luke’s next story, though, as well as actually having Batman in there and help inspire Luke.