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Gotham City Confidential

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I’ve taken a look at three of the other Batman family titles that have been launched or relaunched under the new “Batman: Reborn” brand, and it’s been promising so far. Now it’s time to discuss another three titles in the line. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, but overall, there’s no denying the fact that “Batman: Reborn” has brought a new creative energy to the titles, and I expect it’ll translate into some strong sales for DC. Now, let’s onto my comments about Batman: Streets of Gotham #1, Detective Comics #854 and Gotham City Sirens #1.

Variant coverDetective Comics #854
by Greg Rucka & J.H. Williams III/Rucka & Cully Hamner

Of all the “Batman: Reborn” titles, this is the one I was probably looking forward to the most, and yes, I mean even more than Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s Batman and Robin. After all, this is the one that features the artwork of J.H. Williams. He brings his unique layouts to this project as he’s done with so many before, and it’s just as mesmerizing as his past efforts. I particularly enjoyed how he adopts something of a black-and-white approach for the scenes in which our heroine Kate Kane is in costume. Colorist Dave Stewart slices through the dark linework only with shades of red in those scenes, and it establishes a deliciously tense and eerie mood.

Rucka’s story revolves around the Religion of Crime, an element that first arose in his run on 52 with writers Mark Waid, Morrison and Geoff Johns (which also saw the introduction of the new Batwoman). He’s opted to link the character with the Crime Bible riff, and it’s a logical one. I have to admit I wasn’t wild about the Religion of Crime in the past, but in this issue, I’m not put off as I’ve been before, mainly because the new leader of the cult is oddly exotic and seemingly delicate in appearance (making for a nice contrast with the danger she represents). The strongest bits of writing in the book are the character-driven elements. I like that Rucka’s turned Kane’s father into an ally in her mission. The writer also opts to add a little something to Batwoman’s arsenal of weapons, and that’s her sexuality, though not in an overt way as we’ve seen with such characters as Catwoman or Power Girl.

This comic also features one of DC’s new “Second Features,” the Question. It’s a logical choice, as Batwoman and the new Question shared a strong connection in 52. I’m pleased to find the two features aren’t closely linked here. Rucka takes the Question in a different direction, independent of the main feature. She’s not even based in Gotham. We really don’t get much in the way of plot in this first episode, as Rucka really has to focus more on setting the stage. I’m a fan of Hamner’s artwork, and he doesn’t disappoint here either. I liked the tweaks he’s made to the new Question’s look; the shorter hair has done a lot to improve the design. 8/10

Batman: Streets of Gotham #1
by Paul Dini, Dustin Nguyen & Derek Fridolfs/Marc Andreyko, Georges Jeanty & Karl Story

Gotham City Sirens #1
by Paul Dini & Guillem March

I’ve grouped these two titles together because they’re both written by Paul Dini, and consequently, there’s even a hint of crossover plotting. The plot element they share isn’t a vital one, so readers needn’t read both books to follow along. Whether or not that will continue to be the case remains to be seen. Both Dini stories have something else in common as well: unlike the other “Batman: Reborn” titles, they seem more focused on addressing past Batman continuity points than the others. Dini was one of the regular writers on the Batman books before Battle for the Cowl so I guess it’s to be expected. However, since I’m not all that interested in Hush or what Jason Todd was up to in Battle, for example, I was a bit disinterested in those elements. With this new branding, I was looking forward to fresh starts from all of the titles, but that’s not so much the case with Dini’s writing.

His plotting for Streets of Gotham actually lives up to the book’s title; while we see the new Batman and Robin in action, it seems to be more about what’s going on in Gotham as a city than the heroes’ mission. DC has decided to adopt the most recent animated incarnation of the Firefly for its Batman comics, and it’s a smart move. This latest take on the C-list villain is much more interesting, both visually and as an antagonist. The beginnings of the plot offer a fairly traditional Batman story, and it was diverting. Dustin Nguyen’s artwork — something of a cross between the styles of Mike (Hellboy) Mignola and Chris (New Avengers) Bachalo — stands out as unique and unconventional for a traditional super-hero title, and that alone is enough to make me pay attention and appreciate it.

Variant coverVariant coverMuch more captivating, both in terms of writing and art, was the Manhunter “Second Feature” in this issue. This was the first of DC’s various “Second Features” I’d sampled, and I was pleased with what I found. Though I didn’t follow the now-defunct Manhunter series that spawned this backup feature, I had no problem delving back into Kate Spencer’s life. Transforming the criminal attorney into Gotham’s new interim district attorney was a great move on Andreyko’s part. It’s a natural way to integrate the character into the Batman family (though it does require a difficult-to-accept scene in which she leaves behind her young son on the other side of the country). Georges Jeanty’s artwork is a real pleasure. The realistic tone he establishes here reinforces the down-to-earth, political elements in the story, as well as the emphasis on the heroine’s human side. This is some of the strongest work I’ve seen from Jeanty, and I attribute that in part to the fact that he’s working with Karl Story, one of the industry’s most skilled inkers.

I wish I had such nice things to say about Gotham City Sirens, but alas, that’s not the case. My hope was that the emphasis on the characters’ sexuality one finds on the cover wouldn’t be so prominent when it came to the interior artwork. No such luck. Despite the fact that the story stars three strong women, it really ends up looking like nothing more than a T&A title. I even liked the new villain that’s introduced here (even if he seems to be a one-off character) as well as the cliffhanger. Unfortunately, Dini doesn’t seem to do much new with the characters (especially Ivy and Harley), and along with the strong links to Batman stories I (a) haven’t read and (b) don’t care about, it made for a lackluster reading experience.

Streets of Gotham: 7/10 — Gotham City Sirens: 5/10

June 24, 2009 Don MacPherson

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3 thoughts on “Gotham City Confidential”

  1. s1rude says:
    June 26, 2009 at 2:46 pm

    I too enjoyed Detective Comics. Williams III does his usual phenomenal job – I forget in the gaps between releases what an amazing sequential artist he is, and how his usual attention to detail benefits a whole story rather than just the amazing spread layouts that get much of the critical attention (Kate’s character is greatly enhanced by the outfits, makeup, etc that he depicts her with at different points in the book). Rucka likewise gets quite a bit of information across; the continuity geek in me does feel like I’m missing something – what’s up with her dad and his supporting her adventuring? – but nothing that stands in the way of the story. I liked the Question back-up as well. You’re right that there’s not a lot to go on her, but eight pages doesn’t allow for to much. I like that Montoya is going into “Equalizer” mode, but did we ever get a resolution to where she stands with the Religion of Crime? Maybe I should re-read Rucka’s Final Crisis: Revelations mini…

    I liked Streets of Gotham okay – I’m not entirely sure that it justifies its existence in this issue, but that may develop in time. Maybe it’s my drawing unfair comparison to the dearly departed Gotham Central, but this felt a little too much like just another Bat book. We get a couple of pages with Commissioner Gordon and then the rest seems to focus on the villain or other costumed types – not exactly “street” level. The Manhunter back-ups will keep me coming back. I was a huge fan of Andreyko’s oft-canceled book (which makes Kate leaving Ramsey behind even harder to swallow) and am glad to see the character’s return under her creator’s pen in any form. Jeanty’s work is strong here, too, even if I did think that Kate looked like Willow a few times.

    Thanks for confirming my decision to pass on Gotham City Sirens.

  2. Le0n says:
    June 29, 2009 at 10:52 pm

    Don’t discount Streets of Gotham or Gotham City Sirens. I found them both to have fairly decent storylines with quailty artwork. both are monthlies if I remember correctly and could be great over time.

    Detective Comics #854 is very bad ass. I look forward to seeing how that story develops.

  3. franktiger says:
    July 2, 2009 at 7:33 pm

    I thought GC Sirens was excellent in the way Dini contrasted the three different character personalities between Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn; it was really effective in my opinion in that I could really hear the different voices in my head as I read it, and I thought how they jabbed Harley about ‘Mr. J’ was hilarious. I have no problem with T&A in comics, after all, art is an expression of the ideal, and comic books are an expression of the ideal in humans, i.e. superheroes. It is only appropriate that superhumans, or exceptional women in this case, to have ideal bodies as portrayed by art.

    Dustin Nguyen is by far one of my favorite artists. I like his work especially on Manifest Eternity with those incredible covers. I sort of wish they had Damien adopt his own character however, as I think he’s pretty unique in his origin being Bruce’s actual genetic son from a League of Assassins legacy, which gives him this great edge and nastiness to him, which doesn’t really fit the Robin persona.

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