Review: ‘Batman’ #134 Is Engaging But Predictable
by Tony Thornley
Batman has been exiled into a world he never existed. In Batman #134, he’s finally making a difference in this world, but it’s all a bit familiar…
Chip Zdarsky, Mike Hawthorne, Adrianno Di Benedetto, Tomeu Morey, and Clayton Cowles bring this alternate Gotham to life.
Bruce has begun to bring order to the alternate Gotham he’s found himself in. Unfortunately, he’s about to discover that his greatest foe is the same no matter where he is. That is a threat to all of Gotham.
I did like this issue. It’s weird to have Bruce basically trying to rebuild a life that never existed. It’s made for an interesting story, but it’s started to become predictable. The Red Mask being Joker is an easy out, and it seems to be checking off a list of cameos that every Elseworlds story should have.
The action is good though, and the story shows that Zdarsky gets Bruce Wayne as a person. The execution is good but could use some unpredictability- a few surprises would go a long way to raising the stakes. This isn’t a world Bruce Wayne knows, he should be barely keeping up, not matching the challenge almost beat for beat.
Hawthorne is one of the most predictably good artists in comics. His figures have a solid weight to them on the page, and he does a great job with the layouts. Some of the movement is stiff though, with the action feeling a bit static.
It took me a moment with the last few pages to understand what was happening as well. The colors are great though. They set a fantastic mood through the entire issue. Morey continues to demonstrate that he’s one of the best, and that’s absolutely the case with this issue.
Batman #135 is available now from DC Comics.
Overview
This is absolutely a case of “it’s good, but it could be better.” I hope that we see some unpredictable elements enter the run soon.
