Review — ‘Batman/Santa Claus: Silent Knight’ #1 Kicks Off The Greatest Team-Up Ever
by Tony Thornley
One of the greatest figures in mythology isn’t mythological in the DC Universe. This Christmas, the Dark Knight teams up with Saint Nicholas to save the world from a familiar face.
Jeff Parker, Michele Bandini, Alex Sinclair, and Pat Brosseau kick off the DCU’s greatest event ever.
A legion of ancient vampires have descended on Gotham City. As the Bat-family defend the city against these monsters, Batman and Zatanna team to try to track the source of the threat. When Santa Claus himself arrives, they all realize the threat is greater than they imagined- Krampus has found a way to free himself and plague the world once again.
Parker understood the assignment. This is an incredibly fun story, with a lot of gleeful fan service, none of which felt like it was shoehorned in or contrived. The dialogue is silly, but it works. This comic is fully aware of what it is, and leans into it. There’s a lot that the comic does right because of that. Really, the only complaint I have is Santa saying Christmas will get along fine without him, which just feels wrong.
The art is good. Bandini has a style very reminiscent of cover artist Dan Mora. It’s very clean with lots of energy. Every panel has something that draws the reader’s attention which still serving the overall story. He also creates some amazing splash pages, and Sinclair brings it all together with his colors- giving it a sense of life and depth.
This is a silly concept- bringing in Santa Claus, making him a monster hunter, adding Krampus to the equation. Frankly, it should feel more like a brazen cash grab. But it’s fun, it looks great, it leans into the silliness, and that elevates the issue.
Batman/ Santa Claus: Silent Knight #1 is available now from DC Comics.
Overview
I’m excited to see the rest of this series play out over the rest of the month. This is a great way to get into the spirit for the season, and have some superhero fun doing it.
