Thursday, March 12, 2009

Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1 (of 3)

To be honest, I had no intention of picking up this comic, for the same reason I decided to pass on the latest issue of Action Comics - it's just marking time until the main character returns.

But, it was a light week, and Batman: Battle for the Cowl was the biggest release for the week, so I figured, what the heck.

I wish I could say it wasn't as bad as I feared - and certainly there are good things about it - but it really didn't hold my interest, either.

Written and drawn by Tony Daniels, with inks by Sandu Florea, it tells the story of the aftermath of Batman's disappearance (or death) (yeah, right) at the end of Final Crisis.

To sum it up: Gotham has become wild and lawless, and even a small army of Batman family members can't stem the tide (including Nightwing, Robin, Catwoman, Huntress, Batwoman, Oracle, Black Canary, Damian / Robin, and others).

Nightwing is the obvious successor to the cowl, but he refuses to wear it, presumably because that builds tension. The bad guys take advantage of the confusion and manage to free most of Batman's villains, as they join forces to fight the good guys. At the same time, a brutal figure emerges, claiming to be Batman.

Look, the artwork is nice, and it's fun to see all these characters thrown together in one story - but the best efforts by all involved can't overcome the obvious smell of stalling that hangs over the title.

I'd pass on it if I were you.

Grade: C

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