Robin #7 – Joshua Williamson, Writer; Gleb Melnikov, Max Dubar, Artists; Luis Guerrero, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: For what seems on the surface like a straightforward martial arts book, this title holds a lot of mysteries. For one, why does the Deadpool-inspired Respawn seem to hate Damian Wayne so much? Their rematch gives some clues, including a partial unmasking, but some mysteries are still to come. And then there’s the mysterious Mother Soul, whose true identity has been teased for a while. She’s actually Ruh Al Ghul—Ra’s mother, a figure mentioned before but never seen. And she might have taken the Lazarus Pit to new levels of power. This puts Damian in a tricky position—stick to his initial goal of winning the tournament, or try to stop the plot that’s unfolding in front of him. And to do either, he’ll have to get out of there with at least one life intact. I like the little detail that while everyone has three lives before they die for real, almost everyone is bowing out with one life still intact. Some of these assassins have sense!
But one of the last obstacles in Damian’s way, as fighters fall fast and hard, is his new crush Flatline. The young assassin was sent by Lord Death Man to fight and experience death in a controlled environment so she can appreciate his work more—and she’s taken to it like a duck to water. This is the first fight in which Damian has had serious emotional stakes, and Williamson does a great job of showing how conflicted he is without ever truly losing his focus. Damian grew up in an environment where death was negotiable and power was everything, and we’re seeing him grow from issue to issue like we haven’t before. The cliffhanger shows that he still has one challenge ahead of him, but given how fast the plot is moving, I think we might have some status quo changes soon. It’s still easily the best spotlight run Damian has had, and Williamson continues to prove himself one of the best Bat-writers at the moment.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
