Batman Gotham Knights: Gilded City #1 – Evan Narcisse, Writer; Abel, Artist; John, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: Video game tie-ins are always a dicey prospect, because they’re not usually known for their story. But Gotham Knights, set in the aftermath of Batman’s murder as his four proteges try to avenge him, is coming in with a lot of hype. This prelude comic tackles his final case, as Evan Narcisse and Abel unravel the tale of a mysterious new plague in Gotham—it functions like fear gas, but instead of making people retreat, it turns them into crazed maniacs who will do anything—riot, fight, and kill—to get their hands on whatever the nearest desirable object is. They burst into a stadium, steal the collectible, post a picture, and immediately collapse. It’s all a little on-the-nose in terms of its satire of FOMO and social media addiction, but it makes for a good intro plotline as Batman, Robin, and Batgirl try to protect Gotham’s residents from themselves and find the culprit.
There are some interesting things hinting at the rift between Batman, Nightwing, and Red Hood here, although the latter doesn’t appear and Nightwing only has a cameo. However, the most interesting part of this issue by far is the 1847-set segment which features what I assume is a new member of the Fox family—Vivian Foxworthy—as she avoids capture by a team of ruthless slave-hunters looking to kidnap her to the south. She’s helped by a mysterious new vigilante, maybe Gotham’s first Bat, with a swashbuckling vibe. I’m a sucker for takes on old Gotham that we haven’t seen before, and there are some real nice strides towards diversity in this version of Gotham. Jeda Thompkins, who I assume is Leslie’s daughter, is another new character with a lot of promise. Overall, as a video game tie-in I’m not sure of the link, but this would work just as well if it was just a new evergreen Bat-comic.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
