Batman: The Adventures Continue: Season Three #2 – Alan Burnett/Paul Dini, Writers; Kevin Altieri, Artist; Monica Kubina, Colorist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: After a strong, noir-inspired first issue centered around the Gotham crime scene, this title takes a surprising left turn with what’s essentially a madcap action comedy starring Batman and Harley. New artist Kevin Altieri has a very different style, with shades of Kelley Jones on his Batman at times and very expressive faces, and that’s well-suited here. Harley is particularly lonely ever since she and Ivy were on the outs (due to a plant-related mishap). So it’s the perfect time for her old flame from college, Cassie Kendall, to show up—and Harley crashes into the rich woman’s life with her typical flair. There’s just one problem—Cassie is Bruce Wayne’s old flame too, and both of them have no idea that the new arrival was involved with the other one. Also, Cassie has been targeted by a highly organized gang of kidnappers who take her for ransom—which means the two old enemies have to work together.
As the two chase the trail of Cassie’s kidnappers, the issue takes on a farce-like tone, with them discovering one prominent Gotham citizen after another had ties to Cassie. The issue isn’t afraid to make Batman look kind of foolish, which is rare—and perfectly fine in a story mostly told from Harley’s perspective. It’s also great to see Harley confirmed as bisexual in this continuity—it wasn’t exactly a well-kept secret even back then, but it certainly wasn’t something that would make the air on Fox or Kids WB. The resolution to the mystery isn’t exactly well-kept—it really is a mystery where only one suspect makes sense as the guilty party—but the light tone and colorful rogues make it a lot of fun to read. It feels exactly like one of the lighter episodes of the old animated series, and that’s a big win, although the tonal change from last issue is one of the biggest of the series.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
