Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic #2 – Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing, Writers; Max Dunbar, Artist; Sebastian Cheng, Colorist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: The first issue of this series introduced us to a terrifying world under Gotham, populated by human-animal hybrids and guarded by a monstrous Killer Croc. However, this week adds a new wrinkle to the story, as it seems this whole thing ties into the mysterious new supernatural villain who Bruce managed to defeat in Batman: The Brave and the Bold #4 this week—and as Terry and his new cat-boy ally descend deeper, it becomes clear this is far more than just a collecting place for the unfortunates of Gotham. Lanzing and Kelly seem to be setting this up as the story of one of Bruce’s darkest mistakes, and the ending indicates we’re looking at the return of one of the deadliest villains in Gotham’s history. While the story topside involving Donovan Lumos’ gentrification scheme isn’t quite as compelling as the things in the underground, this series continues to impress and deliver a compelling vision of a future Gotham.
Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 #7 – Alan Burnett/Paul Dini, Writers; Ty Templeton, Artist; Monica Kubina, Colorist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: We’re in the last act, with only one issue left after this one, and the writing team has definitely delivered a strong finale. As Batman considers Ra’s Al Ghul’s offer to take over his empire and turn it into a force for good once Ra’s dies, Gotham is under assault by the undead Court of Owls. The Talons have injured Catwoman, kidnapped Man-Bat, and are coming after Harley and Ivy in their home. This forces an unusual team-up between Batman and Ivy, who might be the only person who can find out the truth about Ra’s mysterious new engineered grain. While this issue doesn’t exactly have any huge new plot developments as it sets the stage for the finale, it does drop in on a surprising number of players from the series. You can tell that this creative team loves the original animated series, and is paying tribute to it with a long-form adventure that could never been done on TV.
DC/RWBY #7 – Marguerite Bennett, Writer; Soo Lee, Artist; Marissa Louise, Colorist
Ray – 7.5/10
Ray: It’s the end of the road for this crossover mini, as Team RWBY must face off with a possessed Batman to save the DCU from dark magical influences. That plot is ended surprisingly quickly, after an intriguing storybook-inspired beginning, as one character makes a shocking sacrifice to snap Batman out of his stupor while another character pulls a surprise McGuffin out of her hat to save the day. Overall, this mini didn’t really have anything wrong with it, but as it went on, it became heavily driven by the inside baseball of the RWBY-verse, and the abrupt ending didn’t do it any favors. However, it did have some good character beats throughout as the heroes and villains both used their magical semblances to change in ways that reflected their true nature. Overall, while this didn’t reach the highs of some of the best crossovers, it’s likely to be a win for RWBY fans.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
