Review – Batman #147: The Evolution of Batman

Batman #147 – Chip Zdarsky, Writer; Jorge Jimenez, Miguel Mendonca, Artists; Tomeu Morey, Enrica Angiolini, Colorists

Ray – 9.5/10

Ray: The battle between Batman and his twisted alter ego continues, as Zur seems to have gained the upper hand—claiming the body of Failsafe, taking over Gotham’s crimefighting scene with a dubious Damian Wayne by his side, and driving Bruce into hiding. Zur continues his quest to stomp out any opposition—targeting Vandal Savage as the infamous villain is appointed police commissioner, and even becoming the first person to find Amanda Waller’s secret base and intimidate her off the trail—or so it seems for now. With Waller’s next gambit coming, she wastes no time seeing how she can turn this to her advantage. It’s all too much for Damian eventually—but his rebellion doesn’t last long, as Zur has plans for him too.

Bruce, meanwhile, has found himself on his own without any allies. He retreats to a cabin in the woods with a fraught emotional history for him to plan, and we see him slowly start to recover from the isolation that Zur inflicted on him over the course of the run. This is helped a lot by the presence of Tim Drake, who tracks him down. Zdarsky isn’t shy about thinking that Tim is the best Robin—the run started with him, and it might be wrapping up with him if this is Zdarsky’s last big arc. Tim was the Robin who had to work at it the most, and that gives him and Bruce a unique bond. We don’t see the big showdown start this issue, but Zdarsky does an amazing job of building the tension as both players make their moves.

And then there’s the backup, with art by Mendonca, set in the secret prison of Daniel Capito. This mad psychologist has been tasked by Zur with keeping order, but he has higher ambitions—working to unravel the twisted minds of the villains, starting with Riddler. He actually makes some very good points about Nygma. He’s undeniably the most brilliant of Batman’s enemies and could be a billionaire on his own—if he wasn’t obsessed with Batman. It’s a very intriguing look into the mind of one of Batman’s best rogues.

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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.