Batman and Robin and Howard: Summer Breakdown #2 – Jeffrey Brown, Writer/Artist; Silvana Brys, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: The decision to split this story into oversized single issues rather than sticking with the graphic novel format has allowed Jeffrey Brown to extend the tension a little bit, letting developments build and linger rather than plowing through the whole plot in a single volume. This works especially well as Damian Wayne deals with the one thing more threatening than supervillains – navigating divorced parents. Talia Al-Ghul is back in town, and she’s once again trying to get Damian to join the League of Assassins. While she’s certainly nicer about it than she usually is, Damian still feels torn between the two halves of his heritage. And speaking of the other half, Bruce continues to be in peak nerdy dad mode here, even awkwardly putting on a suit to go to a private dinner with Talia. All this combines to create some tension in Damian’s life – including with his best friend Harold.
Harold has been busy with his new “Hero Club”, a group of do-gooder kids who are trying to recruit. They quickly induct Harold, and he wants Damian in as well – but Damian is a bit preoccupied. Complicating things is the larger mystery the two boys are investigating, which leads to them coming up with different prime suspects – something that threatens to drive a larger rift between them. This series has a surprisingly solid whodunnit at the core, along with some great sight gags involving ninjas, but it works so well because of its core – the unlikely friendship between two very different kids, and the families that support them. Like all of Brown’s work, it threads the line between a parody comic and a surprisingly earnest story of family and friendship. His simple but detailed cartoony art is perfectly suited for it, and it’s great to see this and Primer get second volumes in a new format.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
