Batman: The Brave and the Bold #20 – Ty Templeton, Dave Wielgosz, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, Michael W. Conrad, Simone Di Meo, Writers; Ty Templeton, Nikola Cizmesija, Travis Mercer/Tom Derenick, Christopher Mitter, Simone Di Meo, Artists; Rex Lokus, Peter Pantazis, Ivan Plascencia, Colorists
Ray – 9/10
Ray: The latest issue of this anthology features two continuing tales and three new ones – including the return of a legend to the Bat-verse.
That would be Ty Templeton, who pulls double duty on “The Price”. This is a Zatanna/Bat-Mite story with a fascinating twist – much like Zatanna’s famous spells, it’s told backwards. We open with Zatanna foiling the playful imp from making one of Batman’s battles “more interesting by adding new threats for his favorite superhero, and each page goes back further, showing us a moment in the past when they did battle. It goes all the way back to Silver Age themes and then to the times Zatara was still alive, revealing a shocking history between the two that explains why Zatanna seems to view herself as personally responsible. It’s very funny in places, but also a fascinating tale.
The second chapter of “Man’s Underworld” by Wielgosz and Cizmesija finds Wonder Woman and Plastic Man infiltrating Roulette’s superhero gear auction in search of a stolen treasure – the lasso of truth. Diana and Plastic Man have never gotten along, something Roulette tries to play at, but the end of this story has a very emotional moment as she accidentally uncovers some of the darkest secrets from his past, leading to a surprising moment of catharsis for the unlikely duo.
“Keep It Down” by writer/artist Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou brings back the infamous villain Onomatopoeia as the unflappable assassin targets some low-level heroes for a job – only to discover his own greatest weakness. He’s incredibly keyed into sounds, able to mimic them perfectly – and that makes his ears extremely sensitive, and a mysterious figure known as the “Maintenance Man” threatens to make him unravel. There are some surprising reveals here about exactly who this assassin is out of costume, and some great creepy sound effects.
The second chapter of “Hive Mind” by Conrad and Mitten concludes this Animal Man story as J’onn J’onnz descends deeper into Maxine’s mind to find out why her connection to the Red is spiraling out of control. Conrad has written this family quite a few times in anthology shorts, and he’s really the only one who addresses some of the darker ghosts haunting the family. Mitten’s art is perfect for depicting the inherent horrors of the Red, but the story also has some surprisingly light moments, especially at the end.
Finally, Simone Di Meo brings it home with “The Tattoo”, a tale that finds a younger Batman waking up with a mysterious tattoo. He chalks it up to a nocturnal adventure he forgot – until another shows up. He starts to spiral out of control, becoming increasingly paranoid, until he starts to fall into a breakdown around Alfred. This story has a good overall message about mental health, although it maybe has to rush its reveal a little due to the short issue length. Gorgeous art, too.
Overall, all the stories here are good, but the opening one is worth the price of admission alone.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
