Absolute Batman #16 – Scott Snyder, Writer; Nick Dragotta, Artist; Frank Martin, Colorist
Ray – 10/10
Ray: Every month I think Absolute Batman can’t get any better, and then it surprises me. Scott Snyder has built a world full of untold horrors here, with villain that make the original versions look like boy scouts, but at its core is a Bruce who might be a kinder and gentler person than ours ever got to be – after all, he’s a momma’s boy. After the horrors of the Bane arc, Bruce is back to work and trying to piece his life back together – but he’s lost most of his friends, with Oz and Harvey hating him and Waylon lost in his own mind. That leads him to contact Diana, who he last teamed up with in the previous issue of Absolute Wonder woman, and he asks for a magical way to cure Waylon. She knows a way – but it involves a deep journey into the underworld to undergo a series of magical trials and eventually get an amulet of transmogrification from a powerful warrior of the dead. No big deal, right?
Nick Dragotta has always been one of this series’ secret weapons, but he really outdoes himself this issue with a magical wilderness that packs a ton of detail into several pages with panel-heavy layouts, before taking us into an epic arena for a dramatic battle. But along the way, there are some great quiet moments, especially one where Bruce – closer to the afterlife than ever before – encounters his father. The legacy of Thomas Wayne in this world is very different, but no less critical to who Bruce is as a person, and that becomes really clear this issue. I also have to add that after two team-up issues between these two heroes, it’s clear that Batman and Wonder Woman have a surprising amount of things in common and are forming a really interesting platonic bond – and thankfully only that. Can’t wait to see how Superman fits into this dynamic once he gets his crossovers.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
