[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writers: Mairghread Scott, Marguerite Bennett & Paul Dini
Artists: Tom Derenick, Sean Parsons, Dan Panosian, Paul Pelletier, Norm Rapmund, Emanuela Lupacchino & Ray McCarthy
Colors: Stephen Downer & Jordie Bellaire
Letters: Deron Bennett
Summary
On her return to Gotham City, family matters force Barbara to confront her complicated relationship with Dick Grayson. But does Dick have time for a heart-to-heart while subbing as Batman when Bruce Wayne is out of action?
Positives
I like the cover by Rafael Albuquerque. The texture of the pencils is really cool. I love the background of sunlight and Babs looks great.
The book features four different stories from different writers and artists. All four teams are solid and the art is very cool throughout the book. Paul Pelletier and Norm Rapmund convey Babs’ eidetic memory well in the third story. My favorite of the art is Emanuela Lupacchino and Ray McCarthy’s work in the fourth story. I love the style a lot and Jordie Bellaire’s colors really bring it to life.
It is interesting to see how the events of Bruce and Selina’s wedding have affected Babs. The guilt of the people Joker killed combined with Selina leaving Bruce at the altar has her questioning a lot of things. I also like that Dick Grayson is the person she turns to in her confusion. The second story between Babs and Dick is the highlight of the book.
My second favorite story of the four is Paul Dini’s. Part of that is because Lupacchino is one of my favorite artists. But it is a really fun short story.
Negatives
There are no negatives that I think are worth mentioning.
Verdict
I love this issue. I always tend to like these oversized anthologies. It’s fun to have more than one story from a wide variety of creative people. The four stories are all interesting and celebrate this character. I highly recommend this issue.
