Review: Absolute Batman #1
[Editor’s Note: This review may may contain spoilers]
Writer: Scott Snyder
Art: Nick Dragotta
Colors: Frank Martin
Letters: Clayton Cowles
Reviewed by: Matthew B. Lloyd
Summary
Secret Agent Alfred Pennyworth returns to Gotham city only to discover it’s changed. While getting intel on the Party Animals gang, he encounters the Batman!
Positives
Scott Snyder peppers Absolute Batman #1 with a number of references. While Easter Egging readers copiously, he also makes it clear where he’s getting a lot of inspiration. Nick Dragotta and Frank Martin do the same with the design and art, but it feels like it’s all worked out in a grand plan. Snyder gives readers first looks at not only Bruce Wayne/ Batman, but also the familiar faces of Jim Gordon, Barbara Gordon, Waylon Jones and references Selina Kyle, Oswald Cobblepot, Edward Nygma, Harvey Dent and even the Joker. It’s an instant way for Batman fans to know that Snyder has plans for the vast number of character in Batman’s extended cast. Snyder also reassures the audience that despite the differences, there are a number of recognizable elements.
In his lettering style Clayton Cowles recalls Jim Gordon’s narration from Batman: Year One. Even the narration boxes are depicted in the same manner. This issue, and one assumes this initial storyline, owes a lot Batman: Year One. The narration by Alfred Pennyworth in Absolute Batman #1 is obviously taken from Frank Miller’s choice to have Jim Gordon be the narrator in Batman: Year One. Additionally, Alfred’s return to Gotham feels like a thematic nod to Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham at the beginning of the first chapter of Year One. The underworld plays a similar role as well, again feeling lifted from the Roman Falcone plotline from Year One.
Positives Cont’d
The state of Gotham is not unlike that of the Gotham in Year One, however the lawlessness is more reminiscent of the Gotham of The Dark Knight Returns. The actions of the Party Animals gang have the over the top qualities of the Mutant Gang in The Dark Knight Returns. Batman’s physical appearance is clearly inspired by his look in that seminal work. The Party Animals may be an updating of the Terrible Trio, an even deeper Batman reference. There’s even a panel that seems to reference the most recent live action Batman film, Matt Reeves’ The Batman, and Alfred Pennyworth’s motorcycle that BECOMES Bruce’s appears to be based on the Batcycle from Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy.
Nick Dragotta’s storytelling is very good. He incorporates the visual references as well as giving this Batman a unique approach. At times he may remind readers of Snyder’s most famous Batman collaborator- Greg Capullo. The creative team gathers a lot of inspiration from far flung corners of Batman’s history, and there might be something here that grabs you.
From a craft standpoint, Snyder’s script is good. There are a couple time periods in play and he goes back and forth successfully between them to create some suspense and tension utilizing what readers know about traditional Batman mythos. He teases the reader effectively and moves the plot along. Alfred Pennyworth stands out as a more interesting character in this first issue and serves as the anchor for the reader.
Negatives
There’s already been a lot of talk about the visual appearance of the over-muscled Absolute Batman. If it were a stylistic choice it would work better. Frank Miller’s style in The Dark Knight Returns lends itself to the exaggeration that we see in Absolute Batman #1. Miller’s style is more cartoony whereas Dragotta’s approach is more realistic. Bruce/ Batman is the only character that is depicted in this way. The other characters fit within a much more realistic continuum. Perhaps, if Bruce were toned down a bit he would fit into the world better visually. It’s not really believable that someone with this musculature could be acrobatic with a high degree of mobility.
There’s an over the top quality to the action that seems rooted in an attempt to seem cool rather than actually be entertaining. This is something that Absolute Batman #1 also has in common with The Dark Knight Returns and will probably be a case of individual taste. For me, it’s style over substance and a sign that this series is stuck in the works of Alan Moore and Frank Miller with a little ’90’s “kewl” thrown in as well.
Negatives Cont’d
While all the callbacks, Easter Eggs and references are an overture of goodwill, there may be too many all at once. I think it would’ve been better to roll some of these out over time for more impact. While Absolute Batman #1 is decidedly different, there are so many references that the issue feels like a patchwork. It’s almost like a bad media adaptation that can’t settle on a defined concept. I believe Snyder has one in his head, but we don’t get enough of it to really tell if we like it or not. In Snyder’s attempt to make something different, he hasn’t given the core element to the reader yet. This is an alternate take on Batman, but so far there’s no compelling difference. To be clear, there are differences, but none of them are THE hook. DC’s previous successful Elseworlds stories have had a specific difference that informs that world and makes it not just different, but engaging. While not labeled an Elseworlds title, Absolute Batman is essentially just that.
One of the marketed premises about this concept is that Bruce doesn’t have the resources, and yet in this issue Alfred lists the things Bruce has done…got a scholarship to the state’s best university, studied applied mechanics, chemistry, criminal psychology, military history, sociocultural history…. And, THEN he came home. That’s a lot “resources.”
Verdict
Overall, Absolute Batman #1 is technically a well executed and crafted first issue. There is a question of “why” we should care about Bruce and why is Alfred more interesting? While the Easter Eggs and references should reassure the reader, there isn’t a strong enough core concept for this version of Batman to bring me back. Maybe the violent, over the top approach is what some readers are looking for. Or, perhaps, it’s what appeals to the creatives in the Absolute Universe. I don’t think the majority of fans are looking for a recapitulation of the same ideas that Alan Moore and Frank Miller first utilized in the ’80’s and ’90’s. DC seems to have a desire to reinvent the wheel instead of just telling great stories that move established characters forward.
