Review: Batman and Robin: Year One #2

Review: Batman and Robin: Year One #2
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]

Plot: Mark Waid and Chris Samnee
Writer: Mark Waid
Art: Chris Samnee
Colors: Giovanna Niro
Letters: Clayton Cowles

Reviewed by: Matthew B. Lloyd

Summary

Social Services pays Wayne Manor a visit and Batman and Robin follow a lead on an arson case which reveals something they never imagined!

Positives

Y’know, it’s ok for comics to be fun.  With Batman and Robin: Year One #2, we get fun and good.  Modern comics sometimes get way in over their heads trying to be about something other than the characters they feature.  It’s difficult to make that work, you have to be an EXCELLENT writer to pull it off well.  It’s not necessary to do this, though.  This issue shows that if you know the characters and their world, you can make great comics, too.  This also takes an EXCELLENT writer.  And, this is what we’ve got with this issue.

If you like Batman and Robin, you will love this comic.  It’s really simple.  It’s not necessary to reinvent the wheel.  Despite telling a story set in the past, it’s not necessary to recontextualize everything or add unneeded details to an origin.  You just need to tell a good story.  Like Robin Year One, this series so far isn’t concerned with anything but telling a good story that can fit in the past without troubling details.  

The details Waid does utilize add to the fun and play on Batman’s history.  The social worker refers to Bruce’s home as “stately” Wayne Manor, a phrase that conjures up images of the Batman ’66 televison series.  Waid also makes Bruce’s image as an idle playboy part of the story and a perception he’s got to change about himself now that he’s taken on the responsibility of raising Dick Grayson.

Positives Cont’d

Waid balances the character and personal storyline with the action/ adventure bits well.  There’s nothing overly complicated in the plot, but the newly formed Dynamic Duo do have a mystery on their hands.  Dick gets a rescue all his own as he steps up to save some children.  Bruce is duly pleased.  It balances Bruce’s irritation with Dick from earlier in the issue when Dick does things his way…performing, something that comes naturally to an acrobat.  Alfred recognizes that Dick is doing things his way and not simply copying the Dark Knight’s methods.  This is a nice contrast between the two that has been an important distinction in character throughout their history.  Waid utilizes the light friction between the two throughout the issue to create some tension, but never in a violent or adversarial manner.  And, Waid wraps it up with a tease on the last page!

Chris Samnee makes Batman and Robin: Year One# 2 look great.  Samnee is a great artist for delivering a timeless quality to a comic.  It works great here as this could function as a past for almost any version of Batman and Robin, it doesn’t necessarily have to be just 15 years ago.

Furthermore, Samnee’s art is just wonderful.  He has a “less is more” approach to his style.  He utilizes lot of blacks (dark spaces) for atmosphere and tone, as well as creating depth in his panels.  He creates just the right facial expressions with minimal lines, and captures the needed movement.

Negatives

Dare I say that Batman and Robin: Year One #2 doesn’t have a negative?  I suppose it’s down to figuring out how well it fits into continuity with Batman: Year One, The Long Halloween, Dark Victory and Robin Year One if anyone wants to nitpick.  I’d also say there are some details that need to be forgotten in some of those tales as well, Selina Kyle as prostitute chief among them.  It’s a Frank Miller trope that is one of those unnecessary additions that doesn’t add anything and is simply there for Miller’s own predilection for those types of characters.  It also points to some of the misogynistic tendencies Miller displays in his writing.  Time will tell if this series yields any additions to be excised at a future time.

Verdict

Batman and Robin: Year One #2 improves on last month’s debut issue and shows where this series is headed.  It’s a combination of nostalgia, timelessness and solid storytelling from the creators.  It yields a lot of fun and the excitement one expects from a super-hero comic book.  Put this at the top of the list with Action Comics, the two best titles that feel All In!