Comic Review #30: Batman #527 - 528 (1996)

 

After the sheer bland awfulness of The New Guardians #2 I just had to redeem DC comics in my eyes. So whenever that is the manner I usually go to one of their big hero books. You know Superman, Batman, The Flash, etc.  I chose Batman because for whatever reason I want to read more 1990s DC. I've read enough 1990s Marvel to know that while I may like some of the smaller books like Darkhawk or Sleepwalker, I think most of the big hero books from Marvel during the 1990s are just not very well done.  I've talked about how I don't enjoy 90's X-Men but that's not the only Marvel comic that I think was very poor during the 1990s. Fantastic Four was something you could skip reading from around 1992 to 2004. It sure was not the Greatest Comic Magazine during the 1990s. The Avengers were at best okay but only really got good again when Kurt Busiek came to the book in 1998. Captain America and Iron Man were actually pretty good and I would recommend reading them even if the armor Cap has to wear for a storyline is really goofy and really 90s. Spider-Man during the 1990s would go from good to holy fuck what the Christ and that was before the clone saga (which actually to be fair has the same ratio of good to holy fuck from what I've read.) I'm sure I will end up talking about each of these comics and why I wasn't a fan of them during the 1990s but right now it's time for Batman!

I've actually read this story before but I think that's to ease me in to the 1990s stories. Most of the comics I would go for in back issues were from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. I must have at least 80% of the Bronze Age of comics in my basement. It's pretty cool. At least the 80% of the comics made by Marvel and DC. The only reason I didn't go to Superman is because all the stories seemed to connect to each other. Like every Superman story in the 1990s seemed to be some kind of epic. This was just your regular Batman two parter. You don't really need to know the previous issues or the later ones. I like both kinds of story telling in comics but I just felt more Batmanny today. I was going to read Batman: War Games but I have a feeling I won't enjoy that story and it was at least 32 issues, if you add in War Drums a story that leads into War Games and I don't think I have the time to read that many issues I don't think I'll like. Maybe when I'm in a shittier mood so I can yell at it until I puke.

Anyway, I guess I should say is expect more 1990s DC comics around here at the blog. I plan to pick up more when I can and all that. Anyway I think it's finally time to get into Batman #527 - 528. It's a simple story but very well done. It was written by Doug Moench. (This dude has been in comics forever. He's done stuff for Warren Magazine, you know the Creepy guys. He co-created Moon Knight and wrote Shang Chi The Master of Kung Fu and I don't think he gets the credit he deserves. He should be higher on the list of every comic lover. His comics were always fun and enjoyable. I salute you Doug!) and Kelley Jones, an artist that I had to get used too. It's a very cartoony and over the top. I did not like it very much at first but I've grown to accept more out there art in the comic universe and re-reading this I loved his wild take on Batman and Two Face and all the weirdos at the Circus.

Yes, this is one of at least two but probably more stories that involves Two Face and a bunch of what they would refer to as sideshow freaks circa the 1930s. I don't know when we in the real world stopped doing freakshows but in the 1990s the DC universe still had freakshows in them. Anyway this is a simple story where Batman has to go after Two Face after he escapes from New Arkham (the Old Arkham Asylum was destroyed in Knightfall) and breaks into his old apartment and kills the guy inside just to find his old file folder with cases he couldn't push when he was District Attorney. It's up to Batman to find out who hes after. Since I mentioned Circus before you know it's a guy at a Circus who killed his uncle to gain possession of the Circus. He has two guys help him get a fucking Tiger to eat hi uncles face. This guy is nuts. Anyway they have a guy so skinny he looks like a skeleton. They call him Skeletor. They also have a incredibly obese woman and my favorite of the bunch a conjoined twin with 3 eyes and we learn later on a damn third arm! Wild shit! Batman of course finds out about the Circus and ends up kicking Two Faces ass.

FINAL VERDICT: This was a fun story. I enjoyed all of the interactions between all of the characters. There were some actually pretty funny moments in this story. Like when Batman throws several batarangs at the Dagger throwing guy and he's stuck to a wall and then tells him to only hit stationary targets. Classic! This was a simple two part story done very well by someone who wanted to tell a fun Batman story instead of two people who clearly were overworked and cared about those projects much more than The New Guardians #2. I think The New Guardians #2 will be my least favorite comic I've reviewed for this site for a very long time. I hope at least.