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dc comics reviews 5-6-26 - batman 9
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DC Comics reviews 5/6/26 – Batman 8, Absolute Superman 19

Jeffrey Lyles , , , , , , ,
Batman 9

batman 9

Batman 9 plays out like a significant switch on a familiar storyline. Gotham officials have broken from the silent partnership with The Dark Knight before, but Batman 9 actually feels like a story where that will have some legitimate repercussions long after Gotham’s elite look to Batman to protect them from Joker, Penguin, Bane, etc. again.

Batman prepares the Gotham team of Damian, Oracle, Signal and Batgirl for a pre-arranged defeat. Savage is on the warpath and Batman has to think 10 steps ahead of him to brace for the worst. He sends his agents out to various safehouses to procure various supplies before Savage’s task force can shut them down and seize the materials for themselves.

It was nice to see writer Matt Fraction give Signal a prominent role as he can get pushed to the back burner in the massive Batman Family. Tim Drake is on a sabbatical and watches the chase play out while having dinner with Bernard, who might never become much of a fan favorite. Stephanie wouldn’t have him on the sidelines when Batman and company needed him.

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Fraction certainly seems to be another longtime Batman fan who misses Alfred’s presence in the series. To work around his current state, Fraction has Batman speak to an Alfred AI, which seems somewhat like Bruce is losing his mind. Wouldn’t it just be easier to use one of a 104 ways DC has used to resurrect a character?

With Jorge Jimenez taking off this issue, Ryan Sook fills in as artist for Batman 9. Sook is a smooth artist who doesn’t seem to have nearly a busy enough schedule for his talents, which are properly showcased this issue. Sook, with inker Wade Von Gawbadger, delivers tremendously expressive characters and an intense flow to the action. Colorist Tomeu Morey and letterer Clayton Cowles (with Sook) provide their usual reliably consistent work that keeps this era of Batman from being too dark with fun inclusions like text boxes breaking down Batman’s gear.

Batman 9 definitely shakes up the status quo with an intriguing cliffhanger and a major shift for the Batman Family. This arc is proving to be very entertaining so far.

Rating: 9 out of 10

After checking out Batman 9, pre-order Batman Vol. 2: Blood and Money on trade paperback at Amazon.

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