I’m now caught up on Batman (the title, not the character overall; this is the only regular Bat-title I bother to read). So, I just read Part Three of “Long Shadows”. This is part of the “Batman: Reborn” line. Right now, Dick Grayson is Batman, Damien Wayne is Robin, and Tim Drake is Red Robin. Also, Two-Face is able to tell that the man in the cowl isn’t the TRUE Batman.
Now, I was initially dead set against Bruce’s death. I still am. I think it’s stupid. I don’t think it brings anything good to the character, readers, or the DCU. Bruce Wayne is an amazing, fantastically rich character (and I’m not just talking about his money). Most other characters, even Dick Grayson, fall short in terms of character depth when compared to Bruce.
Hating the whole “R.I.P” story and his death in “Final Crisis”, of course I hated the idea of Grayson as Batman and the whole Robin/Red Robin thing. As of Batman #690, however, I can kind of get behind Dick Grayson as Batman. Still don’t like the overall idea, hate that Tim Drake is running around as Red Robin while Damien Wayne is Robin, but I am now actually enjoying Grayson behind the iconic mask.
So far, Winick is writing okay and Bagley is drawing alright.
We’ll have to see where this goes.
(Also, I’d like people to note that this ain’t the first time Dick filled in for Bruce)
Now, I was initially dead set against Bruce’s death. I still am. I think it’s stupid. I don’t think it brings anything good to the character, readers, or the DCU. Bruce Wayne is an amazing, fantastically rich character (and I’m not just talking about his money). Most other characters, even Dick Grayson, fall short in terms of character depth when compared to Bruce.
Hating the whole “R.I.P” story and his death in “Final Crisis”, of course I hated the idea of Grayson as Batman and the whole Robin/Red Robin thing. As of Batman #690, however, I can kind of get behind Dick Grayson as Batman. Still don’t like the overall idea, hate that Tim Drake is running around as Red Robin while Damien Wayne is Robin, but I am now actually enjoying Grayson behind the iconic mask.
So far, Winick is writing okay and Bagley is drawing alright.
We’ll have to see where this goes.
(Also, I’d like people to note that this ain’t the first time Dick filled in for Bruce)
2 comments:
Personally, I don't mind the process of putting other people under the cowl.
It seems to me that there are two kinds of superheroes: Heroes like Superman who is an irreplaceable individual and heroes like the Flash who work really well with multiple people filling the role.
It can be fun to do this to Batman because the Batman is a superhero like the Green Lantern in that the person under the mask shouldn't get in the way of the war on crime BUT the strength of Bruce Wayne's character just doesn't allow for anyone to take the mantle away from him.
So I think it was good that DC didn't try to trick anyone into thinking Bruce would never be back but on the other hand this pseudo-death/sci-fi end to Batman stuff is just ...
And my rant ran out of energy.
I agree that Batman is bigger than Bruce Wayne. I typically enjoy "future" stories that have Dick or Tim or someone having taken up the mantle (though Morrison's issue 666...I'd like to forget about that). But for now, I think Bruce Wayne should be Batman.
I know that I sound like one of those older guys who stopped reading comics in the late '80s because they were no longer HIS superheroes. What can I say? I think Logan should be Wolverine and Bruce Wayne should be Batman.
Hal Jordan was kind of replaceable to me because he was basically a cop. If a cop dies, then another can take up his beat. The Flash was a bit thornier, though, I think. If for no other reason than that he wasn't a member of a universe-spanning corps.
Even if all of my arguments against this current "era" of Batman were refuted with the purest logic and the most sound reasoning, I would still hold out if for no other reason than a simple, selfish feeling that Bruce Wayne is the Batman I've always known, and I want him to be the only Batman I'll ever know.
(Also, I typically dislike Batman in really sci-fi stuff. If/when Bruce comes back as some "White Lantern", I'll probably be highly dissatisfied. I agree with Frank Miller in that I prefer Batman as a CRIME FIGHTER. Not so much a superhero. As a guy who fights criminals, not aliens. Although, if he's done well in a good JLA story... well, there are always exceptions.)
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