This is a mess. What should be the culmination of all the story elements presented so far resembles a tangled collection of threads. I'm trying really hard to find something to praise besides the art, which remains satisfactory but is nothing too remarkable. Hopefully, it all comes together in the end, but I remain doubtful.

While Jason finally gets to shine in his own comic for once, there really isn't anything else that I can hold up as great in this issue. Overall, this series – which I should remind you is a prequel to Gotham War for some baffling reason – should have been something right up my alley. Revisiting an old DC idea done years ago with plenty of untapped potential? Yes, please!!! Sadly, it's better if some things are left as a concept instead of seeing it executed in a lackluster fashion.

I wanted to like this more than I did, but I just couldn't bring myself to leap past the plot holes. And once you fall into one of them, well it's hard to stop falling. The characters take actions that seem convenient for the story to happen and any hero not named Superman, Batman, or Robin feels replaceable.

Without the Batman: Black and White story, which would raise the overall score of the book, we can see the true value of this anthology series. Despite my championing these types of stories as a way for fans to read about lesser-known characters or fan favorites that don't have their own titles, it doesn't matter if the stories we get are bland and just grossly misrepresent the characters involved. I mean, at this point, DC might just have the characters going full meta and discussing among themselves how they act differently, even if it doesn't make sense.

SighI was worried about the incoming padding of the material in World War V, and unfortunately, I was not proven wrong. So, now all we have to do is watch the series spin its proverbial wheels until it decides to untangle its threads. As for when that will happen, your guess is as good as mine.

I feel like my opinions have completely flip-flopped from the last issue, where I was more invested in the Watch than whatever was going on with Jason, Karlee Jr., and the rest. But thanks to some good writing, I'm now more interested in a new set of characters and how they interact. Unfortunately, this appears to have occurred at the expense of the other characters, who now look to be permanently sidelined. At least some appropriate art choices by Sanford Greene and Matt Herms give this book a nice indie feel, which feels tone accurate to the story.

Brave and the Bold is a title that lacks any direction. Whether or not any of the stories told here will matter in the future is up for debate, though personally speaking, I don't think most will. It's hard to recommend this title just for the Batman: Black and White stories when they will probably be collected into their own separate volume at some point. They aren't particularly bad stories, but I won't rush to revisit them once I finish this review.

It's difficult to shake off the feeling that I'm reading two stories awkwardly stapled together. While the story of the Hill is genuinely interesting, with some decent dialogue and art, Red Hood has yet to acclimate to his new surroundings and ends up sticking out like a sore thumb. Considering that a certain character – who is arguably more popular than Jason – makes an appearance on the last page, I don't think he's even doing enough to sell this series at this point.

Unfortunately, Batman: Dark Age not only failed to stick the landing, but it somersaulted into a web of confusion made up of all the tangled plot threads the series has been juggling so far. The art remains decent, and I like the journey this Batman went through, but the similarities to its predecessor and confused social messaging hold it back too much for me.

The story is unbelievably stuffed, with this issue only adding more to the madness. However, some decent characterization and a great backup actually make this the best issue in the series so far. However, as the plotlines continue to haphazardly converge with each other, with the New Gods apparently joining the party, that might not be enough for most people to continue with this series.

The problem with Batman '89 Echoes actually stems from issues that are not really apparent on the page. The lack of a proper schedule kills any momentum for a book that really isn't treading any new ground. Personally, this isn't that bad a story; there is a lot to like about the art, and I'm mildly interested in seeing what happens next. But as of now, nothing in the story has failed to convert this book from 'mild' to 'must read' for me.

Like most anthologies, this issue is a mixed bag. There was some truly great stuff, some mildly amusing stuff, and some stuff that can be classified as filler at best. I do wonder what it says that the stories that stood out the most were the Bat stories, but I hope we see more stories like the ones we goteven the Sgt. Rock one. These characters are a part of the tapestry that makes up DC's rich history and deserve to be remembered.

While whether or not this series deserved a sequel can only be decided after the end of this long mini-series, for now, DC vs Vampires: World War V manages to start well, if not exactly strong. There are some intriguing elements, like a character who might be from one of the backups of All Out War showing up and some decent characterization (who would've thought vampire Grodd would be the most loyal of all of Barbara's followers?), which are enough to keep my interest for the time being. But the cracks haven't exactly been papered over, and I wonder how long it will take before they start to become more visible.

This book is starting to grow on me. A lot of it is thanks to the amazing artwork by Quinones and Ito, but the story has its fun moments. The slow pace of the earlier issues comes back to haunt this one, but hopefully, from here onward, the pace will manage to even out.

While I did complain a fair bit about certain plot points and I do feel this title isn't doing enough to distinguish itself from its predecessor, Batman: Dark Age remains one of the more bright and optimistic Batman stories I've read in recent memory. A lot of it is thanks to the art by the Allreds, which remains a standout, even if I struggle with the faces on occasion. Despite its flaws, #3 remains a decent read, and I remain hooked on what's to come next…even though the ‘next generation' is a no-show this month.

Going into this issue relatively blind was certainly an eye-opener as I was able to enjoy the story on offer despite having a few issues with it. As a jumping-on point, it does everything right to hook a new reader, however, similarities in structure to past stories might make this appeal less to more experienced ones. However, Torunn Grnbekk's writing and the overall art made this comic a pleasant read.

There are a lot of moving parts in the main story, but thankfully, not all of them are focused on at once, giving each of them some much needed breathing space. We don't see Damian in this issue, but we feel the ramifications of his actions. The story is still mostly setup at this point, but it does enough to spice up the story with bits of action now and then, and the art is decent, if not spectacular, and shines through during the big moments.

While the art and story for #2 remain pretty solid for the most part, I can't help but wonder how this will all end and whether or not the ending will be able to deliver a satisfactory conclusion. It is probably unfair to draw comparisons with Superman: Space Age, but the book does force them with the shared similarities between the two series. However, we do seem to be past the setup stage and I do want to keep reading to know what happens next.

This is a much better offering of stories overall. I like that we get a no-nonsense Batman story, a story where Streaky features prominently, and the microstory at the end made me chuckle. It's a decent, if not spectacular, collection, which is probably the best you're getting with this series.

Batman: The Dark Age took its time to get out of the shadows of its predecessor. But it has been worth the wait as the series delivers its strongest issue so far. The art is good as always – to the point where I can't find new words to praise it – but there's an injection of color in this month's issue that has helped make the book more livelier. Dark Age takes delight in depicting the Batman of a simpler time through a modern lens and does it exceedingly well.

Batman: The Dark Age has gone from strength to strength with each issue, to the point where I didn't even mind when the Pariah subplot crept back into the story. Its only real flaw is that the story did not pace itself well in its previous issues, but I am unwilling to blame this issue for it. Delivering some shocking deaths, shocking team-ups, shocking backstory changes, and, of course, a shocking cliffhanger, this series continues to be a pleasant shock to the system.

This is a good collection of stories. I was not expecting to like the Harley and Robin stories as those concepts seemingly were done to death, resurrected in an event comic, and promptly died off again. And yet, I found myself liking most of the stories in the comic. Maybe the good vibes from the Batman story carried the rest of the issue, but that does feel unfair on the rest.