David Finch has really been doing good work so far in Batman, but Mikel Janin's art in this is phenomenal. It is revealed at the end that Batman did something terrible, that he had to do, to survive the War of Jokes and Riddles. So far the story has been really interesting and with this and Dark Days/Metal it is a great time to be a Batman fan, and hopefully both books would have a great story. Read Full Review

Batman is largely absent from the issue, but his absence helps tell the story and explain why Joker and Riddler go to war. It actually works better in the context of Batman reflecting on one of his most significant regrets in keeping Gotham safe. The setup is exciting and it should be fun seeing how this Batman Rogues Civil War plays out. Read Full Review

King is writing TWOJAR as one of Bruce's long kept hidden secret skeletons in the closest and it shows on the last page where he HAS to lay this story to Selina before they continue their relationship, no matter which course it takes. If this opening shot of an issue is the precedent or just a scratch of what King has in store for us in this arc that's sure to redefine Batman… I'm on board 100% Read Full Review

Take out your wallets and purses, ladies and gentlemen, because you'll be throwing your money at Batman #25. This is the Dark Knight story we want to read. Read Full Review

King and Janin have put together a new definitive look at the Joker, Riddler, and Batman. This issue will be one to remember. Read Full Review

In a nice bit of change, Tom King takes us into flashback territory with this issue. Having it be a first person narration by Batman puts both the reader (and Catwoman) in the frontlines of a very intense opening of what is sure to be a very explosive story. Read on for 11 reasons to join the war that starts in Batman #25 Read Full Review

Art by Mikel Jann and June ChungBatman #25 sets up what promises to be a promising, epic arc that will touch almost every corner of the Batman rogues gallery and the character itself, and the ramping tension in this issue serves to amp up the expectation for the reader. In the hands of this creative team, we can probably expect to see something that could become one of the biggest, most key stories in Batman history. Read Full Review

Batman #25 is the perfect set up for the The War of Jokes and Riddles story arc which will bring us Tom King's most adventurous and original story to date. King continues to explore who Batman really is, while at the same time exploring the war that nearly broke Batman. This continues Tom King's young, but great line of great Batman issues so far. Read Full Review

This is a bigger issue than no Batman fan should miss out on. Read Full Review

Overall, another solid issue in the series and a perfect way to start 'War for Jokes and Riddles'. King has been on a roll for a long time now and almost all of his Batman issues are worth reading. Read Full Review

Also good to see that Batman and Catwoman are still going strongbecause if there weren't any callbacks after issue #24 I would've flipped a table and demanded some answers. Read Full Review

King manages to bring one of the most iconic villains of Batman lore to life, without carbon copying what was seen before, but not going too far on the left field so the character is not recognizable and that is where this issue truly succeeds and is a must read for anyone. Read Full Review

Batman #25 is a fine first installment to the "War of Jokes and Riddles" arc. The stage has been set for a battle of epic proportions between two of Batman's deadliest foes " and even though we've seen so little, the conflict between them promises to be every bit as powerful a the desperate measures Batman will be forced to take. Recommended. Read Full Review

The opening chapter of King's latest mega-arc starts off well. It has a promising premise, great art, and a sharp script. The concerns that drag down the book is mostly personal preference and are relatively minor. Read Full Review

A great start to the villains' war, but nothing more on the proposal that ended last issue. I enjoyed this, but felt somewhat cheated. I'll continue to read, though I'm more interested in Selina's response and its aftereffects than a flashback tale. Read Full Review

Janin's art style is eerily beautiful. His artistic take on Joker is wonderfully creepy. His long, foreboding face shows just how hardened the Joker has become. Riddler is a lot more human, and in some ways resembles Michael Fassbender. I love how detailed his people are. He's captured the look and feel of these characters with his art, and I'm excited to read this upcoming story arc. Read Full Review

It looks like chaos is about to be king in Gotham, but King, Jann, Chung, and Clayton Cowles are decidedly in control of this story. Read Full Review

Batman #25 is a great first chapter to 'The War of Jokes and Riddles', promising a very enticing battle between two of Batman's greatest and most well-known enemies. His handling of Joker and Riddler is already very much in character and with the flash-forward shown at the end, should be a very interesting story to come. Read Full Review

The War of Jokes and Riddles feels like it will be the most explosive and memorable arc of King's reign so far if the setup delivered in this issue is any indication going forward. Read Full Review

Tom King and Mikel Janin's new Batman epic is off to a fine start. This issue manages to set the stage for an epic conflict in Gotham City without losing the momentum by flashing back to the past. King's take on the two lead villains is fascinating, and the series never looks better than when Janin is by his side. Read Full Review

Batman #25 gets “The War of Jokes and Riddles” off to a solid start, as despite not quite matching the lofty standards of recent issues, there's still plenty to enjoy throughout. The symbolic way the two villains are introduced is also sure to captivate fans new and old, with the creative team giving us plenty of reasons to return for more. Read Full Review

The War of Jokes and Riddles is off to a solidstart, albeit on shaky legs. However, the story on the horizon still looks quite promising. The meat of this issue is solid with borderline genius mixed in. There are some questionable storytelling choices here and there, but nothing that detracts from the overall story. Read Full Review

Batman #25 is a fantastic start to the "War of Jokes and Riddles" story arc. Tom King does an excellent job framing the story through the eyes of present-day Bruce Wayne, as he looks to strengthen his relationship with Selina Kyle. King adds to the tension of the story by revealing that Batman did something during the war between Joker and Riddler that he has kept secret for a long time. That mystery makes "War of Jokes and Riddles" feel like a big event, even if we know where Batman is in his life in the present. Read Full Review

Overall, its a good issue that is definitely worth checking out! Read Full Review

I knew we were getting a clash of Batman's greats, but I didn't expect King to set it up in a way that the narrative feels like a perfect transition from how he has explored the world of Batman for the past 24 issues. While it doesn't quite feel like an “epic” 25th issue, it is a solid start that has me excited to see what comes next. Read Full Review

The opening salvo of "The War of Jokes and Riddles" is as good as I could have hoped for. I can easily overlook the few missteps due to the overall strength of the outing. I already like it much, much more than "Zero Year," not that that's saying much. Read Full Review

Listen, I understand this is a Batman book. And there are two types of people when it comes to Batman books. Some people are going to love it and some are going to hate it. that's just how it is with a book like this. And I get that. I can see it from both sides. Because if you've been reading Batman for any length of time you know how these things usually turn out. They fight, they fight, they fight and then Batman inevitably saves the day, locks the bad guy up, and then it's only a matter of time before they either escape or are released for whatever reason and the whole thing starts over again. I know that going into books like this. I know things will happen but very few of them will have a lasting effect on anything. But sometimes it's just about the ride. That's fine too. Read Full Review

In conclusion, there's a lot to be excited for what is to come. The Joker going up against The Riddler is a great idea and their interactions are worth buying the issue alone. I really want to find out what happened after the previous issue but I'm fine with a solid story for now. Read Full Review

The War of Jokes and Riddles kicks off in style, with a strongly written, well drawn introductory issue that really lays out the heart of the conflict to come. Read Full Review

King's Riddler sizzles, his Joker fizzles, and his storytelling showcases an epic in the making. Read Full Review

Is the debut of "The War of Jokes and Riddles" perfect? No. There are many perfect to near perfect moments, and considering the "shortcomings" of this issue are minor, I'm optimistic that this will be King's best Batman story yet. Now we just have to wait and see how these lingering questions are handled" if their handled. But for what is essentially a prelude to an arc, I'm more than satisfied. Read Full Review

The fuse is lit, 'The War of Jokes and Riddles' has begun. As always it makes me wish Janin and Chung could somehow do this book all the time. Read Full Review

While I'm not entirely sold on the concept, the brutality of the issue, or the comic moving drastically away from the big news of Batman and Catwoman becoming a couple again, I do think there is some promise to the story (although a war between the two criminals, as we see here, doesn't offer much time for Batman. Narrated well after the events, the issue is able to tease what's to come including Gotham's villains choosing sides between Riddler and Joker as pair's struggle is likely to reign down all kinds of chaos on the city. Worth a look. Read Full Review

I really enjoyed the take on two different stories that lead into one story narrated by Bruce Wayne. The story was kind of slow for being one of Batman's greatest failures and also being an "Extra-Sized Anniversary Issue!" Also, this buffed up Edward Nigma is a no go for me. I'll definitely keep reading to see what will happen next, Batman tends to pick up rather quickly and this feud between The Joker and The Riddler looks like it will be one hell of a ride. Who will have the last laugh? Read Full Review

Overall Batman #25 was a solid issue. It's not focused at all on Batman, but that's not a bad thing. Tom King has made me a Riddler fan in this issue, and after seeing how Joker nearly kills him at the end, I really hope Riddler gets his revenge! I can already tell that Tom King plans to make this series a mental tug of war between two dangerous villains. I can't wait to see how Batman ultimately stops this war! Read Full Review

This is a slower start to the War of Jokes and Riddles than I expected and a big letdown.  It's obvious that Tom King is going to take his time here (it is a very long story), but I need something to grab me in each issue and this one doesn't have much to hold onto.  I did love Mikel Janin's art, but even that wasn't enough to recommend this issue. Read Full Review

Batman #25 is a good read, but it should be a great read. Hell, it should be a must read. But you should still read it. This is an entertaining comic, it just isn't an important comic. And thats a damn shame, as it has all the components to be. Did I tell you that I hate compromises? Read Full Review

In all seriousness, Batman #25 wasn't atrocious. But it was by no means great, and I wouldn't recommend it as a must-buy. Odds are that most of the people reading it have bought it anyway, so what would be the point? It didn't change my mind on Batman and really only reinforced how I already felt. I was up for being proven wrong, but this comic didn't do it. Read Full Review

Joker is awasome!

I thought this was an excellent take on the history between Joker and the Riddler. Both villains are demented, but in completely different ways. Issue felt very Zero Year-ish. Really looking forward to where this story arc goes from here.

This is a really interesting, and greatly structured, issue. Bruce's narration works to set up this flashback story. The scenes with the Joker auditioning stand-ups and the Riddler executing his escape from prison are great in creating a chilling atmosphere. And, Mikel Janin's art is simply phenomenal. Great start to this arc.

Very different and very dark type of Batman story that I feel has not been done in this way in a long time. I like that it is a major departure from the Snyder type of stories and focuses more on the villains motive than the heroes.

Eddy and Joker always had the weirdest relationship. I suspect that this is gonna play out like a godfather rival mob story with all the villains and Batman in between. Janin's art is always top shelf, his work on Grayson is still one of my all-timers. It was a pity King and Janin exited Grayson early. That series went to $#%! after they left. But again this creative team works for the most part on Batman. Tom King really has a fetish for Catowman doesn't he??

Really immersive art. I loved that Batman did not appear until late in the issue - and I didn't expect it to relate back to issue 24 at all. Not laughing Joker is a clever twist and the multi-villain full page...I stared at it for a few minutes taking it in. Excited for TWOJAR.

Mikel Janin, as always, proves why he is one of the best in the comics business currently. His splash pages are absolutely gorgeous. Tom King has got me intrigued yet again with this story arc and the tastefully done storytelling. Can't wait for the next issue.

A GREAT START!!!

This is the tone and style of Batman that I've been waiting for. I'm back on board.

A really intriguing first part for this epic arc which seems a story never done before!

A very good start. This is a very promising story. The next couple months should be fun.

Fantastic idea, but I'm not convinced yet. This could be a 10/10 or a trainwreck.

Slow start

This was a very intriguing read. Some of the monologue from Batman was confusing at first, because I did not realize it was taking place in the past. The art is awesome. It is probably my favorite thing about this book. This is shaping up to be a fun story that has me interested. My one knock would be the ending. The way Bruce says that he has to tell to this story is kind of corny. Other than that, great read!

A really slow start, but expecting big things to happen.

Slow Start, Getting Characters switched up, good artwork.

It's just an intro. Not even a part one. Like maybe the start of a part. Bit of a letdown. Not just in the slow start, but in how lame joker is being written. He's a sadistic freak. He's killing people without remorse. Blood splatters these pages. But his jokes are children's jokes? Seriously? Dude is telling dad jokes. Murder and mayhem is not a problem, but you can't write racial or sexual humor? Hell, it doesn't even have to be dirty. Just write something that wasn't pulled from a '60s joke book! No wonder he can't laugh!

Also (afterthought), I didn't mind at first this emotional, bitchy Batman. It shows growth. Before, he would brood and then punch his frustration out like a man. Which is how he should stay. Dude is THE epitome of man. But you're writing him into a huge bitch. Yet, I get it. I strongly, STRONGLY, disagree, but I get it. And I'll slightly, SLIGHTLY, support this idea as long as he only confides in his girl. If you're gonna make him weak, at least make it somewhat believable. more

Just more of the same brooding emo Batman king has given us for 25 issues now, nothing more nothing less.