-
10
This issue is awesome. Everything that I love, maybe it is verbally showing what he was doing during all the run but he has to speed up to go Hollywood (because dc send only the worst, like... ? Geoff Johns, only save DC twice). Tom King is very good, extremely good, a titan, a new god and Fornés is as Mazzuchelli as Mazzuchelli.
-
9.5
How many times have you solved a problem using your fists?
Never, I’ve tried but I didn’t succeeded in it, because the world just doesn’t work in this way. Well, same is for King and of course his Batman.
Batman has ever won in Tom King’s run? No, never.
Every event in this run is part of Bane’s big plan, Bane wants to break Bruce Wayne not physically but, first, mentally.
He gave him love, friends and enemy and then he puts all these things away from him. Does this thing remember you something? Oh yes, Job in the Bible, when God stole everything from him.
-
9.0
I say this every issue but it is the true, the art never fails in this book, for me it is 10/10 in this issue, then you have 5/5 points for this book. King brings some answers, maybe you will like them or maybe you will hate them, but he starts to explain how every story arc has a conection with the main story. It is clear that Thomas Wayne is telling to the readers the whole story, so now we have a new perspective from all these events, it is not perfect but it has some logic, yeah, the Catwoman role it is weird and it is difficult to think Batman fell in love precisely with her.
The situation is that one way or another and with a certain degree of quality, king intertwines all the stories he has developed since his first issue and that is appreciated, in this case I give a 4/5 to what he raises and how poses in this book. We continue to have a slow advance in story but at this point I do not think it is King's problem I think it is more related to the plans of Snyder and company.
Obviously King has an ace up his sleeve in the whole situation with skeets, since Booster Gold did not take Bruce / Batman to a world where there was no Batman but what happened in "The Gift" was totally different so open that see what happens. Finally I must point out that there are many parallels between this issue and others of King's run. more
-
9.0
What a great issue !
-
9.0
We learned so little to anyone who was actually paying attention. I actually have more questions... but the writing was on point and this issue is so quotable.
-
9.0
I'm going to be so sad when King's time on Batman (and Batman/Catwoman) is done. 50 years as a Batman fanatic and I've never loved a run better.
-
8.5
First off the writing is beautiful in this I tip my cap. I really loved how it sums everything up it explains the whole plan and it really makes me look at certain things in a different light. This book makes me want to reread the run and reconsider some perspectives. Honestly it’s nice to have a recap on what in my opinion has been a rather inconsistent run that has left me with quite a few questions at times and to write it so beautifully yeah this was a very good issue
-
8.0
I've read this issue. Then I've read it again. And you know what? I really enjoyed it. While it's more of a recap of what has happened in the series so far, it gives a lot of details on how did Bane influence every event. Not the best issue of the series, but definitely the best issue in a few months.
-
8.0
Good issue but the events of #71 are still a puzzle. I'm giving King the benefit of the doubt to see if he can land this. I've really enjoyed his run until the Knightmares arc. Everything since feels like a disjointed mess. It's royally cheesing me off!
-
8.0
It was a solid issue, but I am ready to wrap up this storyline.
-
8.0
"Every day. Every DAMN day. They try to end him. And every day. Every damn day. He tells them. I'm still here."
I enjoyed it but it needs to pick up the pace.
I didn't think this was bad, I actually enjoyed it and I liked how it all connects but once again we don't learn anything that is truly new, just another perspective. This issue was mostly a recap of the story so far and even though I like where this is going I think it's too slow. Come on, get going already.
The art was amazing as usual.
-
7.5
All head and no heart. While poetically written, it felt mechanical to explain every detail about 6-12 months later than would have been ideal/coherent. The dual artist approach is deployed very wisely here, so credit to Janin and Fornes.
-
7.0
I'll give it a 7, but if what Thomas is implying is true... It's a 3, maybe less. I just hope it's babbling from the character.
-
7.0
Is it good?
Is a question that is hard to answer these days considering King's Batman issues. Some are bad, some good, some meh, and some are hard to explain. This is one of those issues.
First, yes art good, you know the drill.
Style and presentation? Well, it is just Bruce and Bane fighting with Thomas narrating Bane's plan and how King's whole Batman run has been just all big plan. All connected. And it kinda makes sense and kinda doesn't.
And that is the reason if you hate or love this. I am a big Bane-fan and I like him being in the front of King's plan, as Snyder has done Joker enough and never really focused on the other villains that much (yes he did some, but you get my point). No, I'm not comparing his run to King's. So the question. Does all being connected make sense? Well. Kinda.
But, does it feel like it? Eh. Personally, I would've liked this to be Bane's revenge for Batman for taking his happiness away. But now that King is "I am Suicide/Bane" were all just misdirection, f it feels forced. Some of you might say that it doesn't and I can see your point. And I also understand if you think this is just garbage. I don't, but that isn't far-fetched.
Overall, yes 7/10. It is not bad, kinda makes sense and I'm interested to see what happens next. If you have hated King's run since issue 50, this won't change your mind. more
-
6.0
"How might I help?"
Now that's a conundrum. I was expecting to dislike this issue, to not enjoy it. But it provided what this series has been lacking for so long. Answers.
We finally know what the hell has been happening and what the heck is going on. I am surprised that I don't really have any problems with this issue. Art is good, there is no annoying, repetitive dialogue. Actually, there is no dialogue, it's just a long monologue made by Thomas Wayne. I could get hung up on Bane's plan, it's many intricacies and moving parts, and the fact that the whole thing could have easily crumbled if any one villain decided to not follow it, but I'm sure someone has already done it or will do. And truth be told, I don't have that big of a problem with it. So yeah, I enjoyed this issue.
Still, it doesn't change the fact that the road up to this point, putting it mildly, was bumpy, but it gives some promise that this book, maybe, will start to be enjoyable yet again.
Fingers crossed. more
-
5.0
Every 2 weeks I’m trying to give King's Batman run another chance & to find some good things in it, but I think it’s just not worth it. This issue only sums up, what Bane‘s plan was the entire time& it’s a good issue for those, who just started reading Kings Batman run& for those, who forgot about some parts.
However Bane‘s entire plan is just utterly nonsense. This entire run feels like pure fanfiction. Bruce had many loves& apart from, that he didn’t even open up to Catwoman, he already did towards other women. Even in New52/ Rebirth timeline. He opened way more up to Natalya than he ever did to Selina. That never made him question Batman though. And Catwoman being his savior is just big nonsense. A criminal like her would need saving herself. It just feels like King read some tweets from some Batcat shippers& declared her to Bruce’s ultimate love& didn’t care at all about, whether it makes sense or not. Bruce isn’t the kind of character, who can be saved by a woman. Thinking another person can save you, might not be the best start for a relationship anyway. I think his character is by far more complex than that& that’s why Batman is an interesting character, but King is turning him to the average guy next door.
While I also think Bruce is seeing& treating the Robins like soldiers, I don’t think you can reduce his relationship to them on just this. King is acting like only romantic love between a man& a woman is the only love, that matters& the only love, that can make people better. Maybe that’s the reason, why Bruce wasn’t really devastated by Dick getting shot, because King doesn’t think, that can hurt a man. I think this is really disrespectful towards the batfamily& I am saying that as someone, who isn’t a fan of them
We also still get zero explanation, why Thomas is here or why he suddenly teams up with a criminal to hurt his own son. Even so I hate his character, but it just doesn’t make any sense for him.
Why is it so hard for Tom King to read at least the bios of the characters? However it’s too late for that anyway by now. more
-
4.5
Well guess Tom King can’t remember some of his own material, and the ending did nothing! If anything this issue should have had us knowing why Thomas is betraying his son.
-
4.0
THE GOOD:
-I've always liked Jorge Fornes' art.
-I mean, conceptually, having Bane's plan be interwoven into every issue thus far is good, but the execution is so weak.
-I thought the splash page with the villains was rather cool.
THE BAD:
-I wish they would get rid of Mikel Janin at this point, because all he's doing is drawing one or two splash pages per issue, which aren't even that good.
-Glad to see I paid 3.99 for a recap of every issue before this one.
-I appreciate King trying to make Bane powerful, but what he's making him here is just ridiculous.
-Now the juxtaposition between artists is just forced and weak and repetitive.
-Why is Thomas Wayne bad? This issue didn't exactly make that clear, probably because it's so unbelievable in the first place. more
-
4.0
Exposition dump of an issue where King recaps everything that has happened from issue 1-50 of his run and explicitly tells us what he's doing because he thinks we are all stupid to not understand the greatness of his run so he needs to spoon feed us what he's doing. In the end this is another filler issue proving that he doesn't need 100 issues to tell his story.
-
4.0
Revelation that makes Batman into a idiot, and Bane into hyper badasss, that is also fucking stupid. Also why Riddler did this?
-
3.0
I'm going to sum this book up so you won't have to waste 3.99 on buying this trash. Batman gets beat up by Bane and Tom "can't write a good plot" King gives you a recap saying that everything that has happened in the last 72 issues has been BANE! wow, what a twist.
-
3.0
More filler, with Flashpoint Bats explaining Bane's plan for all the meatheads who read this garbage run (including me).
-
3.0
An entire issue wasted by telling you everything that’s happened in the previous 71 issues but telling you how it was all Banes plan. Doesn’t really go into how he accomplished any of his plan but it tells you he was responsible for even the most inexplicable events. King doesn’t even give a shut about his own continuity because he states that Booster took Batman into an alternative reality in “The Gift” when that never happened. If the writer doesn’t care about his own story, why should anyone else? His issue really helps readers understand why King is being removed from this book. For those who say you can’t judge the story because it’s not complete, o want you to start eating a shit sandwich but don’t tell us how disgusting it is until the last bite because that’s what this entire run has been. One big shit sandwich. Don’t waste your time or money on this filler issue. more
-
3.0
There are two plot twisting gimmicks I'm truly sick and tired of - "it was all just a dream" and "it all is connected". Now, to be fair, the latter, if done correctly, with proper foreshadowing, details hidden in between the lines and actually logical story progression leading to all the reveals, can be great. One issue stating "it was all a part of the plan since the very beginning" is not a valid explanation, however.
You know why Game of Thrones failed so badly and its last season is widely despised even by normies who couldn't understand critical flaws of seasons 5, 6 and 7? Because all of a sudden all the theories, all the foreshadowing laid down by George Martin, went nowhere or were streamlined so much, they became exactly these quick "it all is connected" twists with no depth, context and purpose.
King can tell us as much as he wants that all these 72 issues were Bane's master plan, but were they really? Even if indeed he intended them to tell one, big story, it came out as pretty nonsensical, convoluted so much it would be a miracle if it worked without failing in few critical points, and most importantly, he reveals us the truth in a way so poor, forced and rushed, it's hard to take it even half seriously.
Think about it - he's got over 70 issues to connect everything together, yet he did it all now, at once, desperately because DC's management is (finally) kicking him out of the series due to dropping sales and negative fan reception damaging the brand. But hey, it all is connected, am I right? It was always one, big plan, except I just told you about it now because other than that, there's absolutely no valid connection made before.
Even if the core idea itself - Bane having a master plan, sounds cool on paper, it's not enough when its execution is terrible. Don't believe me? Read some Junji Ito - they guy is a horror genius, coming up with ideas so random and unexpected, they are genuinely terrifying. At the same time, he seemingly can't tell a coherent story. His works always end up with some forced connections and unnatural plot conveniences.
It's cheap narration, so bad it reminds me of Lost's last few seasons and the awful ending. Or wait, I have even better analogy - imagine Vito Corleone showing up at the very end of Godfather, miraculously alive, telling Michael he wanted him to become the new boss all along, but he wasn't ready, so he orchestrated everything, from his exile to Sicily, through love affair there, to finally his return and rise to power. Boom - "it was the plan all along" just ruined one of the best crime stories ever written.
Pretty terrible comic, with the worst and most forced plot reveals I've seen in years. Can't wait to see King off this book. Batman really needs some fresh blood, because this run has been an utter disaster. Or... maybe it was King's plan all along as well?! more
-
2.5
“What I think I like best about your plan, Bane, is how I can easily explain it in tedious narration over two-page static shots so that the people reading can understand what happened, since it’s so obviously unbelievable that not a single one of them would think you were this in control of the situation if I didn’t explicitly say that you were.”
-
2.0
This is basically an issue-long "previously on Batman".
Nothing happens and it ends with Thomas Wayne Batman saying he wants to help Bane's plan to Detroit Bruce Batman.
It's so decompressed that if it were a basketball, the only sound it would make is splat when it hits the floor. It would be so flat it couldn't even roll away.
Or I could be wrong.
-
2.0
This issue is supposed to explain Bane's plan, right? It doesn't. It just tells the reader what he did up to the wedding. Which is new information, technically, but all it does is tie events together by just saying "Bane Dun Did It". This plan makes sense if Bane is omniscient. There's understanding your enemy and there's... this. It's too absurd. This is the same trap Heroes in Crisis fell into. Where the grand plan is so absurd and convoluted that it's ridiculous. At least there Wally didn't rely, multiple times, on people acting exactly as he thought they would. Once? That's okay, but this happens so many times. Thanks for a recap that barely explains the how besides a loose string tying stories together. Oh, and we still don't know how Batdad is alive or why he's being such a dick. He just is.
EDIT: Forgot to mention The Gift plot hole. That story was seared into my brain by its awfulness. So the fact that Tom King can't even keep it straight is maddening. That story was so trash. #Parents'AnniversaryOrBruce'sBirthday?
EDIT 2: I'd also like to point out that the CIA has a history of plotting absurd schemes that fail spectacularly. Just look at the many botched assassination attempts on Fidel Castro during his Cuban presidency. Tom King is ex-CIA indeed. more
-
1.5
Recap with gratuitous back breaking. Time frame is uncertain.
-
1.0
So everything is Bane’s plan. Bane predicted Bat would fall for Cat enough to propose to her? This issue was so dumb. Tom King can’t plot to save his life.
-
1.0
oh god is this ever awful!
so many plot holes. so many contrivances. so much ridiculousness.
the whole story is just so stupid.
just stop it already.
-
1.0
The absolute worst run on Batman ever continues. Again....please get Tom King out of the DC Universe.
-
1.0
Tom king go out /:
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
10
-
9.5
-
9.0
-
9.0
-
9.0
-
8.5
-
8.5
-
8.0
-
8.0
-
8.0
-
7.5
-
7.5
-
7.5
-
7.5
-
7.5
-
7.5
-
7.0
-
7.0
-
7.0
-
7.0
-
7.0
-
6.5
-
6.5
-
6.5
-
6.0
-
6.0
-
6.0
-
5.5
-
5.0
-
4.0
-
4.0
-
2.0
-
1.0
-
1.0