I'm thrilled we get to read this book now - the wait has been nigh-unbearable. Janin has lived up to our expectations, if not exceeded them. King continues to weave stories that show a layered version of the Caped Crusader, as well as convey just how much he loves the DC universe. This was an absolute gem of an issue, so thank God we only have to wait two more weeks for the next tone. Read Full Review

Even though it was largely just a set-up issue, Batman #9 is an engaging opening act. If the rest of the arc is this good, King just might top his outstanding debut act. Good thing there's only two more weeks until the next installment. Read Full Review

This bears repeating, so I'm saying it again: this comic gets my official pick as the best issue of Batman since Tom King took on the character. Sure, anything that has a heaping ton of references is always going to turn my head, but it's so much more than just that. This comic is a shinning example of proper character portrayal. From Bane to Bruce Wayne and all the way down the line to Punch and Jewelee, everything just feels so right in this comic. Couple that with meaningful character scenes and excellent art, and this comic is win all around. With so much going on, you'd think it would feel bloated or overcrowded at times, but no. It all flows seamlessly together to create an absolutely riveting first chapter to “I am Suicide”. Read Full Review

Like Snyder's 'The Black Mirror', Loeb's 'The Long Halloween' and Miller's 'The Dark Knight Returns', there's just a feeling of something special about Batman #9. This could be King's defining Dark Knight story and the one that finally convinces Batman fans the series is in good hands. Frankly, I'm excited. Read Full Review

King and Janin created an opening chapter for “I Am Suicide” that is is highly enjoyable and leavesthe reader with anticipation for the next issue. Read Full Review

The “I AM SUICIDE” arc is not one you'd want to miss. Don't hesitate! Run out to your local comic book shop and buy it now! You'll feel better once this magnificent book is in your hands. Read Full Review

This issue is one that’s primarily set-up, it allows for a couple of diversions which will please the readers anticipating the grander "Rebirth" plot, but it’s framed around getting the team together. What makes this issue work better than a standard comic where characters join forces is that there’s a thematic richness based on the actions taken in King’s first arc. Batman’s trip to Arkham is supplemented by knowing that this is a last hope. He’s not making a Suicide Squad because it’ll shake up the status quo, but because he’s already lost his vigilante protege, Gotham - he can’t lose Gotham Girl, as well. While Janin’s artwork has given new life to Batman as a title, King quietly pushes ahead with his ominous themes. Bane might have been the one to cripple Bruce Wayne, but it’s Tom King who might push the Bat past his moral limits. Read Full Review

Speaking of the team, I cannot say enough about return artist Mikel Janin. We got a taste of his work in the Rebirth special, but this arc will be his true Batman debut. For an issue that was mostly talking heads, Janin was able to keep things captivating with great panel design and camerawork. His work is reminiscent of a cleaner Greg Capullo, who I thought drew the best Bruce Wayne around. Janin is giving him a run, though. June Chung has taken the reigns on coloring from the astounding Jordie Bellaire and the work hasnt dropped a beat. Things are fresh when they need to be and even the darkness isnt overpowering. Theres a great balance. Also, Id be remiss if I didnt compliment Tim Sale on his variant cover for this book. They havent been the greatest, but this one caught my eye. Im a sucker for Bane, though. See you all in 2 weeks! Read Full Review

Note: Walking through the dark hallways of Arkham provides a great outlet for a handful of Easter eggs and cameo appearances from other beloved characters. See how many you can catch. Read Full Review

This new series got off to a solid start, but "I Am Suicide" seems poised to push Batman to a new level. The creative fusion between tom King and Mikel Janin is a joy to behold. This issue delivers plenty of surreal, moody imagery and strong characterization. Bane fans especially will want to keep this arc on their radar. Read Full Review

Overall, “I Am Suicide” is off to a great start. King and Janin is wonderful together, and there are a lot of wonderful elements in this chapter. I will be sure to come back to it next issue. Read Full Review

Batman #9 uses skillful art and lean, mean and just-twisted-enough writing to deliver a really enjoyable opening chapter to its "I Am Suicide" arc. Though its narrative of Batman selecting a team of villains for a mission may be familiar, the stellar execution results in a creepy and tense issue that gets the reader excited for the story to come. Read Full Review

This arc promises to be very good, so I say jump aboard now, when the jumping is good. Also – keep an eye out for the final reveal, as you might have an inkling that a few characters will be in this book for a while. Read Full Review

Batman #9 is a great start for "I Am Suicide." Setting the majority of the issue inside of Arkham Asylum helped the execution of Batman assembling the team. Tom King nailed the characterization of all the characters that Batman recruited to be part of his Suicide Squad. Ending the issue with Catwoman's appearance helped to solidify how dangerous Bane and Santa Prisca are. Add in Mikel Janin's strong artwork and you have a story that Batman fans should not miss out on reading. Read Full Review

I'm a sucker for books that work the idea of putting together an odd group for a mission, hence being big into the original Suicide Squad book back in the 80's or things like Outsiders. Batman is moving into the next phase of the larger arc that King has been orchestrating and there's a lot to like here in the characters he chooses, the kinds of interactions that we get, and just the smoothness and ease of it all. This is all taken to its own special level with Mikel Janin's artwork as I love the character design style, especially with the colors used, and just the flow of action with some of the layouts. The piece with Batman and Bronze Tiger is just spot on perfect and fun to watch play out. Here's hoping the arc only keeps the momentum and engagement. Read Full Review

Issue #9 is certainly not full of action, but it's well aware of that. Instead, it uses its time wisely to set the table for what's coming. King and company still have to deliver on what they've introduced, but the road ahead looks more enthralling than anything this crew has done so far. Read Full Review

It's certainly pushing into new territory that's for sure. Because whilst Batman's had several run-ins with the team over numerous stories, him taking over and forming his own version is a risky but hugely captivating move. This portion ofBatman #9 doesn't particularly flow very well and is obviously just a stepping stone to bigger things. Although the issue does manage to shock and surprise the reader in a genuinely inventive way. So even though it's not the greatest Batman issue ever, we're intrigued to see where his new partnership leads. Read Full Review

Batman #9 is a masterpiece. It's one of the best single issues I've read in a long time. King and Janin are a match made in heaven and I'm dying to see what heights they soar to together. Read Full Review

It's a thrill seeing both who Batman does and doesn't pick and it admirably builds excitement for King and Janin's upcoming storyline but it also offers a compelling example of what to expect from King as his run continues. After an introduction heavy on establishing new characters and taking a back seat on the Night of the Monster Men crossover, it's nice to see King take a step away from his comfort zone to define a character who's been so well established in his own way. Read Full Review

This issue is simple, but does a fairly good job of laying the out premise for the upcoming arc. Although it is a simple premise, it does not make it any less exciting. Really looking forward to seeing where this story ends up. Read Full Review

While I was hoping that Tom King and Mikel Janin would knock my socks off, they just gave us a solid start to the I AM SUICIDE arc. Underneath it all was a sly sense of humor that I loved, but this issue just made me look forward to the next and hopefully a little more to sink my teeth into. This issue was good, just not great. Read Full Review

Batman #9 is the calm before the storm. This Batman is different – in terms that he is now willing to do whatever it takes (breaking laws, his morals) to get the job done. Read Full Review

Batman #9 is a good read and it's clear that King is setting up for some serious conflict in the next issue. As I stated in my negatives argument though I'm really not too clear on Batman's choices for the operation. I don't want to spoil it but let's just say they are way more powerful people for Batman to choose to work with so I'm eager to see exactly just how King makes this team work. I don't know at this point who Batman has to worry about, the infiltration at Santa Prisca or the Suicide Squad attempting to kill him before the mission even starts! Check out Batman #9! It's worth the read! Read Full Review

If you accept that Batman does need the Suicide Squad's help the issue still has some problems as Batman's trek around the asylum offers plenty of cameos to several Bat-villains but also makes in increasingly confusing as to just who Batman is recruiting for his team as dossiers on random villains are highlighted. While I'm all in favor of Batman working alongside his final choice I am confused as to why she would be in Arkham rather Blackgate or another standard prison. For fans. Read Full Review

So what am I to make of it? Suppose I could dive down a rabbit hole in order to search for the narrative depth I'm not sure this issue has: If Weskler is another version of Arnold Wesker in "I am Suicide", that would imply that reality isn't quite what it should be, which would definitely explain the presence of a certain Arkham inmate who has been canonically not insane for the entirety of her villainous life. If "Weskler" is the key to this Elseworlds-esque Batman story, then it's genius. If it's not, then" well. Is it a dream? An imaginary tale? What the hell is going on with 'Batman' right now. Read Full Review

The biggest problem with the book is that it is still starring King's Batman, who is as close to a robot as he has ever been portrayed. His Bruce is a sharp detective but a flat character, showing no thought process at all, and taking a character that, even at his best, can be borderline unsympathetic, and turning him into a full fledged prick. Throughout this issue, he barks orders, withholds information, and generally is insufferable, and not in a fun way. Read Full Review

This is the best work Tom King has put forth in his stint writing the caped crusader. There were tons of references to older properties and characters. This issue opens with Bane revealing his necessity for Psycho pirate and continues forward with Mikel Janin illustrating a litany of old foes and heroes the creative team behind this work reintroduce former members of the infamous task force x whilst dropping a heck of a cling hanger that will require context. End of the day this was a very well done and I look forward to seeing how this plays out.

Well polished and made on the whole.

Did I miss something? When did Catwoman end up in Arkham?? She was a underworld crime-lord for a moment before getting back to black latex and whips and then Arkham?? Someone had a bad day no one knows about... And I don't get the guy that says Tom King ruined Catwoman. How?? We only see her on the last page and she's in a straight-jacket and doesn't say anything.

Great first start to the I Am Suicide arc, that seems to also set up many different future events. While everyone might not have enjoyed the Monster Men arc, I feel that this will go back to the Batman stories that everyone enjoys. Altogether a great comic that brings what will seem to be great supporting villains.

I'm totally into Batman forming his own suicide squad. I'm really excited for this arc.

So we all know that Batman is a crazy individual, but this goes somewhat beyond that assertion: the idea behind this arc is that to save Gotham Girl's mental stability Batman needs to steal Bane's new ally, the Psycho-Pirate, and be aided by a band of villains.
Arc two of Tom King's run has a very different approach from the first one and from the soft event of the Bat-family that just concluded, arguably in the most part because of the art switch to Janin whose character design and (limited) action scenes seem top notch.
The idea of Batman leaving for a few weeks has a nice editorial touch, as every threat coming upon the city will be a challenge for the rest of the Family as they'll need to work without the big boss around. Batman's team on the other hand is definitely a weird and unexpected one. We have Jewlee and Punchee (who seem more interested in getting together than to work with Batman), the Ventriloquist (who's apparently let loose of his puppet), Bronze Tiger (who has a fantastic one-page that communicates clearly his respectful relationship with Bruce) and, last but not at all least, Catwoman, who has kind of disappeared from my radar since The New 52 started six years ago and may have her triumphant return here.
So, Tom King's direction takes an unexpected turn with this sort of "Bat-Suicide Squad", but also a really engaging one, considering the characters he chose to form the team and their possible interactions. more

Good story that final reveal is a bit iffy though.

I find this to be a pretty good start to an new arc. Bringing Bane back to the forefront sounds interesting to me and Batman teaming up with a bunch of villains is interesting as well. The atmosphere is very much set. Lets see where they take it.

Janin's back!

Bat? Cat? Cat? Bat?

Just say the name King!@#@#@#

And the artwork is brilliant, much better than this mess deserves.

I'm relieved to be done with Night of the Monster Men, but is it too much to ask for an issue of Batman where he isn't training new recruits? I want to read Batman the detective, or Batman the vigilante, but I keep getting Batman the delegator. And in this case, it is only the final page that suggests this could be an interesting team, otherwise, I just find myself asking why, why does Batman need these people, why would he take the risk and why are they losers I've never heard of?

Fine artwork, but absolutely dull writing for anyone who's familiar with Batman.

why does Bane need Psycho Pirate to manipulate his mind to tell him he’s Happy and Brave?
if Psycho Pirate is so powerful to be able to alter Bane’s perceptions, then why doesn’t he just manipulate Bane and psychologically overpower and take control of him?
for someone with such powerful mind control, you’d figure he wouldn’t be SUCH a wimp.
first Hugo Strange used him, now Bane is Using him, and i’m sure Batman will use him just as easy.
Psycho Pirate is nothing more than a tool.



i never felt Gotham Girl as being anything more than an underdeveloped two-dimensional character. so Batman going on a suicide mission to save her just doesn’t have any impact for me.



it’s a very interesting idea of Batman putting together a Suicide Squad. but seriously, would Batman as a character REALLY put others in harm’s way to complete a mission? what about Batman’s moto “i work better alone”?



it’s a neat idea that as soon as Batman grabs Arnold Wesker’s hand, that Wesker assumes the master/puppet relation. but what’s to stop anyone else from grabbing Wesker’s hand and giving him orders?



it’s very silly how this ‘Punch’ character is able to drug Commissioner Gordon, assume his identity and infiltrate Arkham Asylum right under everyone’s noses. it just feel’s like a stunt to set up a cheap shock.



finally we introduce Catwoman, who is now introduced as a mass murderer.

another Legacy character RUINED just for shock value.

at least she didn't cut off her own face and wear it like a mask.
maybe that will be in the next story arc? more