A classic pulp from the 30's returns in this modern take on a seminal character that inspired several well-known comic icons. Tony Quinn is a brash Defense Attorney to the mob who compromises his ethics for financial gain. When he refuses to cross the line and commit murder, he is tortured and blinded by his gangster employers. But when a fortuitous meeting with a covert agency gives him a chance to make amends, Tony transforms into the Black Bat and embarks on a redemptive quest to right the wrongs of his past.
These are some of the questions asked and answered in The Black Bat #1. Dynamite makes a worthy effort into superhero mythos with this character. Because I am sure every comic book aficionado has asked themselves at some point or other"what if Batman's gloves were off? What if he wasn't such a giant pansy? And Dynamite strives to answer that question with authority. The Black Bat kills without hesitation. He carries guns. He uses any advantage he gets, because he is no hero. He is a vigilante. Plus, he has his full set of villains, allowing for creative expansion into a full fledged rogues gallery. The writing is pretty good, somber as the mood dictates things with a tight narrative that is quite subtle at times. Ronan Cliquet, Mat Lopes and Rob Steen create the art and the world of The Black Bat and they do a pretty good job. It is a believable world and the story is just real enough to draw you into itself. Recommended reading this week. Read Full Review
Our hero is still named Tony Quinn and the villain is criminal kingpin, Oliver Snate. The story's been updated to modern times, but the artwork and the coloring keep the tone set in the noir '40s. I really enjoyed this comic, especially Cliquet's art, which reminded me of a tidier Miller and Janson. Read Full Review
The Black Bat is a strong start and great re-introduction to an old hero. Buccellato hasn't revealed all the answers, but he gives us enough clues to want to find out the larger mystery. Black Bat is a character that, while predating and influencing several heroes, could have easily felt like a modern parody. Buccellato has managed to keep the balance between the original character and making it feel in step with today. Read Full Review
Overall, it's a great way to jump into the character. A good origin story and it's done right. New readers, check it out. Read Full Review
Buccellato gets a great deal done in a debut issue that does not fall into the trap of decompression like so many first issues. Quinn's father, a crusading prosecutor is introduced, as is Silk, a police informant who is in grave danger thanks to his connections with the Black Bat. A cadre of adversaries is introduced as the ones responsible for the Quinn's blinding, as the Bat makes it his mission to bring these thugs to justice. Buccellato also effectively introduces the Bat's dark vision powers, and gives readers a brief glimpse at Quinn's disturbingly enhanced bat eyes. That's a heck of a lot of story, and between Buccellato's deft plotting and Cliquet's gritty art the whole thing is an intriguing and worthy return of an almost forgotten character. Read Full Review
Images and graphics in The Black Bat resemble image and graphics in and perhaps the spirit of Batman comic books. However, what writer Brian Buccellato offers is closer to "street level" comic books that Marvel Comics has produced over the years, featuring characters like Daredevil, Moon Knight, and The Punisher. It's vigilante vs. organized crime, and the superhero costume seems extraneous in the moody, urban fiction edge of Buccellato's script. Read Full Review
We often go on about trying something new. I have heard the occasional plea or complaint about wanting to read a series but confused over continuity or a vast number of previous stories. THE BLACK BAT is a way to start from the beginning. The character may have existed since the 1930s but Brian Buccellato has revitalized the character. You don't need to know anything before reading this issue in order to be up to speed. This is one of those comics you're thankful exists in its own comic universe. The word "superhero" is used as if it's something that doesn't really exist here. The fact that the way Black Bat operates isn't necessarily black or white gives a nice feel to the story. This is a character that wants to get the job done and isn't going to let others try to break him in order to prevent the accomplishment of his mission. The story has that pulp feel that's rooted inside the character but Buccellato easily brings the character to modern times. Read Full Review
The Black Bat #1 is a solid start to what could be a stellar comic series. Recommended. Read Full Review
Writer Brian Buccellato doesn't vary the old-school formula much, and this is perhaps one of the strengths (and weaknesses) of the material. Knowing readers will come to this with a sense of history, but newer ones may not get that the character pre-dates the works it influences. Either way, the straightforward narrative is a good little mystery yarn, and remains engaging throughout. Ronan Cliquet's art elevates this pulp fiction somewhat as well, bringing the vivid hyper-realism of dime store novel covers to every single page. Read Full Review
The art, provided by Ronan Cliquet, is mostly pretty great. Some of the action is as jumbled as the script, but in general this is a smooth ride from start to finish. Really, the biggest problem is that Black Bat never looks as cool as he does on all those covers Dynamite provides. Far from it, in fact. In the comic he just kinda looks like a dude in coat and a mask. But man, look at Marcos Martin's cover and try telling us this isn't a bad mother of a character. Hopefully the comic will kick it up a notch and match those gorgeous covers. Read Full Review
"The Black Bat" #1 is a misfire of a start for this character and series. A pulp reboot of a character many will recognize as an antecedent for Daredevil should be a slam dunk, but this issue misses the hoop. Through disjointed storytelling, this issue loses a lot of its style and solid delivery. There is clearly a good idea buried underneath, and coupled with Cliquet's art, it might be enough to lure people back, but it really should have hooked hard from the start instead. Read Full Review
I was really looking forward to The Black Bat #1. The character looked cool and I've enjoyed most of the pulp characters Dynamite has been reintroducing. Unfortunately, The Black Bat is hampered by poor storytelling leaving more frustration than desire to read further. The artwork doesn't help much, unable to hook the reader. I might check out the second issue just to see how he gets that cool costume and those guns but at $3.99, that's a hard sell. Hopefully, this was just a faulty start. The Black Bat #1 earns 1.5 out of 5 stars. Read Full Review
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