Nice to see the Spectre chuck the villain into the centre of the sun.

Spectre? Please also do this to ball bag critic Gabe Hernandez.

Cheers

4 stars

Excellent, as was #1.

this is a great horror Batman book. Stevan Subic's art on this is a lot more interesting than his Riddler year one. The pacing and dialogue here does work for me.

An intriguing premise. Sold.

Most of the dialogue here is just bad. Unfunny jokes, Peter feels like a teenager still, people talking at Peter and everything sailing over his head. Marveling at the fact that he stood up to Doctor Doom despite the fact that he's done it countless times. Whether or not he was the Sorcerer Supreme. Everyone here just felt a bit lifeless. Aside from Kevin. And what was even the point of introducing Burnout? Could he come up later? Sure but as of right now he's nothing and it had zero impact on the story. Just a device to remind readers of Doom's power which isn't necessary because he's DOOM! Kelly seems to be trying a bit too hard to be meta-relevant. We know all of the annoying problems in the world. AI on our phones, corporate ads invading our daily lives aren't really commentary I need from Spider-Man unless it actually matters to the plot. Which in this case feels incredibly contrived. Doom not wanting to do the work of fighting the Scions of Cyttorak is very in line with how Doom operates. But To have Spider-Man do it? I'm sorry but even Doom's monologuing didn't agree with that one. Now all of a sudden, because of a suit change, he just knows the "cool secret names of things"... Show. Don't tell. First rule. Already breaking it. I really want the ramifications of Peter dying and being reborn to have meaning in the future but I'm hard pressed to believe that the significance of that will carry over. Something this important to a character's perception of the world should carry weight and while it does here, it's only in service to a McGuffin plot.
This may be the least I have ever cared for McGuinness' work. That might have something to do with the colorist changing from his previous arcs on ASM but this felt way flatter in terms of vibrancy and pop that was apparent in his older issues. Things here felt a lot more cartoony at the wrong times and traditional when it could have used more expressive features from Spider-Man. It also had this issue when there were multiple characters on a page that everyone looked way less detailed and on model.
I'm just going to assume this entire arc was rushed to get the Wells transition kicked off as quickly as possible. This whole storyline didn't feel like the natural progression it would have taken in preparation for a new writer. Even May is sick and tired of Peter spinning in circles. I really wanted to read every issue of ASM but if this is all I have to expect from this arc, I might jump off next issue. more

Wow, this really didn't work for me. Ed's art is great as always, but first half felt like a chore. This whole "Peter Parker is down on his luck, with little money and poor management of his relationships" is definitely not what I expected to read after Wells' run started the exact same way and ended with Peter moving on and having something stable in his life. It doesn't feel at all like a continuation to what Zeb did in his run. And Spider-Man dumping his problems on a 10-year old just feels so irresponsible and childish.

Peter's dialogue just feels off here. I don't know, maybe I was used to Zeb's dialogue, but here he is so wordy while also saying a lot of nothing with a lot of misses in humor

The second part was better. Peter handling the trauma of dying was interesting, but otherwise this whole gimmick feels random. And just screams of Spidey office having no idea what to do next.

And why is May scolding Peter for not getting his life together? Wasn't the whole point of last run just that? Like am I crazy, or did Kelly just ignore the entire point of last run?

I'm not even kidding when I say that this might be one of the worst first issues of any ASM run I've read in a while. more

Just spectacular!!!

The way Waid writes the father-and-son relationship is just so well done. Moments like when Batman is worried about Dick and then trying to downplay it are so heartwarming and nice to read. This book has a lot of heart in it. And then you have the story, filled with mystery and excitement with a new villain who is genuinely interesting is just the cherry on top. All of this is brought to us by the incredible Chris Samnee who nails the Noir and moody feel of the story. What can I ask for more? Waid and Samnee were at the top of my list for who I want to write a Batman run and so far they are knocking it out of the park! more

honestly my favorite interpretation of Batman and Robin's relationship. I like it more than World's Finest even because its such a nice dynamic seeing how Bruce has to reign in a hyperactive Dick Grayson, but its also nice seeing Dick Grayson making Bruce relax. The art really works for this type of setting

*Gabe Hernandez should be fired out of a cannon, shot directly into the centre of the sun.

Upon his contact with the sun, the sun itself explodes - disintegrating Gabe Hernandez from being a comic book critic in this timeline and all others.

Perhaps there is a timeline in which Gabe Hernandez is not a joyless twat. He has the critical observation skills of a rodent with no eyes.

For all the great comics he has ruined with his shite, I feel he should be taken to task. Join me friends in slating him henceforth.

A bit of friendly banter we'll call it.





Batman turned up to 11.

How much more Bat? None. None more Bat.

For those disillusioned with the Zdarsky run, read this. It's over the top, it's fun, it's bombastic and it has some fascinating takes on familiar faces.

Scott Snyder reasserts himself as the best modern Batman writer.

The names that have failed to capture Snyder's excellence - Tom King, Joshua Williamson, James Tynion, Chip Zdarsky. Most of these authors have had the odd moment of excellence. However, none of them had a Court of Owls moment.

So excited to see his Absolute run continue.
Between Matt Reeves Batman Universe and Scott Snyder returning - it's the best time to be a Batman fan in ages. more

Utterly superb. The same quality as World's Finest but ever better. Batman and Robin adopting the father and son approach to their relationship is so beautifully done. Waid just gets these characters. Every little thing feels deliberate and consequential.

Along with Absolute Batman, this is the best new Batman series.

Gabe Hernandez is a ball bag.

Dear God. I though maybe ol' James had forgot about us Wynd fans. This took forever to get but it's very much worth the wait IMO.

One of the best comics of recent years, just amazing from start to finish and even better than the first series.

Another masterclass from Snyder.

The action scenes in this comic are so badass! It’s genuinely so cool!!
As for the story, it comes along very nicely so far. The pacing is great and we get a lot of exciting information about the story and this new world. I also really like how Harvey, Oz, Wilson and Nygma basically serve as Bruce’s information network. It’s awesome.

well holy sh*t.

i am absolutely floored. Nick Dragotta's art is working really well for me in this issue (considering I was not really a fan of Nick Dragotta's art in Zeb Wells Spidey run). But the dialogue is bearable, the story moves at a tight well-pace, and the reimagined characters are a breath of fresh air.

I’m enjoying this a lot, but if this was main continuity Batman I’m sure I’d feel differently. I like that it’s a separate universe story.

I was initially surprised to hear that Nick Dragotta would be the artist for this book; I just didn’t see the vision. But holy cow, he has brought his A-game. I’m loving this series.

As a stand alone comic it worked superbly well with outstanding homages to the decades that have made Batman the greatest hero of them all. When book ended by issue 1 and what looks a very tempting issue 3 spoiler at the end , then I would say this is the Batman I want going forward. This is how Bruce , Selina with Gordon could really be the next incarnation of the world's greatest detective.......Simply outstanding.........Jonn more