/86.jpg "Batman #86")
It's a new day in Gotham City, but not the same old Batman. With Bane vanquished and one of his longtime allies gone, Batman has to start picking up the pieces and stepping up his game. Batman has a new plan for Gotham City, but he's not the only one. Deathstroke has returned as well, under a mysterious new contract that could change everything.
Beginning a whole new chapter in the life of the Dark Knight, the epic art team of Tony S. Daniel and Danny Miki are joined by new series writer James Tynion IV!
A good Batman comic? Could it be?! Well, considering it's Tynion who took over the series, I expected nothing less, but still, I was afraid Tom King's awfulness preceeding this new run could affect it more, dragging it down. That didn't happen for the most part, naturally not including Alfred's death, which up to this point, has been just pointless, it was merely shock for the sake of shock.
Tynion, in comparison, just laid down everything important, set up the big mystery, and even more. That's what we call a plan, which can't be said about King's nonsensical gibberish with no purpose and endgoal. Whether it's a good plan or not, time will tell, but at least there's something we can follow now.
The art is beautiful, once again, not surprising, since DC wants to sell this flagship comic, and attract those who turned their backs on King's run. Good art sure is a good selling point, and this issue truly is something you could analyze for hours, focusing on every little detail.
What I enjoy is how Catwoman and Lucius Fox play bigger roles in the adventure, from the get go. Tynion undertands that Batman can be monotonus as a character, and needs company. People who would be more than cannon fodder to get killed off/shot in the head, or to appear only when a deus ex machina magical knife is needed. He did that already with Rebirth's Detective Comics series, establishing a team and giving each member purpose. I hope this continues, and we'll see Bruce developing some fleshed out relationships in this new era of Batman comics. Well, that's a glimmer of hope, at least, in the world where half of Australia and Amazonia are in flames, and the US government oes anything in it power to start world war 3 with Iran, so the current president gets re-elected. At least we won't experience all this horror without decent comics to read.
© 2025
As I said in my review, having a black man who runs a billion dollar company act as a servant to a rich white guy is bad optics. I kind of wish Bruce got another person to do Alfred's work. I also question how Selina, a known criminal, can play hostess? That's the problem when you write yourself into a corner. It really should limit future stories. When writers ignore logical consequences, it really bothers me. Or I could be wrong.
I don't think Selina's identity as Catwoman is as widely known among Gothamites as it is among villains and heroes (and Gordon probably, but he's infected now), but I may be wrong.
If Selina has a police record, which is a matter of public record and available to Page Six gossip columnist-types, the world knows. Bruce is big news and who is acting as his wife-like hostess at a public event will be investigated by the media as a matter of course. That’s what bugs me about the Bruce-Selina romance. A problem that writers can’t deal with in a “realistic” manner if you can say that about a story featuring a man dressed as a bat.