While this was still far from excellent, I have to say I actually enjoyed this issue, despite a few really terrible story choices. Batman having to use a gun against Jason Todd is the biggest offender. Batman's actions here completely diminish the climax of BATMAN UNDER THE RED HOOD. He didn't need to use a gun against Jason there, and shouldn't require one to overpower him here.

That being said, I did find Batman's dilemma of being conflicted towards saving Joker very interesting, as was the scene with Leslie Thompkins. This issue did give me similar vibes and got me itching to re-read Peter Tomasi's DETECTIVE story where Leslie gets "Jokerized". Anyway...

There are still many areas where the art looks rushed, but overall the art does look a lot better in this issue than the previous. Well, everything except for The Riddler's new look! WTF?!

This is far from becoming my favorite Batman story, but it is getting me interested in what is coming next. Hopefully it'll hold my interest going forward.

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• NerdDadBrad

NerdDadBrad - Apr 24, 2025

I agree with a lot of what your saying, I kept going from a 6.5-7.5, but ended up going down to 6.5 on this one. I'll be putting your review on my podcast Lunchbreak reviews, check out. I'm always open for a good Batman discussion.

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