Stuff I Read This Week 4/11/14

Batman Eternal #1: The last time DC launched a weekly book surrounded by this much hype, we got 52 which yielded somewhat mixed results. So, apparently, they got the bright idea to try this again with a property that, at this point, can't lose (sales wise). Yes, that's right, folks. We have yet ANOTHER Batman book on our hands. Passing a weekly book on through the hands of various creative teams is always a dicey yet audacious venture. However, if the opening issue is any evidence of what we're going to see each week, the future looks promising. From the very first page which features a beautifully rendered yet strange portrait of Batman and his beloved Gotham, Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV want us to know they're swinging for the fences here.

This book seeks to not only highlight the Caped Crusader, but the dynamic he has with the city he's sworn to protect, building a large sandbox universe almost akin to that seen in the Arkham video game series. With this in mind, the inaugural issue placed the spotlight on the Gotham City Police, no doubt riding the high of the recently announced Gotham television series currently in development. Snyder and Tynion give us a yin/yang approach through the primary players in this issue. We are first introduced to the obligatory new kid on the block, Jason Bard, a somewhat innocent transferred from Detroit to GCPD's Major Crimes division. If the idea here is to give us an outsider's sense of the gritty streets, this character seems well suited for the task thus far. On the other side of the coin, we are reintroduced to the blatantly crooked Major Forbes who slightly detracts from the tone of the book by being so obviously dickish, working to undermine Commissioner Gordon. He might as well twirl a mustache and "Bwahaha" right there in the panel. One of these characters forces the other into a very compromising position that sets the stage for the first story arc. Jason Fabok's art style is incredible and perfect for this book. One of the truly noteworthy accomplishments he achieves here is making Jim Gordon look like every bit the superhero Batman is. The panel where they run after a foe side by side as if they've done this for years (because they have) is awe inspiring.

Bottom Line: No, we DON'T need another Batman book, but if we have to have one, GODDAMN I'm glad it's this one. 9 out of 10.

Iron Fist The Living Weapon #1: You know what's been missing from Marvel NOW? A good kung-fu comic. Specifically, an Iron Fist comic. Once the announcement went out that Marvel entered into a deal with Netflix to produce an original series for the former Hero for Hire, we knew it was a matter of time before the Powers-That-Be bestowed us with more martial arts awesomeness. 

It opens up strong enough, but I'll confess it's a little difficult to resolve this version of Danny Rand with the lighthearted adventurer we've come to know from the past ten years or so. Kaare Andrews gives us some insight into a more sullen, somewhat broken shadow of a familiar hero who doesn't seem to like the things life is showing him. Feeling somewhat apart from his fellow man, he seems to crave aggression and violence rather than normal human connections. This serves as an interesting backdrop to what's historically been a really fun character. There's plenty to potential for us to see an example of what years and years of conflict can do to a man. Normally, this would feel dull but Andrews keeps it engaging. Aside from that, the narrative itself doesn't do anything different from what we've seen before. However, in this case, that isn't such a bad thing. The visual nuances to this book are another strong selling point. Andrews approaches this with all the visceral yet old school sensibilities of a Shaw Brothers film if Quentin Tarentino had dosed it with LSD. Every page seems to be drawn tailor made to convey the particular tone of that particular part of the narrative. This is definitely how kung fu fantasy should be done.

Bottom Line: Definitely one of the best, fresh feeling Marvel books to drop this month. 8.5 out of 10