Review: Batman '66 meets the Man from UNCLE #6

The final issue of this miniseries begins with our heroes still trapped by the octopus. Hugo Strange then puts them back into brainwashing for several days.  The heroes seem to be moving toward compliance. But then Batman plays a recording he made of the brainwashing sessions where Strange tells the heroes they will be officers in his cause and the villains will be their henchmen.  The villains get upset over this. (Why? Most of them are C and D listers who make better henchmen than supervillians anyway.) One glaring mistake in the script has Mr Freeze referring to himself as Victor Fries.  The 1966 Freeze's real name was clearly revealed as Dr. Shimmel on the series. Batman and the others then bamboozle the villains into an alliance to take down Strange.  As the alliance's plan begins to unfold, Strange brings Batman back into a brainwashing session, and tries to get him to reveal his true identity. (Why not just take off his mask?) But it's Poison Ivy to the rescue, as the plan goes into effect, as Batman turns the brainwashing device onto Hugo, and Solo and Kuryakin take out Hugo's men. But then the villains double cross the heroes as they leave the THRUSH base.  Giving chase via submarines, the villains seem to be escaping until Kuryakin reveals, as a precaution, he let Hugo's giant octopus escape, where it has detained the villains' sub. Jeff Parker's script seemed to slightly run out of steam as the story reaches the end. There is a nice exchange between Batman and Solo, where Solo suggests using the Bat-Submarine's nuclear engine to destroy the THURSH base, but Batman protests as that would kill several people.  There is a sly ending, where Solo and Kuryakin hint that they know Batman's Bruce Wayne mask was a ruse, and that he really is Bruce Wayne. Pasquale Qualano drew the first half of the book, with David Hahn drawing the second half.  Both turned in excellent renderings, with Qualano's half having a slight Neal Adams look. This final issue earns a B-.

Review: Batman '66 meets the Man from UNCLE #5

This issue opens with the mysterious Corvid being revealed to be Arkham's Dr Hugo, who turns out to be really Professor Hugo Strange. The C and D list villains seem to be a little peeved that they have been working for the doctor that has held them in Arkham, but Strange quickly talks them down by revealing his taking the position at Arkham was for the goal of recruiting THRUSH agents. Strange them leads his captives and reveals his plans to make the world a utopia via psychological manipulation. The heroes and UNCLE agents are gassed and Strange attempt to brainwash them to his side.  The first brainwashing session seems to have no impact and the captives attempt to escape only to fall into the clutches of a giant octopus. The script by Jeff Parker stays the course. His sequence of Strange attempting to brainwash Batman and the others seems to drift more into Batman The Animated Series territory than the 1966 TV series. David Hahn again turns in very good artwork.  This issue earns another B.

Review: Batman '66 meets the Man from UNCLE # 4

This issue is a step up from last issue, which seemed like filler. The story picks up moments after the conclusion of the last issue where Batman revealed himself as Bruce Wayne. As he explains it, Batman already made plans with Wayne to masquerade as Wayne via a lifelike Bat-synthetic mask, to infiltrate the THRUSH agency. The Terrific Trio and UNCLE agents attend a party by the Royalty of Monaco, to discover the B, C, and D list Bat villains are now part of the cabinet, thanks to The Siren's manipulation of the prince. Wayne allows himself to be captured and the heroes trail him via the British Batmobile, and then a yellow Bat-submarine. At THRUSH's underwater HQ, the heroes invade, Wayne reveals he's really Batman in disguise, and after a fight, they discover the mysterious Corvid  leading this operation is.... I won't spoil it until the next review, but the reveal is a let down.  I thought it would be Penguin.  It's not.  As stated, Jeff Parker's script is an improvement over last issue's filler story, and David Hahn and Pasquale Qualano once again share art duties, each drawing half the issue. This issue brings the grade back up to the consistent B the series has been earning.

Review: Batman '66 meets the Man from UNCLE #3

The third issue of this miniseries has some highs and lows. THRUSH continues to use Batman's B and C and a couple D list villains as agents, and the mysterious ringleader is revealed as Corvid.  But who exactly Corvid is has yet to be revealed.  The second half of this issue seems like filler. Via a video conference between the Batcave and UNCLE HQ, a brief history of UNCLE and THRUSH is given, and then a recap of a heist earlier in this very same issue. The heroes and the agents then meet face to face to plan their next move, and Batman unmasks! Writer Jeff Parker slips a little this issue.  Two-thirds of the book are drawn by David Hahn then Pasquale Qualano steps in for the final few pages.  The change in art style isn't quite seamless, but it's not very jarring either. This issue earns a C.

Review: Batman '66 Meets the Man from UNCLE #2

Before I get to this issue, I just have to make a comment about the cover.  It is very striking, and perhaps one of the best covers I have seen from the DC Batman '66 franchise. By regular cover artists Michael and Laura Allred, they based it on David Mazzuchelli's iconic Batman Year One promotional art, and the Man From UNCLE logo.  On to the story itself, written by Jeff Parker with art by David Hahn. It picks up with Batman interrogating the captured Penguin, who turns out to be merely a pawn... or is he?  At UNCLE HQ, where some kind of promotional film is being shot by an Agent Donner (Richard, perhaps?), recreating the first season "long opening", the agents soon discuss the escape of several B and C list villains, and Batman in Gotham City. They produce Bruce Wayne as a possible suspect, and plan to attend a party he's throwing to launch his new aerospace project.  As it turns out, Mr Waverly and Alfred are old colleagues. The Gotham villains, now THRUSH agents, crash the party, and we get our first team up of the UNCLE agents with Batman, Robin, and Batgirl.  I wonder when or if agent April Dancer will join the party?  Parker's script continues the excellent level begun in the previous issue, and Hahn's art is very slick and clean. As for the reason some of the likenesses are less than perfect as I mentioned in my previous review, Mr Hahn himself supplied a comment in my previous post:  "For legal reasons, we could not use the exact likenesses of McCallum and Vaughn, so my take with the art was to get them close, but not exact likenesses."  So, thank you, Mr Hahn for supplying that bit of insider information. It is greatly appreciated. One other thing I want to comment on.  I have been watching  The Man From UNCLE on Me-TV, airing on weekends. Currently they are near the end of the third season, coincidentally as this miniseries is being published. The third season was known for becoming more Batman-like, but the most striking similarity is that Nelson Riddle did the musical score for that season, and many of his cues are similar to to his Batman score.  It is quite something to be watching The Man From UNCLE yet hearing distinctive Batman musical cues.  This issue exceeds the expectations the first issue set, and earns a B+.

Review: Batman '66 Meets the Man from UNCLE #1

Batman '66 meets the Man from UNCLE.  This is a great concept. The first issue of this miniseries, written by Jeff Parker, sets things up nicely. In a unique narrative, Parker has Batman and Robin and UNCLE agents Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin in separate story lines.  Needless to say they will cross paths soon, but its nice to start the story with two separate story lines than to jump right into a team up.  Batman and Robin chase an escaped Penguin, a great pick for this miniseries, seeing that UNCLE's adversary is THRUSH.  Meanwhile, the UNCLE agents are after a new THRUSH agent, Olga Queen of the Cossacks.  The inclusion of this weak third season villain is the low point of the issue.  There is a nice nod when Solo introduces himself using the alias "Ross Webster", the Morgan Edge-like character actor Robert Vaughn played in Superman III.  The art by David Hahn is acceptable, but at times misses the mark on the likenesses of Vaughn and David McCallum. The format of the story is closer to the Man from UNCLE TV series, which itself partially inspired the creation of the Batman TV series. In return, at the height of "Batmania", UNCLE took on a campier Batman tone. Since Warner Brothers owns the UNCLE franchise, via their buyout of Ted Turner who got the rights from MGM when they were selling their back catalog due to bankruptcy, I always wondered why WB didn't hand the property to DC to incorporate into their Universe. Indeed, Marvel's SHIELD was created as a rip off of UNCLE, so it would seem natural for DC to incorporate the original into it's universe.  It certainly would make more sense than its own lesser-grade spy agencies like Spyral or Argus.  All in all, this is a good start to what should be a great miniseries. The first issue earns a B.