Review: Batman '89: Echoes #6

Issue 6 is when this series goes off the rails. It is revealed that the enigmatic Kashif character is actually Ra's al Ghul, and he is given a Lazarus serum that brings him back to health and de-ages him by 40 years, bringing the supernatural into the world of Batman '89. Also Harley Quinn takes center stage with her bizarre and over the top desires to be a TV celebrity.  Selena Kyle, who was one of her patients, reveals herself as Catwoman and offers to train Harley how to be a real criminal. And finally Barbara Gordon reluctantly dons a Batgirl costume to help Drake to rescue Batman. Crane is apprehended, Harley is still loose and plans to murder Crane in his cell, and Maynard the factitious Riddler is completely forgotten about.  A very poor ending by writer Sam Hamm to the series. The art by Joe Quinones and Stacy Lee is top notch however.  This disappointing final issue earns a C-.

Review: Batman '89: Echoes #5

As with the previous issue, there is a whole lot of plot crammed into this issue.  The story opens with Barbara interrogating Alfred at Wayne Manor.  Bruce surprises both of them by showing up.  There is exposition explaining the break out. 

Meanwhile Dr Q is attempting a publicity stunt hostage scam using the other escaped inmates that backfires, as her producer double crosses her, and convinces her TV network not to give in to terrorism.  

Bruce plans out a trap to get Crane, and exhibits a residue of Batman fear from his earlier treatment by Crane.  Dr. Q fully embraces the Harley Quinn persona to exact revenge.  As Batman is about to capture Crane, a mob associated with the comatose Kashif character that was introduced an issue or so back, challenge Batman by saying they are taking Crane.  

This is a very brief and simple synopsis but Sam Hamm's script is very dense. It also includes a cameo by the Joker's moll Alicia, whom supposedly jumped out a window, perhaps with the Joker's help, to her death off screen in the first movie.  

The artwork in this issue may be the best yet, and it is note worthy that artist Joe Quinones is assisted with another penciller, Stacey Lee, and inker Paolo Rivera.  This issue earns a B+.

Review: Batman '89: Echoes #4

This issue picks up with "Lowery" aka Bruce undercover, being escorted back to his cell after the fear gas treatment with Dr Crane. Bruce tells his guard, who has been working with him, to get a message to Drake. We find out Selina Kyle is a patient of Dr Quinzel's, and she's not happy to learn Harleen is giving up her private practice to host her TV show. Meanwhile, the item Bruce wanted from Drake was an amnesia pill, that Bruce took, and he needs Maynard to fill him back in on the day his forgot, telling him about Kashif (who looks like.... Joel Schumacher???) and Hugo Strange.  

Meanwhile some US Marshalls, including one who looks a lot like Gary Oldman's version of James Gordon, use fingerprints to find out Bruce really isn't the Firefly.  They head to Arkham to interrogate him.  Meanwhile Crane is juicing up Blockbuster (played by... Arnold Schwarzenegger??) and sends him into Dr Q's clown themed group therapy session with Bruce and Maynard.  Blockbuster is triggered by clowns and goes berserk. 

Escaping Blockbuster, Bruce tells the group to head to the roof while he goes to look for a sample of the fear formula and Maynard goes to look for Kashif.  Crane, in full Scarecrow regalia attacks the Police.  Dr. Q decides to pull of a publicity stunt.  Meanwhile Bruce and Maynard get to the roof and meet Drake, in a pesudo-Nightwing costume.  He brought Bruce's Batman costume, and he suits up in a very Iron Man-Tony Stark kind of way.

Again this issue, there is a lot of plot to process.  I think Sam Hamm might be putting too much plot into each issue. Joe Quinones artwork, as usual is great.  This issue earns a B-.

Review: Batman '89: Echoes #3

This issue opens on a session between Dr. Crane (clearly "played" by Jeff Goldblum) and Maynard ("played" by Martin Short).  Maynard brags about how he was a killing machine in the military.  Meanwhile Bruce and Drake have a secret meeting to discuss Bruce's next steps.  We also get a flashback as to how and why Bruce started this undercover mission.  Essentially, he was bored not being Batman for the last two years. Having picked up clues as to the Firefly in the newspapers, Bruce deduced the Firefly was connected to Hugo Strange.  Bruce went to find the Firefly, aka Robert Lowery, but Lowery went into an unreasonable panic at the sight of Batman, and killed himself.  Bruce went through the Firefly's diaries and manifestos, and decided to investigate by assuming Lowery's identity.  

Meanwhile Dr. Quinzel ("played" by Madonna) has been monitoring the asylum's security cameras, and wants footage of Lowery. Bruce, as Lowery, meets up with Maynard, who reveals his full name as Edward Nigel Maynard, aka E.Nig.Ma, as he gives Lowery a puzzle he made for him.

Later, at Police HQ, the security footage of Lowery is played on TV, and Barbara Gordon ("played" by ...possibly Winona Ryder?  Maybe Sean Young? Demi Moore? Kind of hard to tell) recognizes Robert Lowery is really Bruce Wayne.  She is about to go to Wayne Manor to confront Alfred about this, but is intercepted by a pair of FBI agents who arrest her regarding a mysterious bank account.

Meanwhile, Lowery is brought in to Dr. Crane's office and is told about footage of him airing on TV.  Crane suspects Lowery isn't who he says he is, and uses fear gas on him to get him to confess.  Lowery admits 'I'm Batman".  But Crane doesn't believe him.

A lot of story packed into this issue, and well done by both writer Sam Hamm and artist Joe Quinones.  This issue earns another B+

Review: Batman '89: Echoes #2

Issue 2 opens with the revelation that Bruce is on an undercover mission, with the assistance of Drake Winston. Bruce is impersonating the Firefly, intentionally getting caught, so that he can be sent to Hugo Strange.  He gets sidetracked by getting Jonathan Crane assigned to his case instead.  Harleen Quinzel finds out about the capture of the Firefly and wants him to be the focus of the first episode of her new weekly TV show about the criminally insane.  There is a nod to Lewis Wilson, Tim Burton himself makes a cameo as an inmate, Jess Ventura's guard from Batman & Robin, and a character named Maynard who may actually be Edward Nigma, and looks like Martin Short.

Where as the first miniseries had the first few issues with no plot advancement, this issue has a lot of plot advancement and sub plots.  So far, writer Sam Hamm is delivering the goods, and Joe Quinones' art work is also top notch, although the main cover featuring Batgirl is either a spoiler for what is to come, or meant to be the cover of a future issue mistakenly assigned to issue 2.  This issue earns another B+.

Review: Batman '89: Echoes #1

As bad as the first Batman '89 miniseries was, I have to say the first issue of the sequel is so much better. Sam Hamm is starting the down the road to redeem himself.  Let's see if he can stay on it.  Joe Quinones' art is also improved from the first miniseries, where at times it seemed rushed, and the actors' likenesses were made more vague and generic.

The story picks up 2 years after the first miniseries.  Batman has been out of action for 2 years, but a new group of wannabe vigilantes dressed in homemade Batman costumes start start showing up murdered in failed attempts to fight crime.  Barbara Gordon, who is now a captain (remember, Hamm killed off Jim Gordon in the first miniseries), goes to Wayne Manor to see if Bruce knows anything about these fake Batmen.  Bruce isn't home, and Alfred confides in Barbara that he went missing a month earlier.  

Then we cut to TV psychologist Arleen Quinzel, aka "Dr. Q" who unveils The Joker's moll Alicia's surgically restructured face.  Quinones' art for Dr. Q is great, but I can't quite place who he is basing her on.  We get a glimpse of Dr. Q's obsession with the dead Joker.

Then the police go to capture the Firefly, whose alias is apparently Robert Lowery.  Hmmm.  After a well constructed action scene, they capture him.  At the hospital, Lowery asks to see Dr Hugo Strange, but he gets Dr Jonathan Crane instead.  Then we get our first view of Lowery's face.  

It's...

SPOILER ALERT




...Bruce... or a dead ringer for him.

This issue earns a B+.

movie review: THE FLASH

After hearing that The Flash is on track to be another DCEU dud, I thought I'd skip doing a proper review and just jump right into some thoughts and comments. Incoming DC Movies head James Gunn hyped this as the greatest superhero movie ever made. Well, the box office certainly disagrees, and Gunn may be tarnished because of it. SPOILERS BELOW.

So did I think this was the greatest superhero movie ever made?  Nope, not even close.  But I will say it may be the greatest movie under the DCEU banner that began with Man of Steel, which arguably is a low threshold to cross.  

 

It was great to see Michael Keaton back as The Batman, but I don't think this was the same character he played in the 1989 original and Batman Returns.  To me, he played it quite differently.  Of course he's older, maybe wiser, but it just seemed different.  Maybe because so much of Batman (both Ben Affleck and Keaton) were daytime scenes, or that Keaton seemed so much more talkative than in the original movies. Or that his cape does not have the bat-points along the bottom. Why do the recent movies keep giving Batman a standard cape?  I say he played a nearly identical alternate multiverse take on the original character.  A lot of the hype building up to this movie implies this a de facto Batman III for Keaton.  If you go into the movie expecting that, you will be disappointed. Keaton is a supporting character.

 

I also have to say I really liked Sasha Calle, who played Supergirl. She did a lot better than I thought she would, and it helps that she wasn't over used in the movie.  She had just the right amount of screen time.  Her and Keaton were the highlights of the movie.

 

Most of the action scenes were amazing. What I thought was weak were some of the special effects. The Flash in particular, most of the time looked like Ezra Miller's face photoshopped onto a CGI figure.  And the way the speedzone was portrayed--what can only be described as a giant Sgt. Pepper album cover.  Cheesy and kind of lame.

 

All the cameos, from Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman thru Nicholas Cage's Superman, and CGI recreations of Christopher Reeve, George Reeves and Adam West, were cool, and George Clooney is now the official DCEU Batman going forward.  Maybe.

 

The Flash was definitely done in the MCU style, far more so than the Joss Whedon version of Justice League, which got slammed for it.

 

So, this was a enjoyable film.  Why did it tank at the box office? Most likely a combination of three things: the fact that the DCEU banner has a bad track record and is tainted, that a nine year Flash TV series just ended causing over-saturation of the character, and most prominently, a boycott of Ezra Miller due to his troubling and dangerous behavior.  Perhaps WB should have re-shot all his scenes with a new actor when they had the chance. 

Review: Batman '89 #6

The final issue, once again published late, opens with Batman confronting Dent, picking up from the end of the previous issue. Dent sets off a bomb, knocking Batman out, as well as ripping half his mask off. With the half mask, Dent not only recognizes Bruce as Batman, but takes a photo of him just as Catwoman and Drake arrive to take Bruce to safety in the Batcave.  After Bruce regains consciousness, he has a heart to heart talk with Selina.  Drake hears on the news James Gordon's body has been found.  Meanwhile, Dent has a meeting with the corrupted politicians and Carmine Falcone. Dent kills Falcone. He also gets a visit from his old friend Jerome who threatens to turn Dent in. Dent kills him and Drake comes in.  Dent pays off Drake for saving his life earlier. Drake threatens to pulverize Dent for what he did, but as they fight into the street, Dent accuses Drake of being the one who killed Jerome.  A crowd holds Drake.  Dent then asks for a meeting with Bruce.  In the Batcave, the former allies meet where Dent tells Bruce he's working for him now or he goes public with the photo exposing his identity. Bruce offers a different deal: Harvey admits to working uncover for Batman to entrap the mob and dirty politicians, then gets surgery to fix his face and goes through psychiatric therapy, while Batman finishes taking out the remaining bad guys.  Once Dent resumes his position as D.A., Batman will retire.  Bruce tells Dent to let the coin decide which way it should go. But as Dent flips the coin, the giant penny in the Batcave comes loose (pushed by Selina), and knocks Dent over a pit, where he holds on as the wheelchair bound Bruce and Selina try to help him.  As they pull Dent up, he seems to get a sense of clarity, and lets go, dropping to his death. Bruce rages at Selina for interfering like this, as he switched Dent's coin with a two-sided clean one, so once he flipped, he would have picked the right thing to do.  They separate realizing they are too different. Bruce clears Drake of the charges by turning in Dent's gun. Drake also decides to go his own way, taking the code name "the Avenging Eagle".  Meanwhile Barbara Gordon gets a package Dent sent her, revealing the evidence Bruce is Batman, and Selina reaches out to her to form... the Birds of Prey?  And Bruce himself now uses Dent's coin to decide whether he should go out as Batman each night.

As with the last issue, this one has a lot more plot than the earlier issues, where nothing happens other than establishing characters and doing a lot of woke virtue signalling.  So much more plot in issue 6, that the panels for this issue are smaller, with more on a page than any of the previous issues.  And lots of exposition dialogue. Perhaps Sam Hamm could have better paced the story.  Overall, this issue, like issue 5, is better than the other four issues. However there are still a lot of WTF moments, like, not only killing off Jim Gordon, but establishing his age as only 58. Then there is the ending, where Bruce now uses the coin to decide if he is going to go on patrol as Batman.  This issue earns a B-.

In regards to Sam Hamm, there is definitely a mystery that needs to be solved.  This is the best he could come up with for a Batman story after all these years?  And it's not like he is overloaded with other writing projects or assignments. It seems like Hamm will go down in history as the screenplay writing equivalent of a "one hit wonder".  Batman '89 as a whole, earns a lackluster C, and serves as a cautionary tale: be careful what you wish for, because you might not only just get it, but it will probably be a disappointment. I can only hope Michael Keaton's return to Batman in The Flash turns out much better than this.

Review: Batman '89 #5

Just when you thought DC was giving the All Star Batman and Robin treatment to Batman '89 ... you know, something so unbearably awful, they abandon it in the middle of the run... along comes issue 5.  

It opens on Harvey Dent, now decked out in his Two-Face costume, negotiating with a certain Mr. Karp to take over the so-called "Joker gang" that has been running rampant in Gotham.  Commissioner Gordon questions his daughter if she knows where Harvey is.  She says she doesn't, but she has a note from him asking her to meet him at Gotham Park.  Jim mentions he's put in his resignation.  Batman and Drake in the Batmobile lead a police car on a seemingly needless and pointless chase, only to have the police car abandon the chase to go after something more serious.  Four subway tunnels collapse and there is a gas leak all near Police HQ. Police Captain Ramirez is shot on live TV during a new interview. The Joker gang invades the streets.  It's all a diversion so Dent can get inside the evidence room at Police HQ.  Gordon gets to the roof to light the Bat-Signal.  Batman arrives in time to save Gordon from a couple Joker gang goons, and they get down to the evidence room where Gordon says 31 Million Dollars from the Lincoln Savings Job is being held.  As they get there, they encounter Dent, who shoots Bullock, and evades Batman while kidnapping Gordon.  Dent gives out the money to the poor and needy.  Dent then meets up with Barbara at the park.  She arrests Dent but he tells her he has her father.  Catwoman jumps from the shadows, knocking Barbara unconscious and tells Dent to run.  Catwoman then orders Drake to follow Dent.  Dent gets back to his hideout, and Gordon goads Dent into shooting him.  Batman arrives.

The extra time it took to put out this issue may have been worth it, as it is the best issue of the run.  But then again, that's not saying much.  Never the less, this issue has better pacing, plot points, and some suspense.  A clear improvement in script quality by Sam Hamm.  Joe Quinones' art is excellent this issue, with the likenesses to the actors more definitive than previous issues.  This issue earns a B.

review: THE BATMAN

Matt Reeves' The Batman, in many ways, is a bookend to Todd Phillip's Joker.  Both have a similar tone, style, and presentation.  Both films take a germ of the source material from the comics, and build their own mythologies, sometimes in complete opposition to the source comics. And although to date, nothing has been made official, I can certainly see both films part of the same universe. But The Batman, despite all this, is not quite the film Joker was. At nearly three hours, the film is somewhat bloated, and a tighter edit cutting out about half an hour would have made the movie better.  Something else lacking in the movie is anything colorful or fun from the comics.  Much like the Christopher Nolan trilogy, this movie takes itself a little too seriously. There are really only two major action scenes- the Batmobile car chase with the Penguin, and the finale when the Riddler's bombs explode.  There are a lot of great fight scenes, but very little actual action sequences.  Also sorely missing is Batman escaping from a typical death trap.  But on the positive side, this film probably has the best detective aspect of any previous Batman movie even if there are a few times Batman gets things seemingly wrong. I mean come on, the clue is a "rat with wings", and Batman deduces stool pigeon instead of a bat??  Also, this is the first time since the Adam West TV franchise that Batman is on screen in full costume for nearly the entire time, with very few Bruce Wayne scenes.

The simple, yet complex plot has Batman, in his second year of activity (Batman's narration clearly states that for the viewer), encountering the mysterious Riddler who starts knocking off corrupted political and police figures, and it's up to Batman and Jim Gordon, assisted by Selina Kyle who has her own tangent to the case, to figure out the connection. It leads to a revelation about Thomas and Martha Wayne (again, somewhat dovetailing into the portrayal of Thomas Wayne in Joker). It was this kind of deconstructionist attitude that kind of turned me off to the movie at its reveal about at the half way mark. I'm done with this type of "let's see how we can screw up superheroes the most" agenda, and would love to get back to a more truly heroic presentation.

One thing I really noticed about the movie is how there are so many scenes that are homages or recreations of previous Bat-Film moments.  The first fight between Batman and Selina is just like the scene in Batman Returns. Batman's "flying" escape is similar to scenes from both Batman Returns and Batman Begins. The scene where Batman goes into Penguin's Iceberg Night Club is clearly a homage to the "What A Way To Go Go" scene from the pilot episode of the 1966 TV series.  There's a shot of Batman crashing through a skylight that looks similar to shots from both Batman '89 and Batman Forever. When Batman visits Riddler at Arkham Asylum, it echos Batman's interrogation of the Joker in The Dark Knight. There's a shot of Batman hanging from a structure by one arm that looks like a mirror image of a shot from Batman '89. In that respect, this movie plays almost like a "Batman's Greatest Hits" collection.

Robert Pattinson does an excellent job as Batman, much better than I thought he would. Thankfully, he avoids the ridiculous bullfrog voice used by Christian Bale, or the electronically adjusted voice used by Ben Affleck. Instead he speaks in a harsh whisper along the lines of both Michael Keaton and Kevin Conroy.  And after Affleck's serial killer Batman, it's refreshing to have a Batman with a moral code against killing. The Batman cowl really suits Pattinson's face well.  The rest of the costume, though, while better than Bale's motocross style outfit, isn't as good as the Keaton or Affleck costumes.  One thing I hate about the more recent Batman costumes is that the capes have a regular straight edge on the bottom. Why don't they give the capes the bat-points across the bottom anymore?  It's like with Superman, his capes never have the yellow S shield on the back. Pattinson's cape has a Dracula inspired collar, but no bat-points.  Pattinson's Bruce isn't as good as his Batman, having too much of an Edward Scissorhands quality with a sort of Shemp Howard haircut. But thankfully, his Bruce doesn't get much screen time at all.

Paul Dano's Riddler looks more like Hush from the comics than The Riddler.  His performance is fine, but he really doesn't start to shine until the last act after he is unmasked, at which point he starts to act a little more like a classic Riddler, even mimicking Frank Gorshin's dialogue delivery style of raising the volume and getting higher pitched with certain lines.

Jeffery Wright does an okay job as Jim Gordon, but lacks charisma.  If Gordon were more of a background character this wouldn't be a problem, but Gordon is really the film's 2nd lead, so Wright seems a bit flat.  Speaking of background characters, that's what Andy Serkis' Alfred is.  I think you need to go all the way back to the 1949 serial to get an Alfred with less screen time than Serkis.  Colin Farrell, who I always thought would have been a great choice to play Batman, hams it up as the Penguin, getting the film's only humorous lines.  Despite being covered in prosthetics and make up, he still doesn't look like the Penguin, just a heavy, balding, generic gangster.  His role seems quite similar to the position the character had in the Gotham TV series. Zoe Kravitz, much like Pattinson, defied low expectations, and delivered an excellent performance as Selina Kyle, giving the character great range and good chemistry with Pattinson. 

In relation to other Warner Brothers Batman movies, I'd rank this one in the top four:  Batman '89, Batman Returns, The Dark Knight, The Batman. It's far from perfect, it's certainly not the definitive Batman, but for what it is, it's very well done.

Review: Batman '89 #4

This issue opens with a march where Drake Winston attacks the police in ways that are all too trendy. Then we cut to Bruce in the Batcave, where he set up the giant penny, and he gets some microfilm from Alfred that will explain Drake's history.  At the hospital, Dent, completely out of his mind with a split personality, escapes. Alfred picks up Drake to take to the Manor to meet with Bruce, as he reads the microfilm that Drake's ancestors started a car company that was then taken over by Bruce's ancestors.  When Drake gets to the Manor, he and Bruce have a very long conversion that ends with Drake knowing Bruce is Batman, Bruce knowing Drake is the poncho costumed vigilante, and writer Sam Hamm recycles the "Alfred with a gun" bit from the first draft of his Batman script (although now changed to a taser).  Selina shows up at Police HQ posing as a Shreck's Department Store geek squad tech to get into Barbara Gordon's computer.  Dent finds his way into an abandoned subway tunnel, where one side is destroyed and the other side is pristine. He decides to make this his hide out. Back at Wayne Manor, Bruce leads Drake into the Batcave and a partnership is born.

In the first two issues of Batman '89 not much happened other than setting up characters. Then last issue and this issue are too crammed with plot development. This series is paced very poorly. Then there is the continued pre-occupation with being "woke" as the top priority for this series.  It continues to be an unpleasant read.  This issue earns a C-.

Review: Batman '89 #3

We are at the mid-point of Batman '89, and it's not looking like things will get better.  The story opens with Dent carrying an unconscious Drake out of the burning building. Subsequently the media treats him like a hero, as he contemplates his gubernatorial election run.  Time jump one year later.  Dent is governor and Barbara Gordon is police commissioner. Barbara comes in with the info that Bruce Wayne has been funding the Batman project, who is a small army of mercenaries wearing the costume. But then Dent gets confused and starts to black out.  

We see it is not one year later, but still at the scene of the fire. Dent has been hallucinating. He is pulled out of the fire by Bruce and Drake. As Dent regains consciousness, the spectators gasp in horror as the left side of his face is burned down to the muscles and tendons. Drake reveals he was on the roof feeding his pet birds when the fire broke out, and thinks he saw the arsonists.  Bruce wonders if Drake also saw him with Catwoman.  Dent is rushed to the hospital.  Reporters start hounding Bruce, who does not want to be photographed.  Harvey Bullock shows up and starts questioning Bruce about the fire, but Drake responds he saw the arsonists. Another officer replies they found the suspects in a dumpster (courtesy of Catwoman).  

The press continues to hound Bruce as a hero, as Dent survives the night.  The arson suspects are released on bail, and a nasty "no justice, no peace" mentality starts among the Burnside area.  Meanwhile Bruce offers to fund Dent's reconstruction surgery, while Dent, in his hospital bed, starts to develop a split personality via more hallucinations. When he wakes, he asks Barbara for his coin, and he scratches up one side.  Later, Batman meets Catwoman, hoping to start a romance, but Catwoman gives him a woke lecture while admitting she's seeing a shrink.  Batman wonders if it is Harleen Quinzel. They are interrupted by antifa-like firebombings in the neighborhood.  In his hospital room, watching the news coverage of the riots, Dent flips his coin.  It lands scarred side up. 

As with the previous issues, Dent is the main character, while Batman plays a supporting role. This issue has more plot advancement than issues one and two, but again, Sam Hamm is infusing this story with topical woke-ism. It almost seems like he is using this mini-series as an audition to get hired by Greg Berlanti as a scriptwriter for the DC television shows on the CW.  Yeah, that's the level this comic book is sinking to. In my review of the first issue, I mentioned how years...decades... of anticipation have built up for Sam Hamm to write Batman again.  But after all this time, all this waiting, if this is the best Hamm can come up with- Greg Berlanti type scripts- then I regretfully have to retract my statement from my review of the first issue where I say I would like to see Hamm become the regular writer on the main Batman title.  On the other side of the coin, Joe Quinones is still turning in good artwork. This issue gets a C+, bumped up slightly for more plot advancement, and Bruce given a little more to do, even if he's still in the back seat of the narrative.

Review: Batman '89 #2

Once again, the main focus of issue 2 is on Harvey Dent.  The story opens with a task force trying to bring in Batman, but the guy who was stealing baby food for his kid ends up getting killed. Dent and Barbara play with a batarang and then Dent gives a political speech at his old neighborhood, Burnside.  We are introduced to Drake Winston (the role Marlon Wayans supposedly would have played in Batman Returns, although in that script he was only referred to as "The Kid"). He stops a robbery dressed in a weird poncho-like costume, revealing he was the costumed figure at the end of last issue. There is a word play on robbin'...Robin.  Racked over guilt about what happened earlier, Bruce offers to give every kid in Burnside free education. The garage where Drake works is set on fire by the robbers he stopped earlier.  Bruce (in a ski mask) heads that way but is intercepted by the return of Catwoman. Dent, meanwhile goes into the burning garage to save Drake, only to be knocked unconscious. 

Joe Quinones' art keeps the quality from the previous issue: well done if somewhat streamlined, with somewhat vague likenesses of the actors. It is curious that much of the unofficial, personal art he has posted regarding the Batman movies over the last several years looks much more detailed with pin-point likenesses of the actors. It seems like Sam Hamm continues to be more influenced by Daniel Waters' Batman Returns script than his own 1989 script. He is also making the same mistakes DC made with their Batman '66 comics, by abandoning what made it what it was, and trying to graft elements of modern DC continuity onto it. In the case of Batman '89, we are introduced to Dr. Harleen Quinzel.  Unfortunately we also get a lot of the current political climate grafted onto the story.  Sorry, but I'm not a fan of this approach. When I read a comic that is supposed to embellish and follow the spirit of the Michael Keaton Batman movies, the last thing I want is preaching about political and social issues that are constantly on the news in 2021.  I want to get lost in that timeless movie world, not be hammered by Hamm-fisted opinions and commentary about 2021 topical sociopolitical issues.  Batman '89 is quickly becoming a huge disappointment. This issue gets a C-.

Review: Batman '89 #1

Batman '89 #1.  Written by the 1989 film's writer Sam Hamm, with art by Joe Quinones. Something I have been waiting for.  But did the anticipation drive up expectations so that reading the actual comic book falls short?

The first part of the issue is essentially a set up to get the reader back into the Batman '89 mindset.  Except it quickly becomes obvious this is not really Batman 1989, i.e. a bridge between Batman and Batman Returns.  No this is more like Batman '94, set some time after Batman Returns.  And in a lot of ways, this issue seems to have a lot more in common in tone and character portrayals with the Daniel Waters penned Returns than with Sam Hamm's own 1989 script.  

Harvey Dent is the main character of this issue, and we open on his marriage proposal to Barbara Gordon.  Wait... what?  Yep, you read that right. Now, I'm not much of a Barbara Gordon fan.  It seems like whenever she pops up in a franchise, things go down hill.  The 1960s Batman TV Series. Batman The Animated Series. Batman & Robin (although technically that was "Barbara Wilson").  So to see her right off the bat in this comic... eh.  Harvey's fixation of a double headed coin, not referenced at all in the 1989 movie, is heavily explored here, and then we get a great Batman action sequence that involves a giant penny. Harvey visits Bruce at Wayne Manor to try to get him to join with him to rid Gotham of Batman, and force Commissioner Gordon out of the police force.  This seems vaguely like a rehash of the Max Schreck story line from Batman Returns.  We get more background, sort of an origin, on Harvey.  Then Batman attempts to stop a robber who stole diapers and baby food for his kid, and Batman is ambushed by another costumed figure who is obviously going to turn out to be either Barbara Gordon or Drake Winston.

Joe Quinones' art is excellent, but only Billy Dee Williams' likeness is truly captured.  All the other characters, like Bruce, Jim Gordon, and Alfred, have a more vagueness to them. Bruce, in particular, is far too gray. Perhaps DC couldn't get clearance to use the actors' likenesses... but do they need permission if they own the original material?  Gray area, I know.  Quinones puts in a lot of Easter egg callbacks to Prince's Bat Dance video.

Sam Hamm's script is, frankly, a far cry from his 1989 movie script, or his unused script for Batman II, but it is still miles better than most of the Batman comic book scripts of the past decade or so, and after this six-issue miniseries ends, I'd love to see Hamm and Quinones become the regular creative team on either Batman or Detective.  However, making Barbara Gordon such a major character so quickly in, and the rumors the comic will utilize the Batman Returns concept of Marlon Wayans as Drake Winston/The Kid, a choice that was widely and universally panned, instead of the actual 1989 concept of Ricky Addison Reed as Dick Grayson/Robin, factors into the answer to the question I asked at the beginning of this review. Does this issue fall short of the anticipation and expectations?  In a word, yes. This issue earns a C+.

Michael Keaton's Batman Returns for Real

It sounds too amazing to be true, but apparently reports are that Michael Keaton will return as The Batman in the DC movie multiverse. The role will be in the upcoming Ezra Miller movie The Flash which will incorporate a variation on the "Flashpoint" story line that has historical and multi-universe consequences that will result in Keaton's Batman becoming the official version of the DCEU, displacing Ben Affleck.  Reports are Keaton will not be taking over the Snyder/Affleck Batman, but will be playing his own Batman from the 1989 movie and it's 1992 sequel, just 30 years later.

The two Joel Schumacher movies will not be part of the continuity.  Mr Schumacher died on June 22, 2020 at age 80 from cancer, R.I.P. 

Further more, Keaton's deal will have his Bruce Wayne/Batman appear in several DCEU movies, similar to how Nick Fury appears in most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films. His second role could very well be in the proposed Batgirl movie which could be a re-imagined live action Batman Beyond but with Barbara Gordon in place of Terry McGuinnis.  I'm also speculating this version of Barbara will be Jim Gordon's grand daughter or great-grand daughter (depending on what age they want her) since Pat Hingle, who played Commissioner Gordon in the Keaton movies, passed away in 2009. 

This also brings up the upcoming Matt Reeves Batman movie starring Robert Pattinson.  Signs point to that being an out-of-continuity Black Label one-off like Todd Phillips-Joaquin Phoenix's Joker, albeit with the potential for two sequels.  But it is Michael Keaton who will be the "real" Batman of the DCEU.

review: JOKER

In the world of comic book movies, the year 2019 has three significant achievements. First, 2019 was the year the MCU jumped the shark.  Second, Shazam! was the worst comic book movie of 2019.  Third, Joker was the most artistic comic book movie of 2019.

You have to go into this movie with the mindset that while it is based on the comic book character of the Joker, it is separate and not connected to the classic version. You had to be in the same mindset with Shazam!, but perhaps because Joker is such a much better made and better looking film, it is so much easier to get lost in this new take without constantly finding contradictions with the classic version, one of the many things Shazam! failed miserably at.

Within the first minute, Jared Leto's bungled take from Suicide Squad is completely blown away.  What we have here is a character study of a mentally ill person, Arthur Fleck (played by Joaquin Phoenix) that, at times, gets uncomfortable to watch. The concept of giving Arthur Pseudobulbar affect (PBA) is brilliant in its obviousness and makes one think why no story has ever hinted at The Joker having this ailment before.  Arthur is on screen for nearly the entire movie, and we are immersed in his daily life.  Outside of a straight narrative, we also get glimpses of Arthur's daydreams and fantasies.  Just when you think a concept is part of the story, it gets revealed it was only in Arthur's imagination.  Zazie Beetz plays Sophie, a woman Arthur becomes fixated on. Robert DeNiro  plays Murray Franklin, essentially a variation to David Endochrine from Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns graphic novel, and surely, the main thrust of this movie is a live action variation of the scene from the graphic novel.  Arthur's aspiration to be a stand-up comedian comes from The Killing Joke. Brett Cullen plays Thomas Wayne as a physician-turned-politician much like in the unused Tom Mankeiwicz Batman screenplay.  Another borrowed idea comes from the recent Gotham TV series, where its proto-Joker Jeremiah Valeska inspired a movement, much like Arthur does in this movie, although with a more Antifa-like result.  One of the more cringe worthy moments is when Arthur begins to believe Thomas Wayne is his father, which I'm sure causes eye rolls from all comic book fans thinking "oh, that's original... make the hero and his enemy brothers". What makes it even more weird is that Arthur and Thomas look to be roughly the same age, even though in real life the two actors are nearly 20 years apart.  There actually isn't too much violence in this movie, but what there is, is very graphic. We also don't see Phoenix in full-on Joker mode until the last act of the movie, and don't expect to see any kind of Joker crime sprees.  But do expect to see that chilling, iconic moment on Crime Alley. 

The direction by Todd Phillips and the cinematography are top notch, and as I said at the beginning, very artistic, and visually Joker completely blows away a film like Shazam!  As I also mentioned, at times this movie does become uncomfortable to watch, but wouldn't it be a disservice if a movie based on the Joker was all lighthearted fun?

movie review: JUSTICE LEAGUE

With the fate of the DC Cinematic Universe riding on it, Justice League is successful at being a better and more coherent movie than Batman v Superman, but still falls short of what one would expect to be the epic big screen debut of the All Star team of the World's Greatest Superheroes.  Of course, the problem is that Justice League has been dealt a handicap in that it continues the misfired shared universe sculpted by Zach Snyder, when really Warner Brothers should have abandoned that continuity as fast as they did the original Batman franchise after Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin disaster.  Instead they decided to forge ahead, albeit bringing in The Avengers director Joss Whedon to take over helming the film in mid-production.  Whedon works a minor miracle by salvaging what could have been another 3 hour Snyder Gloomapalooza.

The film opens with a kid's (Billy Batson?) phone video of Superman. You can clearly see the bad CGI cover up to Henry Cavill's mustache, as his mouth looks like it had a bad reaction to a Novocain injection.  CGI appears to be DC's weak link, as Wonder Woman also suffered from bad, primitive looking CGI.  It doesn't get any better here, as Steppenwolf looks more like a video game image than an actual character, and there are too many moments where the film seems to cease being a live action movie, and turns into The Polar Express.  Even Superman and Batman's flowing capes look fake.

After a pair of really good opening action sequences, one featuring Batman and the other Wonder Woman, the film suddenly grinds to a halt as it drags down for the next 20 minutes or so focusing on introducing Cyborg and The Flash. Things pick up as the plot kicks in - a simple one of Steppenwolf wanting to destroy earth, and Bruce and Diana, reminiscent of The Blues Brothers,  trying to "put the band back together" (I expected Diana to utter "we're on a mission from God"), to stop him. But even after that, the movie has a few dragging moments.  You would think with cutting a movie from 3 hours to 2 hours with much of it re-filmed by a different director, they could have kept the pace up better, but it's not to be. It is also of note that if all the slo-mo scenes in the film were at normal speed, the movie would probably clock in at an hour and 40 minutes.

Ben Affleck returns as Bruce Wayne and Batman.  He's not the serial killer he was in Batman v Superman, moving to more traditional take, and Affleck gives a decent performance, although in a couple scenes, he has this look on his face like he's thinking "I'm only doing this for some gambling money".  He's not the best screen Batman, but he's not the worst either.  A big missed opportunity is in the scene where Barry Allen asks Bruce what his super power is, and Bruce replies "I'm rich." That was fine for the trailer, but Whedon should have re-shot it for the film. A much better line would have been if he replied in a Keaton-esque growl "I'm Batman".  Jeremy Irons returns as Alfred, and matches the great performance he gave in BvS. J.K. Simmons is introduced as Commissioner Gordon, but I thought he struck out with the character, small as the role was.  He looked and acted like J. Jonah Jameson with a walrus mustache.

Gal Gadot, so far the MVP of the DCEU, also turns in a fine performance as Diana Prince, although I found her acting slightly more wooden here than in Wonder Woman. I also noticed that she kept giving this pouty smirk that kept reminding me of a Kewpie Doll, and there were a lot of up skirt shots of her - not that I'm complaining.  The chemistry between Bruce and Diana was a high point of the movie.

Ezra Miller was introduced as Barry Allen and The Flash, in a costume that looks more Power Rangers than silver age comic book, and played the role like he was buzzed on some kind of amphetamine.  He had a couple funny lines, but for the most part I found him to be annoying, and by the middle of the movie, I was missing Grant Gustin's version a lot.

Ray Fisher plays Cyborg, and while I thought the early part of the movie devoted to his backstory dragged the film down, in the second half of the movie, he was instrumental to the plot.

Jason Momoa plays Aquaman in a performance that was part surfer-biker dude and part Batman The Brave and The Bold animated series-- though he stopped short of yelling "outrageous".

Amy Adams returns as Lois Lane in a small role.  There was no direct call back to the scene in BvS where the Flash travels back in time to tell Bruce she's the key.  Bruce just kind of knows she's the "big gun" to -SPOILER ALERT- bring the revived Superman back to his senses.  Henry Cavill, to his credit, after two other movies as Superman, finally shows some personality and charisma in the role.  This was Cavill's best performance as Superman. 

I also have to mention the musical score by Danny Elfman.  It is the best score in any of the DCEU films (and better than the scores in the Nolan Batman films), and it helps elevate the film.  Hearing refrains of his classic Batman theme and the classic John Williams Superman theme really drives this movie to be better than perhaps it really is. It would have been cool if Elfman worked in a reprise of the original Super Friends theme, but alas he did not.

There are -SPOILER ALERT- two post credit scenes, the second one at the very end of the credits brings back Superman's arch enemy and introduces a certain terminator.

Justice League is a fun movie that is enjoyable when it isn't being dragged down by slow moments or being distracted by inferior CGI. Like Affleck's Batman, its not the best, but its not the worst either.

Andy Fish's Batman '66 prequel

As most of my readers know, I was somewhat critical of DC's Batman '66 series, in that I felt it followed too much in the footsteps of the awful third season, and did not try hard enough to capture the spirit of the excellent first season. I was also very vocal about DC getting comic book artist-writer Andy Fish, who is a 1966 Batman fan who sees the series much as I do in regards to what worked, and why it went off the tracks, to work on the comic book version. Well, so far, DC hasn't wised up yet, but Mr Fish is posting his own independent Batman '66 prequel, Sinister Sideshow of Dr Scorpio, which can be read on several platforms, including batmanbyandyfish.blogspot.com.

Set in 1964, Dick Grayson has just become Bruce Wayne's ward, and it looks like Batman is new to his crusade against crime.  One of the best surprises so far happens in episode 3, where it is revealed Captain Marvel is Gotham's pre-Batman protector.

Andy, who is also a superhero serial buff (and as an aside, also be sure to check out his serial inspired 1940s take on Batman, The Death Ray of Hugo Strange which can be read at the same website), has based this take on Captain Marvel on the 1941 serial, which explains how he is a bit older, and has been in action before Batman.  He appears to be drawn as a combination of Tom Tyler and Fred MacMurray.
I am looking forward to see how the relationship between Batman and Captain Marvel develops. I would like to see an actual DC comic book series with this premise. Considering how Inspector Basch was set up in the pilot episode to be a recurring character that never panned out, I am curious to see if Andy will give a backstory to that character. I can't wait to read more chapters and I urge all the readers of this blog to check it out.

Review: Batman '66 meets the Legion of Superheroes

After the bad taste left by Batman '66 meets Wonder Woman '77, one would think it is great news to bring in Mike and Lee Allred, who produced the single best issue of the regular run of Batman '66 - its final issue. But it is kind of perplexing that the Legion of Superheroes were chosen to co-star.  I have to consider, was it supposed to be based on the Legends of the Superheroes TV specials, which would make more sense, and somehow, a misunderstanding resulted with the Legion of Superheroes instead?  The story opens with the Legion coming from the future to recruit the world's greatest teen superhero, Robin, to help them on capturing a villain, Universo, who time traveled to 1966.  Meanwhile Egghead discovers the Legion's time ships.  Batman goes with some of the Legion to the future to capture Egghead, while Robin leads the rest of the Legion in 1966 to capture Universo.  Hmm... Egghead and Universo sure look alike. In the future, Batman encounters a lot of classic silver age Legion scenarios, while in 1966, its alluded to the Legion may have come to an alternate timeline than the one they intended to go to.  Batman's team catches up to Egghead, who quickly comes back to 1966, where Universo has hypnotized Gotham's leadership. They realize Universo is Egghead's descendant and decide to team up.  Robin and his team try to save City Hall, and Batman and his team arrive back to help out. The artwork is absolute perfection, but the script reads more like a tribute to the Legion of Superheroes, with a real silver age feel, that guest stars Batman and Robin. While it is a definite step up from the previous Wonder Woman '77 debacle, if the rumors are true that this will be the final Batman '66 project, it ends on a wrong note. The franchise should end with a spotlight on Batman and Robin, not on the Legion. Hopefully there will be more Batman '66 projects after a brief hiatus to rethink the many flaws of the execution of the franchise. Hopefully Andy Fish will be brought in to create some of the new Batman '66 projects. This issue earns a B-.

Review: Batman '66 meets Wonder Woman '77 #6

The mercifully final issue of this rather disappointing series begins with Ra's in the Batcave, having a heart to heart talk with Bruce, trying to convince him to join the League of Shadows.  Meanwhile, Nightwing, Wonder Woman and Catwoman disco-fights their way out of Talia's trap (yes, it's a horrid as it sounds).  They call on "Batwoman" to lend a hand to invade the League's hide out, the former Arkham Asylum. But then, Batman shows up, in a Smokey and the Bandit era Trans Am customized as the Batmobile. He quickly explains he's been inspired again, and the five heroes enter Arkham, only to meet the members of the League- Mr Freeze, Clayface, Croc, The Cheetah and the criminally underused Riddler. There's another big fight, as Ra's and Talia attempt to escape.  Batman encounters Ra's at another pit, while the other three heroes continue to fight off villains and henchmen.  Batman and Ra's nearly fall into the Pit, but Wonder Woman rescues with her lasso. Ra's slips from Batman grip and falls into the pit, which reverts him... to a kid.  The story ends with Wonder Woman hinting at forming the JLA with Batman.  As with the previous issue, this is an average issue if you consider it a generic all-ages Batman story, but as a Batman '66 installment, it is a complete failure.  I'm not sure who to place the blame for this.  Is it a corporate DC mandate to force the 66 Universe to conform to generic DC continuity, or is it all Jeff Parker's idea since it is usually only the stories he writes that has this? This issue earns an F, and this entire miniseries should be retconned out. DC needs to bring in Andy Fish to get the Batman '66 franchise back on the right track.