Review Shooter: Batman and Robin 22

The problem with reviewing a continuing series/arc is that aside from some major missteps there doesn’t tend to be much variation in quality from issue to issue. So you can expect this review to be as gushing as it was last month for Batman and Robin 21.

Picking up where the last issue left off, The White Knight of Gotham has poisoned the minds of family members of some of Gotham’s more notorious citizens. The Dynamic Duo wastes little time to spring into action and save as many as possible. Sadly, not everyone makes it.

After their daring rescues, Dick and Damian retreat to their bunker to finally get to the end of the White Knight mystery, but not before we have a truly awesome scene between Dick, Damian and Alfred. Even though he has been Robin for quite some time, and works well with Dick, Damian still seems to have some self-doubts about his own role in life. Damian’s responses in this scene, and throughout the entire issue, speaks about a boy who is trying to hide his own pain and cope with the world, but at the same time are such a joy to read!

I touched on it last time, and I’ll touch on it again, and probably in the future, but I really do love the dynamic between Dick and Damian. As big and varied as the Bat-family is, none of the groupings have or have had quite the complex relationship as these two. Their dynamic was one of the things I feared would be most hurt by the transition from Grant Morrison to well any other write, but Tomasi handles it like a pro.

The plot moves over to Arkham and I’ll probably leave it there, don’t want to ruin too much more of the story. Just trust me, you are in for a treat both in story and in visuals.

I’ve gushed about the art last month, and really nothing has changed. The art is fantastic, and my joy is only heightened by the inclusion of the White Knight who gives the comic an extra amount of glow that really talks to me. I love big, bright and bold colors, what can I say.

Tell me you can see the panel above and not have your face light up like a little kid on Christmas morning. I could stare at that panel all day. Really, I could, but I must conclude this review!

Like I mentioned before, I really dig Damian in this issue, and one of the reasons… is a bit of a spoiler, but check out this interaction below:

I won’t give away too much context for this image, though by the time you get to it in the comic, it will be a much larger spoiler, and I apologize. But this was my favorite moment in comics this week, and I really wanted to share it with the world!

I recommended the series last month, and I’ll do the same this month. The arc wraps up in this issue so next month’s is a new beginning. Will it be as praised and loved her? Only one way to find out, tune in same Nerds time, same Nerds channel!

New Reader Accessibility: 5 This is the end of a 3 part arc, which as I’ve stated before, will ALWAYS knock points off the score. In addition to that, you also have to be familiar with Batman’s rogues gallery to an extent to fully comprehend some of the visuals and even the reasoning of the main baddie for the series. That said if you can track down the first 2 issues, which shouldn’t be too difficult, I really recommend reading it.