Part Five of “The Gotham War” marches on in this month’s BATMAN #138. Tempers are escalating amongst the Robins, Catwoman is deemed the only one to get through to the Dark Knight, and our hero is doing some questionable procedures on Red Hood.
Oh yeah, and that Zur is still hanging around.
I’ve been pretty positive about “The Gotham War” thus far, and while I’m not as high on this part as all of the others, it’s still pretty solid and pushes the story forward. Writer Chip Zdarsky is back to constructing this chapter, putting Batman in some dramatic situations with his allies. Seemingly, the one with the most weight is his questionable treatment of Jason Todd (Red Hood, obviously). I won’t spoil that it is here, but it did get me to scratch my chin.
He always battles Nightwing and Robin (Tim Drake), with a bit of uncharacteristic dialogue throughout. He seems a bit mushy, but then also a bit selfish in “all that he’s done” for them over the years. That doesn’t seem like a Batman move, so something is definitely up.
And that’s the point. I’ve rolled my eyes each time Zdarsky has brought up Zur-en-arrh during his run, but I think it’s creeping toward a confrontation. I hope it’s to put it to rest, but we will see how it plays out.
Jorge Jimenez continues to bring his A-list art to the book. The man excels with action, particularly hand-to-hand combat, and we get plenty of that here. Jimenez delivers the goods on designs, movements, and settings, and also brings clarity to each panel. He’s doing a great job, and only getting better.
Overall, a solid entry into this story, planting some seeds that are surely going to sprout some interesting drama this month. – Ryan Lower