Organized crime and Batman go hand-in-hand.
Except in this month’s BATMAN #4, organized comes with an asterisk.
Writer Matt Fraction is building toward something, and this may be the biggest piece yet. We add another layer to the (confusing) bit with Dr. Zeller, the witness to the police/Robin situation has an ally, and a Minotaur becomes an immediate threat.
I’m all for two of those three bits. It was the Zeller part here (and in previous issues) that has me scratching my head. And I can’t really tell you what her conversation with Bruce was about. Fraction has been building on this, so I know it’ll have a payoff, but right now, it is very confusing.
The cover story here is the introduction of Minotaur. I saw some online chatter/comments when artist Jorge Jiménez debuted the cover image. The comments were making fun of the character, which I found a little ironic since many these days are always saying “wait for the full context”. Well, the context is in this issue, and Minotaur rules. We tend to forget why we got into comics in the first place, and this bold, threatening new character with a taste for the theatrical is a nice shot of menace for this title. The villain quickly has a presence, commands the scene, and does something really evil.
Excellently written. Originally drawn.
Speaking of the art, let’s get back to Jiménez. He does another admirable job here, drawing a wide variety of scenes that stretch from big, action-heavy to a two-person character builder. This issue won’t change your mind, because the guy is consistent and has been delivering the goods for a while. If you dig him, you still will. If you don’t, you won’t.
Overall, this is a better issue than last month. Aside from the minor confusion with a subplot, a threatening villain is introduced and doesn’t force his command from the get-go. He just works.
Looking forward to our next meeting. – Ryan Lower
