Review: Batman #27

Quick Summary

Pros: This interlude is actually a short and refreshing change of pace for the arc. It humanizes the character of Kite Man in a way that works perfectly with his character’s motivations and the current storyline. Plus it continues this arc’s overall theme of Batman blaming the war on his own existence.

Cons: Readers expecting the same bombastic warlike antics of the last two issues will be disappointed. The structure of this issues is a little confusing.

Overall: This is a subdued interlude in the “War of Jokes and Riddles” that actually still does a lot to enhance the story. It presents a very personal story about a Batman villain in order to give the reader another perspective on the events that have been unfolding recently. Though it is structured in a somewhat confusing manner, it is still a great issue and a fine addition to the overall story.

Story

This “War of Jokes and Riddles” interlude does two things very well: it humanizes the soldiers in this “war” and asks the readers to consider a question. The soldier it chooses to humanize is the now infamous Kite Man, which will be a treat for those who have been reading Tom King’s Batman. The question it asks readers to consider is one that this entire arc seems to be building toward “is Batman good for Gotham?” Both of these aspects of Batman #27 are enjoyable to read about and help to enhance the overall themes being built in this arc.

Readers should be aware, before going into this issue, that this is designed to be an interlude in the “War of Jokes and Riddles.” Going into this collection expecting the same craziness as the last two issues will leave you disappointed. However, going into it expecting a more personal and subdued story will allow you to appreciate what is done here and, perhaps, appreciate the entire arc a little more.

(spoilers start here)

This issue follows the story of Charles Brown, the soon to be Kite Man. He is pulled into the “War of Jokes and Riddles” against his will and ends up playing a double, triple, and even quadruple agent. His changing sides is largely attributed to the fact that he has no desire to be in this war at all; he is simply reacting in whatever will keep him and his family safe, almost as if he were a kite blowing in the wind. Yet, by the end of the issue, the war breaks him. His son is dead and he has lost faith in what he believes in, causing him to become a villain and enter the war on his own terms.

The crazy about this story is that neither Joker or Riddler were the ones to pull Kite Man into this war, Batman did it. Batman forced him to scout out information on the Joker, almost getting him killed in the process. Without Batman, he would have never become involved and he son would still be alive.

Blaming Batman for everything that happens to Charles Brown might be a little extreme though. After all, one could easily argue that none of this is really Batman’s fault, as he would never have had to put Kite Man in this position if Joker and Riddler had not started this war. Yet this argument is the point. Throughout this entire arc King has been hinting at the fact that Batman blames himself for each and every death caused by his enemies. It seems likely that he is entertaining the age old Batman fan question “does Batman, though his existence, give birth to the very criminals he is trying to stop?” This question is something that Batman fans argue about all of the time, so it is nice to see the comics take on the issue. It will be interesting to see how King answers this question and makes my excitement for the continuation of this arc even greater.

Now, speaking on this issue’s negatives, my biggest complaint specifically arises from how this issues is structured. The story jumps ahead dramatically on each page in order to move the plot forward. However, this also causes things to get a little confusing. I had to read the issue over multiple times in order to determine what exactly was happening and who Charlie Brown was betraying each time. After a couple of reads, everything was clear but it did take a couple of reads to get there.

(spoilers end here)

Art

Whenever Clay Mann steps in to do an issue of a series, the result always ends up being quality. Mann is a great artist; he is detailed, precise, and just generally good at what he does. He is also able to match Mikel Janín’s visual style very well, resulting in a smooth transition between this issue and the last. Readers will absolutely not be disappointed with the resulting artwork in this book.

Continuity

This is the third issue of “The War of Jokes and Riddles” storyline in the Batman series. So all readers need to do to understand this issue is read the previous two issues (reviews of which can be found here and here).

• Kite Man plays a big role in this book. The first appearance of both him and his catchphrase is chronicled within Batman Vol. 1: I am Gotham (Review).