Review: Batman Eternal Vol. 1

Quick Summary

Pros: The mystery is well done and interesting. Spotlight on some of the underappreciated members of the Bat-family is great. The art is fantastic at times.

Cons: Some of the subplots are not that great. There are some inconsistencies in both the story and art.

Overall: This is a thrilling mystery starring the coolest cast of characters this side of Gotham City. With a complex narrative that manages to avoid being too confusing and a plethora of action, this is a story that will keep readers on the edge of their seats the entire time. Batman fans, especially those interested in mystery, should make sure to pick this one up.

Story

Batman Eternal Vol. 1 is the first part of a long series about a single conspiracy in Gotham City. It follows Batman as he uncovers the mystery but also includes plenty of side stories featuring some of the underappreciated members of the Bat-family. It is an intense story with tons of twists and turns that manages to avoid getting too complicated. In many ways it feels like The Long Halloween in how it manages to pull you in and keep you interested the entire way. Since this is such a long book, not everything in it is great, but the vast majority is fun and entertaining.

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The bulk of this story centers around the mystery and how Batman and his family are dealing with it. The real treat in this is how much of an emotional roller coaster the mystery puts you on. One minute you think that Falcone is behind everything, the next you realize he was an underling the whole time. Then, you finally start to sympathize with Bard, only to find out that he has been evil the whole time. Unlike other mysteries though, it is not just unpredictable for the sake of being unpredictable. Many of the twists and turns are foreshadowed earlier in the story and make rereading very satisfying.

Alongside Batman’s main adventure are several subplots which help in developing the overall story. Commissioner Gordon’s time in prison, Batwing’s investigation into supernatural occurrences at Arkham, Batgirl and Red Hood’s journey to chase down leads in South America, Tim Drake’s discovery of a computer virus in children, and Spoiler’s quest to stay alive all contribute to the collection’s main mystery, while also being entertaining on their own.

In particular, Gordon’s prison time, Spoiler’s survival, and the South America trip are the highlights here. The first two allow for somewhat underutilized characters to receive some time in the spotlight while also deepening their character development. In particular, I loved Gordon’s meeting with his son and the temptation to betray the law. Meanwhile, the last one is just an awesome look at Batgirl as the strong character she is, with plenty of Red Hood hijinks on the side. Honestly, these three stories could function completely on their own and be fun; the fact that they connect to the main mystery is just icing on the cake.

Not every subplot is a winner though. The Tim Drake and Batwing stories are average at best. The Tim Drake story is bogged down by how inconsequential it feels, instead of developing the story it seems to just be setting up Harper Row as more of a main character. The Batwing story is a bit better but fails to rise above being anything more than a “non-believer gets spooked by ghosts” story. Neither of these are necessarily bad but are definitely weaker points in the series as a whole.

The real negatives are mostly derived from the slight inconstancies in the story. For instance: Bard’s level of comedy changes depending on who is writing the script, Batman discovers Bard’s corruption but seems to forget it in subsequent issues, and Batman somehow knew what was going on with Batwing and Jim Corrigan despite an earlier issue establishing they have not had any contact with each other. These problems are small but appear enough that meticulous readers will be bothered by them.

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Art

Much like the story, the artwork in this book is overall good but fluctuates depending on the specific artist. On the positive end, artists like Jason Fabok, Dustin Nguyen, and Mikel Janin provide some breathtaking work. Fabok and Janin’s more detailed and realistic take on things is perfect for the book’s main storyline involving Batman and the city of Gotham in general. Meanwhile, Dustin Nguyen provides a weirder style that better fits the supernatural themed stories he pencils. In this way, a good majority of the book’s artwork looks great.

On the flip side of this, there are a few issues that don’t look nearly as good. For example, Emanuel Simeoni does an alright job in drawing scenery but is severely lacking when drawing faces. This leads to one of the oddest depictions of Batman I have ever seen and an incredibly disappointing reveal of Leo Leone’s big secret.

In addition, minor inconsistencies in the artwork pop up throughout the book. For example, Leo Leone goes from having a long and wild beard, to a neat, medium length beard, and then back to a long and wild one. However, though inconsistencies are present, they are not large enough to warrant a major complaint.

Continuity

Batman Eternal Vol. 1 is the beginning of a new series that mostly serves as a companion to Scott Snyder’s Batman series. While Batman Eternal does not directly flow from any specific story in Batman, characters and events from that series are brought into this one. Readers are free to enter Batman Eternal without reading Batman, however reading Batman will certainly help in understanding who everyone is.

The story started here continues in Batman Eternal Vol. 2 (Review).

This volume also references the stories from other comic books, all of which are detailed below:

• In a conversation between Batman and Red Robin, the current conditions of Dick and Damian are mentioned
  • Dick’s current condition is due to the events of Forever Evil (Review) and is explained at either the end of Nightwing Vol. 5: Setting Son (Review) or Grayson Vol. 1: Agents of Spyral (Review).
  • Damian’s current condition is due to the events of Batman Incorporated Vol. 2: Gotham’s Most Wanted.
• Also mentioned in this conversation is a recent run in with the Joker, which caused a good deal of mistrust between the Bat-family. This happened in Batman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review).
• Penguin mentions that he and Catwoman recently had a run in with each other. This happened in Catwoman Vol. 4: Gotham Underground.
• The “Zero Year” is mentioned, this happened throughout Batman Vol. 4: Zero Year: Secret City (Review) and Batman Vol. 5: Zero Year: Dark City (Review).
• The “Arkham War” is mentioned very briefly. This happened in Forever Evil: Arkham War.
• Commissioner Gordon thinks his son is dead due to the events of Batgirl Vol. 3: Death of the Family.

 

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