Review: Batman Vol. 4- The War of Jokes and Riddles

Quick Summary

Pros: The story is intense, and the emotions are even more intense. Both Joker and Riddler are handled well. The entire collection looks beautiful and does a wonderful job in enhancing the story.

Cons: Most battles are described through narration rather than shown. The jokes and riddles told throughout the book are all rather juvenile.

Overall: This might be the most subjective entry in this Batman series, thus far. Its subjectivity hinges on whether readers like or dislike the book’s tendency to describe fights and action sequences in narration rather than focusing on them more thoroughly. Either way though, the heavy emotional message and the chaotic actions of Joker and Riddler will keep all readers entertained. This is a good book overall but one that is a lot better if you enjoy the approach taken within.

Story

Batman Vol. 4: The War of Jokes and Riddles is a unique episode in the current Batman saga, partly because of its flashback style setting and partly because of how the actual war is displayed. Though the flashback setting is something most fans can get behind, not everyone will be happy with writer Tom King’s tendency to tell and not show the battles being fought here. I personally enjoyed this facet of the work and thought it played well into the book’s overall theme; however those coming into this book expecting to see epic battles may leave it disappointed.

Though some aspects of the book are subjective, there are a number of story elements that are undeniably positive for any reader. In particular, the emotional impact found in the “Ballad of Kite Man” and the book’s overall theme are handled wonderfully. This makes this a good book for any Batman fan and a great book for any fan who doesn’t mind fight scenes being described instead of being shown.

(spoilers start here)

The War of Jokes and Riddles flashes back to a time when a dispute between the Riddler and the Joker caused all of Gotham to become embroiled in a superpowered gang war. As stated earlier, King’s approach to this war is rather controversial. Instead of showing pages and panels where villains go head to head in epic showdowns, one page will show one scene from a showdown and narration will explain what happened. In this way, it feels like Batman is narrating a scrapbook covering an event from the past, rather than this being a true flashback. I personally enjoyed this approach; it is a nice change of pace that keeps the emotions of the work at the forefront. However, I can also sympathize with the readers who prefer some additional action in their comic books.

Luckily there are a number of moments here that are great no matter who you are. Chief among these is “The Ballad of Kite Man,” an immensely touching story about a normal man pushed into becoming a supervillain. The emotions in this tale are heartbreaking and highlight the regret Batman feels as a result of this war, which is one of the main purposes behind this entire flashback. It also turns Kite Man, a seemingly trivial character King brought out back in Batman Vol. 1 (Review), into one of the most tragic villains in Batman’s life.

In particular, King does a great job in capturing the personalities behind both the Riddler and the Joker. The Riddler is cruel and manipulative, often predicting actions and events long before they happen. At the end of the book, he even confesses to having planned the entire war. Meanwhile, the Joker is simply insane, killing and torturing with absolutely no regard to rules or morality. One sequence has him punish someone by killing their mother, yet we later learn that he killed their mother hours before even asking for their help. My only complaint is that the “jokes” and “riddles” told by the two are all rather juvenile and nowhere near the level one would expect them to be.

Outside of the flashback is the frame story that holds it all together, Bruce Wayne telling Selina Kyle about his role in the war. Though short, these moments also help inject additional emotion into the narrative, especially in those moments where Bruce is clearly holding back tears. It also helps in setting up the next volume by deepening the connection between Bruce and Selina and giving an answer to his proposal.

(spoilers end here)

Art

As this volume relies heavily on narration to tell its story, the artwork shown while this narration happens is critical in holding readers’ attention. Luckily, Mikel Janín is a fantastic artist who’s artwork speaks volumes in telling the story seen here. Splash pages abound in this volume and show snapshots of the war that can range from dark and tragic to bright and beautiful. In addition, Janín does a fabulous job in depicting nearly every member of Batman’s rogues gallery. Villains are creative, environments are beautiful, and everything helps in telling Batman’s tragic story.

The only portions of this book not drawn by Janín are those that tell “The Ballad of Kite Man,” drawn by Clay Mann. Mann’s more gruff and gritty style works well with the more pronounced emotions in this segment of the book. Here the focus is on a soldier in the war, rather than the entire army, so the lack of sweeping splash pages works well. Overall, this changeup in the artistic talent is a great way to signal the changeup in tone and also to provide the collection with a dash of visual diversity.

Continuity

Batman Vol. 4: The War of Jokes and Riddles continues the story from Batman Vol. 3: I am Bane (Review). However, the majority of this volume is a flashback, taking place shortly after Batman Vol. 4: Zero Year-Secret City (Review) and Batman Vol. 5: Zero Year- Dark City (Review) so one does not necessarily have to have read the previous volumes in this series to understand the bulk of what is going on here.

The story here continues in Batman Vol. 5: Rules of Engagement (Review).

This volume also references and continues the stories from other comic books, detailed below:

• Joker, Batman, and Riddler’s appearances in the first chapter of this book mirror events from the first time they ever appeared in comic books. See our “Easter Eggs in Batman #25” article for more information.
• The events of Batman Vol. 4: Zero Year-Secret City (Review) and Batman Vol. 5: Zero Year- Dark City (Review) are brought up a few times.
• Riddler asking for a mirror is a nearly exact reference to what happened to Joker in the 1989 Batman movie.