Review: Batman Vol. 11- The Fall and the Fallen
Quick Summary
Pros: The opening chapters are intense and exciting. The next few chapters are emotional and provide a well-written story about the Flashpoint Batman. The collection concludes with a series of mostly positive short stories featuring a few awesome villain snapshots. The volume’s artwork is positive all the way through.
Cons: The inclusion of the Bat-family could have been better. One of the short stories is disappointing.
Overall: This is a solid read that builds an immense amount of excitement for the future. The stories collected here are intense when it comes to both action and emotion. They feature awesome moments from the characters in the present while constantly keeping an eye toward the future. Plus, the artwork accompanying all of this makes it even better. Fans of the ongoing Bane saga or fans just looking for a prelude to City of Bane should absolutely check out this collection.
Story
Batman Vol. 11: The Fall and the Fallen, by Tom King, is an intense volume on its own and an awesome prelude to the upcoming showdown with Bane. This volume immediately rockets Batman into action as his battle with Bane escalates. The confrontation here is intense but appears to only be a teaser for what is in store in the next volume. Then, this collection transitions to a more emotional story, as readers finally see the motivations powering the Flashpoint Batman. Finally, the volume concludes with a few standalone Batman stories, unconnected from this narrative but still highly enjoyable. Overall, this collection has a lot to offer and does plenty in getting readers excited for what is coming next.
(spoilers start here)
The Fall and the Fallen starts with some fisticuffs, plain and simple. Batman violently breaks out of Arkham, brutally taking down a larger portion of his rogues gallery as he does so, and is confronted by Bane a day later. They engage in a terrible battle that is half action-showcase and half review of how Bane’s plan has been executed thus far. The fight leaves Batman defeated and assures the reader that, this time, Bane is no pushover. These two opening chapters kick things off with a bang and provide a great prelude to the next showdown with Bane.
The next few chapters in The Fall and the Fallen have Batman’s father, the Flashpoint Batman, rescue Batman from Bane and take him out to the desert, where he plans to use a type of Lazarus Pit to bring Martha Wayne back to life. This arc swaps physical intensity for emotional intensity. Flashpoint Batman explains himself well and it is easy to understand why he is doing what he is doing. However, it goes against everything Batman is as a hero and, thus, he is forced to reject his father’s plan for a new family. It ends up being a great way to tie up the inclusion of Flashpoint Batman in this series.
Finally, The Fall and the Fallen concludes with a Batman Secret Files issue that collects a series of short stories that are mostly unconnected to what is going on in the rest of the collection. The majority of these stories are great, as they provide fun or thoughtful looks at moments in Batman’s life. His encounter with the Joker felt like a fun story from the past, before Joker was only used for world-shattering events; the Riddler story provides a sad look at the Riddler’s obsession with Batman as an enemy; the Hugo Strange story reminds readers that Strange may be one of Batman’s most twisted enemies; and the Bane story is a look at Bane’s insane drive, which is particularly enjoyable considering what is going on in the main series. Overall, these stories are entertaining and end up being a worthwhile addition to the book.
The problems with this collection are minor and don’t have a sizable impact on its appeal. I felt like the confrontation between Batman and his allies could have been better, as Batman violently rejecting them when they start to question him is becoming a pretty tired trope at this point. In addition, the Psycho Pirate story seemed to imply emotional trauma is something that should be harnessed to bolster one’s strength instead of being treated, which wasn’t a good message. As these points only form a small piece of the volume though, they aren’t something that seriously effects it.
(spoilers end here)
Art
The visuals in The Fall and the Fallen look great from beginning to end. The first few chapters mostly feature some fantastic art from Jorge Fornés. Fornés’ work is fantastic at bringing out the dynamic action in these scenes. It is detailed, energetic, and structured in a way that allows the narrative to flow well. It is also accompanied by Mikel Janín’s typically positive work.
Then, as the next arc begins, Mikel Janín takes over as the only artist. Here, the change in artist reflects a change in scenery, which Janín handles very well. I really enjoyed seeing Janín’s simple take on scenery, which gave an even greater emphasis on the characters and their emotions. Plus, Jordie Bellaire’s colors look great with Janín’s artwork and helped prevent it from falling into an uncanny valley, which occasionally happens depending on the colorist Janín is paired with.
Finally, the collection closes with a few short chapters from a few different artists. The standouts here come from Amancay Nahuelpan, who’s work on the Joker looks great, and from Patrick Gleason, who’s work on Bane helps emphasize Bane’s ferocity. All in all, this collection has plenty going for it when it comes to visuals.
Continuity
Batman Vol. 11: The Fall and the Fallen continues the story from Batman Vol. 10: Knightmares (Review).
The story here continues in Batman Vol. 12: City of Bane Part 1 (Review).
This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:
- The volume makes a number of references to the entire series thus far, which started with Batman Vol. 1: I am Gotham (Review). See our “Batman by Tom King Reading Order” for more information.
- The updated status quo for multiple characters is shown near the beginning of this volume.
- Batgirl (Reading Order) changed her costume in Batgirl Vol. 5 #27, collected in Batgirl Vol. 5: Art of the Crime.
- Tim Drake (Reading Order) joined Young Justice in Young Justice Vol. 1: Gemworld.
- Dick Grayson (Reading Order) became Ric across Nightwing: Knight Terrors.
- Red Hood (Reading Order) became more distant from Batman in Red Hood and the Outlaws #25, collected in Red Hood and the Outlaws Vol. 4: Good Night Gotham (Review). He took on a different identity across Red Hood: Outlaw Vol. 1: Requiem for an Archer.
- The Flashpoint Batman is from the Flashpoint (Review) (Reading Order) event. The explanation behind what happened to his wife is told in the Flashpoint: Batman- Knight of Vengeance series, collected in Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring Batman (Review).