Review: The Brave and the Bold- Batman and Wonder Woman

Quick Summary

Pros: The main mystery is compelling and there are entertaining moments from the main storyline. The inclusion of Irish folklore makes the book interesting and unique. The artwork is gorgeous and helps set the perfect tone for this story.

Cons: The narrative has minor problems all the way through. The conclusion is sudden and disappointing. The dialogue is often clunky and is noticeably inorganic in a few places.

Overall: This ends up being a book with mixed appeal. It centers around a troubled narrative, with a few solid positives but an equal number of negatives. However, unique concepts and gorgeous artwork help make up for these negatives and give the book some appeal all on their own. Readers simply looking for a beautiful book that provides a unique take on Irish folklore, no matter the narrative quality, should consider checking this book out.

Story

The Brave and the Bold: Batman and Wonder Woman, by Liam Sharp, has a fantastic concept driving it forward but does a lackluster job in telling this otherwise solid story. The entire book is based on Irish folklore and incorporates elements of this rarely seen mythology in ways that feel fresh. There are also moments where the story gets really interesting, especially in regards to the main mystery. However, problems with characters, interactions, and dialogue hamper the process from beginning to end. Plus, the conclusion is abrupt and rather disappointing. In the end, the story stands out as something unique but doesn’t really stand out as something particularly positive.

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Right from the start, the overall narrative in The Brave and the Bold has a lot going for it. It has some fun moments from Batman and Wonder Woman and takes both of them on a unique adventure. It centers around a compelling mystery that grabs the reader’s attention right away. As this mystery develops, it becomes even more interesting and eventually leads to the unexpected reveal near the volume’s conclusion.

However, despite a number of positives bolstering the plot upwards, there are also an equal number of problems pulling it down. Smaller interactions between characters feel pointless, exposition is rather lengthy and, by the end of the book, both Batman and Wonder Woman end up feeling underutilized. The book’s conclusion also is a huge disappointment, it has Wonder Woman defeat the main villain over the course of two pages and has this one action resolve the entire book. This conclusion flew by so quickly I ended up rereading it twice to make sure I hadn’t missed something.

The biggest problem, however, ends up being the dialogue. Characters often speak in ways that feel unnatural and forced. In the case of the mythological beings, this makes their characters feel otherworldly and enhances them, however the same cannot be said for characters like Batman and Wonder Woman. At one point, Batman unironically says “Thank you kindly, but away now, girls!” to a group of fairies. Other instances of dialogue like this are not hard to find throughout this collection.

Outside of the actual narrative, the inclusion of Irish folklore is a big draw for the book. Unlike Greek and, nowadays, Norse mythology, the stories and concepts from medieval Irish literature are often overlooked in most works of fiction. This allows the setting, characters, and rich history backing up this book to feel incredibly fresh and novel. I ended up learning a ton about a culture I had little knowledge of, which ended up enhancing my reading experience.

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Art

The biggest draw for The Brave and the Bold is easily the artwork. Liam Sharp’s work throughout this collection is absolutely gorgeous and looks good on nearly every page. Batman, Wonder Woman, and all of the other characters are depicted with fantastic levels of detail, in ways that emphasize both their power and their beauty. Romulo Fajardo Jr.’s colors contribute to this appeal as well, ensuring that color and the absence of color are balanced in appropriate ways.

It also helps that Sharp’s artwork is a perfect fit for the comic’s overall themes. The creative visuals in this book help establish Tir Na Nog as a world that is truly filled with magic and wonder. This can be seen in some of the breathtaking locations, especially those depicted on larger spreads, or simply in the wonderful diversity of life, which can be seen through all of the book’s characters. Even the structure and detail of the paneling helps make this book feel like it was ripped right from the pages of an old Irish tome.

Continuity

The Brave and the Bold: Batman and Wonder Woman is a miniseries that does not continue the story from any other specific comic.

The story in The Brave and the Bold: Batman and Wonder Woman is, currently, not continued in any specific comic. However, the conclusion implies that a follow-up story is coming eventually.

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

• Batman mentions being “a vessel to godlike powers.” This occurred in the Justice League: Darkseid War (Review) (Reading Order) story arc.
• Batman also mentions dying. This could be a reference to his “death” in Batman: RIP or his “death” at the conclusion of Batman: Endgame (Review).