Jul
14
2014
0

Batman Eternal #14 Review

Written by: Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV, John Layman, Ray Fawkes , & Tim Seeley

Art by: Jason Fabok

Publisher: DC

Batman Eternal is an interesting way to do a weekly series. While past successful weekly series, like 52, didn’t have a single writer for each issue, Batman Eternal does. As such, the quality of the issue kind of depends on who happens to be writing it, and this results in a lack of parity in terms of the quality of each individual issue. Fortunately, issue #14 is written by James Tynion IV, who is generally a solid writer, and this issue is definitely one of the series’ stronger issues. Tynion is also credited (along with Scott Snyder) for being behind the plot of the book, and this undoubtedly has a positive effect on the issue, considering that some of the ideas may have come from Tynion originally. That being said, it does slip up in some places, and certain plot lines don’t hold up when placed next to others.

Really, there is far more good than bad in Batman Eternal #14. Five of the seven plot lines are present in this book, and, of those, four are extraordinarily well done. Perhaps the best is the Gang War plot line, which seems to have been brought to a conclusion in this issue. It would have been nice to see it play out more, and there could be more of it in future issues, but for now, it seems to be done. This plot line really takes advantages of the book’s peripheral characters, such as Vicki Vale and Lieutenant Bard. These two characters are particularly well realized in this series, and are easily the most dynamic characters. As cool a character as Batman is, sometimes it’s nice to reel back his presence in favor of showcasing other characters that are present in Gotham doing good work, which is what both of these characters are doing. They have an interesting relationship with one another, one that Tynion writes quite well, which serves to make them even more interesting individuals.

Then, there’s Jim Gordon’s story line, which probably has the second most page time in this issue. This is another strong plot line, as it gives Jim Gordon the chance to shine, and get some solid character development, which is nice. It isn’t often that Gordon is used as much more as a peripheral character with a few lines of dialogue, so between his role in Zero Year and his development as a result of (maybe) causing the deaths of over 100 people in the first issue allows him to get some much needed character progression. After his chat with his son last issue (it’s always nice to see James Gordon Jr, isn’t it?), he really seems to be questioning himself, and attempting to make decisions about embarking on a new path. Even though members of the bat-family (namely Batgirl and Batman) are in the process of trying to prove him innocent, he still begins to take matters into his own hands here, allowing him to embark on his own journey, separate from the rest of Gotham City’s cast.

This issue also spends some time dealing with Arkham Asylum, and the events that are currently happening there. This part of the story act as bookends to this issue, with two pages at the beginning and two pages at the end, and we see that something’s afoot at Arkham. Hell, even Scarecrow is afraid of whatever’s going on there. This is actually the best Scarecrow we’ve seen in The New 52 so far, even though it’s only for a couple of pages. Joker’s Daughter shows up as well, however her role is still a little bit unclear at this point. And while she’s been somewhat redeemed after the Villain’s Month one-shot, it’s still a little bit hard to care about her in the context of Batman Eternal at this point. All in all though, this story line is pretty solid.

In addition, we check in with Stephanie Brown for a couple of pages. Tynion really seems to get that character, as do many of the writers in this series. She has consistently been one of the series’ strongest characters. Her role here is brief, but just checking in with her and Cluemaster is nice to see.

Finally, we have the Time Drake/Harper Row story line. Each of these characters is interesting on their own, however, this plot is really weak. It seems kind of unnecessary, as if it were added simply for the sake of having these two characters involved somehow. The worst part is probably Tim Drake’s characterization. I’m not reading Teen Titans, so maybe this is a carry over from that series. However, his attitude towards Batman seems unnecessary. Even after Death of the Family, his relationship with Batman at this point makes little sense. This Tim Drake also doesn’t feel like the Tim Drake that I know and love. He remains a cool character, but I feel that the way he is portrayed here is  kind of odd. Also, this plot is the least interesting of everything going on in this book, and definitely the hardest to get invested in.

So that’s Batman Eternal #14. It has its definite highs, but also some unfortunate lows. Really, some consistency would do wonders for this book. All in all though, this issue was definitely one of the better issues of the series.