Geek Syndicate
COMIC REVIEW - Batman #001-#011: The Court of Owls
What’s Gone Before
With the move back to Bruce Wayne being the only Batman and Snyder also moving to Batman from Detective it was always going to be interesting to see how he managed with the true franchise player. It is a delight to write that anyone reading this who has never read Snyder should believe the hype. The man has produced two of the best Batman stories ever written and Court of Owls is in my top five if not higher. Before we discuss the Court I think it is important to look at what came before. DC and Snyder made it clear that the new Batman could be picked up by anyone but it is obvious that Snyder started to architect his run before it started with his brilliant mini series, The Gates of Gotham. This series took place before the New 52 and therefore still had Dick Grayson as the Batman. It delved into the history of Gotham like no other writer had before and added depth to the city as a whole. This would become a recurring theme in The Court of Owls. Gotham was a monster as real as The Joker or any of the other villains it has spawned. It could corrupt most people no matter what they tried to do. What is more, this continued on the theme that Bruce, in particular, but also the rest of the Bat family are the only people in Gotham that are incorruptible, a theme that is so crucial to the Batman character: he is a legend, a myth that we should look up to.
The Cover Story
Before we look at the actual content, the covers by the brilliant Greg Capullo (the artist on the book who does a fantastic job creating Gotham) tell us a lot about every issue of the story. Issue One illustrates Batman being accosted by many Arkham inmates. This is a foretelling for what is going to happen in this story arc. Batman will face madness head-on. He will be sent down the rabbit hole, continually trying to battle for his sanity through the courage of his convictions. Batman will be rocked by what happens to him in this arc. Everything will be thrown at him but he will stand tall? Further, the cover shows Batman outnumbered: another big theme of the story. Through the majority of this series The Dark Knight will be outnumbered with little left but his natural abilities. This theme will be continued in the covers for Issues Seven and Eight. Issue Seven illustrates Batman fighting his own personal demons. They are clearly gathering around the damaged Batman who is trying everything he can to hold onto his sanity. Issue Eight is even more intriguing as the talons are swarming Wayne Manor. We see Bruce stripped down to his core: no suit, he is just a man. The bat is a legend and the suit makes him a nightmare. But the Owls are Batman’s nightmare, showing the world that he is nothing but a man.
Writers: Scott Snyder Art: Greg Capullo Publisher: DC Comics
All everyone has been talking about since The New 52 arrived last September has been the rise of Scott Snyder. I was a fan of Snyder’s preNew 52 writing with his exceptional work on Det ?????
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