If the art of comic book writing was like a cooking show, Batman #26 would the point where a studio audience gets a perplexed look on their face, and then ooohs in a state of apprehension. The reason for such tensions? Ingredients. The chef has placed so much into one dish that those watching will begin to wonder if this won’t be a mess. Same with Batman #26. Writer Scott Snyder has tossed a lot of ingredients into this issue, and the end, when he puts it all in to cook, is fraught with genuine peril.
The first layer here comes with Jim Gordon arresting Bruce Wayne. Not in the present. Gordon hasn’t captured the bat and unmasked him. No, this starts in a movie theater, when Wayne was a boy. Huh? Interesting. Next, Snyder mixes in the man-creature Karl, who has descended on Lucius Fox and other Wayne Tech scientists. Thankfully, the bitter taste of Mr. Fox betraying Bruce Wayne from issue #25 turns out to be false. Fox knew Karl was headed right for him, so he injected Bruce with an anti-serum to protect from Karl’s weird bone crushing cocktail.
Turns out Karl has secrets for Bruce, something to do with his condition and his need for revenge. Another layer added to the stew. Escaping from the hideous man-creature nearly kills Bruce, who ends up in the hospital with a cracked cranium. Here’s where Snyder unleashes a challenging brew of spices. We know from Snyder’s Court of Owls and Joker runs that Batman and Jim Gordon are the best of friends. In issue #25, Snyder let on that Bruce once despised Gordon, and now the plot (and stew) thickens as Wayne accuses Gordon of corruption. There is still no indication of what Wayne’s beef is with Gordon over the night his parents died, so now intrigue is simmering into the pot. Let’s not forget the Riddler, who still lurks in the darkness, ready to bring Gotham down.
Finally, there’s the finale. Snyder has poured his ingredients into issue #26. The way he brings it to a boil is with an obsessed commissioner (not Gordon) opening fire on Batman. There is blood, there is death, and now we must wait for the whole thing to bake. At the end of issue #26, tensions may run high. So much is happening here – different threads, odds and ends, multiple layers all needing to gel together. I have faith in Snyder, he is a master wordsmith. His storylines are always complex, and this time he’s rewriting Batman’s history. That omelet could never be made without breaking some eggs. So don’t ohh and ahhh, don’t get scared, the stew will be tasty, and the end of Zero Year just as satisfying.
Even if the stew seems insane, bask in the colors and beauty of it. Greg Capullo whisks his pen throughout this issue perfectly. As massive a headbanger as Capullo is, his work is always so delicate, stitched together from masterful pen strokes. Outside of his great line work, details and action, Capullo has carved out his own style. He is unique, and that is a rarity in comics.
Snyder and Capullo are inextricably tied to Batman for all time. Your children’s children reading Batman will marvel at them, the way fans do now at Kirby & Lee.
(4.5 Story, 4.5 Art)
