The DC3 decided to take on the Herculean task of covering DC’s weekly books! Our coverage will rotate between creator interviews, issue reviews and annotations, and long-form pieces on featured characters. This, friends, is the DC3kly!
This week I want to take a look at Jiro Osamu, the Batman of Japan who assisted Batman proper in his Hong Kong adventure earlier of this month. Jiro’s inclusion follows Professor Pyg as another great use of Grant Morrison’s Batman contributions, even if his use in a Honk Kong centric issue is a bit puzzling. I’m a huge fan of Morrison’s Batman work, but for those who weren’t so keen or who, quite understandably, need a refresher, let’s take a look at the origin of the Japanese Batman.
Batman, Incorporated
Introduced in the first arc of Grant Morrison’s “Batman Incorporated,” Jiro is the successor to the mantle of “Mister Unknown,” yet another Batman analogue. In the two-part story, the original Mr. Unknown is gruesomely murdered by Lord Death Man, a one time Batman villain reinvisioned by Jiro Kuwata in a 1966 Batman manga. After the original’s death, Batman discovers that Mister Unknown was in fact two people, the original crime-fighter who had turned to detective work in his old age, and the younger Jiro who handled the physical demands of the job. If this set-up sounds familiar, it’s because it should.
Though Mister Unknown’s death left Jiro next in line to bear the mantle, his road to becoming the Japanese representative for Batman Incorporated wasn’t quite so smooth. When attempting to save his girlfriend from Lord Death Man and his henchmen, Jiro broke a sacred Bat-family code by gunning down Lord Death Man. Fortunately, Death Man’s whole schtick is not dying, Batman eventually got over the vigilante faux-paux.
Lord Death Man’s crusade to eradicate Japanese heroes led to the near assassination of Shiny Happy Aquazon, member of the Super Young Team and another Morrison creation. Jiro was able to redeem himself in both his own and Bruce’s eyes by thwarting the assassination and assisting in the capture of Death Man. After a wonderful Golden Age swearing-in ceremony, Jiro officially became “Batman of Japan.”
A Break From Your Regularly Scheduled Programming
Not much was seen from Jiro over the course of the first volume of “Batman Incorporated,” presumably due to the three month probationary period imposed by Bruce. Jiro went on to achieve full membership in “Batman Incorporated” vol. 2, and gained a higher profile as a result. Along the way he ditched the Mr. Unknown get up in favor of a more stylish Kamen Rider inspired Batsuit, fought intelligent Gorillas, hung out with the Super Young Team, and found himself in desperate need of a shrink ray.
Jiro received a solo spotlights towards the end of Morrison’s run on the title. In a one and done fill-in issue written by Chris Burnham and Jorge Lucas, we catch a glimpse in the the life of the Japanese Batman. Now teamed with Crazy Shy Lolita Canary, another Super Young Team member whose bird-motif makes her an obvious fit for a “Robin,” Jiro takes on a team of colorfully costumed, foul mouthed biker gals and their boss, Lady Tiger Fists. Yes, her name is as literal as it sounds. Burnham would then go on to write and draw one more of Batman Japan’s adventures in “Batman Incorporated Special,” wherein Jiro and Lolita solved a mystery involving severed hands in vending machines, vanishing capsule hotel patrons, and the evil surgeon “Doctor Inside-Out.”
As you can probably glean from plot descriptions, both of Burnham’s Batman Japan tales featured frenetic action, outlandish villains, poorly translated Japanese names, and the general hyperbole stereotypical of Japanese action heroes. This approach makes Jiro’s adventures distinctly different from the rest of the Bat-family.
Into Eternity
When we catch up with Jiro in “Batman Eternal” #9, he seems to have settled even further into a foundation of Batman tropes. Not only does he have a bird-themed sidekick, but the hero has also decked out his own base of operations with the requisite giant coin, oversized dinosaur (is that Godzilla or Reptar?), and wise elderly butler.
Continued below
While the conclusion of Morrison’s tenure writing Batman has sadly led to a decreased focus on Batman Inc., and its members, the inclusion of Jiro suggests that the initiative is still alive and well in the minds of the current Bat-bullpen. Furthermore this week’s issue of “Batman Eternal” features both El Gaucho and Scorpiana, the Batman of Argentina and his antagonistic femme fatale. In a story as all-encompasing as “Batman Eternal,” it only makes sense to shine the light on each character that Batman has touched upon. Hopefully “Batman Eternal” #9 isn’t the last we see of Jiro Osamu.
Recommended Reading:
Batman Incorporated Vol. 1 #1-2
Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #11
Batman Incorporated Special
I hope you’ve found this spotlight on the Batman of Japan and Batman Incorporated beneficial, and that you will continue to follow the DC3 as we make our way through DC’s weekly books. Be sure to check back next week as Vince catches us up on the events of “Batman Eternal” #11 and #12. Until then, sayonara!
