Comics legend Grant Morrison’s ongoing superhero comics are ever so quickly approaching their conclusions, but until then we still have “Action Comics” to enj– …well, we still have “Batman Incorporated” to enjoy!
Written by Grant Morrison
Illustrated by Chris Burnham– BATMAN and TALIA AL GHUL continue their fight for control of their son DAMIAN — better known as ROBIN!
– WINGMAN and REDBIRD descent upon GOTHAM CITY! Who are these heroes, and what is their relationship to THE DARK KNIGHT?
When Grant Morrison was on “Batman & Robin,” part of the fun was guessing what on earth was going to happen next. Message boards all over the internet were abuzz with speculation — most of it false, sure, but the point is it was a series that got people excited. “Batman Incorporated” has had a similar, if not quite as pronounced, effect, as Morrison once again weaves a complex web of conspiracies and betrayal. This issue answers one of the very first questions asked in “Batman Incorporated” — a dangling thread, in fact, that was first introduced in the series’s first #1, and that has since had the most discussion. (Warning: mild, only hinted at spoilers ahead, but you might be able to put two and two together from the hints) Now, unfortunately, the answer to this mystery is the one that immediately came to readers’ minds upon first reading the ominous panel of #1, but even though it may seem a bit “ordinary,” Morrison tries his best to make his readers not feel cheated. It may be considered obvious by some, but it ties in very well to perhaps the very first theme introduced in Morrison’s “Batman” run, thus softening the blow. Sure, it could have been more interesting, but not everything needs to be an earth-shattering twist; whether or not it is done effectively is what matters, and considering the thematic importance, I would say this is an instance of “doing it correctly.”
Then there is the actual execution of the issue, an area some would argue Morrison sometimes struggles in. When it comes to dialogue, Morrison has nearly perfected how to write his Batman books; the characters are bombastic and over-the-top in a way that is riveting rather than laugh-worthy, and even his expository dialogue no longer slows down momentum like it used to, becoming instead a significant part of the “Batman Incorporated” experience. In the pages of his Batman books, Morrison has also become a terrific action scripter, displaying an honed talent when it comes to both fitting as much in a single page as possible while still allowing the artist room to work their magic. Morrison is not without his faults, though. Even in his earliest work, the writer has experimented with breaking up bits of dialogue between panels, and, indeed, sometimes it has worked incredibly effectively. More often than not, though, the result is a sequence that reads awkwardly at best, flat-out poorly at worst. More than a few sequences in this issue are like this — longtime Morrison readers will probably simply roll their eyes, ignore it, and say “Oh, Grant,” but that doesn’t excuse the fact that these experiments with dialogue sometimes come at the expense of visual storytelling (which is, you know, what a comic is).
Chris Burnham’s style is often scratchy and loose — in a stylistic way that does not harm his overall technique — and certain panels of this issue take that quality to further extremes. In fact, a few are some of the most uniquely Burnham panels we have seen yet, creating a texture that looks like some sort of unexpected hybrid between wood etchings and brushstrokes. While Burnham originally appeared in Morrison’s Batman run as a fill-in for Quitely in the finale of Morrison’s “Batman & Robin,” and adjusted his style accordingly, this is clearly Burnham just being Burnham. Of course, as a highly stylized artist, whether or not that style looks good is a matter of subjectivity (personally, I love it). What cannot be debated, though, is how well Burnham tells stories with pictures. No matter how chaotic the scene — and there are quite a few sequences in this issue where madness reigns supreme — Burnham makes sure nothing is lost in the transition from panel to panel. He may pull out the occasional “trick,” such as multiple motions in one panel or unconventional panel placement, but the fact is he doesn’t have to; whether his layouts are all over the place or in a simple grid, Burnham’s comics guide the reader from panel to panel almost flawlessly. When he does experiment, though, you better believe it’s brilliant:
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(Plus, goddamn I love his style, but I’ve already established that’s more of a subjective matter)
“Batman Incorporated” is one of those books that has reached a certain point in its run where if you like it, you will probably keep liking it. Some issues may be less enthralling than others, but nothing has happened yet that will shake those who read and loved volume one (except maybe the DC Reboot, but that’s outside of Morrison and Burnham’s responsibility). To speak personally, I was not a fan of #2, but I didn’t even hesitate to pick up #3. Editor-in-Chief Matt Meylikhov was not a fan of this issue, but you know what? I doubt he’d think twice about buying #5 without reading it. The latest issue of “Batman Incorporated” is what we’d expect from the book at this point: Morrison telling a great story, though not without his occasional flaws of execution, and Chris Burnham cranking out some great comics art. Sure, maybe “what we’d expect” isn’t what some people are looking for in a Morrison comic, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t good.
Final Verdict: 7.5 – Buy it!
