Writen by Geoff Johns, Pencils by Gary Frank, Inks by Jon Sibal, Colour by Rob Liegh and letters by Rob Leigh

 

A lot has been said about problems with DC continuity and the Earth One series has shown what can be done when creative teams are not weighed down by continuity, I strongly recommend giving these book a read.

In Batman Earth One Bruce is still a billionaire orphan, he is still assisted by Alfred Pennyworth and the villains still come from the illustrious rouges gallery. If you were to flick through this novel you may think it a typical Bat book, action sequences are aplenty with batarangs and burning buildings, but it is a far more personal tale than most Bat titles.

The first volume focused on reasons for Bruce becoming Batman and saw him struggle to overcome the corrupt Mayor Cobblepot. Six months have passed and whilst Bruce has bulked up somewhat, he is still a fledgling Dark Knight, treading on evidence and smudging fingerprints. This volume broadens the Earth One universe with far more attention given to Harvey and Jessica Dent, along with a number of villains, my favourite of which is Killer Croc who is treated with great maturity by the writers.

As mentioned, more focus is given to Bruce Wayne, in particular his growing relationship with Alfred. In this universe Alfred is a blunt, bearded, ex-military butler, who was previously head of security for the Wayne estate, who keeps count of the number of villains Batman has pummelled. He has conflicting views on how Bruce should approach his role as the Dark Knight, grumpily reminding Bruce that he should carry a gun and armour in order to become the perfect weapon.

This is the focus of the book, it begins with Batman acting as a true vigilante, beating up bad guys and leaving the detective work to Gordon and the suffering Bullock. As the volume unfolds Bruce begins to mature, he still acts irrationally (he refuses to wear Kevlar as he needs no armour) and loses control of his temper but he begins to understand what is required to help rescue Gotham and become a true symbol of hope.

The writing is well paced with a number of surprises and moments of poignancy, with the book covering a range of topics from alcoholism to victimisation. The colour is delightful, as it really jumps off the page, while the art is at its most expressive in the facial details. The eyes in particular convey much emotion from surprise, fear, distrust and anger.

This fortnight I read a number of books including Amazing Spider-Man Volume 1:The Parker Luck and Amazing Spider-Man Spider Island but this was my favourite. I have really enjoyed this new take on Batman; the moments of action had added suspense, as I was always fearful he was about to make another mistake. The final acts of the book set the story up for an interesting third volume, which I look forward to reading.

 

Next time I will be reviewing Ody-C Volume 1.