Martin Deer reviews the latest issue of Batman…
“The second chapter of “Zero Year” delves into Bruce Wayne’s past with the Red Hood Gang and his run-ins with aspiring District Attorney Harvey Dent! And in the backup story, a secret moment from Bruce’s training abroad is revealed for the first time!“
Did Bruce Wayne’s origin really need to be retold? Most would say no, but Scott Snyder is showing you why it does. Here in part two of Zero Year, Snyder continues to break new ground and give a wholly new spin on how Bruce got to where he is today. The story centers around Bruce’s conflict with the Red Hood Gang, which escalates here in issue #22 and really jumps up a notch. Having intercepted an attack by the gang on another of Gotham’s villains – which raise questions as to what they are up to exactly – their attention focuses squarely on Bruce, and he may have bitten off more than he can chew.
Snyder has held back in the past with where he’s willing to take these characters as he explored Batman’s world – no doubt held back by DC – yet it cannot be said that he hasn’t raised tensions and pushed boundaries, which he continues to do here in Zero Year. With this being the origin tale and the outcomes already known to us, much of the tension in personal relationships is lost, yet that doesn’t mean that interesting new angles cannot be taken. An interaction between Bruce and Alfred is, whilst somewhat questionable that Bruce would behave such a way, surely there to further examine and confirm why the bond between adoptive father and son is so strong. If you can look past the pettiness of young Bruce in this moment and see the bigger picture, a beautiful canvas looks to be being created.
The reveal of The Riddler being involved in this story arc and being a player behind the scenes in a much grander plot is also very much welcomed. The character is due a revamp to make him relevant once again, and Snyder should be trusted fully to do so. Bruce and Edward meet in this issue and have a great exchange, which is wonderfully executed in a full page spread drawn within a board game like Ouroboros (the mythological creature). Great art here, Snyder and Greg Capullo have really known how to bring the page to life on their run on Batman and this Ouroboros panel is up there with the pages that needed to be rotated 360 degrees to be read back in the Court of Owls arc. Capullo’s art, again, is top notch. He continues to deliver extraordinary pieces of work which Danny Miki (inker) and FCO Plascencia (colourist) bring gorgeous to life.
Snyder continues to deliver exciting stories worth reading and intrigue for the next issue. With such a use of Ouroboros, the beast that recreates itself by eating its own parts, one has to wonder if its use is to draw our attention to Bruce’s mission, and how his quest to recreate Gotham and himself to do so, means sacrificing so much of who he is in order to achieve it.
Martin Deer
Originally published July 14, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
