After A Roller Coaster Ride Of THE DARK KNIGHT I was Totally Geared and Psyched In to The Batman , who has always Been My Favorite Comic Book Hero !
So I Thought I'll Catch Up On The Comic Books Related To The Bat-Family (Robin , Nightwing , Birds Of Prey , The Outsiders)
And I Picked Up Batman 676 and Was Bloody CONFUSED ! What The Hell , I Thought , Who The Hell are the Club Of Villains , Damian , Jezebel Who ! I was pissed
I Decided that I Would Pick Up On The Back issues Since Hush , which was the Last Storyline i had read . And God Was That Interesting Or What !! Batman & Son , The 3 Ghosts Of Batman , The Club Of Villains and The Black Glove ! Woah I Got Going right into it .
BATMAN 676 (RIP pt 1)
The Plot begins With the Opening Page of The Lines Which are Now Being Most Talked About "Batman and Robin Will Never Die"
6 Months EarlierThe Club Of Villains Meet at The House Of Hurt and Dr.Simon Hurt Tells Them That whatever They Have heard About The Black Glove Is True . Ominous Words ! All The Members Of The Black Glove start Interacting and Introducing Themselves
A Low Level Thug "The Green Vulture" Has Hijacked a car and is On the Loose . Batman and Robin catch Up with Him and For The First Time (i think) , we are Introduced To Honor Jackson Who says Bats Has a Kind Face !
Bats Goes Home and makes Out With Jez Jet (James Bond 101). Robin and Alfred Discuss Batmans Love Life and Alfred tells Robin that Its Happened Before and the Women have kept the Secret Well. Tim wonders if bruce is losing his mind behind this Black Glove case and Has gone insane . Alfred Says That Bruce is Trying to Be The Example of Human Perfection and He's Ready For Anything no matter how challenging. Robin asks Alfred if had ever gotten a Paternity test done on Damian Wayne . Alfred says Bruce will tell him when the need arises .
Bruce and Jez are at Bruces Parents graves and Jez Tells Him that his parents Would be Proud Of Him For what hes tried to achieve and them Tells him that she has received an invite From The Black Glove !
Bruce Takes a Look at That . Mean while at Arkham Asylum , Joker maniacally Hopes How he Would Slaughter Robin , Nightwing and Gordon , Le Bossu Informs Him About The Club Of Villains !
I Think Its a Strong Opening and Is Setting Up Bigger Things
Art - 9
Story-9.3
BATMAN 677 (RIP pt 2)
The Club Of Villains Plan , Hurt Says that No one Knows Batman more Than He and That He can destroy His Already Weak and tattered Mind and That The Work Done For years Will finally Pay Off (Refer To the Black Glove Storyline and The 3 Ghosts), In The Mayors Office (The Mayor looks very Much Like oe Chill) Gordon is Told about Papers stating That Thomas had a Secret Life Of Booze and Drugs and He Used To be an addict , Martha Was Zombie Like and had an Affair with Alfred and Bruce is Their Son , Gordon is Enraged and Demands Such news isnt Released as Its Killing the Mans Parents all Over again (The Irony That The Mayor is Looking
Like Joe Chill :) ).
Bruce Brings Jezebel Jet To The Batcave and Shows Her How it Looks and Jez Jet asks Bruce to Give Up the Cowl and says that there are Other ways to fight. Bruce doesnt think so . Jez asks "Bruce , What If You Are The Black Glove ??". A Valid Question . He Searches all The Strange signs In Gotham and hes Sees Wall Graffiti Of The Words
Zur-En-Arrh . He Feels Dizzy . he's Knocked Out By The Trigger Phrase Zur-En-Arrh
The Club Of Villains Attack The Dark Knight In the Bat Cave , , Alfred Is Out Watching The Movie Black Glove , as Instructed By Bruce , The COV Take Him Out Too .
The Dark Knight Falls !
Solid Issue . What a Strike . Bruce Out In 2 issues . Never so Quick Not Even Bane , The Feel Of The End Of batman is Large , He's at his weakest Moment ! Wow
Art - 9.2
Story 9.5
BATMAN 678 (RIP pt 3)
Tim Is Reading an Entry From the Black Casebook (a Book where Bats' Unexplained Mysteries are entered) , The Mime And The Guy With a Bucket Head (Kraken Right ?) Go after Him and He and Nightwing are Supposed to Meet at a Checkpoint ,Nightwing Is Captured By Scorpiona and Sent To Arkham Asylum For Lobotomization .
Meanwhile At The Bat Cave , Hurt Taunts Bruce about how Much hes Grown Etc and Doses Him With Street Drugs and Sends Him To The Streets Drugged and Tattered , He Forgets Who he is , He Meets Honor jackson
Who takes Him around the City and Stuff , Offers Him Drugs , Bruce protects him From Thugs , Honor Buys Some Drugs and they are At the Sea , hes Told TO meet Lone Eye Lincoln , hes Informed That Honor Died yesterday ie the Day before ,Simon Hurt Adopts Thomas Waynes Batman Costume as His and Says That The Dark knight has Fallen and Victory To The Black Glove !, At the end , We see Bruce stitching Up a new Costume , the
BATMAN OF ZUR-EN-ARRH ! Batmite returns
Relatively an Issue based On the Explaination Of The End Of 677 , Honor ackson is a semi-new Character and Itll feel a lil Dragged But The Hurt Scenes are Classic as always :)
Art- 9.3
Story-9.5
BATMAN 679 (RIP pt 4)
Batman Is With Batmite and is Talking To Gargoyles about City grids and How to Go around the City With Mite(who has a weird Looking Thing On His Back !) ,The Batman of Zur-en-arrh is On the Loose , he attacks Charlie And Many Other Henchmen Of Charlie and The European Bosses and Takes Him Down With a Baseball Bat , hes Informed Where The Black Glove is (He also Removes The GPS Indicator Hiiden In His Tooth soon after speaking with the Gargoyles with a Knife !!.)
Tim is also Fighting The COV and sends a Voice mail To the Club Of Heroes For immediate Assistance .
Batman Thinks His brain Is Streamlined and Clear and he no Longer is Bruce , Hes batman , Mite Says That Batman had a backup Personality ever ready in case of an Attack (a batman Prep Time Moment !). He Also Says That There was a Miracle In Crime Alley On The Day of The Wayne Murders !
Gordon and a Fellow Officer are In Wayne manor and Know That its boogey trapped When the second Guy is Killed Brutally !
In the Bat Cave Hurt Beats Alfred Up With a Champagne Bottle and Says That Bruce is Alfred and Marthas Son and he is Thomas Wayne , Alfred answers In the Contrary. The COV Take Over Arkham Asylum ! ,
Batman Runs To Arkham Asylum where The Final Act will Take Place , Joker complains His nails are Still Drying , BTW Jez Jet Is abducted to Arkham in about Batman 677 - Batman 679
Great Issue ! The Batman Of Zur-En-Arrh ! Great Plot Device G-Mo Considering The Joker Is Coming Up !
Art - 9.2
Story -9.7
BATMAN 680 (RIP pt 5)
In Arkham Asylum , Dr hurt Thanks The Black Glove Organisation For Coming and Says That once every year they bet On Lives and Good vs Evil and This Time they will Decide batman's Fate , SO will Good Triumph Over Evil ??
Le Bossu Talks To The Joker and Says how he is a Role model For So Many Small villains And Hopes That he'll Watch his Transformation . Batman Reaches Arkham And Assaults The small Time henchmen With Blazing Fire ! Mite Says he can Go No Longer as reason Cant Pass Into the Asylum , Batman Asks mite Whether He's an imp from The 5th Dimension Or his imagination , Mite says the 5th Dimension Is Imagination
The BG Members Complain Thats Not The real Batman Cause hes Not Wearing Black and That he's an Hired actor , Hurt assures them and tells Them That This Is The Last Fragments Of His Mind and He will Be Finished soon !! Gordon is In Wayne manor and is being Attacked When hes Saved By Damian . Talia Al Ghul and Gordon Join Forces !
Meanwhile Joker for Fun Starts Killing the COV Villains Off ,Le Bossu Screams as Joker Cut Him Up !!! he meets The Black Glove Organisation and They recoil In horror , Hurt Talks To Joker and Reveals His Identity and Motive (still Unclear what Tho) , Batman hears jez jet and Comes Running To Save her , Joker and he Confront ,Joker Cuts his Tongue In Half ! Joker Says that the Black and red are random and Dont mean a Thing But bats Still believes It has a meaning , Joker says The Joke Is On Him at midnight !
El Sombero Is Dead , Joker says he holds The winning Card , Batman Removes His Cowl and breaks Thru The Glass To Save Jez . But hes Knocked Out By Jokers Poison Flowers , Hurt Calls Joker his Faithful Servent and Jez Reveals Shes a Part Of The BG , Now Do u get It ??
THAT WHAT A LOT OF Stuff !
Liked The issue . Perfect Setup For The Finale !
Art 9.6
Story 9.8
BATMAN 681 RIP Conclusion !
Batman In his Black attire Is in a Coffin , Left For Dead , Cut Back To Post thogal , Hes Talking With a monk about a Memory is His brain he cant access and That He Is Imagining an Enemy and Could It be Himself ?(The Memories May Be The Trigger Phases Induced By Dr.Hurt During The Space Experiments) He replies That Poison is In His tea (Chai Is hindi For tea) and he'll be dead In 2 Minutes .
Cut To the present Robin is Still Fighting the Club Of Villains and Is Helped By the Club Of Heroes ! This Is getting huge !
The Monk says that His Worst Enemy is true and he'll be Finished , he stammers , Bruce Says he Switched Cups , Force of Habit , Woah !
In Arkham They have buried batman In His Best outfit and That he'll be Brain dead in Half an Hour and then they will exhume Him , the Arab Still bets On Batman !
Jez Jet that They Will Disfigure Him Like His Worst Enemy , Hurt Says Speak Of the Devil Could This Prove The Devil Theory ??
Joker Says He wants to Place a Bet , When hes Told he cant Because Only 5 can fit the Black Glove. He Kills One Of Them , The general !! and Says that he bets That batman Will Get Out hound Them and make them pay !!!!!! He Shows Them The Old radio Batman of Zur En arrh Calls a bat Radia , the Cardinal Calls It Junk , It turns Out To Be a Device Initiating an override at Arkham Asylum and the Black Glove Loses The Asylum and are Entombed!
le Bossu Screams About His Cut Face and tries To Lobotomize Nightwing But he breaks away And beats Bossu Up !
Batman Saves the monks Life and tellls Him to Inform His Dark master TO bring It On !
(Just like How Batman Told Joker In DC Universe 0 , So many Clues , Damn!)
Batman breaks Through His grave and is Alive and Kicking !
Joker tells the Black Glove how he's Always tried To get Bats To loosen Up But he never has and that Drove him Insane ! He says Black and red May mean His Prison Tiles Or The Beating He Gave Jason Todd !!!!! He Says Joker Trumps Deuce ie Devil , Bids adieu and Tells Hurt Not to call Him servant , the Members panic and Hurt tellls them That They Cant leave and The Asylum Is Lost and Their Sins have been Found Out!
Batman Arrives ! He tells jez that he acted all Along In love and knew he was Being Lied To When She said She Understood His Pain as She Hated Her father and wanted Her dead ! Awesome scenes .Batman and Nightwing team Up and nightwing says that someone Has To back bats Up ! THE COH and Robin Wrap Up The COV and Robin Leaves For The Asylum , Joker is Driving In an Ambulance Madly and Is Thrown Into the River , Courtesy Damian and the Batmobile ! LOL ! batman and Hurt Confront . Hurt says that they controlled Crime in Gotham To take bats out , They initialed a phrase To take Him Out when necessary , He Demands Batman Retire From Crime Fighting , he says that hes His father , batman Says its Impossible and the other alternative Is mangrove pierce , Hurt Says he's the Hole In things and Since The Beginning , Batman has His Cowl removed and is Shot By hurt (Didn't affect Him Due To Kevlar) , Hurt Curses Him saying the next Time He wears The Cowl Will be The Last Ever ! Batman Jumps With Hurt Into The Helicopter and It crashes Into The Ground With Lane In the helicopter !! Nighwing has The Cowl in hand !
It Is revealed that Zur-en Arrh Stood for Zorro In Arkham !! Batman RIP !
Woah ! Great Issue ! Tho The true Master Mind Is Never Revealed , I guess Its The Devil Due to the Art and Words
Art Perfect
Story Perfect
Closing CommentsNow I Know That There Are Various Complains !
1. Who Is Honor Jackson Exactly Is hes Dead
2. What Exactly Is Bat Mite
3. How is The Cheap Radio an Electronic Over riding device
4. Who Is The Black Glove
5. Who Is Dr.Hurt Exactly
6.Is Bruce Dead ?
7. Whats On Bat Mites Back ?
My Views
1. Honor Jackson is a Complete Hallucination as hes never reacting With anyone else and Even In The Scene where bruce fights For Honor J , Hes Not even Mentioned by The Thugs
2. Hes Bruces Imagination Completely
3. I Dont Know
4. An Organisation , The Villains Head isnt Exactly Revealed
5. IMO The Devil
6. No Hes back In 2 Days For Final Crisis which I will Cover For Batman and the DCU Seperately Including Tie Ins
7. Dan Didio says That G Mo Will explain That In a later Story
