Batman #27 Review

Writer: Tom King

Art: Clay Mann, Danny Miki, John Livesay

Release Date: July 19, 2017

Cover Price: $2.99 

Tom King might be one of my favorite writers in the current comic scene. The first story I read of his was the critically acclaimed Marvel series, The Vision, which had turned one of the Avengers into something creepy and even sinister at times. It made the character so much more fascinating as we watched The Vision strive to become more human. 

After that series concluded, I found his work at DC. The super-spy thriller series, Grayson, and the dark sci-fi series, The Omega Men. Everything I found from him was so well written, I became ecstatic to see he was chosen to write the Batman stories when Rebirth was released. As expected, every story put out in this series has been fantastic(with the exception of the Night of the Monster Men crossover), and the opening to the recent story arc, The War of Jokes and Riddles, is no exception.

In the first two parts, we watched the Riddler and Joker gather their resources and allies to prepare for the war, showing off each of the characters' strengths. Now the war has begun and all of Gotham is stuck in the middle. Who will be hurt in this war between Supervillains? Time to find out.

*WARNING! SOME SPOILERS BELOW!*

I'll say this about Tom King: he has a knack for making lower tier characters have a major impact on the story. I don't think anyone was going to expect the story of KITE MAN to be so emotional.

While we don't get to witness Batman dealing with this gang war more, we get a more personal story of one its victims. Enter Charles "Chuck" Brown. A man who has done business with The Joker, which logically means would be one of the first people Batman would go to to learn of the Joker's whereabouts.

We watch his life during the War go by; getting threatened on all three sides, while he worries for his son's life. While his life might look boring, following Brown shows a different side to the war of superheroes and supervillains we don't see often: the civilian view. He's a man who does whatever he can to get by and due to one bad connection he made in the past, he is forced into this pivotal position that leads him down a path that he might never leave.

After The Riddler learned of Brown's involvement with The Joker, he had poisoned the string of the Kite his son used throughout the issue. We're left to watch Brown in anguish, before swearing vengeance on The Riddler by creating his Kite Man persona. This is what I loved the most about this issue. Not only was this an emotional origin to one of the most ridiculous Batman villains in publication history, but it is done so expertly tieing into the War story. It doesn't feel forced or out of place, it makes legitimate sense. Even his choice of becoming the kite makes sense in the fact it would be a reminder of what The Riddler had done to Brown's son.

If you go into this issue expecting to see epic Batman action, you will leave very disappointed. This issue is about a man who is hurt in the crossfire of this war and decides to pick a side to avenge his son. It's emotional, beautifully drawn, and I can't wait to see where "The Man Who Can Fly Anything" will be going in this War.

8/10

Issue Description:
“THE WAR OF JOKES AND RIDDLES” part three! The war has spread to every corner of Gotham City, and while Batman battles back the forces of Joker and Riddler, an unlikely criminal becomes the pivotal key to its potential resolution…but it could cost him everything.