Absolute Batman is the latest reimagining of the Caped Crusader as a physically massive hero with no money, no butler, but one of his parents. You can read my reviews of issue one, two, and three, at the respective links. In issue four, we get a shortened Year One style of story for the hero. While it’s interesting, I feel as if it gets in the way of a story that was finally starting to build serious momentum.
SPOILERS for Absolute Batman #4 below.
In this issue, Bruce Wayne is given the opportunity to confront Joe Chill, the man who killed his father, before he is tried in court. The scene is broken up into several parts intersected with other plot points, but Bruce’s message for Chill is essentially this: Bruce was the happiest he’d ever been before Chill killed his father, he will never be that happy again, and he hates Chill. This inclusion in the story is fine, but it really hits one of my personal pet peeves which is when children are given adult-like dialogue. Bruce is usually between eight and twelve when his parents are killed. I can’t imagine someone of that age saying things like, “You killed that happiness,” or being so self aware that they say “I was playing it nice like I didn’t notice…” when they see their father being proud of them. Writing children is difficult, but Scott Snyder is an experienced expert, so I expected more natural childlike dialogue.
One of the high points of this comic is that it shows a Year One story of sorts for the Absolute Batman. In his first outings as Batman, Bruce uses theatrical fear tactics like dentures to make his teeth seem pointy, claws similar to that of Bronze Tiger, a voice modulator to make him seem like a monster, and contacts to make his eyes red. Bruce decides that the theatrics simply aren’t enough and that he needs to “think bigger”. With his current tactics, he won’t be able to take down larger criminals and whole crime families. He has to use his engineering skills to make the threat of the Batman seem bigger. Therefore, his muscles need to match that energy.
Bruce uses his engineering skills to build an RC car that has a “bottle jack” built into it that apparently has enough power to send a semi full of weapons straight into the air. Then, he uses his big, but not big enough yet, muscles to take down the thugs driving the truck. Batman is becoming bigger.
Dispersed throughout the issue at regular intervals is a story about Bruce designing his origami like structures that mimic the wings of a bat. As part of the Young Engineers Competition being held at the zoo, the challenge is to design a bridge for distressed areas many of the animals come from, and the bridge must be themed after an animal. He first designs a bridge that lightly uses the idea but focuses on it being intimidating. Creating an excellent analogy to Gotham, Thomas asks if creating something intimidating is the right move for a place in need. Bruce listens, takes it to heart, and decides it should be the maximum of both. It shouldn't just be intimidating, it should be scary, but it should be for the people who need it, not the people in charge of those who need it. Bruce says it can even be used for defense, but doesn't elaborate much there. Lastly, somehow, the bridge can fly.
I can't help but wonder if this type of bridge is actually possible or if it's comic book logic. Either way is fine, but I know nothing about engineering.
Without a doubt, this bridge is going to be built in the present day of this comic to help people evacuate Gotham or get in to help. It's very, very clear that it's being set up for Bruce to use his childhood accomplishment in the modern day. It's a little bit too clear, but it will still make for a good moment.
This comic does something that I simultaneously like and dislike: it attempts to explain more. Bruce's conversations with his father about the bridge become his motivations for becoming this specific kind of Batman. I like that a lot. It's on par with the character. However, if a story is going to explain outlandish tech, it has to really explain it. Again, I'm not an engineer or mechanic, but don't bottle jacks have to be slowly cranked up? How did Bruce rig a bottle jack to instantly expand to its maximum capacity? I think it would have been better left to the imagination than partially explained.
Finally, to end the issue, Bruce, I believe in the present day, goes to confront Joe Chill who apparently has something to say to him.
I went into this comic very interested to see where the story of the previous issue went. Bruce had just accepted a bribe from Black Mask, a controversial choice, and I wanted to see what he did with it. Unfortunately, we do not see that. Don’t get me wrong, I did like seeing some of the backstory for this Bruce, but I feel like this would have worked much better in the first issue. Where it is now in the narrative feels like it interrupted a story that was gaining some needed momentum. However, it does now allow me to make a prediction about where the story will go: Gotham will be turned into the Ark M, chaos will rule the streets, it will be sealed off from the rest of the world, Bruce’s friends and villains in another world will help and release their alter egos, Bruce will use the money from Black Mask to build the bridges and other cool gadgets, Joker will show up because he’s secretly funding this, then there will be a final showdown.
There were some ups and downs to this issue, but I really like it when there’s just enough information given for me to make a prediction. Overall, I give this issue a good 7/10.