Written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Chris Burnham
Well, the finale of Grant Morrison's seven year Batman run is here and I did enjoy it for the most part. It may have felt a little short, but I'll get to that in a moment. One thing I really liked about this comic were the character moments between Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon. It's never really answered outright, but you will get some insight into whether or not Gordon knows Bruce has been Batman for years. This is something fans always debate about. Though it is left ambiguous, Morrison does give you gentle nudge toward one end of the spectrum.
We're also given a grand finale for Bruce and Talia's relationship here and you really get a depiction that it's one that was much more unhealthy for him than one with Selina. The mystery female of the last few issues also makes an appearance here (raising more questions than answering in the process)and, while it does fit well, I kind of wish it would've been someone else.
I won't spoil the ending, but it is left quite open ended. Morrison could definitely continue it in the future, but he's probably just planting a major seed for a future writer as stated in recent interviews. It's kind of like how Ed Brubaker left Daredevil.
Now we come to the part where we discuss the common complaint of this being too short a finale. I myself was confused months ago when it was originally solicited as a $2.99 comic and it's written by the guy that needed a higher page count when he finished his arcs for Batman RIP, Batman and Robin, and Final Crisis. They even extended his run on Action Comics by a whole issue. Okay, I stress that the Batman Incorporated story is wrapped here. It's best to look at Grant's run in two parts; part one being Batman and Batman and Robin with a conclusion in Batman and Robin #16. The second of course being both volumes of Batman Incorporated, with this as the finale of that part. Inc has always felt more like a sequel to me. Is it as good as Geoff John's Green Lantern finale? No. But if you give it a chance, you will enjoy it as another major contribution to the Bat mythos. I kind of got the impression that this will read better as part of a trade. Perhaps I'll do a retrospective of Morrison's run one day if there is enough demand.
Final Score: 7.5/10