TDKPH [Review] Batman: Rebirth #1

BATMAN: REBIRTH #1 review by Sebastian Soriano

Once again, I don’t do spoiler reviews so if you haven’t read this one yet, you’re welcome.

To start off, this book showed a version of a certain villain that I haven’t yet seen of him before. (Unless of course, DC retconned this character this way and I just haven’t read it yet) Writers, Scott Snyder and Tom King, seem to have used a series of either time jumps, flashbacks, or some other form of non-linear storytelling techniques to get the story moving. To say the least, Batman Rebirth #1 is intriguing. You’d want to know where this will all end up. I do have to say though, that while reading it, unless you’ve been reading Batman books from the New 52 to run or earlier, you’ll feel like the only way to completely understand this comic, you have to have read some other Batman titles from the New 52 run and judging by the fact that I have read MOST of the Capullo/Syder run, I assume that the information I seek is found in either the Batman and Robin books, Batman Eternal, or Robin War. That is not to say that I didn’t like this book though. They talk a little bit about Bruce's father and how Thomas Wayne’s beliefs have shaped Bruce’s. The plot goes between a little bit of the conflict of the present and a run-through of what Bruce plans with what to do with Duke Thomas. That part. The part about Duke, is to me, very exciting. I don’t want to explain why, but it makes the book worth the read.

Art-wise, Mikel Janin’s art felt very transitional. It still kind of felt like I was looking at Capullo’s art, but slightly more realistic. Don’t get me wrong. It was great art. I just felt like the whole thing still felt like a Snyder/Capullo book at least visually. This whole book actually felt very transitional. As I read it, I felt the Batman reigns being handed by Scott to Tom King, but from what little I’ve read, Batman is in very good an capable hands.

Overall, I can’t say I hate this book even slightly. I just don’t understand it as well as I wish I could have. Still very excited to DC Rebirth though, and still very very excited for Batman #1, so if you can still find this book, pick it up! 

3.5/5

The Comedian Theory: His Second appearance in the DC Universe

DC Universe #1 came out big! It had a lot of twists that made comicbook fans wet themselves. The biggest reveal is probably the presence of The Watchmen in the DC Universe. Although the original series was published by DC Comics, fans accepted the fact that The Justice League and The Watchmen lived in different universes (or multiverses--oh wait, is it microverses now?).

To make things more clear, let me explain the DC Universe #1 narrative (or at least the significant parts in connection with The Watchmen). Without picking up any Watchmen books, it is safe to conclude that the threat to the DC Universe is The Watchmen; or at least the universe where The Watchmen came from.

The biggest question most fans were asking is: The Comedian? No doubt, thats his badge. But isn't he dead? Hmm.. now thats a good entry point of a good effing story! But please read until the end of this article. I promise not to make it long, but I assure you that you'll shit bricks. Just let me connect the dots for you.

Wally West was trapped in the Speed Force after the advent of Flashpoint. Since then he narrates that something was stolen from the DC Universe. He goes on and tries to find that lightning rod to make his come back. His first target was Batman. Let me remind you of this scene...

Lets address the big elephant in the room. See that "TNK" sound at the lower right hand of the photo? What do you think it they deliberately made that sound? If you check the other panels, no sound effect was made by Wally's speed force thunder thing.

Ow wait... Batman, the detective that he is, was also curious as to the sound it made. Go check this out.

When I first read DC Universe Rebirth #1, I thought to myself, "hey, whats that yellow shinny thing? Why did Batman randomly used his pick to take off something on the wall?" The next page was the killer. It showed that we're in Watchmen territory now. But if you go back to the beginning, Wally was right all along. He did say that he saw the new threat from the speed force. Wally also used the speed force to reach out to Batman. In effect, maybe the "Watchmen" were watching and threw The Comedian's badge for the greatest detective to decipher.

But that leads us to the next question: are the Watchmen new to the DC Universe? Hmm... with all the theories circulating around the web stating that The Watchmen are already part of the DC Universe, its hard not to adhere to something as logical as that.

But you know, theories are just theories until we see them on paper.

But then again... let me remind you of these panels from Superman/Batman World's Finest by Dave Gibbons (which predates DC Universe Rebirth #1 by almost a decade). And a little trivia, Dave Gibbons was the illustrator for the original Watchmen. dun dun dunnnn.

Hey, thats a cute lapel pin... ow wait. SHIT!

Are we looking at some weird coincidence here? Or is The Comedian the Joker in the DC Universe? Well... as the old saying goes...

**photos from reddit user JLAsuperdude

TDKPH Book of the Week -- DC Universe Rebirth #1 by Sebastian Soriano

DC Universe Rebirth #1 Review:

This will be a spoiler-free review because this book is an experience that can only be enjoyed properly if you go through it yourself.

When I first heard about Rebirth, I was stoked and excited for the sole reason that they were rebooting back to #1. I did not know what to expect material-wise and honestly, I’m a very young comic reader so I didn’t really know what I SHOULD expect. Sure, I’ve read a few classics like Watchmen, Dark Knight Returns, most of the New 52 Batman run, and a few others, but by no means am I a comic expert who’s read decades worth of DC comics with the knowledge of the previous continuities to boot. I got into comics, DC Comics in particular, in probably the same and the most clichéd way most people in my generation did: I watched The Dark Knight trilogy. I tell you this so that you have an idea of the type of comic book reader you are dealing with as you read this. I am a new comic book reader with a very true love for it and with that being said, this book was phenomenal. I was not yet a reader when the New 52 started and definitely not one when the pre-new 52 comics came out so I don’t really know in complete detail what happened in those previous continuities, but Rebirth definitely brings newer readers, like me, up to speed.

The first few pages caught me off guard because it starts with characters I haven’t really read about and was very nervous because I was not previously familiar with said characters. How could I give an effective review if I never really knew about the lore of characters like Wally West? But you know what? Every single question I had, all my why's, what's, and how's were all answered with every turn of the page.

Comic books, as I’ve always known them to be, is a medium that blends both visual and literary story telling into one piece and never in my time of being a lover of this art form have I seen such a perfect blend of the two. This book is divided into 4 chapters and each one has it’s own distinctive tone thanks to the superstar artists artists in this book, namely: Ethan Van Sciver, Gary Frank, Phil Jimenez, and Ivan Reis, who’s art works seamlessly with Geoff Johns’ writing. Johns, I should state, is the new co-chief for all of DC’s upcoming movies and writer of several of DC’s best storylines such as Blackest Night, Brightest Day, The Flashpoint Paradox, and Batman: Earth One. So if you want an idea of how DC’s movies are going to feel like, I highly recommend you pick this book up.

The DC Universe is getting more expansive, but it definitely doesn’t feel crowded. The quality of the work is all there in this one. None of it feels rushed and no parts feel shoehorned. No cheap tricks or gimmicks. Just great storytelling. Older fans will probably feel a very deep sense of nostalgia and if you’re a new fan, will feel very welcomed. This book is not elitist or intimidating in any way. It was obviously written so that old and new fans alike can come and enjoy these new set of stories that DC's coming up with. Rebirth is definitely up to a good start.

Well done, Geoff Johns. Well done, DC. This book is definitely a 10 out of 10 for. A must read for any comic book fan!