This page contains summaries and reviews of Batman: The Gotham Adventures comic books issues 1 through 6.
ISSUE: "With A Price On His Head!" (#1)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: April 1, 1998 (Cover date is June)
RATING: ****.5 (out of 5)
"Don't worry. You're still going to feel DEFEAT."
"Yikes! What does Guano Man do? Send all of you to sidekick's pun school?
You're more irritating than the boy."
--An exchange between Batgirl and the Joker as she delivers a kick to him.
SUMMARY: Batman, Batgirl, and Robin are chasing down the Joker as he is on his latest cime spree. On
the big screen T.V. in downtown Gotham, we see that Douglas Reid, the father of the Joker's latest victim,
has called a press conference. Reid announces that he is offering a fifty million dollar reward for the person
who kills the Joker (shades of "Ransom"). Batman captures the Joker, but takes him to the Batcave rather
than to Arkham. A doctor from Arkham calls Comissioner Gordan to tell him that the Riddler has
escaped. Meanwhile, Robin sees the batsignal, so he and Batman leave to answer it. Batgirl remains with
the Joker. At the Gotham Police headquarters, Gordan shows Batman a clue delivered by the Riddler which
Batman quickly solves. It leads him to the Uptown Theater where the Riddler is waiting to kidnap Robin
and hold him ransom for the Joker. Back at the Batcave, the Joker escapes from his handcuffs and knocks
Batgirl out. He procedes to enter Wayne Manor... Uptown Theater: Before the Riddler can abduct Robin,
Robin and Batman finish off his henchmen only to find that he has escaped and left another clue... Wayne
Manor: Before the Joker can discover where he is, Alfred knocks him out. He and Batgirl tie him up.
Meanwhile, downtown, a figure appears to have caught the Joker, but it turns out it is Clayface in disguise.
Nightwing arrives and fries him with jumper cables. At this point, Batman is back in the cave trying to figure
out the Riddler's clue. The Joker reveals to Batman that the reason he's never killed him is that "I've been
letting you win." Then, the Joker says something that leads Batman to figure out Nygma's clue. Batman
laves and captures him. Then he kidnaps Douglas Reid. When Reid comes to, he's in the Batcave face to
face with the man who killed his son. Batman says to him, "I won't allow you to buy a murder. If you want
this man dead, you're going to have to choose to kill him yourself." Reid realizes he can't do it and retracts
his reward. Batman and Robin, and Batgirl, and Nightwing are left to discuss the events and patrol the city.
COMMENTS: This issue is great example of the good things that can come out of Batman having 20,000
different sidekicks. None of the roles feel forced or out of place (okay, maybe Nightwing's battle with
Clayface was unimportant, but I like Nightwing), and each character is played to his strengths. Also adding
to this issue are the Joker's clever mind games (especially with Batgirl) and the Riddler's escapades. (I'm a
huge Riddler fan, and I love his conundrums.) The scene where Batman captures him is classic! I actually
liked this comic better than many episodes of the season, and I think it's a better Joker story than "Joker's
Millions." The art is great, and so are the many sightgags that can only be appreciated if you own this
comic. The ending is extremely poignant, and very touching. I strongly recommend this issue.
CRITICISMS: Nothing is really wrong with this story, and every moment is enjoyable, but the subplots
involving the Riddler and Clayface didn't really NEED to be there. But who's complaining?
BOTTOM LINE: A hilarious and touching issue with beautiful artwork and wonderful writing. What are
you waiting for? Buy this comic!!!
ISSUE: "Lucky Day" (#2)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: May 6, 1998 (Cover date is July)
RATING: *** (out of 5)
"You saw me cheat death! This is my Lucky Day! Got to get there by Midnight is all..."
"Not with that money, Lester... It's got to be bagged as evidence."
--Two Face's father's plans to gamble with his winnings being shot down
by Commissioner Gordan
SUMMARY: We are taken to the set of a gameshow called "Lucky Day" where a man will have a chance to win 2.2 million dollars. A shadowy figure in the audience seems to be up to no good... A gunfight breaks out and the show is kept on the air.
The show is on at Wayne Manor and the shadowy figure is revealed to be Two-Face. I turns out that the contestant on the show is Two-Face's father. Two-Face plants something in the pot of money, and then reveals why he is so mad at his father:
He gambled away the rent money, beat his wife when he lost, and then left the family when Harvey was 13. Batman and Batgirl are at the scene and they get through Two-Face's goons and get into the studio. We also see that the police
are set up and ready to go outside. Two-Face also reveals that his father beat him, and that it was his father who introduced him to flipping the coin. Two-Face then flips the coin to decide his father's fate. He calls heads and it comes up
tails. Before Two-Face can shoot his father, Batman and Batgirl rush in and stop him. However, the item Two-Face had placed in the money pot earlier was a bomb which he detonates, destroying his father's money. The police rush in, and control
the situation. Even though he is going back to prison, Two-Face is happy because he ruined his father's lucky day.
COMMENTS: This issue is entertaining and, at some points, pretty powerful, but ultimately it feels like a standard supervillain revenge story that we've all seen before. The art is fantastic in this issue, and the final page is pretty funny, but
that doesn't salvage the issue quite enough for me to give more than an average rating.
CRITICISMS: This issue feels familiar, like we've seen it before. The backstory involving abuse is somewhat shocking and sad, but a similar type of story was used by the Joker in "Mad Love," so that it is not quite as gripping.
BOTTOM LINE: This comic is somewhat good, but it is nothing new. Take or leave it.
ISSUE: "Just Another Day" (#3)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: June 3, 1998 (Cover date is August)
RATING: **** (out of 5)
"Why... isn't... fear... effect... working... on... you?"
"You're the world's greatest hero. I could never be scared of you."
--Batman talking to Justin Thomas
SUMMARY: This issue re-introduces us to Justin Thomas (last seen in The Batman Adventures #26). Since his rescue by Batman, and introduction to the Grey Ghost by Bruce Wayne, he has become a huge fan of both of them. In fact, he even talks to his
action figures, and day-dreams that they'll come help him out in fights at school. Other kids make fun of him and don't believe that he really met Batman. One day, at the bank with his mom, the Scarecrow breaks in, amd when Batman arrives, his cane
begins to emit a frequency that makes eveyone terrified of Batman, including Batman himself. Scarecrow's plan is to steal a bunch of money and then take Batman hostage. While Scarcrow is in the bank vault, Justin approaches Batman. He isn't afraid
of him, and offers a way to help. He loans Batman his Grey Ghost costume. Now, Batman isn't Batman, soo he's not scared. He destroys the cane and Robin knocks the Scarecrow out. Justin is on the front page of the paper with some kids from his school, so we can assume that they now believe that he met Batman.
COMMENTS: This issue is very good. While the cover is misleading because the Grey Ghost never actually appears, the issue is great nonetheless. Many people (me included) can probably identify with being a fan of heroes like Batman, but not being accepted
by some kids at school because of this. (Don't get me wrong; I have a lot of friends.) Because of this, it's very gratifying to see that Justin helps Batman save the day. Once again, the art is superb, and we get to see Red Claw in the new style. We also learn that there is a Batman cartoon show in the animated universe. Words cannot describe this issue as well as reading it.
CRITICISMS: None, really. I liked this issue better than the television episode, "Never Fear."
BOTTOM LINE: This comic is really good. It can be especially enjoyed by the Batman fan. You have to read it to truly appreciate it.
ISSUE: "Claws" (#4)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: July 1, 1998 (Cover date is September)
RATING: **** (out of 5)
"And then suddenly, there he was between us, this giant wall of
man... coiled with rage. ...With an unfamiliar look in his eye.
Because I'd crossed the line. He'd finally seen the real me. ...The
kind of cruelty I'm capable of. He was never supposed to have seen
that. I always knew it was the one thing about me he could never
forgive..."
--Selina Kyle explaining Batman's reaction to her
attack on Amy Mercedes
SUMMARY: Catwoman relates the story of "the night my heart broke...
twice" to one of her pet cats: She helps Batman apprehend a gang, and
as she is chasing a member down, he tells her that if she lets him go,
he will take her to an illegal testing lab where cats and dogs are
having strange chemicals tested on them. She lies to Batman, and then
the man takes her to the Mercedes Cosmetics lab. When she looks into
the building, at all the sick animals, her heart breaks. The animals
need around the clock care, so Catwoman finds "someone special" to do
the job; Amy Mercedes, the company's owner. Batman visits the crime
scene and sees evidence of Catwoman's involvment. Selina reveals why
she is so mad about the testingto Amy; she dyes her hair with Mercedes
products. Batman finds the building in which Amy is being held, and
stops Catwoman from harming her, saying "Your heart's in the right
place, but this has to end." Batman releases Mercedes, and, as she is
leaving, she hits a cat. While Batman is catching the animal, Catwoman
leaps into a rage, scratching Amy across the face, leaving her a set of
whiskers all her own. Selina says that Batman could never forgive her,
and, as she left, he never turned to look at her even once. Her heart
broke for the second time. Selina then explains that she's been one
step ahead of the lawyers ever since then, and that she hasn't run into
Batman since, either. She doesn't want to, though; she can never look
into his eyes again: it would only break her heart once more.
COMMENTS: I've never really cared for any of the Catwoman episodes of
the animated series (the exceptions being "Batgirl Returns" and "You
Scratch My Back"), but I loved this issue. The psychoses of the
villains have always appealed to me, as have the possibilites of some of
them regaining normal lives (I liked "Double Talks" and "Second Chance"
a lot). I am always disheartened when they don't, and at the end of
this issue where it appears Catwoman will never be able to truly contain
her anger enough to be a hero, I was deeply affected. The summary above
and these comments cannot do this issue justice; Rick Burchett and Terry
Beatty's artwork brings this standout to life, and it should be a crime
to miss it. Also adding to to this issue is an elaborate sightgag (the
gang at the beginning of the issue is the cast of Seinfeld) as well as
the audience getting to see Catwoman's old costume in the new style.
CRITICISMS: In all the "upcoming issues" blurbs this comic was said to
reveal the secrets behind Catwoman's new look. This issue doesn't do
that. I reveals why Selina has dark hair on the show, but the costume
is never even mentioned. I assume that the new costume is a reflection
of her somewhat darker personality (now that Batman has seen her dark
side, she has no reason to hide it any longer), but I, or anyone else
can't be sure. Also, I loved the art in this book, but some panels seem
wrong or out of place (i.e. bottom right, page 6; or upper middle, page
21). These are minor concerns, though.
BOTTOM LINE: If you're looking for answers behind Catwoman's costume
change, you won't find any. If you're looking for a powerful story with
great artwork, than you will.
ISSUE: "Polar Opposites" (#5)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: August 5, 1998 (Cover date is October)
RATING: **** (out of 5)
"We're sending in the junior partners brigade and the walking popsicle instead of real
cops?"
--Bullock's reaction to Nightwing, Batgirl, and Mr. Freeze going into
Oceana to look for hostages.
SUMMARY: Mr. Freeze is being subjugated to poking and proding of his lab by
Waynetech scientists since his suit was made from their parts (which were stolen, of
course). They are going to try to use the cryogenic research to save lives. Bruce Wayne
and Tim Drake arrive and meet the head of the project; Dr. Francis D'Anjou. Suddenly,
Grant Walker (last seen in the episode "Deep Freeze") arrives after escaping from the
iceberg he was trapped on. He kidnaps all of the scientists so that they might save his
body from decaying like Freeze's. When Bruce tries to stop him, he freezes his head to
the ground. Tim grabs a pipe and breaks it, but Bruce is out cold. Tim calls Nightwing
and Batgirl, and the former races to the scene. When Bruce comes to, he reveals that
D'Anjou was taken. Freeze demands to be hooked up to his body that instant so that he
can save D'Anjou. It turns out that he is Nora's new husband. Nightwing, Batgirl, and
Mr. Freeze enter the ruins of Oceana (Grant Walker's defunct perfect world of the
future). When Batgirl is pinned under some ruble, Freeze leaves her and Nightwing
behind. Freeeze breaks in and battles Walker. He is about to kill him when Nightwing
and Batgirl come and stop him by engaging a safety switch that shuts down his suit.
Freeze pops out of the suit and walks away on his spider legs, but D'Anjou tells
Nightwind to let him go. He says, "I owe him... not only for coming to my rescue... but
also for Nora... for saving her life... and because Victor Fries was Nora's husband... and
she loves him."
COMMENTS: Wow. As anyone who's read my review of "Cold Comfort" on my
website knows, I hated it. I don't like the redesign, I don't like the fact that Nora's
remarried, and I really don't like that Freeze is just a head. However, I really liked this
issue. I actually worked! It showed that even though Freeze is mad at the world, he's still
the compassionate, tragic villain we came to know in the original series. While I like
believing that "Cold Comfort" never actually happened, I had no problem with this issue.
Grant Walker's return was fun, and I liked the fact that Batman and Robin never
appeared in the story. This issue had a lot of Nightwing, which I like. The true hero of
the story was Mr. Freeze. He risked his own life to save Nora's husband, just so she
could be happy. Even though he is mad at having lost her, he still will do whatever it
takes to make her happy, which is very touching. I also liked the nice touch at the end
with D'Anjou telling Nightwing and Batgirl that Nora loves Freeze. That was a beautiful
moment which helped me accept Nora's remarriage. Also, I think this issue's cover is the
best so far.
CRITICISMS: I don't really see anything wrong with the story, except the Freeze
redesign and fact that he's only a head:)
BOTTOM LINE: If you're a huge Mr. Freeze fan, or you were until you saw the
monstrosity that was "Cold Comfort," this is the issue for you. It redeams Mr. Freeze
and tells a great, moving story.
ISSUE: "Last Chance" (#6)
WRITTEN BY: Ty Templeton
PENCILED BY: Rick Burchett
INKED BY: Terry Beatty
ISSUED: September 9, 1998 (Cover date is November)
RATING: *** (out of 5)
"...Suddenly none of this seemed important... or real. My death.
My life. Me. None of it. Did it happen? Did I solve my own murder?
...Or was this just the last hopeful dream in the mind of a dying man?
I'll never know..."
--Deadman's soliloquy at the end of the story
SUMMARY: Deadman tells us the strange story of what happened after he
died: Dick Grayson is performing with Boston Brand (aka Deadman) again
(last time was Batman and Robin Adventures #16) in order to raise more
money for the Haley's Circus (Dick's former workplace which Boston's now
running). Before they go on stage, a fortune teller warns Deadman that
there is great danger... We see a man pull out a gun and shoot Deadman
as he is performing. He falls to the ground and dies, but his spirit(?)
doesn't believe it. The fortune teller can see and talk to him, and he
tells him that he is, in fact, dead but will be given one more chance.
(Deadman views the rest of the happenings from the background, and no
one can see or hear him.) Batman, Robin, and Dick Grayson search the
grounds for a murder weapon and find the gun with a bunch of toy ones in
a carnival game. They trace it back to an arms dealer who tells them
the address it was sent to. They go there and find the murderer who is
about to join the "League of Assassins." Deadman's spirit jumps into
Batman's body and realizes he can control it. He identifies the man
that killed him and catches him. The man says he only did it so he'd
have a way to join the league. Then Deadman jumps into the killer's
body, surrenders to the Bat-crew, and admits to the crime. Then
Deadman's spirit is sucked from his body, and he says he's not sure if
he's dead or alive, and he'll never know.
COMMENTS: This is a VERY strange issue. It was so weird, that I
couldn't really get into it, and as such, didn't like it very much.
While the ending was cool (I'm a fan of "The X-Files" and I love those
creepy unresolved endings...), it was kind of odd. I'm still not sure
whether Deadman is alive or not. His little monologue at the end (see
the very beginning of this review) adds to the confusion, but also makes
the story better. This issue also had good artwork, as Rick Burchett
keeps turning out his best.
CRITICISMS: Where to begin? I'm not sure about this issue. It can't
decide who's point of view it wants to be told from, as it switches from
Deadman to Dick Grayson to Batman and back to Deadman. It also
downplays the Boston Brand's death (a funeral scene, or one of Dick
reacting to the simialarities between it and his parents' deaths would
have been nice), and it goes off on some "action" scene with Bruce Wayne
and Tim Drake fending off crazed circus animals. And I'm still not sure
why Batman didn't realize why A) he didn't have any memory from the
period that he was inhabited by Deadman, or B) that Deadman was in him.
It doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I suppose others would like it,
but this issue left me disapointed.
BOTTOM LINE: If you like Deadman, then this may be right up your
alley. If not, you can probably spend your money elsewhere (like
Superman Adventures #25, guest-starring Batgirl!).
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Issues 7-12
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