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Posted December 18, 2012 by Mikael Angelo Francisco in Comics
 
 

COMIC BOOK REVIEW: Batman #15

Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Greg Capullo

Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo continue their much-hyped and much-anticipated Death of the Family event in Batman #15. Skeletons in the closet are revealed as the members of the Bat-family sit down and have a talk with their patriarch about the Joker, specifically about a certain card…

Snyder continues to write a dark and twisted book. People have made a big deal about the Joker’s return, and rightly so – aside from the months of hype for this story, this is pretty much Joker at his best and most terrifying.  His focus on Joker’s eyes is particularly chilling, and the implications of the last lines of dialogue in this issue will no doubt set the stage for whatever crazy things Bruce’s unhinged and hated foe has in store for him. Snyder also has the voices of the various members of the Bat-family down almost to a science, and I enjoyed the bits of interaction they had with each other while discussing what needs to be done about the Joker.

Greg Capullo isn’t my favorite artist, but his art suits the bleak tone of this book. His renditions of the characters remind me a bit of Chris Bachalo and Ed McGuiness for some reason, and while I’m still not completely sold on his art style, I definitely think he plays off Snyder’s scripting very well.

This issue sheds quite a bit of light about the Joker’s motivations, and emphasizes an important question left hanging above Batman’s head like Damocles’s sword – does the Joker really know their secret identities? At this point,  casualties are definitely expected, and I can’t wait to see how Batman and company will get out of this one. The issue also features a back-up story that illustrates the relationship between the Riddler and the Joker – it’s a bit light compared to the lead story, but still decent, nonetheless.

The book continues to be one of the consistently solid offerings from DC, and I can definitely say that the character is in good hands, as far as Death of the Family is concerned.

VERDICT: 4/5

The plot continues to thicken as the threat of the Joker’s re-emergence becomes even greater than Batman and his family ever thought was possible. Definitely looking forward to the next issue.

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Mikael Angelo Francisco