Batman #133: ‘I Am Thy Bruce’s Spirit’

Deconstruction and subversion are great tools in fiction, especially modern storytelling. A reverence or desire to interact and converse with previous works in a canon or genre becomes a powerful tool to propel a story forward. However, like any trope or mechanic, it can become tiring after repeated use. Sometimes, when you order a grilled cheese, you want a well-made one. Not a dish inspired by grilled cheeses or a deconstructed plate based on the item, but the real thing, with no bells and whistles. 

Batman #133 – written by Chip Zdarsky with pencils by Mike Hawthorne, inks from Adriano Di Benedetto, colors by Tomeu Morey, and letters from Clayton Cowles – is a grilled cheese Batman story. It continues Bruce’s multiversal adventure as Bruce dons a new (according to the book’s villain) Batman costume and begins his mission again. He takes down this world’s Riddler, clad in an even gaudier than usual suit and bowler hat, and his message of fear spreads through Gotham. 

The plots collide as a venomed-out Harvey Dent attacks, and Bruce is forced to make an example by curb-stomping him. Red Mask, the antagonist behind Arkham and Gotham with speed-related powers, sends Selina Kyle after the budding vigilante while Bruce digs himself up and investigates residual multiverse energy. Selina appears in the aftermath, revealing her contempt for the Red Mask and leading Bruce to the Arkham Caves, the base of operations for the villain. 

Zdarsky’s script breezes through plot and action with equal competency, hitting all the right notes. The scenes are not the most original or out there seen in a Batman comic, but it’s so well put together and enjoyable that it doesn’t matter. After the ‘Failsafe’ arc, which remixed and played with elements like Batman’s Doomsday, Zur-En-Arhh, and the ‘Tower of Babel’ contingencies, this straightforward story of Bruce asserting himself in a new Gotham is reassuring. Zdarsky proves that even with alternate versions of these well-known characters, he has a specific and concrete voice for the major Batman antagonists like Two-Face, Riddler, and Catwoman. 

The best scene of this issue isn’t the rad fight with drugged-up Dent or the hints of superspeed from Red Mask but the brief conversation between this world’s Alfred and Bruce. It’s built around Bruce’s gravedigging of himself, but the fine line that the dialogue walks are a showstopper. In a continuity that’s featured a dead Alfred since the end of Tom King’s run on the title, this moment proves there’s still a well to mine between the characters. Watching Bruce explain his history to Alfred and then proceeding to watch the butler breakdown is a one-two gut punch that is well-written and deftly rendered. 

Hawthorne’s style for this arc has been a solid change from Jorge Jiménez’s high octane, elastic style, which fits in the framework of an off-kilter Gotham. The pairing of Hawthorn’s pencils and Di Benedetto’s inks are a strengthened change compared to their previous collaboration. It feels tighter and more refined than when the duo worked on Daredevil, which had a bit of a looser and less detail-oriented inking style that sometimes brought a reader out of the story. 

The new Batman costume highlights the shift in sensibility, blending classic silhouettes for the Dark Knight while showcasing the improvised materials that make up the costume. In the opening fight, the iconic Batman leap into action shows how Hawthorne and Di Benedetto composed a frightening figure in shadows and then an intimidating Batman, even if it’s made of a custom bike helmet and hockey pads. The padding, which looks like Bruce raided a few sporting goods stores, and the wide, massive Bat symbol set this suit apart immediately. 

Much of the art’s success lies in Morey’s coloring, which plays on the red and blacks of Gotham to highlight the action and violence, while sharp blues are used in the more emotional moments. The credit page with Batman springing on the Riddler features a blood-red sky, contrasting the orange-red of the villain’s suit. It shades the profile of the Dark Knight and tells the audience Riddler is in a world of hurt before we see the pictures of him recovering in a neck brace. Red recurs throughout the issue, from the striking scar on Selina’s face to Red Mask’s powers and then the bloodshot eyes of Dent as he pumps himself with venom.

The color contrasts with the gray-blues of the foggy night as Bruce digs up his doppelgänger’s corpse. It’s an excellent mood-setting that plays up the Shakespearean tragedy of a figure returning to his grave and facing someone from his past. Bruce and Alfred are grappling with their ghosts, and the coloring heightens that dissonance between parent and child. When Hawthorne delivers the gut punch of Alfred breaking down in the rain, the fog engulfs the scene, externalizing the overflowing emotion coming from the butler. 

With a script by Zdarsky with art from his Justice League: Last Ride collaborator Miguel Mendonça, colors from Roman Stevens, and lettering from Cowles, the story sees Robin rescuing a group of kidnappers from the Toyman’s twisted suburbs. Mendonça’s art is excellent at showcasing the horrors and anatomically incorrect robots, giving a twisted sense of existence to these monstrosities, cutting people up in basements of this make-believe neighborhood. The issue also features the continuing backup focused on Tim Drake’s search for Bruce in the main universe. 

The action works well with the horror vibes, with a particular standout panel showcasing Mendonça’s skill for composition and Stevens’s use of color to show the fight in silhouette. The figure’s outlines, made of a blinding orange, clash against a solid black background that feeds into the gutters of the page, adding an overwhelming sense to the attackers. Robin’s righteous fury and training win out, and the fight is won, with Toyman and his captives in tow as Robin returns to his world, ready to find Batman with his next leap into the multiverse.