Batman #150: Two Narratives Diverge

A downside to universe-spanning crossover events is that they can derail solo books and their ongoing stories in service of the crossover. These can be tricky as a creative team can either try to work their story into the tapestry of the wider event, ignore it completely, or take a gap and break the flow so that a filler story can save time. Sometimes the most interesting decision is to try and interweave stories together to springboard the event itself, which is where Batman currently finds itself in relation to Absolute Power. 

Batman #150 splits into two distinct stories, a standalone tale that continues a throughline of the larger run and a direct tie-in to Absolute Power, taking place after issue #1. The self-contained story is written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Denys Cowan and Jorge Jiménez, coloring by Tomeu Morey, and lettering by Clayton Cowles. Picking up on a previous issue plotline set-up during Gotham War, Teddy, a two-bit henchman and former cat burglar apprentice of Catwoman learns Batman’s secret identity, unsure of who to sell the information to for some quick cash. He takes the promise of a reveal to Two-Face, hoping for a large sum to try and get out of crime. The villain refuses the secret identity, is afraid of a Batman with no alter ego, and is therefore restrained. 

Teddy and his middleman then take their information to the children of Oswald Cobblepot, who have been running the Iceberg Lounge and Penguin’s criminal empire since the early days of the Zdarsky run. Before the deal can be completed, Batman appears and in the confusion, a group of former Catwoman thieving appearances take Teddy to a hideout, ready to use his information after their heist. Batman appears again and defeats the crew, rescuing Teddy and giving him a chance to see his son before removing him from Gotham to protect the former villain. Bruce offers a bat-themed witness protection program, to get heat off the man and ensure his family stays safe.  

Bringing in Cowan is a spectacular decision, as it helps to shift the tone and atmosphere of the story. The artist is known for a variety of projects but his work on The Question remains seminal. That pedigree attached to his style feeds into the use of perspective-centering, as the issue frames itself around Teddy. Batman is always lurking or at a distance when used in Cowan’s pages. He is a figure in shadow, resembling the urban legend interpretation of the character lingering inside of a straightforward crime story. Cowan’s linework sells this notion through the use of blockier figures, scratchier lines, and tight panels that feel oppressive in a good way. 

The notion of Cowan handling a down-to-earth, crime-rich story is bolstered by the art of switching throughout the story. Jiménez handles flashbacks and stories of Batman, usually involving some rogues and high-flying action. Those pages are more in line with the events of the ongoing book and serve as an excellent backsplash for Cowan to play against. Even the page compositions share that clear distinction, as Cowan uses more ordered panels that don’t overlap and stick with mostly medium and close-up blockings. 

Zdarsky’s scripting manages to handle both elements of the story, easily shifting between the more grounded human drama with the mythic action. The ability to do both was evident during his Daredevil run with Marco Checchetto but the grounded aspects of Batman have been lacking in this run. The human drama is evident in the interpersonal conflicts between Bruce and the Batfamily but is done during a civil war in Gotham that feels like tensions turned to 11. Zdarsky interjects those moments into his writing and delivers on some strong beats but the big hole in his run thus far has been a gritter, more down to the underworld Batman story. 

This issue delivers completely while also maintaining a focus on Teddy as a point-of-view character, using the perspective shift to ground the character. There is little action, and dialogue has to drive the story, creating an enriching, moody tone piece that speaks to the other side of Batman’s mythos. It might be difficult to do that while working on the flagship Batman title in the heightened universe that has been building to the big bombastic event. With a focus on Zur-En-Arrh, a robot that can fight the entire Justice League, and trips through the multiverse, there has been a lock of room for those tales of Gotham’s seedy underbelly. That doesn’t seem to be changing with the tie-in to Absolute Power. 

That fact leads to a tie-in back half also written by Zdarsky and featuring pencils from Mike Hawthorne, inks by Adriano Di Benedetto, colors from Romulo Fajardo Jr., and lettering by Cowles. Starting after Amanda Waller and Failsafe release their Justice League-themed Amazo’s into the wider DC landscape, Batman sulks across the rainy nights of Bludhaven in opposition to Waller’s machinations. He finds a wired-in Cyborg trying to fight Waller’s digital influence, learning that she is using a Motherbox to power her robots. A quick fight with the Wonder Woman Amazo sends Batman scurrying and passes a message to Flash, who regroups with a recovering Superman. Batman makes clear he plans to continue fighting and indicates his reunion with Catwoman from last issue is going to come into play immediately.  

Zdarsky’s writing for this story hues closer to his typical approach to the larger Batman run, centering it directly into a DC universe. He demonstrates a concise voice for the brief appearance of the League while still ensuring that Batman feels like the protagonist of the story. It’s a subtle difference from approaching the book like an ensemble. We get Bruce’s internal monologue and Zdarsky gets to imbue the billionaire with a fun respect for Barry Allen. It’s a story that’s made up of little moments rather than trying to swing for the fences in broad strokes. Zdarsky leaves that for the event book and this story excels thanks to it. 

Much like the previous installments that featured Hawthorne and Di Benedetto’s art, the issue bumps against the visual style of the larger story. The linework doesn’t match the hyperkinetic action established by Jiménez and in this specific issue, feels like a sharp contrast to the alchemic combination of Cowan and Jiménez. Hawthorne’s work is at its best with depicting Flash and Wonder Woman in snapshots but the action and movement feel stiff and awkward. The speed effect used for Barry’s powers is a boring, utilitarian approach that does little to make his superspeed feel unique or fast on the page. It might be a downside of putting it in contrast to the other story, but the art can’t help but suffer in relation to the first half of the issue.