How do you fight the devil when the devil is real? Kate has had a prophecy mixed with religion following her throughout her entire life. It has even taken her twin sister from her, and now it has come from within the shadows to collect her soul.
Creative Team: Greg Rucka (WRITER), Dani (ARTIST and COVER), Matt Hollingsworth (COLORS and COVER), and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (LETTERS).
This is a joint review from Matt of Hops Geek News and Megan from the Vigilante Vibes Podcast!
SPOILERS AHEAD
The Story:
Megan: Batwoman #1 starts with Kate in what seems to be a mental health clinic. The doctors are discussing her progress, which seems to be at a minimum. Kate later finds herself in therapy, recanting the death of her twin sister, Beth. There’s a huge amount of mystery surrounding the first issue, and especially within Kate’s story. Kate is clearly suffering emotionally with the hauntings of her past, but she’s plagued with the question “How do you fight the devil when the devil is real?”
Greg Rucka set up a story that already has so many layers to it. There’s a lot of emotion put into the story, and I’m excited to see where it goes. With as much mystery as we see in the story, something tells me that this is just the start of Kate’s story.
Matt: Greg sets up just the right amount of mystery in this anticipated issue. Kate is in therapy dealing with the loss of her twin sister, and there is clearly something traumatic there for her to work through. As she references the past, we get to see sequences of her as Batwoman fighting “The Devil,” and the mystery brings in a bit of a haunted vibe to it all. I’m not too familiar as I would like to be with her past, but Greg makes it so you can be caught up while using this as a perfect jumping-in point to this story.
The Art and Letters:
Megan: The artwork is what really drives this first issue home. Thanks to Dani, the artwork feels like a blast from the past in the old school look of the drawings. Capturing that classic DC work, the artwork is detailed, yet somewhat abstract in some of the details. Matt Hollingsworth handles the colors, and brings a great amount of vibrancy that rivals the more muted tones.
Matt: Dani and Matt deliver different cultural aspects and details in their art and coloring with this issue. This takes place in Greece, and you can almost feel the warm sun as it radiates off the panels into the therapy room. There were panels where, to me, the room was detailed in such a way that it felt stifling to me and captured the essence of what therapy can be for some people. The final page features a splash page featuring Kate standing tall, allowing her costume to stand vibrantly against the back setting, amping us up for the future.
Final Thoughts:
Megan: 8.6/10. I’m very interested to see where this goes. The creative team will have you hooked into the story immediately, and will have you staying to ask “what’s next?”
Matt: 9/10. Batwoman #1 is taking us into the shoes of Kate Kane and bringing us a dark and mysterious past that is simmering at the surface. This first issue will draw you in leaving us ready for what is next.
Overall Grade – 8.8/10
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