ABSOLUTE BATMAN #20: The Batman Project

Absolute Batman #20 brings us a Batman who is being hunted, wanted for the death of Jim Gordon! Bruce has cut off communication to Pennyworth and Quinn as his leads have brought him back to Joe Chill, the man who murdered his father. Two men have orchestrated everything in his life, and the revelation is about to bring Bruce’s foundation crumbling down.

Creative Team: Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, Frank Martin, and Tom Napolitano.

SPOILERS AHEAD

The Story:

There is so much to unpack in this issue, and I seriously am amazed at how Scott manages to lay it out without convoluting the issue at all. First, we see Waylon meeting with Eddie, who is in some sort of contraption built to help his mind, and the dialogue between them is truly heartbreaking. We get a glimpse of Harvey and Oswald as their lives have become something much different, while Waylon is pleading with Eddie to help with Bruce. Scott gets us to empathize with every party in the matter, as their lives have been ruined at the hands of Bane.

The story overall is getting so much deeper than anything we’ve seen before. Mr. Grimm and Scarecrow have been behind everything in Bruce’s life. The revelation that they set him up to take down the Court of Owls blows my mind entirely. Scarecrow is perhaps the scariest he’s ever been portrayed in any medium, and I’m so here for it.

The Art and Letters:

The opening pages of this issue are truly horrifying and littered with gruesome details. The imagery of the man in the chair with what looks like the heads of children or babies is truly horrifying and sets the tone for Scarecrow and what is coming. Speaking of Scarecrow, he is drawn so damn well, and the way his eyes are buttons, and his mouth sewn together is just incredibly twisted. The way that the jailhouse sequence is colored is full of darkness and the shadows, and the coloring blends into the horror elements.

The dark background setting makes the chilling sequence of Chill hanging himself pop out in the panel in such a scary manner. I love the issue then brightens back up when the Robins burst onto the scene with their robotic suits. The way the robotic suits look and how the Robins move and take it to Batman in their fight, is amazing. Hats off to Napolitano with the lettering as he makes every word spoken by Scarecrow hit with a hiss and you can feel Bruce in agony as he screams.

Final Thoughts:

Absolute Batman #20 brings Bruce’s foundation crumbling down at his feet and ups the stakes of this entire run. I am excited to see what the Robins bring to the table in the next issue as the walls close in around Batman.

Overall Grade: 10/10

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