DC New 52: I Read a Whole Lotta BATWOMAN

BUY THIS BOOK. Not because you need it to enjoy the new series, but because IT'S REALLY, REALLY GOOD. (Image via Wikipedia)

by Mike Hansen

Batwoman is the best of the New 52 series, by a wide margin.

I finally got around to reading the first Batwoman collection, Elegy, and it is absolutely beautiful in every way. Greg Rucka’s story is one of his best (and that’s saying something). J.H. Williams III continues to up his game with shockingly great artwork in multiple styles (with moody, silhouette-heavy night/action scenes, Bryan Talbot-esque heavy linework in day scenes, and a lovely, simple style for flashbacks – plus a terrific Russ Heath/Dave Gibbons-ish style in one great war scene!). Multiple Eisner Award-winner (and my ex-coworker) Dave Stewart does the work of his career on this series, with absolutely breathtaking coloring throughout: the night/action scenes have wonderful color holds on the linework, with a moody color style that has an almost airbrush quality that I haven’t seen in over a decade in comics (when there were still actual airbrush-paint colorists); some nighttime scenes go even farther with even the linework looking painted and sculpted with color; and other scenes have simply perfect flat color choices that might even surpass Stewart’s work on the Hellboy books. With the addition of legendary letterer Todd Klein’s work, this book is a masterclass in how to do beautiful sequential superhero storytelling. Every creator involved is doing some of their best work, and I WANT MORE.

Luckily for me, the new Batwoman maintains the high standard of the previous series, despite the replacement of Greg Rucka with J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman on the writing. It’s hard to believe this title is from the same publisher that crapped out Red Hood. Williams and Blackman are off to a strong start so far: last year’s #0 issue was a terrific introduction to the character (as well as a preview of what to expect from co-artist Amy Reeder, who – like the others – does some of her best work here), and last month’s #1 manages to pick up where the story left off without making new readers feel lost. Batwoman isn’t just a great superhero comic; it’s a great comic, PERIOD – if you haven’t already, buy it now!

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