Monthly (Comic) Book Club - September - Batman: Years One & Two19935
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Monthly (Comic) Book Club - September - Batman: Years One & Two  Batman (1940): 404-407 Detective Comics (1937): 575-578 Week 1 (9/4-8/10): Batman #404-405 Week 2 (9/11-9/17): Batman #406-407 Week 3 (9/18-9/24): Detective Comics #575-576 Week 4 (9/25-9/31): Detective Comics #577-578 Discussion topic ideas: * Thoughts on the story or artwork * Details in the story, artwork, or presentation * References to outside events or other works of fiction * Making of/Behind the Scenes details * Editions you will be reading from * Items in your collection pertaining to this week’s selection |
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 Just picked this up at Walmart today, I would liked to have gotten year two as well but they didn’t have it. Honestly I’m surprised they had any comics |
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| @Stonecollector Year One is one of those perennial classics that I doubt has ever been out of print since it was published. It has been a major inspiration for popular Batman adaptations so for a lot of people this is the Batman origin they know even if they’ve never read the story. Year Two, on the other hand is a mostly unknown follow-up, I think. I’m no stranger to comics but I couldn’t tell you what Year Two was about. I’m a bit excited to check it out since it has inspired a favorite Batman story of mine but I will get more i to that when we get to reading that story |
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 Staple topics, nice.
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| Walmart's out here in San Diego used to have comic book packs, not so much anymore. | ||
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 If the viagra is working you should be well over a 9.8.
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| Time to dig in! I'm reading from (what looks like) the same TPB that @Stonecollector posted. I didn't get mine from Walmart though. The introduction says that in '86 DC decided to revamp their heroes (presumably after Crisis on Infinite Earths? although it doesn't say) but didn't have anything to change about Batman's origin. So they decided to basically retell it but add detail and complexity. Frank Miller volunteered to write it and everyone was happy because he had already done Daredevil and Dark Knight Returns. #1 starts with the parallel arrival of Lieutenant Gordon (not captain or commissioner yet) and Bruce Wayne to Gotham City. They establish quickly that the police are corrupt, and Gordon has something in his past that isn't going to let him rock the boat from the get-go. But soon enough they're both acting to form. Gordon takes a beating from the cops, including his partner, and Bruce tries going into the seediest part of Gotham but gets roughed up and shot as well. Gordon goes and beats up his partner, and Bruce decides not to bleed to death after a bat inspires him on how to frighten the criminal element. It's a pretty quick run through Batman's origin. They do include the deaths of his parents but it's a page. Gordon's part feels more interesting, and with more stakes. We know Bruce is going to become Batman, with his full suit of plot armor. Gordon will stick around, of course, to become Batman's partner inside the police but his story has more room to change, and he is more disposable. |
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| Issue 2 continues with Gordon. Seemingly the entire rest of the force wants him out but the press likes him. He stops a more violent squad from going in after a schizophrenic and takes care of it himself. I'm not sure that punching the guy out is the proper approach to someone with a mental problem, but it's better than shooting him and maybe getting kids killed as well. Bruce also puts on the costume for the first time and still has a rough time of it. He spends most of his time preventing one of the thieves he went after from falling to his death. He's moving fast, though, as Gordon says he's been all over town in the past month. That includes beating up Flass. Gordon has taken to going after Batman, especially since Batman threatened the mayor and has started going after big players. But Gordon's opinion seems to turn on a dime when he sees Batman save an old woman from a runaway truck. The issue ends with Batman wounded and the police blowing up the building he's in. Quite a cliffhanger for next week! |
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| Been working late so haven’t had much time to read my Batman year one but I just finished first two chapters. So far so good only issue I I’m having is the lettering is really dark and bleeds into the background making it hard to read, not sure if all copies are like that or just mine | ||
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| @Stonecollector my copy is pretty clear. I had a little trouble occasionally with Bruce's inner monologue but that's just a general issue with script being less clear than the usual all-caps lettering. | ||
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| I finally dug out my copy of the Absolute Edition. I’m a bit on the fence on this version. It does come with two books. One is the story printed on standard heavy and glossy paper stock typically used in the absolute editions. The other is the story printed on newsprint to better emulate the original printing of the book. The two have different bonus features but it also feels like they’re trying to pad the content of the book so they can justify the premium they charge for these editions. It’s not the first absolute to include two books. I know Danger Girl had a separate book full of sketches. Nor was it the las book to print the story twice; Killing Joke does it as well but in that one, one book has the story with the original coloring while the second has the later recoloring. I understand that one a little better as the recoloring was controversial at the time, so it’s nice to have both versions. |
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| Part One and possibly the whole story is something of a mirrored story with both Bruce Wayne and Gordon arriving in Gotham the same day. The tone is very Miller, though not as over-the-top as we’d seen in Ronin but it very much fees like the Gotham City he portrays in Dark Knight Returns. So many adaptations have drawn from this material. Batman Begins pulls a lot, including the young Wayne returning from some time abroad, which I don’t recall seeing in other adaptations. Gordon’s arrival into Gotham I fee was used in the series Gotham except with Flass replaced by Bullock and though he’s not a straight arrow, I don’t think Bullock was portrayed as flat out crooked. Even Batman Forever had a deleted scene with Bruce coming face to face with a giant bat as he plumbs the depths of his memory  Year One also heavily inspired the flashback sequences in Mask of the Phantasm. Bruce’ training scene with the trees is very similar to the scene where he’s practicing jiu-jitsu, him kneeing in front of his parents’ grave seems very reminiscent as is his asking his parents for guidance and search for that final piece of the puzzle to make his crime-fighting persona whole  Regarding the absolute edition, aside from the paper stock difference between the two books, the updated printing has also been recolored. Sometimes it’s minor like the reflections and wheels of Gordon’s car  Sometimes it can be a significant change in the color language  Overall, I’d say the recoloring has a warmer, less contrasty color scheme. Blues and other cool colors are often replaced or desaturated. The Notable exception being Holly, whose yellow jacket in the original is now a darkish blue/purple  |
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| In part two, Gordon’s star seems to be rising. I’m not sure if the incident with the hostage was the first time he got media attention but as Batman says, the right people seem to hate him. Gordon doesn’t seem to like his job very much but he sticks to it for his wife and unborn baby. I really liked the scene of Batman’s first outing. Most depictions of Batman load him up with plot armor so thick he’d give old Ironsides a run for its money. Here things don’t go perfectly. He achieves his goal but only barely. It is interesting to keep track of the dates to see how fast things are progressing. Batman’s first outing was on April 9th and by May 15th has a reputation. By the 19th’s he’s stepped up his flair for the dramatic and put Gotham’s big fish on alert. The following day Gordon is tasked with bringing him down and by June 5th Batman is sinking mob boss’ luxury cars in the river. Something else we see developing is between Gordon and Detective Essen. In the May 15th meeting she comes up with a match when Gordon asks for one and by June 6th she’s anticipating his need for a light in his car. I imagine DNA testing wasn’t so much a thing at the time this was written or else that gunshot Batman took to the leg might be problematic in the future Speaking of the gunshot, the building explosion and the SWAT team chasing batman again feels very reminiscent of a scene in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm |
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If the viagra is working you should be well over a 9.8.
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| I'm definitely seeing a lot of elements I remember from movies but I need to find the time to rewatch some to figure out what scene was in which film. | ||
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 Came home from work to find my year two came a week early now I just got to finish the first book |
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@Stonecollector Nice! My Year Two is expected on the 19th! I was a little late in ordering it  |
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| Friday reading day Issue 3 resolves Batman escaping from the police. We see a little of the old plot armor kick in as Batman pulls off feats like destroying a building (roughly speaking) with some kicks. He also punches a guy through an exterior wall. But that's what makes Batman Batman - he's prepared, and he improvises well. He loses his belt early on so he can't attack the SWAT team directly, but he creates a big distraction and calls in some bats for cover and escapes. I think the action is pretty effective, although there's a little confusion where Batman says they shot his other leg but I don't see it. In the aftermath, Gordon is falling more for Essen and hating himself for it. Selina decides to leave prostitution behind (is there any woman that Miller can't make a prostitute?) and put on a cat costume. And Batman decides that he needs to get Gordon on his side. |
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| Issue 4 basically sets Batman into the status quo we're familiar with. Essen gets a transfer and Gordon plays it straight with his wife, so his family is back on track. Bruce helps rescue Gordon's baby when he's kidnapped to cement getting Gordon on his side. Gordon at least claims to not recognize him, but even out of the suit he knew it was Batman. Some of the corruption in Gotham goes to trial, and Gordon ends up Captain. It ends with Gordon calling in Batman's help for some new bad guy called the Joker, which is how Batman Begins ended. I think it's a solid re-introduction of Batman. I like that it focuses on Gordon more than Batman. There really isn't much to Batman in terms of set-up or motivation: his parents were killed and he decided to become a vigilante to stomp out crime. So we could have had a lot of panels of Bruce working out, or talking with scientists at Wayne to make stuff that he can use for gadgets, but instead we learn about Batman from an outside perspective while also getting a hard-boiled police story. It's a good choice. The extra materials in my copy include a short comic by Mazzucchelli on the pros and cons of making superheroes realistic, which is interesting but doesn't have too much discussion. There are also some page layouts and other drawings he did that ended up on various collection covers. It's neat enough but maybe a little thin in terms of padding a four issue series into a TPB. |
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| While Batman is far too resistant in issue 3, after having been shot multiple times and then taking out a squad of SWAT, as far as Batman plot armor goes, he was downright realistic. Miller does a good job of selling the scene as Batman being on the back foot but having to improvise his way out of a bad situation. The bat-summoning device certainly would work as a distraction and I do like that Miller addressed everyone having to get vaccinated afterwards. This was also an element used in Batman Begins in what feels like a significantly abridged version of the comic. I guess the Batman Begins adaptation also shows my point about Batman’s plot armor in other media. In Year One it’s a tough fight that Batman struggles through but in Batman Begins he barely breaks a sweat and pretty much just walks out I don’t think there’s anything inherrently wrong with making Selina a prostitute but I do agree that it’s a trope that Miller leans on far too often as a shortcut for “woman in a dark and gritty setting.” I also don’t think it necessarily adds anything interesting to the character. Selina was basically a prostitute then becomes Catwoman with nothing in the former informing the latter, except maybe that she had to be tough to survive? Compared to say Catwoman’s appearance in Batman Returns where Selina’s Catwoman persona is a direct response to her meek and subservient life as a secretary. I do think Gordon’s budding affair was handled well. It seems to grow naturally in a setting where Gordon’s wife is not only indisposed but in a city where he probably wouldn’t want her out and about for her safety. Essen then is something of a lifeline for Gordon when he’s working the streets of a rotting city. He does recognize that it’s wrong and it puts a strain on his marriage and increases his distaste for the city and the job, which is what pushed him to Essen in the first place. |
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| The final issue wraps things up but it is interesting that there’s only a loose plot running through the book in so far as there isn’t really a clear villain or objective for Batman or even Gordon. Instead there’s more of a looming darkness over Gotham that is the rampant corruption and by the end of the story it isn’t gone but there are now elements, Batman, Gordon, and to a lesser extent, Dent working and making progress in dispelling it. Catwoman feels a little superfluous in the story. I wonder if there was an editorial mandate to include at least one of Batman’s recognizable villains and Catwoman was Miller delivering or maybe he just wanted to include Catwoman with or without a significant narrative purpose. That said, I do like that this story avoids what so many prequels nowadays revel in and that’s foreshadowing and referencing pretty much everything we already know of the character. There’s no run in with a little boy named Dick, no Doctor F in a cryogenics lab, a little girl named Pamela that likes flowers. Hell, there isn’t even a black car that would become the Batmobile. All in all, especially for a Frank Miller story, the book is downright restrained. You do get some of Miller’s hard-boiled detective talk but nothing too over the top like we’d see in Sin Ciry, or even Miller’s future Batman work. The action is fairly grounded for a super hero comic and ended comes in news snippets instead of bombastic over the top set pieces. I agree that this isn’t really an origin story. After those few panels in the first issue, we don’t really see Bruce’ parents getting murdered so we’re just left with whatever interpretation we already had in our heads. It’s definitely more Gordon’s story than Batman’s. Gordon is the one faced with the overbearing corruption of the police and local government on his first day and the story ends with Gordon’s outlook for a better future, both for himself and for Gotham, improved. And it’s a future he fights for just as much and just as hard as Batman does, whether it’s putting Flass in his place, taking down drug lords, or fighting gangsters to save his wife and newborn son. Batman’s goals are in the same direction as Gordon’s but Bruce’s arc is basically “how do I not get myself killed while doing this.” Quote: Originally Posted by xkonk I’m guessing this is a slight jab at Batman Begins, which does spend quite a bit of time on everything you said this book avoided. Speaking of Batman Begins, it clearly took a lot of influence from this book while mixing in far more of the superhero-y elements with a big, city-threatening plan and a defined villain. I also thought back to Burton’s first Batman movie. It is also centered around Batman’s early career but I can’t spot any real concrete inspiration taken from the book. If I’m remembering correctly, Burton wanted to do something more closely inspired by Dark Knight Returns but would’ve been odd to do a final Batman story without having re-introduced the character to general audiences first. Beyond the multitudes of inspirations other adaptations have taken. Year One has been directly adapted into an animated film with Bryan Cranston and Gordon, which seems like perfect casting. I haven’t watched it in some time but might give it a watch this weekend |
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Quote:Originally Posted by dielinfinite It wasn't meant to be a jab, as I enjoyed all the Nolan movies, but I think the way Miller told the story here is more engaging than spending a lot of time with Batman's prep. Of course, it depends on how you do it. Batman Begins has Batman's prep be prison fights and ninja training, which I found engaging. It does also spend time on Lucius Fox, but not overly. Since Year One starts with Batman's return to Gotham, the comic would have been all Fox and no ninjas. Which, as I write it, now sounds like I'm jabbing at Lucius Fox, which I'm not trying to do. I guess I'm just saying if you're trying to fill out a four-issue superhero book, it's better to have police action than a bunch of lab talk. |
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Quote:Originally Posted by dielinfinite I think it's more of a "fool me once" thing. If starting Selina as a prostitute was a one-off thing, we could talk about if it was somehow worthwhile (I agree with your point that it adds little to nothing to her character, which isn't explored anyway). But I think it would be an exercise to find something Miller wrote where a woman (usually women) isn't simply a sexual object. Here are a few examples, https://www.toplessrobot.com/2009/01/6_hints_that_frank_miller_might_have_issues_with_w.php , and off the top of my head there's also Karen Page from Daredevil and the oracle women in 300 (the only female characters in the book aside from Leonides' wife, who is raped or threatened with it).  |
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| Miller does seem to have a limited palette for female characters. They seem to be wither prostitutes or warrior women and not uncommonly both (see: Sin City). Unfortunately, even those he writes well he seems to revisit and worsen later. I thought Elektra in Miller’s original DD was well rounded but then Miller goes back in Man Without Fear and makes her borderline psychotic (even before her father’s death) to the point that she lures thugs into alleyways with her state of undress just for the fun of assaulting them. I still haven’t read Dark Knight Strikes again but I believe Carrie Kelley’s characterization was a little questionable in that haver having been a fun character in DKR. Like I said, though, this book was Miller at his most restrained. Yes Selina and Holly and prostitutes but it’s not depicted as more than standing on street corners and some colorful language. Even less for Selina actually who seems to just hang out at home and only ventures out when something catches her attention (the commotion Bruce caused with the pimp or Batman cornered in the building). She does go out for fun as Catwoman so I guess that’s some reflection on her character. I agree that I liked the Nolan movies as well but I did think some of the elements that grounded it, like showing how Wayne has to source parts from China and in volume to avoid suspicion was unnecessary. Part of that is probably because I was raised on Burton’s more expressionist approach. |
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| It's true, Miller is pretty restrained here. And we've read enough Miller, and he's generally a good enough writer, that I feel a little silly making a deal of it (probably not for the first time). But the guy can't help himself and I guess I can't either. | ||
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| I'm out of town this weekend, so mid-week reading for me. Year Two has a completely different creative team, being written by Mike Barr and drawn by Alan Davis (this issue) and McFarlane (the other three). Gordon has been moved to Commissioner, which is pretty fast. If it's really 'year two', he went from new lieutenant on the force to captain to commissioner in two years (or less). Batman also seems to have advanced, as he handles a room full of thieves with guns quickly and easily, and has a new costume. The public is presumably on his side, although the reporter says people compare him to the Reaper, because Gordon is willing to say out loud that the police are working with him and they couldn't stop him anyway. Bruce has some relationship with Dr. Thompkins, who knows he's Batman. She's working with Rachel Caspian, who is doing some charity work that Bruce is connected to. Bruce does the charming bachelor thing but she's going to become a nun. In contrast, her father is the Reaper. Being back in Gotham he immediately puts on the old suit and starts killing muggers. Batman figures out where he might patrol next and they get into a fight, where Reaper hands Batman quite a beating. Bruce says that maybe it's time to turn to the gun. This feels like a lot of change for one year of 'real time'! The tone is also pretty different. The Reaper is a very theatrical villain and the issue is definitely more superhero and less hard-boiled police story. I also have questions about how a guy at least 20 years older than Batman is holding up with him that well physically. But perhaps all will be revealed in the next few issues. |
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| Initially I thought it seemed odd that people would consider Batman and the Reaper similar but I reconsidered after the beginning of #576. The Reaper operates on fear and has some tricks up his sleeve, much like Batman. But unlike Batman (so far!), the Reaper is perfectly willing to kill, including the police if they get in his way. His backstory is similar to Batman's, with a random crime leading to his wife's death. In the meantime, Bruce is still making moves on Rachel. No respect for religion, I guess. Batman has plans for the Reaper, plans that will put him on the outs with Gordon and the police. Apparently that means rescuing a mobster from Metropolis and then calling a truce with Gotham's mob. But the big twist is that he'll have to work with Joe Chill, who he recognizes as the man who killed his parents. I know we're just in the first half of the arc but I feel like the questions are coming fast and furious. Why is the Reaper, apparently an old man, so much better than Batman? If Batman knows that the guy who killed his parents is still around, why is that guy walking the streets? If Rachel has long-term been planning on being a nun, why is she making out with a virtual stranger? On the art side, I would say this arc is also much more in the superhero vein than Miller's art in year one. Things aren't nearly so shadowy except for showing Batman's prowess. McFarlane has the cape art going that he would take to full effect in Spawn. It fits the story tone, which is also dramatically different. |
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| Just finished year one, it was weird at first I wasn’t expecting it to come from gordon’s point view it actually made it more like an old crime noir I even let out a random chuckle when they mentioned Superman offhandedly. Wish Selena Kyles story would have been given more shape she just seemed pushed into the story for no reason. I Spent most of the time playing where’s Waldo for all the stuff that made it into film it was a good buy and a fun read . . . There might be something to this Batman | ||
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| Year Two is incredibly different from the get-go. Reading the introduction by Mike Barr I think goes some way to explaining the approach. Year Two wasn’t written so much as a direct continuation of Year One but as another revisitation of early Batman. He decided to take some cues from Batman 47, where Bill Finger and Bob Kane revisit. Atman’s origin an have him encounter Joe Chill. Not sure what elements exactly he’s planning to incorporate but it’s interesting to see what he’s gone back to. Barr also points out a distinct difference between his and Miller’s relationship with Batman. Miller, according to Barr, likes to strip away as much of the extra baggage from Batman as possible to see what makes him tick, whereas Barr loves all the extras that. Atman has built up over the years, be it the Bat Cave, Batmobile, etc. He also mentions a couple of important behind-the-scenes tidbits. The first being that Alan Davis’ cover for part one was changed without his knowledge, which lead him leaving the book and Todd McFarlane being brought in to finish the story. Next, Barr mentions that the fact that it was drawn by two different artists is what kept DC from collecting the story for so long. If anyone has any insight into this policy at DC, I’d love to learn more. Anyways, back to the story. The addition of the Reaper to Gotham’s past is an interesting bit of retconning. Batman is now no longer Gotham’s first vigilante, though he is different in that he does not kill and has allies in the police. This change doesn’t necessarily conflict with anything but it does give Batman a shadow he has to separate himself from. This addition to building up the foundation of the world that created Batman reminds me a little of how the Court of Owls was later added as a major foundation of Gotham’s underworld and of Gotham itself and so if Batman wanted to fight crime and make a better Gotham, he would have to separate the Court of Owls from Gotham. There are a slew of new (as in not part of Year One) characters we are introduced to in this issue. Dr Thompkins is not introduced here but in the spirit of Year One and Two was written into Bruce Wayne’s past as having comforted Bruce Wayne after the passing of his parents. I have to imagine this isn’t meant to pick up right where Year One left off as, in addition to Gordon already being promoted to commissioner, Doctor Thompkins is already aware of Batman’s secret identity. You’d imagine Batman wouldn’t reveal that to anyone so quickly. Next we have Rachel, who seems to be a love interest for Bruce and her father who, I believe is unnamed in this issue, if not the Raper now, is revealed to have been the reaper from 20 years ago. He seems ro have just come into town, seen how his once fancy streets have gone to hell and has decided to take up his Reaper persona once more. The Reaper’s encounter with the prostitute feels like it might be a callback to Bruce encountering one in Year One. Having Batman get beaten so handily I think is meant to suggest he is still inexperienced. Sure he can handle some street punks but costumed villains are still a level above and his inexperience leads him to underestimate the Reaper. I do feel the pacing might be a bit rushed, something Year One handled by irregularly calling out the date so that while much can happen in a single issue, in-universe they could be days or weeks apart. Here it feels like the father comes back, that same night kills some muggers. Next night Gordon tells Batman, batman finds the Reaper, and the one encounter shakes Bruce so much that he decides to resort to guns the next day. It just seems too fast. Personally, I would’ve built up the Reaper’s mystique a little longer and had Batman encounter him in the second issue, and only after failing to stop him in a second encounter would Batman resort to using a gun. Batman using a gun, I think, also deserves some discussion. It feels super weird given so many decades of Batman’s no guns rule, but if this is meant to be an early Batman adventure you figure that rule would have to come from somewhere. Additionally, Batman used a gun somewhat regularly in his early appearances so acknowledging that and revisiting, reinterpreting, and recontextualizing early Batman, which seems to be the meta theme connecting the two stories, seems to make sense. |
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Next Month! - October - Wytches by Scott Snyder Wytches #1-6 Week 1 (10/2-10/8): Wytches #1-2 Week 2 (10/9-10/15): Wytches #3-4 Week 3 (10/16-10/23): Wytches #5-6 |
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| Wrapping up year two: The first panel in #577 has some prime McFarlane cape work. I wonder how easy it would be to get a bunch of pictures with capes and have people say McFarlane or not? Batman goes on a mission with Joe Chill. Batman has his gun but is only using it to disarm, and is avoiding killing people, but Chill is not. This is mostly an action issue, as the mission pays off pretty quickly and the Reaper goes after the hippies that Batman and Chill set up as bait. The police also find out and it turns into a big fight. Some people get killed but the Reaper gets away and Batman has to save Chill when the building blows up. I feel like this issue looks a bit more McFarlane-y beyond the capes. The art reminds me more of that 90s look in general. Otherwise I don't think there's much to it. |
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| #578 wraps the storyline. It seems conflicted, and wraps up too quickly. The Reaper gets an informant to tip off the police on a mob meeting, and uses their raid as cover to get in and attack the mobsters. Batman sees the commotion and joins in. There's another big fight and another explosion. Batman and Chill get away but Batman thinks that the Reaper died, so he goes for his final chat with Chill. He's threatening to kill Chill when the Reaper does instead, leading to a final battle. Batman comes out on top this time and tries to save the Reaper, revealed as Rachel's dad, but the Reaper lets himself fall off the building instead. Rachel decides to go back to the convent and Batman buries the gun in the new building dedicated to his father. I feel like this story needed an extra issue or two, but at the same time it was cliche enough that I'm not sure it would have gone well. Batman never kills anyone, and doesn't use his gun all that much in general, but the Reaper is happy enough to see him as a replacement and let himself die. A bad guy says that Batman was only working with the mob until the Reaper was captured and Gordon basically says all is forgiven. Bruce talks Rachel out of going to the convent, they get engaged, and then she goes back to the convent when she hears her father was the Reaper. It's all a lot and happens quickly, and some of it strains credulity. I gave Miller's work some grief earlier in the thread, but Year One is clearly better than Year Two as far as the story goes. |
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| I felt part two was a bit messy. I do like McFarlane’s art but his happy Bruce Wayne is a little off-putting. The sequential action can be a little hard to follow, particularly in Batman’s battle with the Reaper. Batman’s facing off with the Reaper in one panel and suddenly there’s scythes coming through an airplane seat? The Reaper is being rushed by police inside the plane and there’s suddenly a furl tank for him to shoot? The scene of Batman dealing with the mob bosses feels very reminiscent of the Joker offering to kill Batman in the Dark Knight, though no pencil trick in this one. Rachel kissing Bruce doesn’t feel off to me. As you said, she’s about to become a nun. She’s not one yet so it makes sense that she wouldn’t bind herself to their rules and expectations quite yet. Speaking of Rachel, while she’s speaking with her dad we do get an origin of sorts for the Reaper. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that it is very similar to Batman’s. I do wonder what the mob bosses think Joe Chill will bring to the table alongside Batman, aside from being their eyes on Batman. It does take a bit of thinking to rationalize Joe Chill still being out free. Going after him could certainly have been an early project for Batman. Would there be any reason he wouldn’t. I suppose he could see stopping other criminals and saving others would be placed above his own personal vengeance. But Joe Chill has killed and could kill again so I can see it either way |
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