Batman Reborn

// December 10th, 2009 // Comics, Humor, Rumor

A few months ago I reported on a rumor that

Bruce Wayne would be returning to the DCU starting with a new miniseries next summer. It turns out the rumors were true.

DC’s Source Blog has confirmed that Bruce Wayne is returning this April. The original Batman was presumed dead after being struck by the New God of Evil Darkseid using his Omega Effect. The Omega Effect is one of several powers Darkseid has, each with it’s own unique properties. This particular beam sent the spirit of Bruce Wayne back in time while leaving behind his burnt husk of a body. Yeah, it didn’t make any sense to me either.

So let’s recap. The world’s greatest hero is killed and his once sidekick who has grown into a man and a hero in his own right takes over the mantle. That hero spends a short time in the role, never truly gelling before finding out that his friend and mentor isn’t dead but instead is lost in time.

Pretty weird story, right? Only problem is that I just described the last couple of years of Captain America. Marvel had a pretty sweet deal going with Ed Brubaker’s Captain America series. He spent a year trying to find the perfect Captain America. Granted, we all knew it would be his former sidekick Bucky Barnes, but the story was so great no one cared. Over the next year we watched Barnes become a viable hero in his own right, not just a place holder for Steve Rogers. Now Marvel is in the process of destroying that momentum so that Steve Rogers, Tony Start and Thor can become the holy triumvirate again. (And I suspect so Steve can become the new head of Shield.) And yet Captain America Reborn sucks ass.

Yep, almost as bad as the last Reborn.

But at least Bucky had a chance to become the role. I don’t care how acclaimed Grant Morrison’s Batman and Robin is, Dick Grayson still feels like Nightwing in bondage gear. He’s barely begun the job and already DC has announced how temporary he is. Is it because Batman is more iconic than Captain America? Arguably, but I doubt it. Maybe it’s partly because Nightwing will always be his own man in our eyes. As Jeph Loeb noted in Hush, ”Dick was born to be in the center ring.” But I still think DC has slighted this great character by never giving him a chance to spread his wings.

Bringing Bruce back now feels like a cheap stunt, even if we always knew it was going to happen. Bruce Wayne will always be Batman as long as comic books remain a viable medium. But Dick should have been given his time to shine. The former Robin is one of the most interesting and relatable characters in DC’s history. Given time, he might have even become a Batman all his own. But for the second time, Dick is having the mantle of the Bat taken from him (he had it for a short time after the Nightfall saga in the mid-90s).

What really annoys me is that it feels like another cheap stunt. Marvel and DC have been stealing from each other for years, even as recently as Marvel’s X-Men: Blackest Night. But it never works out. There’s never a great story behind it. Just muted, passive aggressive competition. And there’s no denying that these two stories venture far beyond the realm of coincidence or casual resemblance. I do have some hope that The Search for Bruce Wayne, Wrath of Retcons (or whatever they’re calling it) will fare better than Cap Reborn has, but the whole mess still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Okay Grant Morrison, that was my rant. You’ve sucked lately. Batman and Robin is decent, but Final Crisis was pure SHIT. Shit. The red watery kind that makes you think maybe you just peed blood out of your ass.

Batcave Man(see what I did there??) and Captain Bat Sparrow are a good start. I’m digging what Andy Kubert is laying down. Now just try not to fuck it up in the execution.

Okay?